This video is brought to you by Restream. In this video, we're
gonna go over some live streaming checklists, these are
some steps that you're going to want to make sure that you don't
miss in order to have a smooth live stream experience. Hello,
and welcome to the channel, my name is Palkowski. And on this
channel, we talk all about live streaming and videography, and
how you can use that to grow your business. And in this
video, we're going to cover some of the basic checklist that I
use in order to make sure that a live stream is pulled, pulled
off as smoothly as possible. And right away before we dive in, I
want to make sure you grab this checklist I've created a full
PDF to kind of walk you through all these areas in more detail.
So head on over to Nick Palkowski comm slash checklist
and grab that PDF right away. Now in the video, I will cover
the main areas as well as get into some specifics. But that
PDF is going to go into much more detail. So be sure to go
check that out. So now there are nine main categories I want to
cover. So let's jump on. The first is building the stream.
Now this is kind of that top level area where you're going to
want to think about what your overall objective is for the
theme and really for the stream and really start getting getting
a lot of that prep work done in order to deliver an A successful
live stream. So you want to think about things like your
show flow, what's the beginning of that your stream going to
look like? And what are all the elements in between what is that
overall outline for your stream, you're also gonna want to start
to create any lower thirds that you're going to want in your
stream. Or if there's any other type of graphics that need to be
incorporated. This is the point where you're going to want to
sit down and actually create those elements and make sure you
have all those assets ready to go. Are you gonna be doing a pre
show for your stream? That's something you want to sit down
and think about what that what's that going to look like is that
going to be just you talking to the audience with little
countdown timer is it going to be just a big countdown timer, a
solid image with some music in the background, or you somehow
incorporating a few different elements or even a standalone
video, a little video that's on a loop plane ahead of time.
Those are all pieces you want to think about and create here in
this area. And one of the other elements you're going to take
care of during this building, the stream category is actually
going ahead and scheduling that stream ahead of time, if that's
something you're going to be doing, now is the time to go
ahead and do that. If you're unsure of how to do that on
YouTube or Facebook, I actually have videos covering both of
those topics, you can find those in the description, or in the
cards over here. The second major area you're going to cover
and make sure you touch bases, in your checklist is to actually
think about your video. So you're gonna wanna make sure you
know what what camera you're gonna be using. Now you're using
a webcam or using your phone, are you connecting a DSLR to
computer using a capture card of some sort, make sure you know
what that is. And then make sure it's connected and working well.
That's what you're doing during this section. And then go ahead
and frame, make sure you have a solid frame for your video. You
know, make sure your head is kind of close towards the top
that cameras at about eye level, make sure you know what's going
to be behind you and what that frame is going to look like.
Those are things you want to think about during the second
major area in your checklist.
After you cover video, the third major area, you're going to want
to think about his audio, what are you going to be using for
your microphone? How are you going to be getting audio into
your live stream, think about what you're gonna be using. And
if you're using like a lavalier, or some other mic, make sure
it's either connected directly to your computer connected to
your camera, and make sure the batteries are charged and ready
to go if you're going that route. And if you're going with
a with a mic that needs that. And then of course, you're gonna
want to test your levels on your audio Now is the time to really
get those levels styled in and make sure you're not too hot,
make sure not too quiet, but really kind of find that perfect
spot for your audio and big key here is when you're testing your
audio, make sure you're using your presenting voice. A lot of
times as someone who is mainly behind the scenes in cameras and
doing a lot of video shoots, I noticed that when I ask people
to test the mic, they'll talk quieter like they're just kind
of talking to me having a normal conversation. But then the
minute you turn the camera on, that's when they start really
projecting and so then your levels are all out of whack. So
make sure you use your presenting voice when you're
testing your audio levels. And this is also the spot where I
like to have a hotkey for muting the mics, whether it's somebody
else who you know, have the talent or if it's for myself, I
want to have one button I can press that's going to mute the
mics. I just like having that there. It's a It's really easy
to use mute and unmute. So if you're you're going to do that
many software out there will allow you to do that. If you're
going to be doing that, be sure you know that it's working and
test that out. And now we're on to another extremely important
area of your checklist, which is your connection. When you're
streaming, it's important that you have high quality internet
access, whether that's a cell signal, whether that's a strong
internet, Wi Fi signal, or whatever, you need to make sure
that you have enough of a connection, that is going to
help you deliver a really solid consistent stream for whatever
length of time you're going to be streaming. And wherever you
may travel with your stream, especially if it's a more mobile
one. So you're gonna want to test internet speeds, this is
the time to go ahead and do that. Also, this is the point in
kind of my checklist, especially if I'm working with clients,
where I'm going to be trying to decide or you have already
decided that we need to have a live view unit, I love using the
live view, what that does is actually combined several
different cell signals, Wi Fi, Ethernet cable signal, and we'll
combine them all into one to help make sure you deliver a
really solid stream up into the cloud, and you're able to get
that signal out. So I really love using the live view, as
well as unlimited IRL, I'll include links to both of those
down in the description as well. But this is going to help make
sure that the internet connection is super solid. So
you're gonna wanna make sure you connect, you check your
connection, and that you don't have any worries about getting
that signal.
And closely tied to connection is platform. And that really,
once I know I have a solid signal going out or have the
ability to send that solid signal out. This is the point in
time during the setup phase, where I'm going to be really
thinking about the platform that we're sending signals to. So
this is where I'm grabbing the stream keys. If I haven't done
that ahead of time, during that kind of the prep stage, this is
where I'm going to grab the stream key, this is where I'm
going to test to make sure my signal is getting out to the
platform. Because on both Facebook on YouTube, you can go
behind the scenes and kind of checked and preview your stream
to make sure it's solid, make sure everything's working. All
those steps are going to happen here in this point of the
checklist. This is also a spot where you're going to need to
decide if you're going to be going out to just one platform
like Facebook, or if you're going to be going out to
multiple debt, different platforms. And I know for me,
especially when we talk about the previous spot of connection,
that's a decision you need to really make carefully. Because
if you don't have enough internet signal, you streaming
to multiple different platforms can be very, very bandwidth
intensive, which is one of the reasons I really love our
sponsor for this video, which is Restream. restream is an amazing
service that allows you to multi stream through several different
platforms by only sending out one signal. So rather than
having to send out signals to multiple different platforms,
you send a signal out to Restream. And then restream will
share that signal to all the many, many different platforms,
I think they'll do 30 plus platforms right now if you
really want to, I have a video that dives into how you can go
live on both Facebook and YouTube at the same time, I
highly recommend checking that out if you want to learn more
about restream and how it all works. But it is an amazing
service, and they're sponsoring this video. So I highly
recommend that you go check out restream by heading to Nick
Palkowski comm slash Restream. Again, this is one of my
favorite services, I use it with clients all the time, because it
a lot helps us make sure we can be in multiple different places
at once we can get the broadest reach for our live stream
without having to worry so much about the amount of bandwidth
that we're using, and the amount of signal that I'm able to get,
especially when I'm on location. So I love using Restream. And
when you use the link in the description, or head on over to
Nick Palkowski comm slash restream you will get a $10
credit on the restream service. So go check it out. They do much
more than just multi streaming. But I really love them for that.
So thank you so much for visiting restream and Restream.
Thank you for sponsoring this video.
And that brings us to area number six your engagement plan,
you are going to want to make sure that
you have some sort of plan for handling comments and handling
that engagement piece. And with that comes a few different
things. Maybe you're just getting started and you're going
to be reading comments directly off your phone or whatever it
may be. I want to make sure that you have some idea of how you're
going to be gathering comments and how you're going to be
responding to those. You know they can go as simple as making
sure that you have a few questions specifically designed
to entice engagement to happen with your live stream. So I want
to make sure you have those prepared ahead of time. At this
point, you're gonna want to think about do I want to bring
comments across screen? There are several different platforms
out there several different soft switching software's out there
that will allow you to do that. restream can help facilitate
that. But you're going to want to think about how am I going to
interact with these comments? Do I want to bring them across
screen? Do I just want to talk about them? Do I want to have
pre written questions ready to go, and I bring across screen to
hopefully entice more people to leave comments, think about
overall, how am I going to manage and then entice
engagement from our live stream viewers, if you want to learn
more about how to manage comments in general, check out
this video right here I go in depth over how to manage
comments for your life.
Our next area is what I call pre production. Really what this
what I mean by this is, this is kind of your making sure
everything is fully is set up and ready to go. This is tying
all the pieces together. If you haven't got it set up yet. This
is break getting all the extra devices ready to go making sure
everything is ready and at where it needs to be on your table on
your in your studio. So as at arm's reach, it's laying out
your desk in the proper way. It's all of those little things
that need to happen here. This is also the spot where you want
to test test, test and test making sure everything works. Go
through all the graphics that you want to do. Go through any
hotkeys that you might have set up in order to switch different
scenes. This is the spot where you're going to want to check in
with your get any guests that you might be bringing on if
you're doing an interview show, you would want to bring them on,
do go through the all the tests with them, make sure
everything's set up and ready to go. That stuff all needs to
happen here in this pre production area. And when we're
talking about guests, let me know if you're interested in
learning more about some of the templates and the checklists and
processes that I have for interview interview livestreams.
Just simply give me a yes in the comments, if you're interested
in learning more about that. And I'll create a video if there's
enough interest around.
And that finally brings us to area number eight, which is go
live. This is the spot where you're going to want to get your
pre show countdown started. If you're doing that, it's where
you're going to actually go about and hit that live button.
And then especially if you're doing a pre show countdown, this
is the time to go through and quickly check to make sure
everything is working while the countdown timer is going. That's
what I like to do with my streams. And with clients
streams, we usually have at least kind of minimum, it's
usually like a three minute countdown all the way up. For
some bigger events, we'll have especially paid like ticket
advance, we'll have an hour long pre show of just a countdown
timer. But I'm not necessarily recommending you do that. But
oftentimes, you're gonna want like that three minutes, just to
make sure everything's working, just to get a chance to quickly
go out and make sure there's no glitches that the sound is going
through. And everything is working on the actual live side
of things. And then from there, you're going to jump into your
show flow, I highly recommend having your outline or some sort
of script slash show flow. Next, you ready to go make sure you
know where what key points you're gonna be hitting, and
you're delivering your presentation, we're delivering
your stream, now you're engaging with your audience, now's the
time to perform it just follow through on that show flow.
And then it's time for the post production. This happens as soon
as you hit that and live button. And I want to make sure that you
remember to go hit that in live button, that should be one of
the first things that you go check to make sure your your
live stream has actually ended, that you've captured the
recording as well, if you're doing the recording, and this is
a lot of the basic wrap up tasks, there's going to be a lot
of different days, you want to thank your guests if you had a
guest on and kind of interact with them, but then it's going
through and making sure you grab the recording. Hopefully, if you
are keeping a recording, I do always recommend to try and grab
that extra high quality recording, because it allows for
more repurposing afterwards. So oftentimes, I didn't mention it
in the video. But during kind of that pre production spot, that's
usually when I if it's a separate recording button, I'll
hit that separate recording. If you're using something like e
cam, it'll automatically record if you have it set up that way.
So those are the little elements that I didn't mention before
that you'd want to be sure to do as well. But now post
production, this is where you're going to grab the recording,
you're going to trim it down, edited it, and then you can go
put it out on YouTube if you're not multi casting, or you can
put it out in some other spots if you're not sharing already to
those areas. or this could be the spot where maybe you go
through and Send out your promotional emails with the post
stream with the replay, where you send out an extra social
media posts on different things like that. This is this time,
we're going to go through and do all those promotional or wrap up
kind of tasks to make sure your live stream gets out to as many
people as possible to make sure that they see that replay. This
is also a spot where I highly recommend that you go back
through and make sure you're interacting with all the
comments or as many as you possibly can. Either if it's
just a symbol, going through and liking their comment thanking
them kind of for participating for telling you where they're
watching from anything like that, now's a great time to go
through that because that interaction is going to help
more people see the stream as well. And it's just going to
help your audience feel like they're actually being noticed,
even if you didn't get the time to recognize them while you were
alive. This is a great time to make sure that they feel
recognized and they feel heard. And then of course, for many of
you, you will have some sort of tear down stuff that you need to
do, or putting items away or just reorganizing of your studio
of your workspace of wherever you were recording that. So all
of that, of course will happen now here in that post production
area. And those are the nine main areas that I really think
you need to have in your checklist for live streaming.
Again, be sure to check out the PDF checklist that I've included
here. That's going to go into much more detail of a lot of
specific steps that you need to be thinking about within each of
those categories. You can find that by going to Nick Palkowski
comm slash checklist or checking out the description below and
clicking on that link. And be sure to check out restream it's
a great service even if you're just getting started or you're a
professional streamer, they will help you multiply your views
with their multicasting. net service. So go to Nick
palkowski.com slash restream you're gonna help support the
channel as well as get a $10 Credit on Your restream
accounts. So go check them out by clicking the little link
right there. Or if you're ready to get started with Facebook
Live Check, check out this playlist right here to help you
get started and I will see you in the next one.