As more businesses recognize its potential, live shopping is becoming a key tool for driving sales and creating vibrant communities around brands.
What is Live Shopping?
Live shopping is a marketing strategy that uses livestreaming, where typically a host showcases products and viewers can make purchases instantly. This approach enables brands to engage directly with customers and their target audience through their websites and social media channels.
This concept is not new: it has its roots in traditional teleshopping, back in the ‘80s, which has been seen on television, especially for consumer products in the beauty, fashion and home goods areas. Products are pitched to viewers in front of the camera, inviting them to make a phone call and place an order.
Live shopping transfers this concept to the internet, with companies presenting their products via their own websites, apps and social media channels. This strategy has become very popular in recent years, especially in China, where billions in sales are being generated through livestream shopping every year. And this number is going up.
In Europe, this trend is still emerging, but there is a growing interest among customers in innovative shopping formats and interactive experiences. By blending the interaction of streaming with sales, live shopping presents numerous benefits for both retailers and consumers. And that’s why established brands are increasingly utilizing live stream to attract new customers.
How can brands incorporate live shopping?
One often-cited benefit of live shopping is its ability to create deeper emotional connections between a brand and its customers than traditional online shopping allows. The real-time interactions and personalized approach tend to make customers feel more engaged and appreciated, which can, in turn, boost brand loyalty.
Additionally, live shopping provides a unique opportunity for brands to gather valuable customer feedback through direct interaction. This ongoing dialogue enables them to refine their products and services, aligning them more closely with customer needs. Interactive elements like Live Chat, polls and product reviews add further value by allowing viewers to engage directly with hosts, receive instant feedback, and make immediate purchases.
The concept behind live shopping aims to blend the best aspects of online shopping with those of physical retail. It recreates the experience of visiting a local store and interacting with a salesperson. With advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR), personalization and overall shopping experience are set to improve even further. For example, a customer looking for a new outfit will be able to use AR to visualize how clothing items would look on them.
Retailers often leverage live shopping to offer exclusive products or special deals available only during the live streams. This strategy can create an added incentive for customers to participate, enhancing event engagement, as many customers appreciate the sense of exclusivity and are more inclined to make immediate purchases.
What are the benefits of live shopping?
Traditional online shops often struggle to address all customer inquiries, particularly when it comes to complex or new products, like "what does the product do?" and "how does it work?".
This is where live shopping steps in by offering real-time interaction with viewers. Customers can ask questions and receive immediate, interactive advice, creating a shopping experience that closely mirrors that of a local store. Despite the growing trend of shopping online, many customers still value the opportunity for human interaction. However, according to our CX Consumer Study 2024, 64% of consumers believe that brands neglect the human element in their online customer experiences. Therefore, incorporating a "human touch" in e-commerce remains a challenge.
One of the biggest advantages of live shopping over traditional online shopping is the ability to provide detailed product demonstrations. Customers can see how a product works and better understand its features in real time, often resulting in a quicker and better decision-making process.
Another advantage of live shopping is the opportunity to create a community around the brand. By hosting regular live shopping events, customers can feel like they are part of an exclusive group with direct access to new products and special offers, fostering a stronger sense of belonging and enhancing brand loyalty.
What are the different types of live shopping?
There are different formats for live shopping, with the most common being Video Broadcasting In this format, the brand typically announces a date for the live stream in advance through their channels, so the audience can log in on time to view products and promotions and have the opportunity to ask questions.
An alternative approach involves allowing sales consultants and representatives to connect with the company’s channels to engage in conversations when a high-value or loyal customer requests advice via a free video or phone call. This can be achieved through Video Call or Click2Call, which can increase conversion rates and the average order value.
With Click2Call, the connection is established immediately, allowing you to reach potential customers at the exact moment they are most interested. It even allows to specify exactly where, when and to whom the Click2Call option is displayed (e.g. only when a repeat customer is browsing or when the shopping cart has reached a certain value). Another option is Video Calls, where standard customer calls are enhanced with video integration, allowing for more interaction and building trust. This is particularly beneficial for high-value goods and services, where the purchase process requires more personalized guidance.
Video Calls also create a more immersive customer experience by offering help through personal shopping assistants. This innovative channel combines the best of the online and in-store experiences by leveraging e-commerce intelligence and human product recommendations based on zero- and first-party data.
CoreMedia assists companies in implementing live shopping through powerful solutions like Live Chat, Click2Call, Video Broadcasting and Co-browsing. These tools enable businesses to seamlessly integrate e-commerce features and cater to customers who need extra guidance to complete their purchases.
Our approach to crafting exceptional customer experiences focuses on delivering highly personalized interactions and seamless multi-channel engagement, while removing unnecessary barriers and complexities.
Interested in integrating Live Shopping into your business? Talk to our experts to learn how we can help you combine the best of online shopping and brick-and-mortar experiences.
