With the health crisis and the various restrictions, retailers have had to reinvent themselves in order not to lose contact with their customers. Many of them have turned to a new form of commercial animation: Live Commerce.

What is Live Commerce and where does it come from?

Live Commerce is the digital promotion of a product carried out live. The audience watching the broadcast can interact directly with the presenter and purchase the product without leaving the video.

A phenomenon from China, Live Commerce was developed in 2016 by TaoBao Live, the Alibaba marketplace. It has been growing ever since. According to iResearch, Live Shopping accounted for $61bn in China in 2019 - or 4% of the country's e-commerce sales - and should reach a turnover of $170bn in 2020.

What are the different types of Lives?

At Caast, two types of lives are identified: 

Live Branding

Very entertainment-oriented, this type of live event is hosted by guests who use a product without presenting it in detail. For example, the Grand Live Moulinex - hosted by chefs and influencers - is a live branding. These lives are broadcasted on social networks and allow the brand and its products to be known. 

Live Shopping

‍Isan in-depth presentation of the product. The presenter, often an expert, provides detailed information about the product presented and answers any questions from the audience. The purpose of these lives is to prompt the act of purchase. 

What are the benefits of Live Commerce? 

Whether it is implemented on a website, a marketplace or on social networks, Live Commerce has multiple advantages:

- It allows consumers to rediscover the in-store shopping experience while staying at home;

- Direct interaction with the presenter increases product knowledge and reassures the consumer;

- Brands are building transparency and trust with consumers;

- The ability to purchase the product without leaving the live site increases the conversion rate and therefore sales while reducing the risk of product returns;

- Brands have instant access to customer feedback while increasing the flow of visitors and traffic to their pages;

- The addition of the replay on the product pages, allows to have a qualitative content which helps the future customers in their decision to buy.

What are the challenges?

To take advantage of all the benefits of live shopping, it is necessary to choose a good technical solution and to prepare the live event by making sure that the product works properly, that the presenter is comfortable in front of the camera and that he knows how to highlight all the qualities of the product. But above all, the customers must be present. Relaying the information beforehand on social networks or on the website will help to make the live sale a success.

The examples of Leroy Merlin and Cultura 

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By renewing the online commercial animation, Live Shopping boosts the sales of e-retailers and humanises the digital experience. A strategy that pays off!

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