The rise of social media has revolutionized the way individuals and businesses communicate, interact, and engage with audiences. Among the various content formats available, live streaming has emerged as a highly interactive and immersive medium that facilitates real-time engagement between content creators and their followers. Live streaming enables brands, influencers, and individuals to create spontaneous and authentic content, fostering a sense of immediacy and personal connection with audiences. Facebook and Instagram, two of the most popular social media platforms, have integrated live streaming features to capitalize on this growing trend. Face book Live, launched in 2016, allows users to broadcast live videos, interact with viewers through comments and reactions, and save broadcasts for later viewing. Instagram Live, introduced as part of Instagram Stories in the same year, provides a more ephemeral live streaming experience, with broadcasts disappearing after 24 hours unless saved. Despite their similarities, these platforms exhibit distinct differences in user engagement, interactivity, and content consumption patterns. Consumer engagement in live streaming is influenced by multiple factors, including content authenticity, perceived interactivity, social presence, and the ability to foster a sense of community. Research suggests that consumers are more likely to engage with live content that is interactive, spontaneous, and aligns with their interests. Additionally, the platform’s features, such as real-time comments, reactions, and monetization options, play a significant role in shaping engagement levels.

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Theoretical Background

The theoretical foundation of consumer engagement in live streaming is rooted in multiple social media and digital marketing frameworks. Key theories such as the Uses and Gratifications Theory (UGT), Social Presence Theory, and Interactivity Theory help explain how consumers engage with live streaming content on platforms like Face book and Instagram.

The Uses and Gratifications Theory (UGT) posits that individuals actively seek out media content that satisfies their needs, such as entertainment, social interaction, and information. In the context of live streaming, consumers engage with content that provides value, whether through entertainment, product demonstrations, or interactive discussions. Face book Live and Instagram Live cater to different user expectations, with Face book attracting a broader demographic interested in in-depth discussions and community engagement, while Instagram appeals to users seeking visually appealing, quick, and interactive experiences.

The Social Presence Theory emphasizes the importance of real-time interactions in fostering emotional connections between consumers and content creators. Live streaming enhances social presence by allowing audiences to engage directly with hosts through comments, reactions, and real-time responses. The level of perceived social presence differs between platforms—Face book Live encourages prolonged engagement through features like watch parties and scheduled live events, whereas Instagram Live leverages ephemeral content to create urgency and exclusivity.

Interactivity Theory highlights the role of two-way communication in consumer engagement. Unlike pre-recorded videos, live streaming enables real-time conversations, making consumers feel more involved in the content. The interactive elements of Face book Live, such as polls, Q&A sessions, and reactions, facilitate deeper engagement. Instagram Live, on the other hand, promotes more casual and spontaneous interactions, allowing users to join live broadcasts and engage in direct conversations with influencers and brands. Furthermore, the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) suggests that consumer’s process information through two routes—central and peripheral. In live streaming, the central route is activated when viewers engage with informative and persuasive content, such as product reviews or expert discussions. The peripheral route comes into play when consumers are influenced by visuals, influencer credibility, and emotional appeal. Face book Live often supports central route processing with detailed discussions and structured content, while Instagram Live relies on the peripheral route by emphasizing visual storytelling and influencer-driven interactions. The integration of these theoretical perspectives provides a comprehensive understanding of consumer engagement in live streaming. While both Face book and Instagram facilitate live interactions, they differ in their approach to engagement, content appeal, and audience participation. This study seeks to leverage these theories to analyze engagement dynamics and provide strategic insights for businesses, influencers, and marketers aiming to optimize live streaming experiences.

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Despite the increasing adoption of live streaming in digital marketing, limited research has explored consumer engagement differences between Face book Live and Instagram Live. Most studies on social media engagement focus on static content formats such as posts, images, and videos, overlooking the dynamic and interactive nature of live streaming. This gap highlights the need for a comparative analysis of live streaming engagement on these two platforms. Existing research on live streaming engagement is often platform-specific, with studies focusing on either Face book Live or Instagram Live rather than drawing comparative insights. Face book Live has been studied in terms of its effectiveness in political campaigns, brand promotions, and customer support, while Instagram Live research has primarily focused on influencer marketing and real-time brand storytelling. However, there is a lack of research that examines the key factors differentiating consumer engagement on these platforms, including interactivity, content preferences, and platform functionalities. Another research gap lies in the limited exploration of how demographic factors influence engagement in live streaming. While general social media studies recognize that younger audiences prefer Instagram, and older demographics engage more on Face book, there is insufficient empirical evidence on how these demographic differences impact live streaming engagement. Understanding audience behavior based on age, interests, and engagement preferences can help brands tailor their strategies for maximum impact. Additionally, most studies on live streaming engagement do not consider the role of influencers and brand collaborations in shaping consumer interactions. Influencers play a crucial role in driving engagement, yet little research has compared how influencer-led live streaming performs on Face book versus Instagram. Investigating the effectiveness of influencer engagement on both platforms can provide valuable insights for marketers. Finally, there is limited research on how businesses can optimize live streaming strategies to enhance consumer participation and brand loyalty. By addressing these research gaps, this study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of consumer engagement in live streaming and offer strategic recommendations for businesses and content creators.

Importance of the Study

The rapid growth of social media has transformed digital marketing, with live streaming emerging as a crucial tool for consumer engagement. Facebook Live and Instagram Live provide brands, influencers, and businesses with real-time interaction opportunities, yet there is limited comparative research on their effectiveness in engaging audiences. Understanding how consumer engagement differs between these platforms is essential for businesses seeking to optimize their live streaming strategies. One of the key reasons for studying consumer engagement in live streaming is its direct impact on brand awareness, customer loyalty, and purchase decisions. Live streaming allows businesses to humanize their brands, build trust, and establish deeper connections with consumers. Unlike traditional marketing methods, live streaming offers authenticity and immediacy, making it a powerful medium for customer engagement. Identifying the factors that drive engagement on Face book and Instagram can help marketers tailor content strategies to maximize audience participation and brand impact. Another significant aspect of this study is its relevance to influencer marketing. Influencers play a major role in live streaming, acting as brand advocates and content creators. However, their engagement strategies and audience responses differ across platforms. By analyzing live streaming engagement on Face book and Instagram, this research provides insights into how influencers can optimize their approach to maximize reach and effectiveness. From a theoretical perspective, this study contributes to the growing literature on digital marketing and social media engagement. Existing research primarily focuses on static social media content, leaving a gap in understanding the dynamics of live streaming. By integrating theories such as the Uses and Gratifications Theory, Social Presence Theory, and Interactivity Theory, this study offers a comprehensive understanding of how different engagement drivers influence consumer behavior in live streaming environments. Furthermore, this research has implications for small businesses and startups. Many smaller brands lack the resources to invest in large-scale digital marketing campaigns and instead rely on cost-effective strategies such as live streaming. Understanding the differences between Face book and Instagram Live engagement can help these businesses allocate resources efficiently and choose the right platform for their target audience. As consumer preferences continue to evolve in the digital landscape, businesses must adapt their marketing strategies to stay competitive. This study provides valuable insights into how live streaming can be leveraged effectively, making it a crucial contribution to digital marketing research and practice.

Statement of the Problem

Live streaming has emerged as one of the most interactive and engaging content formats on social media. Businesses, influencers, and brands increasingly rely on Facebook Live and Instagram Live to connect with consumers in real time. However, there remains a lack of comprehensive research comparing consumer engagement patterns across these platforms. This study seeks to address this gap by examining the factors influencing engagement in live streaming and comparing the effectiveness of Face book Live and Instagram Live in fostering audience participation. One of the major challenges in live streaming is maintaining audience attention and encouraging active engagement. While both platforms offer interactive features such as real-time comments, reactions, and Q&A sessions, their effectiveness in sustaining viewer engagement varies. Face book Live provides structured engagement options, including scheduled live events and longer broadcast durations, whereas Instagram Live offers a more casual and ephemeral experience. This study investigates which platform fosters deeper engagement and why certain content types perform better on one platform over the other. Another critical issue is the impact of influencer involvement on live streaming engagement. Influencers are instrumental in driving consumer interactions, yet their effectiveness differs between platforms. While Face book Live supports long-form discussions and community-building, Instagram Live capitalizes on visual storytelling and immediate interactions. Understanding how influencer-led engagement varies across platforms will provide valuable insights into optimizing live streaming strategies. Additionally, there is a need to explore demographic differences in consumer engagement. Face book’s audience tends to include a broader age range, while Instagram skews younger. However, limited research has examined how these demographic variations influence live streaming engagement. This study aims to fill this gap by analyzing user behavior, preferences, and engagement patterns across different age groups. Ultimately, this research seeks to provide actionable insights for businesses, marketers, and influencers on how to enhance live streaming engagement and make informed decisions about platform selection and content strategies.

Objectives:

1. To analyze the factors influencing consumer engagement in live streaming on Facebook and Instagram.
2. To compare the effectiveness of live streaming features on both platforms.
3. To assess user preferences and behavior in response to live-streamed content.
4. To explore the role of influencer marketing in driving engagement in live streaming.
5. To provide strategic recommendations for brands and content creators to enhance audience engagement.

This study employs a quantitative research approach to examine the factors contributing to consumer engagement in live streaming on social media, specifically comparing Facebook and Instagram. Primary data was collected using a structured questionnaire administered both online and offline. The survey instrument consisted of Likert-scale and multiple-choice questions designed to measure user engagement levels, preferences, platform-specific features, emotional responses, and perceived content value. A sample of 250 active social media users who have participated in or viewed live streaming content on either Facebook or Instagram was selected using purposive sampling. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, mean ranking, and inferential techniques. The methodology facilitates a comparative understanding of consumer behavior across the two platforms and highlights key drivers of engagement in the context of live streaming. This approach helps identify which platform-specific features most effectively foster user interaction and brand connection.

Analysis and findings

In the digital marketing landscape, live streaming serves as a powerful tool for brands seeking to strengthen customer relationships, promote products, and drive conversions. Influencers and businesses leverage live streaming to conduct Q&A sessions, showcase product demonstrations, and provide exclusive content, thereby enhancing audience participation. However, despite its potential, the effectiveness of live streaming varies across platforms, and understanding consumer behavior on Face book Live and Instagram Live remains a critical area of study.

This research aims to bridge the gap by comparing consumer engagement in live streaming on Face book and Instagram. By analyzing key engagement drivers and platform-specific differences, the study seeks to provide insights that will help marketers and content creators optimize their live streaming strategies for maximum impact. The findings will contribute to the broader discourse on digital marketing and social media engagement, offering practical recommendations for leveraging live streaming as a strategic communication tool.

Socio-economic characteristics

Table 1: Socio-economic characteristics

• Gender and Engagement: The higher participation of females (64.4%) suggests that women are more actively engaged in live streaming, possibly due to interests in interactive content such as shopping, beauty, lifestyle, and educational streams.
• Age and Engagement: With 46.4% of respondents aged 30-40 years, this group likely represents the most engaged demographic, balancing work, personal life, and digital entertainment. The 26% under 30 may be drawn to influencer-driven content, while the 27.6% above 40 might engage for information and commerce-related streams.
• Marital Status and Engagement: The dominance of married individuals (68.8%) suggests that family-oriented decision-making, product discovery, and household-related live streaming sessions (such as parenting, home essentials, and financial advice) might be key engagement drivers.

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• Education and Engagement: The fact that 62.8% of respondents have at least an undergraduate degree indicates that well-educated consumers actively engage in live streaming, potentially seeking professional content, knowledge-sharing sessions, or high-value consumer discussions.
• Occupation and Engagement: The largest group, self-employed individuals (32.8%), suggests that entrepreneurs might use live streaming for business networking, marketing, or product promotion. The employed group (25.2%) may engage in career-related streams, while students (19.2%) likely interact with educational and entertainment content.
• Income and Engagement: With 60% of respondents earning ₹3–6 lakhs annually, middle-income individuals emerge as the primary consumers of live streaming, likely influenced by affordability, interest in online shopping, and digital entertainment.

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The findings indicate that live streaming engagement is higher among females, middle-aged individuals, married consumers, educated users, self-employed professionals, and middle-income earners. This suggests that businesses and content creators should tailor their live streaming strategies to engage this demographic through interactive, informative, and commerce-driven content.

Table :2 Factors influencing consumer engagement in live streaming on social media

The analysis reveals that among the various factors influencing consumer engagement in live streaming on social media, Algorithmic Recommendations ranks highest with a mean score of 4.50 and the highest mean rank of 4.74. This indicates that users highly value content suggested by algorithms that align with their interests. Entertainment Value (mean = 4.24) and Engagement Features (mean = 4.18) also play significant roles, suggesting that dynamic, interactive, and enjoyable content enhances user participation. Emotional Connection (mean = 4.14) and Perceived Authenticity (mean = 4.05) further support the notion that genuine and emotionally resonant content encourages deeper engagement. On the other hand, Relevance & Personalization (mean = 3.97) and Ease of Use & Accessibility (mean = 3.96) are rated comparatively lower, indicating that while important, they are slightly less influential in driving engagement compared to the experiential and emotional aspects of live streaming. Overall, the findings underscore the importance of a personalized, entertaining, and authentic live streaming experience to foster active consumer involvement on social media platforms.

Implications for the Study

The findings of this study have several significant implications for businesses, marketers, influencers, and social media strategists. By understanding the key engagement drivers in live streaming, businesses can refine their digital marketing strategies and optimize content for maximum audience participation. For marketers, this study provides a deeper understanding of platform-specific engagement patterns, helping them design tailored campaigns. Since Face book and Instagram cater to different demographics and engagement behaviors, businesses can use these insights to allocate resources effectively. Brands targeting younger audiences may prioritize Instagram Live, while those focusing on community-driven interactions may find Face book Live more effective. The research also offers valuable insights for influencers and content creators. By identifying the factors that enhance audience engagement, influencers can tailor their live streaming strategies to build stronger connections with their followers. The study also highlights the role of interactive features, such as polls, Q&A sessions, and live collaborations, in driving engagement. Furthermore, this study has implications for social media platforms themselves. As Meta continues to develop new features for Face book Live and Instagram Live, the findings can inform future updates that enhance user experience and engagement. Understanding consumer preferences and behavior can help platforms optimize their live streaming tools to attract more content creators and businesses. From an academic perspective, this study contributes to the growing body of research on social media engagement, offering a comparative analysis of two major live streaming platforms. It also provides a foundation for future research exploring emerging trends in live streaming, such as AI-driven content personalization and virtual reality integration.

Recommendations and Suggestions

1. Platform-Specific Strategies: Businesses should tailor their live streaming strategies based on the platform's audience demographics and engagement dynamics. Face book Live is better suited for in-depth discussions, product demonstrations, and community engagement, while Instagram Live is ideal for quick, visually appealing, and influencer-led content.
2. Enhancing Interactivity: Engaging consumers through interactive elements such as Q&A sessions, live polls, and audience shutouts can significantly increase participation. Encouraging real-time feedback and responding to viewer comments enhances the sense of community and brand connection.
3. Leveraging Influencers: Brands should collaborate with influencers whose audience aligns with their target demographic. Influencers can help drive engagement by using storytelling techniques, exclusive offers, and interactive discussions.
4. Content Optimization: Marketers should experiment with different content formats, including behind-the-scenes videos, live product launches, and customer testimonials. Testing different content strategies can help identify what resonates most with the audience.
5. Time Optimization: Understanding when the target audience is most active is crucial for maximizing engagement. Businesses should schedule live sessions based on audience insights to ensure higher participation.

Live streaming has become a powerful tool for consumer engagement on social media, providing real-time interaction opportunities for businesses, influencers, and content creators. Face book Live and Instagram Live, two leading platforms for live streaming, offer distinct engagement dynamics that cater to different audience preferences and content strategies. The study aimed to compare consumer engagement on these platforms, highlighting key factors that influence audience participation, interactivity, and content effectiveness. The findings of this research reveal that consumer engagement in live streaming is influenced by multiple factors, including interactivity, content appeal, influencer involvement, and platform-specific features. While Face book Live supports long-form content and structured discussions, Instagram Live thrives on spontaneity, visual appeal, and immediate interactions. These differences underscore the need for businesses and marketers to develop platform-specific strategies to maximize engagement. One of the major takeaways from this study is the role of influencers in driving engagement. Influencers play a crucial role in attracting audiences, shaping brand perceptions, and encouraging real-time interactions. Businesses can leverage influencer partnerships to enhance their live streaming effectiveness, ensuring that content remains engaging and relevant to the target audience. Overall, this study contributes valuable insights into consumer engagement in live streaming, offering practical recommendations for businesses and content creators. As social media continues to evolve, live streaming will remain a critical component of digital marketing, requiring brands to adapt their strategies to stay competitive.

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