Have you ever heard of livestream shopping? It’s a new trend in the world of e-commerce that’s been rapidly gaining popularity over the last couple of years.
If you’re not familiar with it, don’t worry – we’ve got you covered!
In a nutshell, livestream shopping is a combination of live video streaming and online shopping.
Instead of browsing through products on a website or app, customers watch a live video stream hosted by a seller or influencer, who showcases various products and interacts with viewers in real-time.
Viewers can ask questions, make comments, and even purchase items directly through the livestream.
But how exactly does it work? What are the benefits of livestream shopping, and what should you know before trying it out for yourself?
In this blog post, we’ll explore everything you need to know about this exciting new trend in e-commerce. So sit back, grab a cup of coffee, and let’s dive in!
What Is Livestream Shopping, & How Does It Work?
Conventional, brick-and-mortar stores offer superior levels of customer service.
They are able to concentrate on the particular requirements of a small number of customers at a time, attending to their inquiries and making personalized suggestions up until the moment that browsers are ready to make a purchase.
On the other hand, in comparison to their brick-and-mortar counterparts, online businesses have access to a significantly larger customer base.
They are able to service an unlimited number of customers at once, and those customers can be located in any part of the world as long as they have access to the internet.
Live streaming e-commerce retail effectively blends the two, placing digital merchants in front of a wide online audience while yet allowing them to interact to customers on a one-on-one level.
Live streaming e-commerce shopping has the potential to revolutionize the retail industry.
It has a very high degree of efficacy: According to the projections of industry analysts, livestream shopping will bring in $25 billion in sales in the United States alone in 2023.
What Exactly is meant by “Livestream Shopping”?
To begin, what exactly is meant by the term “livestream”? In a nutshell, live streaming is the process of sending live video to a community on the internet in real time.
Livestream combined with online buying equals chances for businesses to engage in live streaming e-commerce.
Now that we have that established, let’s talk about how this works in actual life. It’s likely that if you’ve ever seen a home shopping channel like QVC, you already know the response to the query “what is live shopping?”
Live shopping has been a common fixture in living rooms across the United States for many years. During the broadcast, a presenter will demonstrate a product that is currently available for purchase.
But, there are a few significant ways in which the experience of purchasing via livestream significantly improves upon the standard practice of shopping from home.
To begin, there is a significantly increased level of interaction. Livestream shopping allows viewers to connect in a variety of ways, including remarks, likes, polls, and more, in contrast to home shopping channels, which only allow viewers to call in.
Using the chat functionality, for instance, anyone who is watching the stream has the ability to pose a query regarding the product or suggest that the host demonstrate it from a different viewpoint.
The second benefit to think about is the fact that it is more convenient. It is not necessary to be seated in front of a television in order to take part. It’s possible that you’re sitting in a cafe or on the bus right now.
If you’re looking to connect with younger consumers in the United States but home shopping networks are your only option, you might want to rethink that strategy. A stunning three-fifths of American viewers that watch live TV are aged 55 or older.
Livestream shopping is currently utilized in the majority by small, direct-to-consumer firms in the United States. A select group of celebrities, such as Catherine Zeta-Jones, are also among the users of this platform. By utilizing the talkshoplive marketplace, she hawks her own brand of cosmetics to customers.
Although almost percent of the transactions take place between consumers and businesses, shopping on Livestream is not restricted to any one particular type of product. A cursory examination of the available categories on CommentSold, a livestream buying platform that is utilized by more than 3,000 different shops, reveals the following:
retail stores catering to women that also offer direct selling and wholesale sports items and home decor
It Is Important That You Be Aware Of These Livestream Shopping Platforms
The concept of livestream shopping first gained widespread popularity in China, in part because the country possessed a number of fully integrated electronic platforms that included livestream e-commerce and payment methods.
For instance, in the year 2020, two-thirds of consumers in China made purchases of goods through livestreaming in the preceding 12 months.
A number of specialized livestream shopping sites geared toward Western audiences are already accessible to users located in countries other than China. These are the following:
1. Livestreaming on Facebook
Users are able to stream live video footage to their friends and followers on Facebook thanks to a tool made available by the social media network. As of late, Facebook has been working to broaden the capability of Live by introducing livestream e-commerce services.
As a result, Facebook has become an excellent platform for livestream purchasing. Its huge user base and the possibility of reaching a large viewers through livestreams and “Facebook Shops” are two of its most significant advantages; however, the platform also offers a wealth of interactive features that can be used to build a robust community feel through user participation.
2. Instagram Live
Users are able to livestream videos to their followers on Instagram using a feature called Instagram Live, which is very similar to Facebook Live in its functionality. Also, similar to Facebook Live, Instagram Live has been working toward the addition of e-commerce functionality.
Businesses are able to construct online stores and display their wares via Instagram shops, which are available on Instagram Live. You could easily implement this option into live shopping to simplify the process for customers and make it more streamlined.
3. TikTok Shopping
TikTok, a well-known platform for short-form video sharing, just added e-commerce capabilities, which transform the platform into a formidable competitor in the realm of livestream shopping.
TikTok has a fantastic opportunity to connect with a big number of younger users given that it has more than one billion monthly active users.
In addition to this, its framework encourages participation and creativity, making it simple for merchants to highlight their wares with the assistance of music, filters, and effects.
4. Popshop Live (On Stage)
This platform is designed exclusively for usage on iOS, and it enables vendors to present shows directly from their iPhones, use images to upload purchase links, and interface with tools designed for inventory management.
5. TalkShopLive
TalkShopLive is a sociocultural network that enables vendors to stream shows to an audience while simultaneously growing their business.
During these live, you will have the opportunity to showcase products, bring attention to important product details, and engage in virtual conversation with buyers (purchase with a quick, one-click button).
6. buywith
This is a platform that allows influencers to “shop live with their followers” on the e-commerce sites of companies. This allows influencers to secure bigger partnerships, while also helping brands get a greater return on investment (ROI) from existing influencer marketing tactics.
7. Livescale
This is a real-time shopping tool that can interact with a variety of different e-commerce platforms already on the market, including Shopify. By providing customers with a personalized experience, retailers are able to drive interaction, enhance brand recognition, and increase sales when using Livescale.
8. Giosg
Giosg is a platform for customer engagement that enables businesses to communicate with consumers through phone, video, and chat channels. It provides a live streaming capability, which enables companies to immediately communicate with their customers through the medium of video.
A significant advantage of livestream shopping with Giosg is that it enables retailers to create a personalized customer experience by incorporating interactive features like as quizzes and live polls into the livestream.
9. Bambuser
It began as a live streaming tool for journalists, but it has now expanded into the livestream shopping arena and been utilized by firms such as Peach, which produced $27,000 in sales during their very first livestream shopping show.
10. twitch (verb)
In general, people think of Twitch as the place to go to broadcast video games, but in recent years, it has expanded its offerings to include other types of content as well, such as chat shows, commerce, and music.
Retailers should think about using it as a potential source for live shopping given the size and activity level of its membership.
Twitch also works quite well with an application known as “Streamlabs,” which enables streamers to include interactive elements like notifications and overlays in their broadcasts.
11. NTWRK
A specialized new business that promotes limited-edition product drops and other types of shopping events on a daily basis. For instance, it has been reported that the site generated more than one million dollars in sales for specific concerts in just ten minutes.
If you are a merchant who carries a specialized product, NTWRK is an excellent venue for showcasing that product to prospective customers who are active in the same market as you.
The Four Primary Components That Contribute to the Successful Operation of Livestream Shopping
The concept underpinning livestream shopping is one that is easily understood. It is an excellent combination of live streaming, which is already available on many of the major social media platforms, and a feature that allows users to make purchases directly from the platform.
It is similar to watching a live unpacking on YouTube, only that you have the option to purchase the thing at that very moment.
Livestream purchasing incorporates a lot of the elements that are responsible for the widespread adoption of social media. The audience is able to respond in real time with likes and emojis, just like they would in a Facebook or Instagram broadcast, and the comments show as they are posted.
When compared to simply providing an item to a shopping basket and filling out the shipping details, all of this interaction creates a shopping experience that is significantly more engaging and exciting.
Obviously, in order for livestream shopping to be successful, an audience of a certain size is required. With this in mind, a significant number of brands prefer the strategies listed below to generate hype:
1. A Platform That Can Be Interacted With
Customers get a more fascinating and individualized streaming buying experience as a result of interactive platforms.
When people participate, it helps to foster a sense of community, which in turn generates excitement about the event. In addition, personalized interactions or engagement will make it possible for hosts to acquire real-time information regarding the ideas or emotions of their clients.
2. Vibrant Host
Would you be willing to make a purchase from a person who doesn’t seem to care about their goods or isn’t interested in selling it? Almost certainly not. And neither would your end users be happy with it.
A host who is knowledgeable about the audience as well as the product will be able to encourage audience participation, which in turn will drive sales and engagement.
In addition, a host with a sunny disposition is better able to provide animated product demonstrations and responsive, real-time assistance to customers.
Remember that your personality and the way you host events are also important factors.
Some people’s personalities may appeal to the target market more than others do, but this can vary greatly depending on the kind of product being sold. Researching the audience can be quite helpful in situations like this one.
3. Items Available for Purchase
Customers in general prefer to be able to see exactly what they are purchasing in real time. Consumers want product demonstrations so that they can have a better understanding of the product.
Customers will notice that the product is available and have a greater interest in it because they are aware that other people watching want it as well. This sense of urgency can be generated by showing the goods in your livestreams.
4. An Audience
Since they are the prospective customers, the audience is extremely important during a live stream commerce session. If there is no audience, there will be no one to purchase goods from the business.
Developing a relationship with the audience and responding to their inquiries or observations is an excellent way to earn their trust and boost the likelihood of making a sale.
In addition, the audience has the ability to provide the sellers with helpful feedback on the products and can contribute to the promotion of a community feel in connection with the company itself.
