Introducing Instagram’s Live Moderator Feature

Going live on Instagram is a fantastic way to boost engagement, but it’s hard to serve as the moderator and the host. For instance, you might lose your train of thought when deleting abusive comments, causing your stream to go off track. Fortunately, that problem is a thing of the past now that Instagram allows hosts to assign moderators to their live streams. You can let your moderator remove comments and people from the video. This allows you to focus on your hosting duties. Learn more about the live moderator feature so you can use it during your next stream.

Setting up a Live Moderator

As with all new Instagram features, the company is slowly rolling out access to live moderators. You might already have the feature available, but if not, it’ll be ready in your account soon. Thus, it’s a good idea to find out how to use it now, so you’ll be ready as soon as it drops.

You’ll begin by starting a live broadcast, as always. Then tap the three dots located in the stream’s comment box. Once open, you can select a moderator. You’ll see a list of options, or you can search to find the user you want to moderate your video.

Instagram will send a notification to the moderator you choose. Then, that person will have the power to remove, report, and restrict people in your live stream.

How to Work With a Moderator

Because this feature is so new, it’s vital to go over some moderation tips before moving forward. Let’s look at some strategies you can use to prepare your moderator and make the job easier.

• Discuss Your Moderation Goals

  You should choose a moderator well in advance and discuss your goals and guidelines with the person ahead of time. First, go over the type of speech you don’t want to allow in your feed. You can also discuss problematic users you’ve encountered in the past. The moderator can prevent them from commenting on the video or viewing it if needed. By having a plan in place before going live, your moderator will know what to do in each situation.

• Add Hidden Words to Your Account

  You can also make things easier for your moderator by adding hidden words to your Instagram account. Then Instagram will automatically filter these words out during your live streams and other posts.

  Instagram already filters out commonly offensive words, such as racial slurs. However, you can also use the advanced comment filtering feature to include additional words or emojis that you don’t want in the comment section of your live videos. For instance, you might include some spammy words that people tend to post when trying to hijack your live streams to sell their products. Thus, come up with a list of words and add them so your moderator won’t be overwhelmed during the stream.

How to Make Your Instagram Live a Success

After you’ve primed your moderator, you’ll almost be ready to go live. However, you should do a little planning first to ensure your Instagram Live is a success. You can work with your moderator or tackle these tasks yourself.

• Start With a SMART Goal

  

  You’ve spent some time prepping the moderator, so now, you need to prep yourself. Start by creating a SMART goal for the live video. SMART stands for:

  • Specific
  • Measurable
  • Attainable
  • Relevant
  • Timely

  Your goal might be to sell a specific number of products within the next 24 hours or get people to sign up for a list. You might even want to use the video to increase your exposure, meaning you’ll want to get a specific number of new followers after the video. Take your time to think about what goal you’d like to accomplish with your video. You can also discuss this with your moderator so he or she will understand the video’s purpose.

• Map Out the Video

  Some people make live videos on the fly, but that’s a bad idea. You won’t be able to reach your goal if you wing it, so devote some time to mapping out your video. Come up with a list of topics to cover, as well as how much time you want to spend on each one. Then write out some notes that include all the points.

• Practice Your Video

  Even though you’re going live, it’s a good idea to practice ahead of time. Record yourself going through the video, and make tweaks as needed to improve it. You can use your notes at first, but eventually, you want to be able to record the video without notes. Make sure you’re comfortable doing this before going live.

• Use Live Scheduling

  

  Now that your moderator can clean up the comments, you’re probably even more excited about going live. Your audience will also be excited if you hype them up before the stream. You can use Instagram live scheduling to announce your video to your followers up to 90 days in advance. Then your followers can opt-in to receive reminders about the video.

• Use Practice Mode

  It’s also wise to log into your Instagram Live a few minutes ahead of time so you can use Practice Mode to test your audio and video. Your moderator can join you during practice mode if you’d like. After everything looks and sounds great, you’ll be ready to go live.

Get More Out of Your Live Streams With a Moderator

Being able to add a moderator to your live streams is a game-changer. Since you’ll be able to focus on your hosting duties, you can expect higher levels of engagement while reaching your goals. Plus, going live will be so much more fun when you don’t have to worry about moderating comments and users. Thus, think about who you’d like to use as a moderator and prepare that person for your next live stream.