Let’s get technical: how to host a virtual queer event
With nation-wide restrictions in place that eliminate large, in-person gatherings and put tight restrictions on daily travel, many of our lives have been flipped upside down. These disruptions extend to the world of events. With shows, concerts, parties, support groups and conferences cancelled, many of us are looking at virtual / online methods for experiencing the community and affirmation that in-person events provide.
So, let’s get technical. If you’re looking to host an online meetup, virtual event or livestream, explore these 3 easy methods to go live.
Instagram Live
You’ve probably posted to your Instagram feed, added to a Story or created long-from video content for IGTV, but fewer of us have tried going live with Instagram’s livestream, Instagram Live.
Instagram Live is a live webcast hosted on Instagram, which is perfect for timely content like behind the scenes looks, AMAs (ask me anything), and more. You can broadcast for up to 1 hour and even co-host a livestream with another Instagram account.
THE GOOD
No new apps – Most people already use Instagram, so there’s no need to switch to another platform or download a separate app for folks to participate
Get notified – Your followers are notified when you go live, prompting them to join your livestream before it ends
Viewer participation – Engage with audience with interactive features
THE LESS GOOD
Temporary – The livestream gets deleted from your profile in 24 hours
Not great for groups – Because the stream focuses on the host’s screen, you’re unable to easily view the screens / faces of participants
Not great for desktop – To watch Instagram Live on a desktop, the viewer must download an extension
Instagram Live is free.
Zoom
If you’re wanting to livestream in a more interactive format, Zoom might be your tool of choice. Zoom offers several features to help get your audience involved, including polling, virtual hand raising, screen sharing and the ability to have larger groups of people on screen at the same time.
THE GOOD
Hit multiple platforms at once – If you subscribe to the Zoom Webinar add-on, you can use a multi-streaming service to broadcast to multiple platforms at once, including Facebook Live, Twitch and Youtube
Transcribed webinars – Don’t worry if you didn’t produce a written outline. Zoom will transcribe your webinars for you.
Reuse – You can record your content to reuse or re-post later to to other social networks or share in a newsletter
THE LESS GOOD
Pay for more features – Some of Zoom’s features are hidden behind a paywall
Need the app to join – Participants must have the Zoom app on desktop or mobile before they can join
Not great for desktop – Zoom’s free accounts are limited to 40-minute meetings
Facebook Live
Like Instagram, Facebook has free live streaming capabilities built right into the platform. Since Facebook has a robust events ecosystem that makes discovering events easy, it may make sense to tie post your livestream events to Facebook Events.
THE GOOD
Folks are already on Facebook – Many users already have a Facebook account, so no additional app or software downloads are needed
Embed your livestream – Facebook makes it easy to embed your livestream on a website
Lives on as a video post – When you end your livestream, it will stay where you shared it as a video post. Livestreams on Instagram are temporary.
The less good
Limited reach – When you go live, Facebook will notify most, but not all, of your followers
Not great for groups – Because the stream focuses on the host, you’re unable to easily view the screens / faces of participants
To create a live stream on Facebook:
- Go to https://www.facebook.com/live/create
- Click Create Live Stream.
- Choose where you want to post your live broadcast.
- Select Use a persistent stream key if you want your stream key to be permanent. If this isn’t selected, you won’t be able to use this stream key again after the stream ends.
- Copy and paste the server URL and stream key or persistent stream key into the settings of your streaming software and start the video stream from your encoder. A preview screen will appear.
- Write a description and title for your live stream.
- Click Go Live. If you want to schedule your broadcast for later, click Schedule.
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Montana H. loves karaoke, queers and a good, healthy houseplant. She grew up in the East Bay, and after a brief stint in Seattle, promised she would never leave again.