Engage Customers in a New Way

Pool companies can use livestreams to better engage their audience

By now, there’s a high probability you’ve joined a livestream video or two, whether on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram or another social media platform. 

While some of these livestreams don’t offer much to audiences in terms of quality content — have you ever hopped on one where the creator simply reads people’s comments? — they are a fantastic way to garner interest in a business, including pool companies, when done correctly. 

Katie Maze, marketing and HR specialist at Lake Air Pool Supply based in Waco, Texas, says going live in the field is one of the best ways to show customers exactly what you’re doing. 

“Whether it’s filming the green-to-clean process, or if you’re consistently coming across the same problems at customers’ homes, go live and talk about it,” she says. “If you’ve built your following and your customers trust you, they will listen.”

Lake Air Pool Supply started doing livestreams about five years ago when it became the “hot new thing,” Maze says. 

“We weren’t really sure what we were doing at first — we just knew that we wanted to get out in front of more people to help our business make more money,” she says. “What we found was that our customers were actually paying really close attention to the things we were saying.”

These streams aren’t only used for advertising, Lake Air Pool Supply also shares important information like major weather updates about incoming storms or freezes.

In Maze’s opinion, it takes two things to make a livestream successful: energy and message. 

What really makes customers stick around is hearing knowledgeable people talk about pool ownership with passion.”

Katie Maze, Lake Air Pool Supply

“Fun and goofy videos are great, but what really makes customers stick around is hearing knowledgeable people talk about pool ownership with passion,” she says. 

To Edgar De Jesus, CEO and founder of Pool Nation, livestreams can be a powerful advertising tool but only if companies are willing to create quality content.

“I think the one misconception people have is that they can jump on a live and [solely] promote either a product or service,” he says. “It has to be a lot more than that; you have to provide value to the person on the other side.”

Additionally, a company’s following should know exactly when the livestreams are going to be, meaning you should stick with the same day and time of the week to go live, if possible. 

Maze and De Jesus agree a livestream shouldn’t be all about sales either.  

“It’s important to have a mix of funny, informational and promotional content,” Maze says. “If you make it all about wanting the consumer to buy product, they’ll eventually turn off your page, and you’ll lose followers.”

Maze and her team know exactly what Lake Air Pool Supply’s audience engages with and what helps drive sales because they post multiple times every day.

“If you’ve got a solid business model and your customers have a reason to value and respect your work, you can’t go wrong,” she says.

Social media is one of the most powerful marketing tools available to everyone. “People sometimes think of social media as platforms for kids or young adults,” De Jesus explains. “But users spend an average of 2.5 hours per day on social media. It’s a marketing platform.”

De Jesus also believes what makes livestreaming advantageous for a pool company is that it’s a way to advertise while allowing your audience to better interact and connect with you. 

“It’s another channel to be able to get out there and create value for your followers and advertise your product or service,” De Jesus says. “Whatever it is that you’re trying to do.”