Why Music People and Broadcasters Need to Get into Periscope and Meerkat NOW
If you’re familiar with Periscope and Meerkat, you’ll know that these apps can turn anyone into an instant Internet broadcaster. I know of a few radio shows that begin their day with a live pre-show ‘Scope broadcast (here’s an example) while U2 is making use of Meerkat during their current tour.
The social power of these apps is growing. MiDIA research says that music types and broadcasters ignore this technology at their peril.
Interactive live broadcasting platforms like Periscope and Meerkat are ideal tools to make superfans out of fans. Live streaming services can provide a live one-to-one communication at scale. The appeal of these services isn’t only about streaming or broadcasting live from anywhere.
Perhaps the more important part for fan-supported stakeholders is the fact that users can be in a celebrity’s living room, smother it in virtual hearts, and type questions, which actually might get answered by the celebrity. A very personal experience. These platforms are ideal for any artist, content creator or celebrity looking to hone their public relations and build fan loyalty.
A review the of celebrities using Periscope in March and today shows celebrities, especially in the US, are quickly embracing these channels. But there is still a vast swathe of content creators with existing fan bases who are not using live streaming platforms and who would benefit from doing so. This applies doubly to medium and smaller size artists/creators, for whom converting even only few hundred fans to superfans (and eventually spenders) would make an even more substantial difference towards making ends meet.
