Boldspace x Deel Panel LinkedIn Live Stream

The project

We worked with Boldspace, a communications and PR agency, to execute a LinkedIn Live event for their client Deel. The event was held at the fantastic New Victorian Loft just off Old Street, a Lumiere London venue.

The end client, Deel, helps businesses hire anyone, anywhere with their payroll solution. As a forward-thinking organisation that supports businesses hiring for remote and hybrid workplaces, it made sense to put on a ‘hybrid’ style event with an in-person and live stream element. The panel discussion “Breaking workplace boundaries – a reappraisal of our approach to the world of work” had an audience of approximately 50 in the room, as well as a large online audience.

Why LinkedIn Live?

Deel has a large, professional following on LinkedIn, so instead of directing their audience to another platform, or trying to get everyone in the same physical space, they met their audience where they were and set up a LinkedIn Live event to extend the in-person experience.

Additionally, LinkedIn Live events are simple to set up and stream, subject to gaining approval from LinkedIn to be a LinkedIn Live broadcaster. This is a useful article if you are new to LinkedIn Live video.

Challenges & solutions

• In order to broadcast live video on LinkedIn to your profile, page, or event, you have to first become an approved LinkedIn Live broadcaster. The process is fairly straightforward, but it can take (up to) a couple of weeks for access to the broadcasting features on your company page, so do consider this well in advance.
• LinkedIn Live events are run by the company’s page administrators. This meant we were unable to manage the event, so in advance, we ensured the Deel page administrators knew exactly what they needed to do with clear communication.
• LinkedIn has very specific stream settings (see below), if your stream exceeds any of these requirements, especially the Frames Per Second (‘FPS’), LinkedIn will not allow the stream to connect to its platform.

Duration: max 4 hours
Aspect ratio: 16:9
Resolution: max 1080p
Frame rate: max 30 FPS
Key frame: every 2 seconds (60 frames)
Bitrate: max 6 Mbps video; max 128 kbps audio; 48 khz sample rate
Encoding: H264 video, AAC audio
Protocol: RTMP/RTMPS (preferred)

• There are a few options for streaming tools that are approved by LinkedIn. There are a few links on this article and also this video – both by LinkedIn – to help, or seek advice from your live production partner. Our workflow was Real-Time Messaging Protocol (‘RTMP’) direct into Restream and then out to LinkedIn Live.
• It was notable that at times LinkedIn Live events aren’t fully optimised for mobile so be mindful of what device your audience typically uses.
• As with all social streaming, the real-time interaction tools are a great way to engage with your audience. Without the more comprehensive features of an event platform, however, you do need admins to help manage these in the back end of the event.

Result

“Overall this was a really successful event for the client and a positive experience for their audience both in the room and on LinkedIn. The New Victorian Loft was the perfect backdrop to the event, catering to both audiences as well as our live streaming requirements. It was a fantastic and efficient way for Deel to connect with their audience as they had such a strong following on the channel, so it was a valuable communication channel for them to utilise. Social streaming is a brilliant opportunity to connect with your audiences where they are – whether that’s a professional audience on LinkedIn or a customer or fan base on TikTok – without needing to spend money on registrations and platforms. It’s a great tool to add to your event arsenal for engaging with your social community.”

– Tom Mahon, Co-Founder London Filmed