The corporate world saw a change that few could have predicted with Covid-19 surging and spiking the way it did in 2020. Events were canceled or postponed, and employees attended work and meetings from home. Third party websites or applications, like Zoom and Microsoft Teams, allowed people to call into meetings from their home office. Use of these applications rose to accommodate the social constraints the pandemic brought about. With home and work life becoming one, many people experienced a cabin fever like no other. To combat the daily minutiae of waking up, walking to your home office in pjs and turning on your monitor to start work, businesses seized the opportunity to host remote, live streamed events.  

Live streaming gave everyone the opportunity to feel a sense of camaraderie that likely wasn’t felt during their “trapped” experience. Corporate engagement rose from extreme lows and brought some pre-pandemic normalcy back into people’s lives. While it wasn’t the same as an in-person event, they were close. Live streaming presented businesses with a pathway to reach more than just their local office. Larger corporations could extend their reach to multiple national and international branches for the same event. An award ceremony hosted in Utah could hold participants in Beijing, Rio de Janeiro, or Johannesburg. Thousands upon thousands of people could view the event from the safety of their respective households. It also gave an opportunity for those with anxiety, or other mental health disorders, to participate in a more comfortable environment more suitable and accommodating to their needs. Among the horrible effects that the pandemic brought about, live streaming events wasn’t one of them.

Flash forward to the present where live streamed events are well-received by almost everyone because of how relevant and accommodating they are. One can enjoy a conference from the comfort of their own couch. Emotional anxiety can be tempered due to a more lax environment and decreased over-stimulative catalysts. Businesses now have the tools to please everyone when it comes to hosting an event that facilitates growth for your company and your employees. With a goal set on keeping people engaged in your business or industry, companies are embracing a hybrid of pre-recorded and live video production accomplished through live streaming. 

Over the pandemic, BW Productions was able to be a part of corporate live streamed events helping businesses across Utah reach their respective employees. Some of these events incorporated pre-recorded material into their live streams to include example footage for what they wanted to communicate to their audience.  

What is Streaming?

Streaming is the continuous transmission of audio, video or other content files, from a server to an audience. When using the internet to watch Netflix, YouTube, or listen to a podcast, you are streaming content. The content is stored remotely, then transmitted over the internet where it can be viewed on-demand.

There are two different ways that media is streamed. Content is transmitted either through User Datagram Protocol (UDP) or Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). These are different ways of transporting the packets of data across networks allowing you to receive the content you desire.

What is Live Streaming?

Live streaming is when performances and events are sent over a platform (the internet) to reach an audience in real time. The content that the virtual audience experiences during the event occurs in real time.

Though the content is typically performed live, companies now often include pre-recorded material when conducting a live stream to diversify their content. Pre-recorded material can consist of testimonials, keynote individual interviews, or speeches from figureheads unable to attend the event. 

Is Using Pre-recorded Material at a Live Stream Necessary?

No, it is not necessary, but it does add to your stream. During a corporate event, the host speaks at the podium or the lectern the entire duration. Diversifying your content by using pre-recorded material keeps your audience engaged and provides the speakers a break. Here are some other ways that pre-recorded material betters your event: 

• Provides insight and detail to certain projects.
• Demonstrates abstract ideas with animated presentations or videos.
• Pre-recorded material upholds professionalism because mistakes are edited out prior to the event. 

How Will Live Streaming Help My Business?

Live streaming provides many opportunities that a physical event can’t. Aside from reaching out to people across the nation, or perhaps even the world, you’re able to build transparency between you and your audience. Hosting a live streamed event allows you to be the center for connecting thousands of people together. Even if your concept is small in scale, the possibility of reaching out to different countries and communities brings an array of diversification and inclusion to those that wouldn’t otherwise be able to attend. Rather than pouring your budget into renting a large conference center, you can save money for your business and employees by hosting a live, remote event. In summary, here are the ways live streaming helps your business:

1) Builds transparency with you and your audience.

2) Creates an opportunity for your business to showcase results and achievements through pre-recorded content.

3) Develops a greater relationship with your clients because they have more access to information directly from the source.

4) Eliminates extra expenses like catering, convention space, travel expenditures for you and your audience, overall saving you money.

5) Promotes diversity and inclusion when expanding your audience reach.

If you’re planning an event and need some help live streaming it, schedule an appointment with BW Productions. We have all the equipment needed to make your event an enjoyable experience for your business and your audience.

‍