Add A Guest To Your Next Instagram Video Feed!

Instagram Is now making it possible to have a "guest" (another viewer) on your live feeds. This new feature is rolling out to Instagram users now and bringing with it a wave of creativity and communication for company and business branding. Not everyone yet has this capability but it is coming your way. As with any Instagram Live video, a two-person video is simple and easy to do. The platform has simple integration and relatively smooth technology to make the process seamless for you and your guest. As of now, the feature is only available on IOS (iPhones) but Android phones are coming very soon so stay patient out there. In the meantime this is how you bring on a guest on your next Instagram live video feed. This is so cool for marketers and small business promotions!
#1: Start a Live Video on Instagram
To launch a live video on Instagram, open your Stories screen. Swipe right from the home feed or tap on your photo in the Stories banner at the top of the home feed to open the Stories screen.
Along the bottom of the screen under the shutter button, scroll to the Live option and then tap Start Live Video  to get your live video started.
Launch a live video on Instagram to invite guests.
#2: Greet Your Viewers in Attendance
Before you invite anyone to join your live video feed, take a few moments to greet your viewers and introduce your topic or subject matter, or your event you are promoting. This gives viewers a chance to tune in and for you to get settled before introducing anyone else into the video. Let your viewers know that you’ll be including one or more guest(s) throughout the video.
#3: Invite Your Guest(s)
Now that you’re ready for a guest to join you live, you must invite the person to join you. Your guest must be present as a viewer before you can bring them on your video. At the bottom of the screen, tap on the two-face icon next to the comment box to open the list of Instagram users who are currently watching your live video. Tap on the two-face icon to invite a guest onto your live video. The username of each viewer is listed for you to choose from. If the viewer is able to join (they have the two-person feature rolled out to their Instagram account), their account name will be listed beneath their username. If the viewer doesn’t have the ability to use two-person video, instead of their account name, it will read “Unable to join.” Choose your guest from the list of viewers who are able to join your live video. Tap the person you wish to bring on your live broadcast from the list. On the next screen, Tap the Go Live With button to bring the guest into your live video. Select Go Live With to invite the guest into your live video. For now, you can only have one guest on with you at any one time.
#4: Talk With Your Guest
Now that your guest is live with you, make the most of the ability to have a “face-to-face” conversation with them. You’ll both appear on the screen as two square videos, one on top of the other. When you have a guest, that vertical screen is split into two squares, with you as the host on top and your guest on the bottom. Having a guest on your live video splits the screen into two squares with the host in the top video screen. Be aware that comments rolling in from other viewers will appear over your guest’s screen. This detail may have an impact on how you conduct your live video and what that guest does on-screen. This can be annoying to you and your guest so keep that in mind if you want comments to show up on your screen or not. If not, turn off comments.
#5: Say Goodbye to Your Guest
When you’re ready for your guest to leave the live video, simply tap on the X in the top-right corner of their video screen to remove them from the video. They’ll go back to being a viewer and your video will return to the full screen. To remove a guest from your live video, tap on the X on their video screen.
Five Ways to Incorporate Two-Person Live Instagram Videos Into Your Marketing
Now that you understand how to launch an Instagram Live video with a guest, it’s important to think about how you’ll use this feature. If you simply start using it randomly and without intention, you risk annoying your audience and may discourage them from tuning in regularly. Instead, to ensure your brand builds on this exposure, have a plan in place for inviting guests and providing value to your audience through this feature.
Get Comfortable On-Camera
If you are nervous going on camera and hosting an Instagram Live video, having a guest may calm your nerves. Rather than worrying about carrying the whole conversation on your own, you’ll have someone else there to help keep the conversation going and put you at ease. Have fun and be relaxed. Try rehearsing your interview. Invite a friend, fellow employee, or trusted customer to come on live with you. Plan the live video in advance so you both have some clear ideas for the direction of the conversation. As you get into she show and gain some confidence you and your guest will carry on naturally and your personality will shine through more authentically.
Answer Questions
Open up your Instagram live to audience questions and invite individual viewers to join you as you answer their questions. Your audience has questions, and hopefully, you have the answers. Choose a topic or even open up the live video to an ask-me-anything format. Invite your guests to bring their questions to the live video broadcast. Ask guests to type their question in a comment so you know who’s going to ask which question, and then invite each viewer to join you live to ask their question and discuss the answer face to face. People love to share their opinions, and inviting them to join you on a live video is a great way to get their honest feedback. If you have a product that you want to update or improve, ask your guests to join you live to discuss which features of your product they would change and why. If you have a service-based business and you’d like to find out which services your customers would like more (or less) of, have them share their thoughts with you live. If you have a business that is local to your market area, invite your customers to share their experiences with you. Have fun using this new Instagram feature coming