Welcome to the World of Livestream Shopping!
Livestream Shopping or live shopping is the 21st-century answer to home shopping channels. It essentially builds on the idea of video shopping where brands connect using video streaming tools to demonstrate products, communicate with an audience, and sell – all done online. Imagine your customer sees their favorite celebrity on a Livestream wearing a trendy black dress, one that they would love to get their hands on. And with just one click, they could buy that dress as the Livestream continues.
First originated in China, Livestream shopping is an e-commerce marketing and growth strategy that is taking the world by storm. According to eMarketer, the Livestream shopping market is expected to drive $480 billion in sales in China this year and more than $600 billion in 2023. The Livestream shopping industry’s worth in the US is estimated to be $25 billion by 2023.
With all the action taking place on digital platforms, Livestreaming events are less expensive and much easier to produce than televised sales programs. Livestream shopping can be in the form of live events and auctions to influencer streams and online marketplaces. Viewers tune into a live shopping session, ask questions, communicate with the host, and shop simultaneously. With significantly higher opportunities for interaction and engagement between a host and a customer, brands can produce higher conversion rates and average order values and increase the customers’ chance of returning.
Not sure if Livestream shopping should be part of your business growth strategies?
Check out these examples from brands that have successfully leveraged the power of Livestream shopping platforms:
Aldo – The shoes and accessories giant Aldo teamed up with celebrity stylist Mimi Cuttrell and TikToker Nate Wyatt for its inaugural live shopping event. Viewers were able to browse Aldo’s spring 2021 collection while they watched the two influencers showcase their favorite Aldo products and share fashion tips.
The event saw an engagement rate of 308%. And in the following five days, Aldo’s website attracted over 17,000 page views.
KitKat – KitKat seamlessly fitted their Livestream shopping event by incorporating it with their paid social media campaign to drive online sales and in-store visits in Melbourne and Sydney. Branded content, polls, and dynamic ads were used to drive online and in-store conversions.
This campaign generated more than one-third of the annual sales for KitKat Chocolatory Australia. It also delivered a 23-point uplift in brand awareness among Australians aged 35 to 44 years.
Kiehl – Promotion is key to the success of any event. Global beauty brand Kiehl ran a series of ads within the Instagram feed and Instagram Stories to promote their Instagram live shopping events, led by its beauty advisers. Kiehl also promoted virtual quizzes and games on its website. Not only did this drum up excitement, but it also helped get people in the buying mindset.
As a result, Kiehl saw an 8X return on ad spend in the seven weeks of their campaign. Additionally, half of their new customers signed up in the first half of 2021 came via this campaign.
Time to Sign Up
The number of Livestreaming apps and platforms is increasing and as a result, live commerce is growing fast. It’s time for your brand to use Livestream shopping as a tool to increase sales, attract and engage customers, and stand out from the competition. Think of this as an extension of your existing social media and digital marketing strategy.
Contact The Bumblebee Branding Company to understand more about Livestream shopping and help you build a successful strategy.
