20 major things to note if you are considering going live on Instagram.

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A church leader has a desire for continuous fellowship among brethren.
A thought leader has new knowledge and insights to share especially as it relates with doing life during and after the lockdown
A celebrity has a desire to stay relevant to their followers/fans.
Business people have a desire to connect their potential customers
Teachers, leaders, comedians, singers and famous people all might be considering going live on instagram this stay at home season

Regardless of the reason why you are going live, it is important that you do it right.
Remember there are several live sessions going on at the same time and people are looking for which may catch their attention, I have listed 20 things that will help you connect and communicate effectively with your audience.

Feyi Adanlawo though is not planning to go live on Instagram belongs to a small counselling group and she has coached 6 different people within her group through going live on Instagram


1. Charge your phone

Make sure you charge your phone full before going live. You will use between 40% to 75% of your battery charge for a 1 hour live session (depending on your phone type).
If your battery is not full, find a way to leave it connected to power (electric or power bank) while you go live.

2. Close all background running apps

Close all apps running in the background for  more effective live session, if not you may experience lagging

3. Use a good network.

This is actually a challenge in Nigeria and Africa especially in this season where everyone is on their phones. Make sure you test all your networks to see which is the best before going live.

4. Switch off your sim card.

You can only achieve this by using Wi-Fi network, put your phone on flight mode while connecting to Wi-Fi network for your live session. This is because a call may come in and interrupt your session.

5. Prepare for your live session.

Do not let the pressure to connect with your followers/fans through a live session overwhelm your preparedness except your session is for questions and answers or just gists

6. Show only what you want people to see.

Do not just stand/sit anywhere in your house while going live check your background and ensure everything that would be showing to your audience is what you want them to see. Do not ever think what you say is the only thing that matters, People see EVERYTHING.

7. Set the stage

A good way to go live on Instagram is to sit at a table with a beautiful background behind e.g. a neatly arranged book shelf, a shelf where your awards and medals are neatly displayed, a beautiful blind, a plain wall or a painting/artwork hanging on your wall.

8. Beware of contradicting your personal brand.

Be careful that behaviors, demeanor, and elements that misrepresent your personal brand should be taken care of before going live.

9. If you represent brands, never send contradictory messages in any form. 

E.g. If you signed a contract with peak milk for one year, do not go live with cowbell milk visible in your shelf (same for beauty products, hair line etc.)

10. Dress up

But not too much, do not go live with your hair uncombed and dress falling off your shoulder with visible evidence of absence of underwear all in the name of “keeping it real” it is distasteful.
Always look the part though you have to strike a balance so that you are not also doing too much and coming off as plastic 

11. Stay in a quiet room.

Stay in a quiet room and shut out the noise, avoid speaking to people in the background except it is part of the script.

12. Be Audible.

Ensure to speak up and do not keep your device to far away from you

13. Avoid the use of headphone.

Headphones does no good for a live session, it gives off an offensive streaking noise

14. You need enough lighting.

Ensure that you are going live in a well lit room regardless of the time of the day, if your session is in the night, use additional lighting to focus on your face (you can achieve this with a simple rechargeable lamp)

15. Going live with another person?

When going live with another person ensure to call them right before you go live so that they can be on standby, also emphasize to them why they need to also use a good network preferably Wi-Fi so that they can switch off their sim cards for an effective session, also educate them on the setting of their background, lighting, being audible. Etc.

16. Switch off comment if:

1) Your program is a serious one and you want to minimize distraction.
2) You are going live with someone else, the comments may cover their faces.

17. Switch on comment if:

1) You would like to connect with your audience by asking them to wave or comment their location.
2) It is a question an answer forum and you are reading the questions from the comments
3) You love to feel connected to your audience, their comments would give you the feeling of chatter and applause that you get from a physical gathering

18. Never hold your device yourself

Use a clamp phone holder, mini tripod or improvise by using an open laptop to hold your phone up.

19. For a wider angle

Use landscape orientation but then you may be unable to read the comments effectively

20. Use a Mic if:

1) Your live session is a church setting and the recording device is far away from you
2) You love to have background music so that your voice is still heard.

About Author:

Feyi Adanlawo is a Personal Shopper, NGO consultant and Lifestyle writer and enthusiast. You can reach her on feyiadanlawo@gmail.com  and @feyiadanlawo on Instagram and Twitter