Research shows that online audiences prefer live video. Live videos receive an average of six times more engagement than regular video. 

With the help of our blogs and webinars, you can quickly gain confidence to do live video on Facebook and YouTube, but if you are facing issues that are holding you back with this, such as unreliable WiFi, there are other things you can do to get as close as possible to the 'live' experience, and benefit from the extra community engagement and interaction that comes from live video. 

YouTube Premiere

YouTube Premiere functionality offers many of the same benefits of live streaming, without you having to broadcast in the moment. 

For example, on YouTube, a shareable watch page is created as soon as a video is scheduled as a Premiere. Your followers will be able to subscribe to notifications, meaning they will receive a nudge when the Premiere is close to starting. A URL is created, which can be shared beforehand amongst church members and on social media platforms. Followers who watch your Premiere will also get that same community feel, as it’s content that’s being seen by all viewers at the same time.

In the same way that a Live video gives you increased engagement rates, so does a YouTube Premiere. Remember, once your Premiere has ended, the video will remain on your page for people who missed it to watch at a later date. 

How to schedule a YouTube Premiere 

1. Click Upload at the top of the page 

2. Select your video to upload and enter video details.  

3. On the Preview & publish tab, tick the box next to Set as a Premiere. 

4. Select Schedule for a later date and select the date and time of your premiere. 

5. Select Done to complete the upload process. 

6. A public watch page will be created. The video will eventually be premiered on this watch page, so you can share this link on social media channels or email it to your church mailing list. 

Options on Facebook

As of 22 August 2022, Facebook Premieres were made no longer available on the platform. As an alternative, you could consider:

1. Schedule an event on Facebook with the Youtube Premiere link embedded
2. Schedule the Facebook video, and create an event post alerting users on Facebook of the forthcoming video. Unfortunately it is not currently possible to create a Facebook event with a link to the scheduled video.
3. You can still schedule Facebook Live, but that would require you broadcasting your premiere via a livestream app such as OBS, operated by someone on the day of the premiere, with a reliable connection to the internet.

Things to consider before scheduling a Premiere 

• Your video must be more than 30 seconds 

• Try to keep Premieres for your most important content, such as weekly services or teaching resources 

• Premieres will display in 1080p at first, even if your video is in 4K, but the video should display at the full resolution subsequently.

• You must schedule the Premiere more than an hour in advance – try to schedule it a few days in advance to allow yourself enough time to promote the Premiere to your followers 

• Promote the Premiere across social media and other digital channels. Let people know when the Premiere will be going live to ensure as many people as possible tune in.