While the technology itself isn't from Mars, livestream eCommerce's power of transforming traditional transactional eCommerce environments into a combination of commerce, content, and community (C3) is urging eCommerce startups to make moonshot bets.
With social engagement and storytelling sitting at the core of customer experience, it seems as if livestream eCommerce is the only arm of eCommerce shaping users' shopping behavior.
The answer to " " is hidden in this what made us come up with this formula?👇 pile of words.
Livestream not only marked the opening of a new chapter in eCommerce. It has written an entire book on innovation. We saw Facebook and its sister, Instagram, jump on the livestream eCommerce bandwagon. We witnessed traditional eCommerce platforms including, Amazon, inch their way along with the trend.
Okay, but how was the concept of livestream eCommerce born? How old is it? When did in livestream shopping start taking the US and Europe? Why is the live streaming concept called the oxygen of China's online world?
If these questions continue to pop up above your head, you would like to eye this article up!
If you are still with us, that only means livestream eCommerce has caught your curiosity by its neck. Let's start by understanding what livestream eCommerce exactly is!
What Is Livestream eCommerce?
Livestream eCommerce is an anywhere digital door that allows viewers to step into numerous physical stores from the comfort of their couches. Livestream eCommerce echoes an essence of an immersive and interactive shopping experience that every buyer loves to enjoy.
Livestream eCommerce's identity isn't fixed! The concept is known by different names including, internet television, shopstream, and livestream shopping. From a business viewpoint, livestream eCommerce is a model that allows to sell/present products in real-time and to ask questions & buy products in real-time.
Can you imagine the impact of the immediacy of the interactions between viewer and seller? It is so powerful that it can't be packed in a few words. So treat this article as a tour guide to the livestream eCommerce world.
Besides, if the thoughts of launching a livestream eCommerce startup ever crossed your mind, this information piece can help you pen those down too.
The Anatomy of A Livestream Session On Livestream eCommerce Platform
To understand what exactly a livestream eCommerce platform serves on the plate of life of its customers, let's look at its basic components using ShopAR*.
*ShopAR is a pre-built platform for aspiring entrepreneurs to launch a livestream eCommerce platform like TaoBao, PopshopLive, Bolome, and SimSim.
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Live video stream, where the host shows the product and answers audiences' questions in real-time. The platform offers a magical, stress-free, & fail-proof way for the streamer to add a guest to the video.
- A chat area, a component that creates a sense of community, is where viewers can interact with other viewers and ask host questions in real-time.
- Tagged products, where a list of products being promoted is visible. Users can buy these products without exiting the experience. This feature helps sellers accelerate conversions.
- Like button that shows up at the bottom of the screen allows users to express their love for the product.
- Social Media Integration allows users to share the live streaming session across social media platforms.
- Time-sensitive coupons/discount offers can be made available only to the livestream viewers, tapping their curiosity to join the livestream session.
Key Characteristics Of Livestream ECommerce Platform, ShopAR
1. Reliant On Scarcity & Urgency
- Time-limited coupons act as a hook to get consumers excited about pressing the while creating Time-Limited Coupons: buy button. Coupons and discounts put an end to users' shopping dilemmasa sense of scarcity and urgency.
✔️ The coupons can be made available only during the livestream session. This is a psychological tactic used by live-streaming events to make the customers believe that they will lose the deal if they fail to place the order right away.
✔️ Coupons or promo codes can be announced randomly during the livestream by the host. This makes the viewer stick to the session for a long time.
✔️ Livestreaming host can give out $10-$20 coupons that can expire within hours and can't be redeemed.
- Limited Stock: The livestream session host can emphasize that only limited stock is available at a discounted price.
- Surprise giveaways can make users commit to purchase faster than anyone can imagine. Imagine being a user receiving a favorite product forSurprise Giveaways: $0. Surprise giveaways can be for only loyal/repetitive customers. This taps users' curiosity to buy products from the same seller again & again.
2. Mimics Physical Store Experience
Is it easy for you to imagine a product of size that is made up of ? Is it easy for you to buy a product you don't know how to use ❓ Of course, not!
ShopAR's live streaming feature offers brands/businesses an unreal opportunity to unveil their own untapped potential highlighting the difference between fabric and firmness.
Many product returns happen due to size issues. Shoppers hesitate to buy a product they don't know how to use. Shoppers struggle to hide their urge to view behind-the-scene or product-making videos. That's why it is said that physical stores are still essential for retail.
Could introducing a new brand be any easier 3 very common selling problems; ❓ Could there be any other better way to bolster a brand's credibility? Of course, not! 1 solution (and, that too, without stepping outside your home): live-streaming.
3. Highly Interactive And Social
Livestreaming videos are interactive and the credit goes to the real-time chat feature. Participants can ask questions on the product being presented and the host can answer the questions in real-time.
- Participants can answer each other's questions. Also, one of them can ask a question that other participants didn't think of before.
- The viewers can also ask the host to try on different products or view the product from different angles.
- Sure, there are product detail pages (PDPs) to cover the detailed description of the product but not all the specific questions can be covered on a page with a pre-set word limit.
If we could wrap this section into one word, that would be Loyalty. Simply put, live streaming converts followers into loyal customers.
More Features Of ShopAR
Wrapping Arms Around Social Media
If live-streaming seems to be a side-product of entertainment, you'd like to see ShopAR's social feed section, exploring which is as easy as swiping up. Sellers can post product pictures, make product videos, and even tag products.
What if the information you showered on viewers through live streaming video is outdated now? That's when ShopAR's product tag on videos feature comes into play ( As shown below, sellers can tag products in videos, allowing users to make purchases without exiting the experience)
Standing up to your expectations are ShopAR's seller profiles, unveiling their posts, products, and reviews. ShopAR taps into a number of trends defining modern social media: follower counts, tagged posts, the about us section, and what not!
The about us section on profiles allows brands to talk about their achievements and position in the market. This component allows brands to tap into the untapped potential of their strong brand image. Besides, a brand's followers get a notification when their favorite seller goes live.
