Poor user experiences is one of the major causes of dip in eCommerce conversions.
Hence, it is pivotal to connect more deeply with your target audience.
This requires you to be ten miles ahead of your competition and choose interesting methods that don’t limit your customers’ interactions.
Enter – Live Shopping.
Live shopping or live stream shopping is a modern-day marketing strategy to engage with customers in real-time to promote products and sell online.
In this blog post, we will delve deeper into the intriguing realm of live shopping and its significant impacts on your business growth.
What is Live Shopping: Everything You Need to Know
The US livestream shopping market is projected to reach $68 billion[i] by 2026.
The concept of live shopping has been sweeping across the eCommerce landscape for quite a while now. In fact, it is popularly called live commerce as well.
Live shopping allows you to interact with customers in real time, showcase your products and services, provide demonstrations, and answer queries that help create dynamic shopping experiences.
Shoppers can enjoy the convenience of browsing and purchasing directly through your video stream via chat, links, tags, and other online elements.
Depending on the streaming platform, customers can view and buy the products within the interface or get redirected to your website to finalize the purchase.
The Game-Changing Impact of Live Shopping in eCommerce
As consumer demands continue to evolve, investing in live shopping can be your next big thing to nurture shoppers. Let’s take a look at the key reasons:
– Enhanced Customer Engagement and Interactivity
Live shopping allows for real-time interactions between sellers and buyers, creating a sense of community and personal connection. Customers can actively participate, ask questions, and receive immediate responses that lead to higher engagement levels.
– Optimized Sales and Conversion Rates
The interactive nature of live shopping, coupled with the ability to showcase products in real-time, encourages impulse purchases. The FOMO of live streaming makes customers take immediate action which results in higher conversions.
– Elevated Brand Awareness and Customer Loyalty
Live shopping provides an immersive shopping experience that strengthens brand awareness. The direct interaction between sellers and customers fosters trust and credibility that makes customers feel more connected to the brand and its offerings. This, in turn, lead to increased customer loyalty.
– Real-Time Product Demonstration and Customer Reviews
Live shopping offers a unique alternative to traditional promotion strategies such as email marketing and social media ads. Unlike static promotional content, live shopping allows for real-time product demonstrations, immediate customer feedback, and the ability to address customer concerns. It also generates customer reviews and testimonials, which can be leveraged for long-term brand promotion and social proof.
Unveiling the Triumphs of Live Shopping Campaigns
Here are a few examples of brands that implemented live shopping campaigns and achieved great results:
1. Aldo
Aldo launched a shoppable live stream event for its Canadian footwear label. The brand partnered with celebrity stylist Mimi Cuttrell and LA sensation Nate Wyatt to make the event more interactive for customers. Both guests shared their favorite Aldo products to the audience and also discussed tips on how to style them.
Besides enjoying the live stream, customers were encouraged to browse the collection and purchase with the available discounts. This smart live shopping campaign helped Aldo to:
– Achieve a whopping 308%[ii] engagement rate
– Drive 17,0000[iii] page views to the Aldo website
2. Gucci
Gucci also jumped into the live shopping bandwagon to enhance the shopping experience for customers. They launched Gucci Live, a remote video shopping service where customers are able to engage with sales associates via one-on-one video calls. This helped customers browse and purchase new products through live streaming.
3. KitKat
KitKat has leveraged a live shopping approach to support their KitKat Chocolatory Australia stores in Melbourne and Sydney. They ran a Facebook live stream that encouraged customers to purchase goodies through the ‘Comment to Message’ option. With this campaign, the brand was able to:
– Generate over one-third[iv] of the KitKat Chocolatory Australia’s annual sales
– Achieve a 3x[v] increase in online sales through KitKat’s Australian website
Wrapping Up
Live shopping is the next big thing in the eCommerce landscape. With its out-of-the-box approach, it offers a unique shopping experience to customers. By leveraging social media platforms and live-streaming technologies, you can reach a wider audience, generate excitement, and drive sales.
Furthermore, the success of live shopping lies in its ability to create a sense of urgency and FOMO (fear of missing out) among audiences. So, offer limited-time discounts, flash sales and interactive features like live chats and Q&A sessions to enhance customer engagement and boost conversion rates.
Embrace Live Shopping to Thrive in the eCommerce Landscape. Talk to Us!
Statistical References:
[i] Fitsmallbusiness
[ii] Stageten
[iii] Byteplus
[iv] Stageten
[v] Drip