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Sharing your church services online is a great way to reach people who are unable to attend the gatherings. By streaming the services live, you enable those who are at home, at work, out of town, or in the hospital to participate in real time and feel like they're still an active part of the congregation. Another way to help people participate is to make sure worship song lyrics are accessible.

In the church sanctuary or gathering space, lyrics are often visible on a screen or available in hymnals, allowing everyone to sing along whether or not they know the words. If at-home participants see only the video footage of people singing in your livestream, however, they'll be unable to sing along if they don't know the words. This is especially true for those with hearing loss because they may have additional trouble understanding the words being sung by the congregation.

Fortunately, Switcher Studio's live-video editing app makes it easy to display lyrics — not to mention scripture, graphics, videos, and more — as part of your livestream to Facebook, YouTube, your own site, or almost anywhere else. Just follow the simple instructions below. If you're not a Switcher user, churches can get a free 30-day trial to take it for a spin during a few services. (Since Switcher runs with just iPhones and iPads, you or your tech team can try it without purchasing any gear.)

If I’ve learned anything about church management from my decades as a pastor’s kid, it’s that church leaders have a lot on their plates, and it extends far beyond pastoral work. Sure, they preach and counsel and visit sick people. But they also run teams, hold meetings, deal with budgets, manage conflicts, and oversee basically everything. They’re like CEOs in clerical collars — or snazzy sneaks, depending on your denomination. Oh, and they answer to God. So, yeah, lots of responsibility.

This is the seventh post in our Live Video Content Strategy series, helping you craft a strategy for your live videos.

I have a friend who always says that if you have a body and you’re on the beach, then you have a beach body. Taking this sound logic and applying it elsewhere, I propose that if you’re livestreaming and you’re wearing clothes, you’re wearing livestreaming clothes.

When it comes to branding, consistency is key. Branding for live videos is no different. Your brand style tells the world what you’re all about — with a dash of your personality.

If you have a brand standards guide, GREAT! Work from that guide to develop all the live video assets you need. Incorporate your brand fonts, colors, and logos to make graphics that help drive the flow of the video.

If you don’t have a brand standards guide, fret not. We’ve got you covered. Here are the five things you need to create on-brand visuals for your live videos. By nailing down these five elements, you can make a mini brand guide to keep all of your live videos consistent. 

Almost anyone creating live videos on a regular basis wants to see an increase in viewership. You want to see that number of viewers creeping higher and higher with each consecutive broadcast.

While an increased audience can happen organically, self-promotion increases your total number of viewers exponentially. There are many ways to promote your live videos both while you're streaming live and after your broadcast ends. Take a look at the strategies below to put a positive trend on your viewership graph.

Over the past several years, I have put together a wide variety of live productions — live music shows with several bands, week-long conventions with breakout rooms, multicamera livestreams, etc. Every piece of gear you add to your setup increases the complexity. But with video, having extra perspectives doesn’t have to be a burden. It can be a utility and even a lifesaver. A second shot can serve as a backup in case a battery dies. And that other perspective allows you to reposition your shot or zoom to create a more dynamic final product. But how many cameras is too many cameras? Let’s walk through some different options for getting the perfect shot. Follow these tips for capturing your productions — whether you’re using a single camera angle or two or three.

As the inimitable Ron Swanson once warned, “Never half-ass two things. Whole-ass one thing.” Unfortunately, that’s easier said than done when it comes to tech and tactics for your business.

Today we’re rolling out Switcher Studio 4.1, the first round of major platform enhancements since 4.0 released in January. Download the updated Switcher Studio app from the App Store to get these exciting upgrades, plus standard bug fixes and stability improvements. (If you don't already have one, you'll need a Switcher Studio account to use the app.)

You’ve probably heard the stats on live video being the content type that results in the most engagement, which should make livestreaming an obvious way for brands to connect with their audiences. Yet a lot of companies aren’t leveraging this medium — they’re either using highly produced prerecorded videos, or they haven’t gotten on the video train at all. Here’s a look at five brands that are successfully using live video to promote themselves, add authenticity to their brands, build brand loyalty, and increase engagement.