Platform innovation · 2016 US Election

The most-watched Facebook Live of its time.

With Facebook Live still brand new in 2016, UNILAD used the US Election to lead real-time social coverage, turning passive viewers into active participants with a custom-built voting tool.

Company
UNILAD
Sector
Platform innovation · Live
Services
Live & real-time · Platform innovation · Campaign
The outcome, in numbers
700K+
Concurrent live viewers
5M+
Post engagement
#1
Most-viewed Facebook Live at the time

The situation

Facebook Live was a new, unproven feature. The 2016 US Election was a once-a-cycle moment to own real-time coverage, if someone moved fast and made it interactive rather than just a broadcast.

What NBK did

We paired Facebook Live with Facebook's emoji reactions to build an in-house interactive voting tool: viewers reacted with emojis, which drove a live on-screen counter of audience sentiment.

We launched the moment the result broke, took first-mover advantage on the format, and promoted it hard across UNILAD's platforms, turning a passive stream into mass participation.

The approach

What we actually did.

  1. Bet on a new feature
    Moved early on Facebook Live before others saw its potential.
  2. Made it interactive
    Built an emoji-reaction voting tool that turned viewers into participants.
  3. Timed it perfectly
    Launched the instant the result broke, capturing peak real-time attention.
  4. Promoted for scale
    Pushed it across every UNILAD channel to maximise reach and virality.

The biggest moments on social go to whoever moves first. New formats reward speed and nerve, not budget.

More work

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