How To Livestream a Wedding So That No One Gets Left Out
PHOTO BY MEG SMITH PHOTOGRAPHY
The other weekend, I got to witness my friend Olivia marry her long-time partner, Aaron, on a sunny bluff, overlooking a sun-drenched, California vineyard. Her ivory, lace gown fit her like a glove and had a long, dramatic train that trailed beautifully behind her as she made her way down the aisle towards Aaron. She wore a gorgeous hair piece that resembled a golden vine, tucked into her half up-half down hairdo. The way it glimmered as the sun hit it was sure to catch anyone’s eye, but Olivia’s best accessory that day was the giant smile she wore.
It was a picture-perfect scene and I could feel the excitement radiating from both Olivia and Aaron.
The crazy thing is, I wasn’t actually at their wedding.
I was nearly 700 miles away, watching remotely, from my backyard in Oregon, thanks to the technology of the Lovecast app.
Due to state safety regulations, Olivia and Aaron had to quickly pivot and downsize their wedding (a familiar story amongst many couples getting married currently). They chose to livestream their ceremony in order to still include all of their original guests, and I am so glad they did.
After Olivia and Aaron’s wedding, I contacted the Lovecast marketing team and was lucky enough to get to talk with Neil, the Founder. I was so impressed with their app and curious about how they got started, how they’re different from Zoom, etc., and Neil provided detailed answers to those questions and more. I hope you find our Q & A at the end of this blog post helpful!
But first, I want to share more about how to livestream a wedding, through my recent experience as a remote wedding guest and how Lovecast made it possible for me to be a part of my friends’ important day.
Couples often worry if live streaming their wedding is tasteful, and if it will be a strange guest experience, and I’m here to say it is absolutely tasteful and Lovecast’s technology made the experience seamless and so enjoyable!
We’re also approaching peak cold and flu season. This year, that means social distancing will be playing a bigger role in our lives (and weddings) more than ever. Live streaming your wedding is a way to still include everyone while keeping you and your guests safe as you minimize crowding and the transmission of viruses.
Lastly, if you’re currently overwhelmed with how to livestream wedding celebrations and are trying to choose which live stream platform to use, I hope this is helpful for understanding how Lovecast works and if it could be the right platform for you.
Here are three reasons why I loved my experience with Lovecast and why I will continue to recommend them.
The Ease For Remote Guests
The first reason why I loved it is because using Lovecast was straight-forward and easy. There was no software or app to install. Olivia and Aaron added the private link to their wedding website, and from there, I simply clicked and was at their wedding ceremony. The sound and image quality was great and it was exciting to see the familiar faces of Olivia and Aaron’s families trickling in, to take their physical seats in the rows directly in front of our virtual Lovecast seats (which was all done via a groomsman’s iPhone and tripod).
The Simple Set Up: How to Livestream Wedding
The second reason I loved it is because the experience for guests physically attending the wedding was just as easy. One of Aaron’s groomsmen was the designated “Lovecast Director” responsible for hitting Start and Stop, essentially. He set up his iPhone on a tripod in a row behind the guests in physical attendance, then hit Start, which started the live stream video for all of us guests watching from all around the United States.
“You all are in for a treat!” he beamed as he gave us a big thumbs up before heading off to get in position for the processional. There’s nothing else for the other guests to do, and Lovecast doesn’t disrupt their experience at all.
The Camaraderie
And last but not least, the third reason I loved using Lovecast was because of its live chat feature. Having the chance to message and chat with the other guests as we waited for the ceremony to begin was a nice feature that created camaraderie among all of the guests attending remotely. A few guests that were there in-person also joined the live chat, just for fun and to say hello to everyone who was remote, which was a very sweet touch. It was fun knowing all of our friends were tuning in at the same time to watch Olivia and Aaron get married, despite being scattered all around the country. This really helped us feel like we were still a part of their wedding day.
To Have and To Hold...and To Live Stream
Live streaming a wedding has never been easier and the guest experience has never been better!
Stop feeling skeptical about live streaming your wedding and invite all of your guests to be a part of the happiest day of your life. Head to the Lovecast site to get started today.
Just because we aren’t able to gather all together in the same place, doesn’t mean we should miss out on being a part of loved ones’ weddings, altogether. I’m so grateful for the power of technology, like Lovecast, and its ability to keep us all connected when it matters the most.
Q & A with Neil, Founder of Lovecast
What made you start Lovecast?
My wife and I are from different parts of the world, so our family and friends also live around the world. On our wedding day many of them, including our beloved grandparents, couldn’t make it to our wedding in person. We looked for a solution, but couldn’t find anything that worked for us. The existing streaming options were all too complex (both for us and for our guest to use). We were really sad that we couldn’t have our family experience the wedding. This experience inspired us to create something to make it easy for couples to include their loved ones on their special day.
How is Lovecast different from Zoom?
The differences that we noticed and that inspired us to build Lovecast all focused around the user experience. Zoom was built as a video conference tool for business, and that is really not an appropriate experience for a wedding live stream.
Lovecast generates a private website for the couple, which they can share with their guests. On the website, guests can watch the live stream on any device (including a TV!) without installing any app or logging in. Zoom requires guests to download their app and make an account in order to watch. This can pose quite a few challenges for less technology-inclined guests.
Also, Lovecast is one-way streaming with an unlimited number of guests. This means guests don’t share their camera or mic. We’ve heard many stories where the Zoom guests accidentally unmute themselves and interrupt the video in progress. Lovecast removes this concern and makes streaming to a large group of remote guests much more stress-free.
Additionally, Lovecast uses the high quality live streaming technology and automatically saves the recording to both your website & your phone. This is unique because you have an online recording you can share with guests, as well as a copy on your phone to save in your digital scrapbook.
Lovecast also provides each couple a personalized wedding website that they can customize with a cover photo and more, so guests are engaged, as opposed to Zoom where they view a standard video chat with many guests visible.
How has COVID’s impact on weddings impacted the Lovecast business?
We’ve definitely seen an increase in the number of couples live streaming their weddings. We’re truly saddened by the whole pandemic, but we’re happy that we can play a small role in reducing the spread of the virus while still making the couple's dreams come true.
What is the top question/concern you hear from couples interested in live streaming their wedding?
What kind of internet connection will work for live streaming?
Live streaming is highly dependent on your internet connection. Since Lovecast is a mobile app, it will work with both WiFi and cellular, as long as the connection is strong enough. We generally recommend the couple do an internet speed test at the venue, and look for an upload speed of at least 1 MB/s for normal streaming and at least 3 MB/s to get the highest quality streaming. Additionally, the couple can do a sample stream using the test event Lovecast automatically creates. This is a perfect feature to use as a rehearsal run to make sure the wedding stream goes perfectly smooth.
Will the guests need to download the app or create an account?
We created Lovecast to be simple to use and easy to navigate - so the answer to both of these questions is no 😃. Guests only need to open the link shared with them to watch the live stream. It’s as easy as that!
What is your biggest piece of advice to couples currently planning to live stream their weddings?
Keep your remote guests updated. Although I think the other advice of testing beforehand is also important, I feel this one is often overlooked. We’ve noticed weddings tend to run late (it’s a busy day, after all!), and remote guests often are not aware of delays. Despite Lovecast sending guests notifications once a stream starts, many remote guests stare eagerly at their computer screen anxiously waiting for the live stream to start (sometimes for hours -- no joke!).
I think given the current situation, we should keep our remote guests in mind on the wedding day. The couple (or their event co-host) can easily update their remote guests in case of any delays via the in-app chat.
Anything else you’d like to add and share with The Mrs. Book audience?
We are delighted to be able to create a platform for all couples to live stream their wedding with family and friends, no matter the circumstances. Our goal is to make every couple’s wedding day a bit easier, providing a worry free way for all guests to attend the wedding. And as a sneak peek for all you readers, we are in the process of releasing some exciting new features in the next few weeks so stay tuned!