Live Shopping: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide [14 Successful Examples]

If you hang out on social networks, you work in marketing, the trend of Live Shopping has certainly not escaped you. A modern version of teleshopping, live shopping is experiencing a real boom.

And it is to guide you in this new mode of sale that I wrote this guide. It will successively address:

• What exactly live shopping is, where it originated and where this trend is heading.
• The strategy to develop your own Live Shopping event.
• 14 examples of successful Live Shopping activations by the most beautiful brands in the world.

What is Live Shopping?

Definition of Live Shopping

Live Shopping is therefore the “teleshopping” of the web… But beyond this simplistic analogy?

Live Shopping is:

• live broadcast videos,
• who promote particular products,
• to directly stimulate a company’s e-commerce sales,
• by offering a direct link to purchase the item quickly.

It should be noted that Live Commerce is part of the family of social commerce, which aims to stimulate online purchases via social networks, and which is one of the forms of e-commerce.

Live Shopping comes to us from China

The trend comes to us from the other side of the world, since it is in China that Live Shopping finds its roots.

In 2016, we see the emergence on the famous online commerce platform Taobao (Alibaba group) of live broadcasts of Live Shopping.

Very quickly, the market took off, and Live Shopping sales experienced 3-digit growth in the Middle Kingdom.

Today, everything can be sold in China through Live Shopping: beauty products, jewelry, furniture, but also cars and even apartments (even entire buildings)!

In 2021, we are talking about a $300 billion market, still growing by +85%! Emarketer even predicts that Live Shopping in China will end up accounting for around 1/5 of Chinese e-commerce in 2023.

This explosion of Live Shopping in China is now echoing in the Western world, and in France.

Live shopping is experiencing a real acceleration (especially since the health crisis)

Western e-commerce was largely inspired by what was happening in China to gradually generalize Live Shopping. We have seen commercial livestreams flourish on all platforms: YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.

Amazon has also joined the race. Although established in 2016, Amazon really doubled down on its Amazon Live platform in 2019, hoping to capture a significant share of the Live Shopping trend.

And make no mistake, the trend is not just attractive across the Atlantic: according to a study by Altavia, more than a quarter of French people (28%) intend to use Live Shopping to do their shopping!

This same study tells us that:

• it is women under 25 who are most attracted to this mode of sale,
• and that 69% of French people consider Live Shopping to be innovative, practical and easy to access.

Live Shopping has shown its full relevance in the context of the health crisis. Major brands have launched themselves there, to compensate for the drop in store traffic. Even luxury houses, like Gucci, have used Live Shopping to continue selling in a context where customers were in confinement (and thus surf the trend of e-commerce, which is a growth engine for the sector).

The advantages of Live Shopping

Double-digit conversion rates

If we are to believe feedback from brands that have tried it, Live Shopping allows a significant improvement in the conversion rate (vs. the “classic” e-commerce experience).

The conversion rate on a live is 15 to 35%, against 1 to 1.5% on an e-commerce site according to the benchmarks of iResearch, Gartner or Deloitte.

Sellers also see other advantages to this mode of sale:

• it is easier to upsell, or liquidate stock without losing brand image,
• the return of products seems less important than the average observed on an online store,
• and live messages from spectators allow better customer knowledge, instantly.

A format that plays on entertainment

Live Shopping pursues sales objectives, but also entertainment. The goal is to provide an entertaining online shopping experience for viewers.

As in the heyday of teleshopping, consumers watch this type of event because they are having a good time (and not necessarily because they are going to buy each product presented).

This entertaining dimension makes it possible to give brands relief, a tone, likely to set them apart from the competition.

An in-store experience

Live Shopping makes it possible to recreate the store experience on the Internet:

• consumers can attend a product demo,
• ask their questions to the sellers,
• get advice,
• then decide to buy on the spot.

Talk to specific communities

Because brands that try their hand at Live Shopping often collaborate with influencers, the choice of the latter allows them to target very specific communities (those of the influencer who will lead your Live Shopping).

A vector of internationalization

Since Live Shopping is a fully digitized event, it is easy to use it to “test” your product outside the borders of your domestic market, and strengthen your export strategy.

• This then becomes an excellent way to build your notoriety on new markets,
• to a specific target clientele,
• and all with an investment that remains limited.

4 strategic pillars for successful Live Shopping

Defining your “narrative concept”

Since Live Shopping must entertain in addition to selling, it is important that you define in advance how your Live Shopping will be conducted.

Of course, we don’t sell a car like a day cream… It’s up to you to find the right format to seduce your audience:

• is it more relevant to make product demos?
• Or live tutorials?
• perhaps it is more relevant to have testimonials from customers or experts?
• or quite simply, introduce the product through anecdotes?
• etc

The important thing is to remain authentic in the way you unfold the livestream, and to engage with the spectators.

Promote a product that lends itself to Live Shopping

At the beginning of this article, we mentioned the fact that in China, even apartments are sold through Live Shopping! But the reality is that some types of products still sell better than others with this format…

Often, brands that use Live Shopping want to trigger compulsive buying in viewers. In this case, it will be smarter to choose an inexpensive product, for which consumers can “crack” more easily.

The other dimension to take into account is the adequacy of the product with the “live” video format. Thus, it is advisable to select references for which a demonstration is important to convince. It is also necessary that the selected product is not too complicated to put in situation, with the risk if not to make a flop in full livestreaming.

Cast the “super animator” of your Live Shopping

Often influencers & live shopping are combined together. It is common for brands to use popular influencers in their fields to organize these live video sessions on social platforms.

However, this is not an obligation. If the brand wishes to better control its image, and save itself the costs related to the remuneration of the influencer, it is possible for it to animate the Live Shopping “in-house”, with its own teams.

Choose the platform on which your Live Shopping will take place

Your live shopping must then be hosted by a platform. You have two options: external (on a third-party platform) or internal (on your own online store)

External: do your Live Shopping on a third-party platform, which allows it

There are 9 social platforms in Europe that can be used for Live Shopping : YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Twitch, Snapchat, Amazon and LinkedIn.

Some platforms naturally position themselves as excellent vehicles for Live Shopping:

• YouTube & Facebook, for their massive reach,
• Amazon, for the crossroads it represents in e-commerce

Others are gradually establishing themselves as a reference in the field:

• TikTok, which is launching features dedicated to Live Shopping,
• Twitch, which has managed to establish itself as “the” livestreaming platform, whatever it is.

Do your Live Shopping on your own e-commerce site

It is also possible to launch proprietary Live Shopping events (for example directly from your e-commerce site).

Many platforms, such as Live Me Up or Livescale, allow you to easily integrate your Live Shopping into your online store.

Examples of Live Shopping operations

Carrefour Live Shopping

Since the end of 2019, Carrefour has been one of the first supermarket chains to offer live shopping. Thus, by going to the Live shopping site of this brand, you can consult the different products on the “live” of the same day, all those of the previous days, as well as the one which will be online the next day!

Customers can see replays there, for example, of the live-shopping of the last wine fair, the live “yes weekend”, a live “everything for babies”, etc.

Live Shopping Galeries Lafayette

In 2020, Galeries Lafayette launched the “live beauty trade” by choosing influencers accompanied by animators. Since then, live shopping has been enriched to buy directly but also to shop remotely and showcase their finest brands.

Live Shopping CDiscount

At CDiscount, it is always influencers who lead the “shopping shows” to present products sold by this online brand in specific themes.

You can also take advantage of “live live” for the demonstration of different products or devices and this always with an influencer and often an expert who enriches the commentary. Thus, by watching these demonstrations live or in replay, visitors can find the answers to their questions and decide to make a purchase!

Live Shopping Leroy Merlin

It is with “La selection des pros” that this major French brand has chosen to showcase these DIY and even construction demonstrations live. Led by representatives of the brands and Leroy Merlin employees, these live streams offer customers the opportunity to attend the live presentation of various products from major brands.

Thanks to the association between Leroy Merlin, the AEG brand and influencer Renaud Bauer, DIY and welding specialist on YouTube, from the first broadcast in 2020 of the Live streaming below,  the number of visits to the pages of products presented was multiplied by 6 on the day of the live stream and sales grew by 270% in the 48 hours following the operation.

Live Shopping Grazia x L’Oréal

On February 10, 2021 at 6 p.m., L’Oreal professionnel broadcast the first live shopping session in France on the Grazia.fr website. This 45-minute video was entirely dedicated to a Steampod steam straightener. By providing added value with tutorials, tips, advice…this live shopping format is therefore more than a simple demonstration and encourages the visitor to convert.

Clarins Live Shopping

After the Beauty Advisor for Clarins in the UK filmed herself in her bedroom every day during the COVID19 lockdowns, and posted the content as a story on Instagram, it was a hit and the beauty institute has therefore decided to expand this system.

With the help of its coaches, Clarins has set up “Clarins et moi”, which is a personalized advice service that allows customers to book a free video consultation with a beauty advisor.

Live Shopping IKKS & Gemo

In these two clothing and shoe brands, live shopping is well established and previous videos can be seen on replay.

At Gemo, the live shopping meeting is monthly and allows you to discover several products that have become trendy.

At IKKS, the live stream is a great moment of emotion accompanied by musical performances to encourage audience engagement. As with L’Oreal, the brand has also explored editorialised Live Shopping in partnership with Grazia.

Xiaomi Live Shopping

Consumer electronics has also taken to live shopping. Xiaomi has used the Twitch platform to upload videos and highlights of product launches with influencers who test them. The regular live meetings at Fnac-Darty are a success that has decided the brands to train 1,500 salespeople in remote video advice.

Live Shopping Decathlon

The Decat’live are faithful to the strategy of proximity between the sales advisers and the customers of Decathlon. With product demonstrations, explanations, scenarios, but also surprise guests, they offer an offbeat experience to their audiences to act live.

Advice, surprise guests, new collections, good deals… can, of course, be viewed in replay.

Live Shopping Beautycounter

Here is a brand that, even before confinement, had started filming everything that was happening in the flagship products that built its notoriety and its image in Los Angeles. 

This cosmetics brand, originally from Santa Monica, informs its fans about new products, and allows its salespeople to share advice and tips as they would in-store.

Its new Los Angeles store has a studio that broadcasts live in-store experiences, aisle browsing with makeup demonstrations and community events. Customers watching from home can comment and receive live responses from the person on screen.

Live Shopping Burberry

On September 17, 2020, Burberry chose Twitch for its 60-minute fashion show to unveil its spring/summer 2021 collection online. It’s a first in luxury to use the streaming platform for gamers in this way!

It was indeed necessary to find an attractive and, above all, interactive way to replace the Burberry fashion show, traditionally included in the calendar of British Fashion Week. Tens of thousands of internet users were able to tune in to the thread through Twitch’s chat feature, creating a personal and inclusive experience.

Live Shopping Culture

In the summer of 2021, with Caast.tv, Cultura had its sales associates and demonstrators host a live show dedicated to watercolor painting, broadcast on the product page. This live event enabled members of its Cultur’addict program to triple the number of baskets for this product on the brand’s website. 

Walmart Live Shopping

Walmart was one of the first American retailers to organize Live Commerce events. As of December 2020, fashion items were featured in content from ten TikTok creators and led by mega influencer Michael Le, whose dances on TikTok have earned him more than 43 million fans. Today, Walmart launches its own Live Commerce site : Walmart Live.

Also using well-known influencers to showcase the Spring 2022 items, Walmart edited a live stream led by American interior designer, Bobby Berk, who is a reality TV personality.

Samsung Live Shopping

At the end of 2020, Samsung Sweden held a live event on Tiktok to let netizens learn more about its latest foldable smartphone, the Galaxy Z Fold2 5G. The interactive show, titled Samsung Live, featured product experts who  virtually interacted with viewers and guided those interested in purchasing the foldable phone in real time following the live presentation. This live video journey helped the tech giant build excitement for its latest foldable phone and keep the brand engaged even when people were confined.

Samsung continues today to offer live its new products: here is an example with a French Youtuber gamer and humorist and a Youtube video director on FIFA.

Conclusion

In the era of “digital first”, Live Shopping breathes new life into traditional “teleshopping”. The sales method is emerging as a promising new distribution channel for brands.

According to  Frost & Sullivan, global live shopping revenue is expected to reach  $413 billion by 2022.