In live streaming, the fan experience is driven not only by the event itself, but also by a variety of external factors. Viewers access more services, content and devices than ever before – often simultaneously. Thus, the ever-increasing challenge for broadcasters regarding social media, broadcast services and second-screen applications is to meet both their users’ expectations and their media consumption habits. 

Live broadcasters often focus exclusively on broadcasting events and thus fail at keeping their viewers entertained or even engaged during latency periods or times of lower excitement. This phenomenon results in high viewer bounce rates, while monetization is very low.

To break the vicious circle, broadcasters need to meet the changes in the video market,  consumer behavior and expectations. Since a superior user experience is key, we’ll show you how to turn your passive viewers into active buying users. Successful user engagement is only four steps away:

Step 1: Realize that  exciting  games are not enough

Let’s assume a fan is watching a soccer, basketball or boxing match or any other kind of live-streamed sporting event. The viewer is not actively involved in the event, only rudimentarily engaged, euphoric and emotional. Purely observing, just as if  they were watching TV.

We are talking about a real fan who would usually thrive in the stadium and cheer adrenaline-filled or eagerly wait for the next action. They have an even shorter attention span during a livestream than average viewers. Thus, distraction and loss of concentration are very common. 

Hence, you need to offer entertaining features on top of the live stream to keep your viewers  engaged and happy.

Step 2: Make your viewers curious

It’s actually quite simple. Make sure your audience is curious, engages with your content and wants to talk about it. Activate viewers with engagement features such as a multimedia chat, a thread function, live reactions and, for example, by displaying up-to-the-minute statistics, live data visualization and exclusive information about players. 

Direct reply options to messages, immediate feedback on your own message, simply interpersonal exchange, awakens a sense of belonging in us. These features enable better communication between your viewers, help build a true community and take participation and engagement to a new level by transforming the passive spectator into a curious viewer.

Step 3: Make sure that the engaged participant does not need a second screen

Once your users are curious, they are also interested in getting actively involved. By adding interaction features directly to your stream, you can energize and inspire users. This results in genuine interest and an increased demand. Interaction features not only allow users to interact personally with other fans, but to actively participate in and influence polls, become competitive through quizzes and develop the urge to be rewarded for activity. Offering bonuses such as signatured merch, a voucher for the next ticket purchase, discounts on the jersey of their favorite team and other types of giveaways encourage your viewers to participate and enrich your live stream with useful comments or responses. Last but not least, a leaderboard system is also a great way to keep your viewers active and competitive.

The dedicated participant is no longer reaching for the second screen, no longer chilling on Instagram, but interacting with your stream. 

Step 4: A passive viewer watches a game – an active one plays the game 

Let’s get to the last and most important step for a successful and interactive stream. The cherry on the cake to convert the passive viewer into an active and fully satisfied user: Monetization modules. Generate revenue with your fans by offering a broader portfolio of tools to better identify with your content and your sponsors’ products.

There is no better way to get enthusiastic viewers hooked than by offering them an unforgettable shopping experience. Imagine you were offered your favorite player’s jersey or the exact same model of boxing gloves that turned an underdog into a world champion in the moment of ecstasy. If combined with a discount promotion, you could not resist. That’s what sets engaged fans on fire.

Furthermore, by combining live sports and soft-betting directly in the side panel, you can give fans the opportunity to be successful and additionally convert through a linked loyalty system. When asked “How will the next soccer or basketball game turn out?” or “Who will win the title fight of the night?” viewers will want to cast their vote, compete, and earn points to be rewarded for their efforts in the end.

The third and most obvious monetizing module is commercials. It is essential to place your messages and those of your advertising partners more efficiently and, once again, increase engagement and improve your performance rates.

Well-placed and extraordinary video ads combine several aspects that capture the user’s attention and don’t bore or annoy them, but rather make them active: Motion, sound, interaction, gamification.

Especially if commercials are placed directly on the stream as overlay ads they should be enriched. In certain moments of a game or match, overlay ads are inappropriate and the viewer experience is negatively affected. So why not display your video ads next to the stream? 

This is where interactive advertising comes into play. Implement your and your advertisers’ ideas and build microgames linked to ad content into your side panel. Interaction with brands that leaves users with positive associations will not only increase your ad sales, but also brand awareness. 

With the powerful software solution Spect8, you can turn your passive viewers into engaged, active, and buying users who will enjoy your content even more while bringing you additional revenue.