Twitter has been playing around with the Periscope app for some time. A little while ago, Twitter released the app for Android users.

Now, Twitter has released Periscope for everyone to use now, but should you be using it? Here are some more details about what Periscope is and isn’t.

Options, Options

When you log into Twitter with iOS or Android now, you’ll have a few options when creating a post. You can create a regular Twitter post, upload photos or videos, or tap the Periscope button that allows you to create live real-time video. If you do not have the Periscope app installed on your phone already, you will be asked to do so before you can upload a live video of any kind.

Twitter is clearly responding to Facebook Live, which is currently taking over on Facebook. Live video seems to be where social is heading for now, so companies and individuals may want to get in on the Periscope thing while it’s still hot. But is live video for everyone and how do companies handle a live video option through social?

Handling Live Video

So what do you do when you’ve hired someone to run your social media campaigns, and that person does a great job at running the words and coordinating posts but isn’t so great on camera? Do you let your social person post live videos through an app like Periscope? Is this even necessary when it comes to the new social? Maybe.

The thing about live video (whether it’s on Facebook or Twitter) is that it doesn’t necessarily have to be live. A lot of media companies are actually posting pre-recorded videos to sites like Facebook (and now Twitter) just to see whether or not content picks up. So far, the tests have been positive. So now the question is, ‘what kind of video strategy does your company need to have?’

Videos Everywhere

Social media is moving more towards video and there’s not much that we can do about it - even if you don’t like the idea. The thing (or trick) is to come up with a social campaign that includes some live video - even if it’s not really live. Remember that pre-recorded video is fair game right now, and not all video has to be absolutely live.

So even if live video isn’t your thing, social media might be, and that may mean some video clips in the near future. Then again, Twitter’s Periscope may not catch on as well as Twitter’s test Periscope project has. There are still a lot of other live video options out there like Facebook Live and even SnapChat.

Social Video

The other possibility here is that some companies may begin to create social video segments. Video clips that air at the same time on the same network regularly. There are a lot of possibilities when it comes to how video content can be determined. For now, check out Periscope via your Twitter app. If you have iOS or Android, you should have access to Periscope now.