Shoppable Videos: How To Make Customers Buy From Your Live Commerce Streams?

We are all spoilt for choice. It’s getting harder and harder to engage customers and make your business stand out among others. That’s why companies are looking for ways to simplify customer journeys and skip some steps. If we speak statistics (which is staggering, by the way) — consumers tend to watch videos for approximately 16 hours weekly. And this is when a shoppable video and live commerce streams come into play.

Live commerce streams is another format of shoppable video. This handy tool minimizes the steps a user has to take from the moment they see a desirable item to buying it. It lets your customers click on any item (the links are embedded) they like and be redirected to the page with more details, pricing, and purchasing options. No chaotic clicking around the browser. Your customer will get where they want to get.

You can benefit from shoppable video stream platforms and boost live sales. With Be.Live and its integrated shoppable video technology, you can make your streams look professional. It’s possible to customize your streams all you want and add in-video purchases. Request a demo to find out more.

How Can Customers Buy Products in Live Commerce Streams?

Here’s how the live streaming e-commerce purchase formula works:

Customers join a live stream from any device (phone, laptop, tablet).
They interact with the hosts, ask questions and leave reactions.
Once they spot an item they crave to buy, they add it to the cart right in the live stream window.
Next, they fill out the credit card details — and that’s it. All they have to do is wait for the parcel to arrive.

What is a Live Commerce Stream?

A live commerce stream is a real-time event where businesses sell services, products, and digital goods to a broad audience via streaming on their website, apps, social media, or other platforms.

Live streams need the following key components to wow the target audience:

Products or services to sell;
A host — an influencer, celebrity, or expert;
A well-written script;
Last, but not least — a suitable live stream platform.

Examples of Live Commerce Streams

Live stream commerce kicked off in China and then spread worldwide. Here are some outstanding examples:

Nordstrom has become the synonym for live streams. They have a specially designed website for all virtual events. You can see scheduled streams and rewatch the recorded ones, which is particularly cool as 70% of purchases happen after the event.
Kiehl’s is another live stream shopping success. Kiehl’s proved that customer-centricity is at the heart of the brand. With the Covid outbreak, offline purchases became impossible. With that in mind, Kiehl’s decided to go live and bring in their internal experts to the live stream event. Experts provided skincare recommendations just over the internet as they’d have done offline. Besides, it’s possible to book a live stream consultation.
Walmart and its live shopping have become the talk of the town. With the first live stream over Twitter, they set an example to follow. Walmart is a live streaming e-commerce giant hosting live shows selling things from A to Z.
Ikea’s shoppable videos will make you instantly decide if the home decor featured in the clip will match your interior design and click add to cart. You just can’t stop watching their shoppable videos with people adding warmth and coziness to their homes. You’re very likely to end up making a purchase.
BravoTV brought live shopping to the next level. With the launch of the “The Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce” series, it was made possible to shop the item you see in the episode! All you need to do is hover over a circle in the right upper corner of the video.

Why Do Customers Buy On Live Commerce Streaming Platforms?

Shoppable video content is the future of e-commerce retail. Hard sales, aggressive ads, user recommendations, and reviews are becoming less and less effective. Businesses are looking for novelties to promote their products and services in the digital era. And people tend to buy products when impressed. Often this is achieved through storytelling.

Content is a means for companies to tell their story. By inspiring, entertaining, and creating value, the target audience is encouraged to interact with your brand. This leads to sales without trying hard to sell your product directly, but with just a good story.

It’s not just a speedy payment process that makes live streaming so popular. It’s so enticing because the viewers feel included and can simply have fun. They can interact with the celebrity host and get replies or reactions to their comments. Besides, the host or the assistant can advise and provide more detail about the product. All of these help customers make up their minds about purchasing what’s being advertised.

The main factors that make a live stream a success are:

Entertaining and interacting context.
Event format.
Celebrity host.
Instant communication between the host and viewers.
Simplified payment.

What Are The Benefits of Using Live Commerce Streaming Platforms For Your Business

Apart from shaping the future of online business, the benefits of using shoppable video platforms are numerous. Here are the six most significant ones.

High Customer Engagement

Shoppable videos are aimed to interact with the shoppers. Let’s talk about statistics. The numbers of involvement are fascinating. For instance, research has shown that 56% of millennials and 45% of all customers favor video content and state it inclines them to participate. In addition to that, 54% of shoppers are willing to see more of the brand’s videos because they’re loyal to it.

Higher Conversion

High engagement results in higher conversion rates. If we go back to 2019, we’d see that shoppable videos gained 33% of sales. This number jumped to 40% in 2020. If you’re in a shoppable video, the likelihood that you’ll quit watching it is lower than when watching a regular YouTube video. You’ll be enticed by the opportunity to click an item you like and see more information about it. This way, the interest is heated up, which converts better.

Lower Return Rates

Another perk of shoppable video is seeing a product in action — a model wearing a blazer or a vase in an interior similar to yours. As you’ve already seen it on the stream, you’ll be more satisfied when you have your purchase mailed to your doorstep as you’ve already seen it on the stream.

Simplified Purchasing Process

The complicated purchasing process is what makes potential buyers leave halfway to committing a purchase and go browse somewhere else. Shoppable videos with embedded links are creating a new simplified version of the customer journey.

Shopping Combined With Entertainment

One of the keys to success lies in the entertaining format. Shopping online has become rather tedious since Covid and everyone getting used to “storeless” shopping. Many miss the sensations of offline shopping. That’s why many come for excitement, not just to buy things.

Great shoppable video content was created for Jacquemus. In their shoppable video, you could watch the model catwalking and click on any item of their outfit. This immersive experience presented you with the feeling of actually sitting in the front row of a fashion show.

Tailored Shopping Experience

When watching a shoppable video, customers can take over their purchasing decisions to the fullest. They can choose which part of the video they want to interact with. How? By simply hovering over the item they like the most and getting the information about it.

Whether you’re a startup or a long-standing business it’s a great idea to spice up your e-commerce store and convert better with shoppable video content. If you don’t know where to start — request a Be.Live demo.

How To Analyze Stats From Shoppable Videos

The metrics for all shoppable videos are pretty the same, it’s all about the number of:

Views;
Interactions;
“Add to cart” clicks.

It is relatively easy to analyze a pre-recorded shoppable video. More views result in an increase the chances of selling the products. The higher the click-through rate, the more sales your brand wins.

However, when we speak about live shoppable videos — things get a little more complicated. Here’s why. A stream is all about real-time interaction with no ideal scripts and real people involved. There’s no opportunity to have a second take. That’s why more attention should be paid to analyzing such videos.

The number of shoppable video metrics is big. However, there are the main and the most significant ones. Let’s discuss two paramount metrics below.

Engagement. It allows you to see the entire timeline of your shoppable video. You can see how many people were watching the stream at some definite moment and how they interacted with your content.
CTA (click-through rate). It shows how many of your viewers clicked the “add to cart” button.

It’s worth mentioning that engagement is one of the most important metrics, as it gives you a deep insight into the effectiveness of your shoppable live streams. Dashboards of some apps also let you check the reactions and comments at definite moments of the stream.

This metric allows you to compare your streams and analyze the quality of the content, the performance of the hosts, and other important characteristics, such as the time when the stream was broadcasted and its quality, of course.

The second indicator lets you analyze the products showcased in one stream. With this data, you can not only carry out a quantitative analysis but also a qualitative such as a thematic analysis. You’ll know exactly the phrase your host said before the boost in clicks, and what features of your third-party solution caused conversions to increase. With this information in mind, you’ll be able to plan shoppable streams much more efficiently.

Pro tip: The more professional your host is – the more engaging their presentation (which makes your customers literally glued to the screen). The better engagement, the higher the chances of purchase.

Where To Post Shoppable Videos?

Source: Walmart Shop Live

First things first, you need to decide on what type of show is the best for your project. It can be in such formats:

Workshops.
Q&As.
Show starring a special guest.
Talk shows (with many guests invited).

Made up your mind about the best suitable shoppable video format for your business? If yes, let’s move on to the next step and see where to make it public.

Here are the main channels where to post a shoppable video:

Your official website;
Your app;
Social media;
Other selling platforms.

Posting a shoppable video on your own website tends to be the top choice for big brands. In order to do that you’ll need to sign up for a shoppable video platform. If that’s what is best for your company, request a Be.Live demo and let them do the work for you and figure out what’s best for you.

How To Create a Shoppable Video For Your Business?

Ready to create a shoppable video? Here’s a 6-step instruction.

Create a list of products to feature in a shoppable video. Here, take into account the interests of your audience and plan what should be presented.
Upload the edited video to the streaming platform of your choice. If you plan on streaming on multiple platforms — request a free Be-Live demo and see how this live shopping solution can simplify the whole process.
Feature links in the videos. Embed clickable links directly into the shoppable videos (which can be done by using a shoppable video platform). Place them where they look best and make it obvious for the user that they can click.
Create an overlay. It features actions a user is redirected to when clicking on an item. These are the product descriptions or add-to-cart actions.
Publish the shoppable video on your preferred platform.
Promote your shoppable video. A good idea is not only to stick to one platform, but incorporate your shoppable masterpiece into social media, your official website, and landing pages.

How To Integrate Shoppable Video Platform Into Your E-Commerce Business

Here are 5 steps that will help you integrate shoppable video platforms into your online business:

Do your research. Check all the opportunities available out there.
Book a demo. Shoppable video platforms are advanced technology and require some tech talks before installation.
Choose the best platform. It should suit your needs and pocket.
Technical tricks time. Your company’s development team will need to contact the third-party platforms’ development team to do some integrations.
Finishing touches. After connecting your website with a player that allows in-video interactions — you’re ready to rock.

Shoppable Videos FAQ

What is a Shoppable Video?

A shoppable video is a content marketing format that helps brands successfully promote their products on social media or landing pages. It lets the potential buyers “interact” with the items to their liking. By interacting, we mean that the customer can take a closer look at the product from all possible angles, add it to the cart and make an instant sale without clicking around the browser.

What are Shoppable Video Ads?

Shoppable ads are promotional banners placed on the page you’re browsing. Like shoppable videos, they contain embedded links to the item. By clicking a shoppable ad, you’ll be directed to the page with more product details with an option to purchase.