The era of the Instagram Live is here.
As culture crumbles under the coronavirus and those quarantining seek connection, everyone from fitness instructors to aestheticians to small brand founders to Rihanna is going live on Instagram. Digital Brand Architects, in partnership with Chloédigital, has created a platform, Your Live Guide, to centralize the large volume of Instagram Live content. As Reesa Lake, partner and executive vice president of brand partnerships at DBA, put it, the platform’s goal is to be “the TV Guide of live content.”
Your Live Guide opened its web site to beta testing late last week. Already, it has 150 participating creators, the majority of whom are not managed by DBA.
“It’s not a goal to only have macro and celebrity creators and talent on the platform,” said Lake. “We want to increase awareness and eyeballs for smaller creators and drive to their premium content. We have not had to deny anybody at this point.”
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Social media engagement has skyrocketed, as users quarantine at home. DBA noted a 20 percent increase in engagement on its clients’ IGTV content over the past month, and an average follower growth of nearly 70 percent, according to Kendall Ostrow, head of client strategy at UTA IQ. DBA clients are posting nearly 50 percent more Instagram videos, racking up a 99 percent increase in views.
Your Live Guide is an aggregator for livestreams, allowing creators to directly submit their content. The platform links back to the livestreams, driving interested viewers back to the creators’ pages. Over the next few weeks, the platform will roll out new discovery features allowing users to search for specific categories of content — “fitness today,” for example. Lake noted that she and the team are looking to add TikTok Live and YouTube Live content, too.
“Creators have found their followers are seeking connection during this time, and IG Lives have become the go-to place for a creator to provide this digitally,” said Chloé Watts, founder and chief executive officer of Chloédigital. “They are looking to spread positivity and hope in ways they know how, whether that be a live yoga class, giving access to thought leaders or a simple Q&A chat. IG Lives are an easy way to not only connect directly with their community but to allow their community to connect with each other.”
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