How to Generate Leads From YouTube Live

Source: Neil Patel

YouTube Live is a vastly underutilized tool that should be in every marketer’s arsenal.

It’s easy to look at your options for Live video and think that Facebook is enough, but that just isn’t so — not to say that Facebook Live isn’t important. It definitely is.

But people watch more than 1 billion hours of YouTube every day.

That means not using YouTube Live is like holding onto a winning lotto ticket until it expires. You wouldn’t do that, right?

Live video is such an effective marketing method that I believe everyone should be using it.

So I’m going to show you how to set up and effectively use YouTube Live to grow your business and convert viewers into leads.

The good news is that you can start producing effective Live content in a matter of minutes.

But first, you need to understand just how powerful Live video can be for your business.

Why use Live Video?

Live video has been around for a few years, but many marketers still stick to the “tried-and-true” methods of digital marketing like blog posts and social publishing.

But they’re missing out on a huge stream of leads when they neglect live-streaming services.

80% of daily Internet users would rather watch your video than read your blog post.

You’ll also notice that 70% would prefer to watch your Live video on YouTube.

So why aren’t you using it yet?

Most likely, you’ve found that YouTube Live isn’t quite the plug-and-play system that services like Facebook use.

Facebook is easy!

And your audience is there, so it definitely doesn’t get any hate from me.

But you haven’t tapped into that 70% demographic yet, so you can see where the room for growth is.

There are a few more steps involved to go Live and start sharing on YouTube, then comes the problem of figuring out the right strategy to win leads.

So let’s start by getting you set up, and then I’ll show you how to start increasing your lead pool.

How to Use YouTube’s Live Video

To get started, you’ll need to log into your YouTube account and find your Live dashboard.

If you haven’t set it up yet, here’s what the process looks like.

First, you’ll be greeted with this screen:

Click “Get started.”

You’ll then be asked to verify your information.

Use your phone number to get your verification code through text or an automated call.

Then enter the 6-digit code:

This is the easy part.

Success!

Once you verify, you’ll see your YouTube Live dashboard.

Don’t be overwhelmed.

There’s a lot of information to digest and optimize, so I want to walk you through the most important steps before we get into the tactics you’ll be using.

First, you’ll need to check your Live Streaming Checklist. It looks like this:

This is a step-by-step guide to setting up your stream and going live.

You’ll start with encoding software, which is the biggest difference between YouTube and other popular streaming services. You need to find a third-party software to go Live.

Encoders compress your video and audio into a format that’s compatible with YouTube’s platform.

The added benefit is that this makes your content available to as wide an audience as possible. Whether your audience is on mobile, desktop, or a tablet, they can see you!

YouTube has a recommended list of encoders that will allow you to stream everything from your Wii U to your smartphone.

The encoder you use depends on what you need, and you have plenty to choose from.

If your goal is to stream some of your gaming, you’ll be using a different service than a live screen share on your PC.

Select and install the service that meets your needs to move on.

For example, let’s say you just want to record an interview-style video from your webcam. Simple enough.

You’ll want to use en encoder like the open source system called OBS.

It’s easy, intuitive, and free.

There are more flexible options out there, but this is a good introduction to YouTube Live streaming.

A paid alternative would be something like VidBlasterX. Depending on what version you get, you’ll be able to stream in HD and have access to robust community support.

But let’s install OBS to keep things moving. Download it and go through the typical installation process.

Then click through a few more boxes until you get to one that looks like this:

Make sure you optimize for streaming. If you accidentally click the other option, it’s not the end of the world, but you want to make sure you’re ready to go with as little fuss as possible.

The next window to look for is one that looks like this:

You’ll need to make sure you set your stream type to Streaming Services.

The service you’re using is YouTube, obviously. And you’ll want to make sure you’re on the Primary YouTube ingest server.

Once you’ve settled all that, it’s time to click back to your YouTube channel and acquire your Stream Key from the Live Stream dashboard.

You’ll notice that my Stream Key is protected, and there’s a good reason for that.

You can actually stream on any channel you have the key for, so make sure you keep your key protected.
Now, you’ve set up your encoder, but you’re not quite ready to stream just yet.

You still need to add audio and video sources.

Otherwise, your audience will be watching a blank live stream while you’re fumbling to figure things out.

So, how do you add sources?

That’s easy. At the bottom of your encoder, you’ll see a toolbar that looks like this:

You’ll want to click on the plus icon in…

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