Periscope Must Knows Bloggy Bestie Style!

Are you thinking, WHAT IN THE WORLD IS PERISCOPE?

Don’t panic.  We are here to help you and it is easy!

We are fairly new to Periscope as well but have done some research and lurking to figure out the basics and we want you to hop onto this journey of ours and join us in the fun!

Periscope is a live streaming app, owned by Twitter, that allows you to share and watch live video broadcasts from your mobile gadget of choice.  Before you stress out and think that you don’t feel comfortable broadcasting your own videos, let that thought go!

YOU don’t need to do the videos!  You can just WATCH Periscopes, too!! The cool thing is that it is live so you get to interact with the broadcaster by typing questions and comments that the scoper will get to see and answer live on the broadcast.  Neat, right?

We have put together our Top 10 Periscope Must Knows so you can feel even more comfortable about the whole experience!

This is the first step.  Grab your phone, go to the app store, and download the free Periscope app.  Once downloaded, you will need to log in to your account.  This can be done through your Twitter account or by using a phone number.

Your Periscope profile is an important part of your account.  This is what people see and read when they are wanting to decide if they should follow you.  Include key details about yourself from the angle that you want others to know when it comes to your Periscope presence. 

Don’t forget about a picture!  I have found that, like Twitter, Periscope users want to see a picture of YOU.  It doesn’t have to be perfect.  Seriously.  Just find a picture of yourself and post it on your profile.

Turning your notifications on will allow for you to not miss out on any of our broadcasts while we are in Vegas July 9-12.  To do this go into your settings on your phone, scroll through your apps until you find Periscope, go to notifications, and make sure your notifications are turned on.

If you do happen to miss a live video stream broadcast, the videos are saved to Periscope for 24 hours.  The only bummer about watching them this way is that you are not able to interact with us, which is the part we are most excited about!

Once you receive a notification, simply click on the notification and it will bring you directly to the broadcast.  If you want to search through broadcasts on your phone, click on the TV icon on the bottom left side of your phone screen and scroll through your list of options.  When you find the one that you want, click on the white triangle to play.  When you want to end a broadcast that you are watching you can either click on the X or swipe down.

This one is important.  Hearts can be given as a motivator for the speaker and as a way of telling the person that is scoping that you love their content.  Hearts give value to the speaker’s presence on Periscope.  The more hearts you have, the higher up you’ll go on the Periscope “Most Loved” list.  A maximum of 500 hearts can be given during a single broadcast.  They can be earned during the live and replay sessions.  Giving hearts is really easy.  When you tap the screen it provides hearts.  Don’t be afraid to tap away until you heart is content!  In other words, show us the love by showing us your hearts!

When interacting with the speaker on a Periscope session, others are able to read your comments and questions.  If you like what others are typing, tap on their name and view their profile.  If you like what you see, give them a follow.  You can also click on the people button on the bottom right side of your phone screen and then click on the magnifying glass at the top left side of your phone screen to search and follow people.  Stay tuned for a list of educators that we love to follow on Periscope as we dive into this world of video streaming!

This is what it’s all about friends.  Interaction is key to a successful broadcast.  Please type your questions and comments throughout the scope session.  We will answer them.  It will probably feel like a sporadic and random conversation because it is important for the speaker to answer the interaction that comes in.  That is what makes it fun!

Finally, if you’re not feeling confident or not feeling like Periscope is your thing, we encourage you to explore and lurk.  There is no shame in signing onto some Periscope sessions and just getting a feel for how these are run.  You will learn a lot about Periscope flow and etiquette simply by just exploring and lurking.  Confession…this is exactly how we have been learning and we can’t wait to learn with you!

We hope to see you soon on Periscope!!