A live blog is an ever-developing piece of content that is often used to cover breaking news or news that needs immediate attention. This means that while writing a live blog the emphasis is on getting out as much information as possible while ensuring that the content is buildable and conclusive at the same time. A reader gets a stream of updates and this could be more popular for business stories or stock stories. Either way, the nature of the editorial process remains the same. Another place this could be relevant is elections.
Live blogging can look different depending on your niche. But it is an effective way of bringing your readers back to a single story rather than bombarding them with multiple short stories that are incomplete in essence.
Find live blog potential
All live blogs can be simple old blogs if you just wait, right? Live blogs will keep your readers engaged though, and that’s what you’re looking for - engagement. People would come back to a single story that is constantly upgrading to accommodate all relevant information. Find stories that would help you bring in these readers - sports, elections, stock updates, etc. People read these stories expecting updates which puts you in a better place. You get to give them those updates without losing out on a really good story and they get to access all of the information from a single source point - a win-win, if you will.
Prepare - pre-production could get you gold coins
Get opinions/testimonials in advance or get people to agree to them prior to the event. You can always start the story with predictions as well. It takes a while to get your readers to understand that there is a live story, this is why we encourage you to promote your live story before the event. Run banner ads for these. Certain live story topics are predictable - like the annual financial report or election polls. Advertise these on your site and app to get as many eyeballs as possible.
Switch up the beat
There’s so many elements one can use today on a live blog that will help ensure it doesn’t look like an awkward text blob. Even though the focus is on the information that is being updated, it doesn’t hurt to have designs and multimedia elements in place that’ll enhance your storytelling. This, of course, is only possible with a team in place that can create these elements on the spot and collate it with your story.
Bring attention to the updates
Your live story may get traction halfway through the coverage. This means that not every reader knows where to look. Create an interface and format that allows readers to learn about the gist of the story while navigating them to the updates as well. Support live reading.
Edit after
Once your live blog is published, come back to it. Readers may glance through the minor editing errors but that doesn’t mean you leave them there. Once you’re done covering the story in real time, have your editors come in to polish that piece of article so that it’s a standard story without the excuse of being a live story that was put together in haste.
Share live blog updates on socials
You need to update your audience that you have new updates on your live story. One is not going to predict when you add these updates. Have snippets ready to share on social media - remember to not give away too much information on your channel as you want to bring your readers to the live blog. If you create the right rush, the live blogging will draw eyes in.
For live blogging, you need a platform that supports all these micro features and teamwork. With a platform like Bold, a smart headless CMS that not only focuses on workflow but also enables an easy interface for the journalists on the field, live blogging is easier than ever. Bold, for starters, is mobile friendly, this means the reporters can send in updates from the field without having to rush to a desktop/laptop. Editing and approvals also take lesser time with this CMS - the categorical arrangement helps maintain the stages of publishing fool-proof. Once your live blogging is up, you can bring in your team and update photos or graphics or video links without having to bear all the weight of it. It allows multiple, verified users to edit at the same time without any overlapping of content.