5 Ways Authors Can Use the FREE Software OBS

Welcome to the Author Audience show, the podcast that helps you reach more people with your message. Create a book, connect with your audience, change lives. Here's your host, Shelly Hitz.

In this training, I'm going to share with you five ways authors can use the free software obs. And one of them I just thought of today. Hi, my name is Shelly Hitz. I'm an author coach at Author Audience Academy and I'm on a mission to help you reach more people with your message. It's time to let your light shine. And today I'm broadcasting on Facebook live using OBS. You can go to OBSproject.com to find out more about it. And last night I had promised my Author Audience Academy members a bonus training. And when I promised something I want to deliver, so I spent hours last night, it ended up becoming a full blown training on how to get started with obs. And interestingly enough, you know, I finished the training. It's all into the members area. Now if you're a member, just click on the bonus icon in your members area and scroll down. You'll see the OBS training in there. Five videos. I have mind maps for you. I have a lower third template for you, just like this lower third, custom lower third. I have, I have a template that you can use all of that in the members area. But I was just consumed with OBS last night. And OBS allows you to broadcast from your computer with your webcam and with your microphone and to screen share and to add cool video introductions like this one.

And I love it. I'm just loving it because now I can repurpose my videos that I do on Facebook Live and they fill the whole screen on YouTube. There's no black bars. It's much better audio for repurposing to my podcasts and it's just great. So I'm going to share with you five different ways you can use this free software. One thing with OBS is you do need to have a separate device. I don't know if you can see. I pulled up the comments on my iPhone. The cool thing is it's limitless, like what you can do with it once you know how to set it up. Like yesterday I went in and in two minutes changed my lower third to my husband and I's name. I changed the website to Godlygain.com I changed the picture to us and I added my husband's Twitter handle. So I just, I changed the lower third literally like two minutes, uploaded it to obs. And if you want to see. You can see my most recent live video from yesterday has that. But let me share with you these five ways authors can use the free software obs Open Broadcasters software. So number one, this was the thing that it just came to me today.

That you could use this software for. And it has nothing to do with going on live video, but it's a really cool way you can use obs. It's to create screen share videos for your paying customers or for your YouTube channel, whatever you need those videos for. I personally have purchased Camtasia for a PC. Camtasia runs a few hundred dollars for, for a Mac it's I think around 100 or less. But you still have to pay for it. You know what, OBS has the function and I show you step by step in my bonus training in Author Audience Academy, how to set up the recording exactly like I didn't have the dimensions set up right the first time. But how to set up the dimensions, how to start the recording and everything. And then it saves a sense recording to your computer. Well, you know what, you can actually.

Record on OBS with that function without being live. Simply by using the software, you can create your own screen share video. You can put your little image in the bottom, you know, if you want to have you on the screen. And I show you exactly how to create all these different scenes in OBS so that you can do that. But isn't that fun? And it's free. Like you guys, you don't have an excuse. If you've been waiting to create a training because you don't have the right software, guess what? You can use OBS for that. Isn't that cool? I love it. And I just thought of that. So you can actually just create an offline pre recorded video. You can use that video for paid trainings or, or you can use it for your content marketing. So if you're teaching a certain thing or if you have a presentation that you're giving, you can use it to record an automated webinar. So you have your slides, you record it with obs. If you don't want it, you know, I recommend recording webinars live because then you get really good at converting them first. But then let's say you just want to record a training that you will have as an automated webinar. You could do that too. Okay, so first is you can create screen share videos for free and you can sell these and you can earn money and it's really, really cool. Now the second thing is to host a live webinar on Facebook. Now I did this last week, 29 June, I hosted a live webinar, Amplify youy Message Here on Facebook Live. And that particular webinar, because of that webinar, over the entire week with everything combined with my other Facebook Live videos and everything, I had over 1.2 million post reach on Facebook. Whoa. I sold nine memberships, so nine new customers into Author Audience Academy from that webinar. But I got a ton of reach. It really showed Facebook that people were paying attention to my page. It helps you create a powerful page. Now if you're doing a webinar on a regular basis, like I have a webinar, I give ongoing like at least once or twice a month. It's called book Writing Formulas and I may eventually automate it. I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to do all of it. But right now I give it live and I'm not going to give that webinar live on my Facebook page every time because then it gets old. But if you have a new webinar, if you have new training, try it out on Facebook Live using obs. Have screen share. And what I did was I chose to expire that video and then at the top it said the video was expiring and it had that in red. What it did then is I scheduled it for two days after the webinar to expire and I didn't have to remember it, I didn't have to redirect a page, I didn't have to take it down. Facebook just automatically expired the video. They notified me and they said your video has been expired. I didn't have to have any fancy software or anything like that. It just, it did it for me. And so it was really a cool way. And if you're just getting started with webinars, you know, it might be an option to try. Now I do recommend if you're using OBS to be directly wired in. I have a 50 foot wire. I don't know if I can bring up part of it. Here it is, here's part of my cord. It's a 50 foot cord that goes from my Internet out there into my office in here. And it's good to do when you're doing Facebook or I mean Google Hangouts or any kind of online streaming from your computer so you have a good connection. So. So I would recommend if you're using OBS for a webinar and it's especially going to be something where you're going to sell from. You have a really reliable connection. You've already used it several times and you know that the quality is good. Facebook is favoring live video right now and the longer your video is. So I was on that webinar for 90 minutes. So that's why it got so much reach. I think it ended up getting over 600,000, almost 700,000 post reach just for that webinar alone. And so a lot of people saw me, saw my brand that got reconnected with my Facebook page. And Facebook then is like this girl, her page is doing something and I'm not exactly sure all of their algorithms, but I bet that some of you have seen more of my posts now because of the interaction that I've had on my page. I had hundreds of comments on that webinar and it was just a really, really powerful way to use obs, not only to increase my income, to increase my impact, increase my reach, but, but also add extremely good value to my followers. It was good training. People really, really liked it. They really appreciated it. And so it really was a way to give to my followers. And so that is number two. Number three is to host a two person broadcast. Now when you're in a regular Facebook Live video and it's the square video, if you have two people in the same room, like my husband and I, we sometimes will do broadcast together and on the square screen, it's like we're just kind of smushed together, you know, and you have to be really far away. And then it's a little tricky with the microphones. Like I looked it up and I found a solution, but I was going to buy another microphone, buy this other thing, buy batteries, buy this. And it was going to be a little bit laborious trying to get two microphones hooked up and tried to get us both in the screen. I mean, it would have worked. It would have worked. But with this wider full screen mode you can actually, you know, I can move over here and then you can have another person very easily right there. So last night my husband and I did a godly gain segment. It's where we give inspiration from the Bible, from God's word, and really, you know, encourage Christian authors in writing. My husband was the primary teacher on that, but I was there with him and I interjected too. And you can, you can see it on my Facebook page. Just click on the videos and you'll see the one of him and I. And it was much better. Now I am learning. That was my first time. So I used the blue Yeti mic and it's off to the side. So last night it was on the side where I was standing. So. So you'll notice if you go back and watch that video, I'm louder, and I probably tend to be louder anyways than my husband. But what we're gonna try is I'm gonna try setting things up so we're sitting on our couch, and then I have the blue yeti mic sitting on the coffee table in front of us, in the center of us. And then we can have the computer a little further back and it'll just be a little more casual, like we were standing. So he was higher and lower. So I'm learning and I'm not afraid to jump in and try it. And I love sharing with you guys then what I'm doing. But what's so cool is you can actually see us both. And we've gotten so much really good feedback from that video. A lot of people were really encouraged, and it just OBS really made it easier. Facebook is going to be coming out. They did announce they will be coming out with actual allowing two different broadcasters to come in. I'm hoping they do kind of like what blab does where, you know, you have can have multiple, like up to four or more. But I know they are going to be coming out with that later. I don't know when, but that will be awesome too. There are ways to hack around with obs. Like, you could show your screen. You could have someone on Skype video show your screen and have that be part of the screen. Have you your webcam be part of the screen and I show you how to set up the scenes and the bonus training and Author Earnings Academy. So you could set up a scene like that or you could show, you know, have blab on there or Periscope or something and be showing your screen on the Facebook Live. So there's different ways to get around it right now, but Facebook will be coming out with that soon. The fourth way that authors can use obs with Facebook Live right now is for Q and A with your followers. I did this last week in Author Audience Academy, private Facebook group. So I just had. I took two minutes, literally. I created a screen that said member only, Q and A and accountability. And I made that smaller part of the screen. And then on the other side of the screen, I showed my iPad through the Reflector 2 app on my Mac and then I doodled on my iPad with an app that I have. And I was like, that's so cool. So I wasn't on the screen at the time. I was technically in my pajamas still, and I didn't want to show my face, so I just made it screen share. But I made it interactive because I showed my iPad. Now, you do have to pay extra for the Reflector 2 app. I think the app I was using at the time to write on is the Adobe app and it is free in the Apple Store. So I'm a Mac user, I'm an iPhone user. So there's probably a multitude of other options for PCs and Androids, but that's just an option. You don't even have to show your face and still have it be interactive. And my. My members, you know, I was interacting with them, I was coaching with them, and some of them got really big aha. Moments and breakthroughs, and I wasn't even on the screen, you know. But I do recommend for the majority of your live videos that you do show yourself. The power of live video is people see you. Can you see, I got my hair cut like, it was getting kind of. It was getting long, but it was getting kind of dry. And I had almost 3 inches cut off my hair yesterday. You see this? You know, if you're here watching this video, you see, oh, Shelly got her hair cut, went from long to medium. And you get to see me in real time. You get to see my expressions and get to know me like me and trust me. And the fastest way is to look into my eyes. So don't hide behind the screen share option all the time. But it is definitely something that you can use. And then the fifth way, and this is the way I'm using it, primarily is content marketing. So you can deliver content on Facebook Live and you can record it on obs. So you'll have a recording on your own. The recording from OBS is very good, like, and you can choose different qualities of the recording. I just choose the same as the streaming and it's. It's really good and the audio is good. So what I do is I take that recording and I put it in Dropbox for my video and audio editor. She gets a notification that it's there. My system's completely automated after that point. And she edits the video. She adds my outro video. And then for the podcast, she takes the edited audio and puts my intro and outro on that. And then my content marketing manager sends the audio to my transcriptionist and she transcribes it. She also sends the title and everything to my graphic designer to create a graphic. And my content marketing Manager manages it all for me behind the scenes and then she edits the transcript, she formats it for my blog, she embeds the podcast, uploads it to my podcast, uploads it to YouTube, embeds the like. So all this stuff is happening behind the scenes. I am not doing a single thing except recording the Facebook Live broadcast and putting it in my Dropbox. Pretty cool, right? So then my content marketing manager will let me know when the blog post is ready. I go in, I edit a few things, approve it, and my 15 or 20 minute Facebook Live just became a multitude of formats that I can use so many places now. I know a lot of you are not going to be at that place where you have a team doing all this for you. So don't start that complex. But as part of the live video challenge I did for you, it's a free challenge. If you went live, you have the bonus live video blueprint. And in that I have a video I created for you on seven different ways. Very simple ways you can use this content and repurpose it so you can sign up for free@shellyhits.com live video. Go through the challenge and once you go live, submit for the bonus and you'll get that repurposing video. It's my live video blueprint. I share with you exactly what I do, but also because most of you are not at the place to do that yet where you can start and you can repurpose this content in so many ways that are just really simple and don't take a ton of your time. I like to do things one time and have it work for me over and over again. Anybody else enjoy being able to do that? If you've gone through the live video challenge and haven't gotten that bonus training yet, why not go live, get that training? Because I share a ton of stuff in there with you. I am just getting started and these are all personally ways that I am already using it and have already used it successfully. It's really boosted my Facebook page post reach and it continues to do so because right now Facebook is favoring live video. So if you've been waiting, what are you waiting for? It is time. Right now is the time to get going with live video. Sometimes you just have to jump in and action cures fear. Let's do this. If you need help, I'd love to coach you in Author Audience Academy. I have a private Facebook group where I can help you as well. And I also have a training step by step on setting up OBS with Facebook Live. As a recap, I shared five ways authors can use OBS. It's a free software. You can find it@obsproject.com it's open broadcaster software is what OBS stands for. Number one was to create, create screen share videos for free. So I currently use Camtasia. It cost hundreds of dollars to get that for your PC and a little bit less than that for a Mac. But you can download OBS and once you have everything set up, you can create amazing screen share videos for free. And then you can put these videos in your trainings, you can use them for content marketing. You know that you can do them pre recorded so you don't have to if you, if you want to practice a little bit or you know, do some things before you go live. Number two, you can host a live webinar on your page. And when I did this, it ended up for the whole week, Putting me over 1.2 million post reach for my page, the most I've ever gotten. And I had hundreds of comments. I had nine new members sign up for authoritance Academy and it was just overall a success. Now can I guarantee that you'll get those results? No, but why not try? You know, webinars have been my number one way. I've added people and been able to sell my signature program, Author Audience Academy. And when you do a webinar on Facebook, you're going to get a ton more reach. And you can also set it to expire. I love that. So then it goes away after a couple days, but you also have the recording so you can put that into a paid training. You can do so many things then later with the recording. Number three is you can do a two person broadcast if you're both here together. Better, easier because there's more space, you know, because you can fit more people in to the broadcast. Eventually Facebook is going to add the ability to add broadcasters from other places. I cannot wait until that comes. But until then. My husband and I did that last night and it worked really well. Number four is do Q and A. You can show your screen, have a little holder on your PowerPoint. And then I used the Reflector 2 app, had my iPad showing and I was sketching on it, answering questions, doodling while I was answering their questions, writing out, brainstorming, and it was really, really powerful. Plus, guess what, if you're doodling on your screen, who else is doing that? And so it catches people's attention, you know, different, really helps to stand out. And the number Five is content marketing. Basically, you're able to create a much more more quality video and audio through OBS than you currently can right now through Facebook Live. Because I can use my blue Yeti mic and I can use my webcam and you can then repurpose that content on so many platforms. The options are really limitless. Once you get it set up, your mind can get going. You think, oh, I could use it for this or I could use it for that. And yet what I encourage you to do is to consider live video. Now is the time. I mean, Facebook has shown me there's proof. You can go back and watch my video. I recently did a training on how I got 1.1 million post reach what ended up being 1.2 million post reach for the week. I show you behind the scenes. I show you my statistics. Facebook is showing us statistics. Numbers don't lie that they're favoring live video. Why aren't you doing it yet when you can get so much extra boost exposure for free? You don't have to pay for a Facebook ad. You don't have to do any of that. My reach, that 1.2 million post reach, it was with zero paid ads. It was all organic. What is holding you back? Why aren't you willing to try it? Some people told me, well, I'd feel more comfortable if it was on my computer. Well, now you can do it on your computer with obs. And I just added all that training into the author audience academy bonuses this morning. So it's there for you. Let me know. Would you be willing, Would you be willing to take this step? Would you be willing to try a live video? Now, I know live video is not for everyone and I'm not saying everyone has to do it the way I do it. I do it. I mean, I'm trying to do anywhere from three to five live videos a week. I'm using it content marketing. I'm doing it in many, many, many ways. I'm not saying you have to do that. Could you try at least one a week? Could you at least give it a try? Could you at least be willing? Like, what would it do? You know, what could it do for your Facebook page and the reach that you have? Would you be willing to try it? You know, I encourage you. This is the time and now is the time. Why not try it now? You can even get on for a few minutes and encourage People like C.J. and I did. I wasn't selling anything. I was just sharing a free Facebook group we have@godlygain.com and we just shared and encouraged people. And so why not get on and start encouraging people now and then when you have a product, people are following you, they're subscribed to your live videos and and they're ready for when you have a product. You do have to be careful if you're playing someone else's music that you have the rights to broadcast and to distribute that music, that it's not just personal rights, but you actually have the rights to broadcast it. You can get into legal issues if you're broadcasting someone's copyrighted work. So just make sure you have that permission. I'm sure you do. I think every author could find a way to use Facebook Live right now. Try it out, test track and tweak. I know not everyone is a speaker. Not everyone is like me. I'm a communicator. I'm a prolific communicator. It's one of my top strengths on Strength Finder 2.0. And if you haven't taken that assessment, I encourage you to do that. Just buy the book on Amazon and then it will give you a code to take the assessment. One of my top strengths is communication. So Facebook Live is perfect for me. But even if you're an introvert, even if you're not necessarily a speaker, you can use it and you can use it to connect with your audience. You can use it to build buzz about your topic. You can use it to reach more people with your message, to be a blessing. Like, I shared my testimony and this was on my personal profile. I normally go live on my page, but right now we're in the process of trying to sell our house back in Ohio. And I just posted on my personal profile, we need a miracle. Because we do. And then I followed it up. I really felt led that I was supposed to follow it up with a video. So if you go to my personal profile and you scroll back, you'll see the video I did about a week ago. And so many people were just encouraged. I shared my testimony of a way that God provided for us in the past. And it was encouraging not only to them, but to me because I was sharing it as well. So there's so many ways you can use live video. And right now is the time. Facebook will probably not be favoring live video forever, but they are now. So why not try it? Why not do it? Why not try at least once a week if you can be consistent? Consistent. Go on once a week for 10 minutes. Share a little story. Share. Share some value, share something, send them back to sign up for your free gift for your email subscriber list or let them know about your product or your book. But build a relationship, get to know people, look them in the eye and then let me know. Let me know how it goes because I am cheering you on and now is definitely the time. Thank you again for being here. My name is Shelly Hitz. I'm the creator of authoraudienceacademy.com and I just love being able to share with you what I'm doing, what I'm learning behind the scenes. I just dove in. I started using OBS with Facebook Live. I've been using live video broadcasting for over a year. I started and I was very consistent starting on Periscope and and then now I've transitioned to Facebook Live but I have been all in. I love live video and so if you have any questions just let me know because it's one of my favorite things to talk about right now. Besides books, that's my favorite thing. But I'd love to help you and it's just really golden moment right now in marketing to use Facebook Live to reach more people and the statistics are showing it. Facebook is favoring it. So I will see you next time and have a great day. Bye Bye.

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Author Audience Show. Connect with us online@authoraudience.com where you'll find all the resources mentioned in today's episode. While you're there, grab Shelley's free video training on how to write and publish your book using her Six Step Ascent method. Join us again next week to learn how to reach your audience with your message.