E-Commerce

Live Shopping: the future of shopping experience


Engagement has surfaced as one of the biggest touch words of modern marketing and e-commerce. This new approach bases itself around the idea that the more a customer interacts with a brand organically, the more likely they are to purchase from, remember and recommend that brand. Engagement-based strategies may provide the opportunity to stand out from the crowd and convert customers by being more relatable, accessible and engaging and allowing users to see the product being used, touched and worn in real-time. This approach is leading to increased sales which is why it is taking the world by storm.  

What is Live Shopping? 

Live shopping is a shopping experience that involves selling products in a live stream format. It lets shoppers interact with brands directly and see a product being worn, tested and interacted with by a human in real-time and allows consumers to post questions and comments. Going live has been a constant source of engagement on social media and other platforms. Live shopping combines e-commerce with live streams to capitalize on that engagement. 

What are the benefits of live shopping for e-commerce brands? 

The biggest benefit of live shopping is it combines engagement and shopping; it lets you engage with customers through the shopping experience itself. But live shopping doesn't just mean simultaneous sales and engagement — it means more sales. Companies hosting live events report conversion rates up to 30%, which is up to 10 times higher than in traditional e-commerce. An added benefit is that live shoppers are six times more likely to make a repeat purchase than traditional shoppers. 

This makes perfect sense if you consider traditional e-commerce versus live shopping as analogous to department stores versus a vending booth. Traditional e-commerce checkouts have an impersonal feel that lets customers lose the thrill of their purchase and leave them wondering what the item will look like when it shows up. With live shopping, the customer is immersed in the brand and in direct communication with a representative who can guide them through the shopping experience. This promotes impulse buying in the best way possible: one where the customer is happy with their purchase and their experience and leaves with a positive brand association. 

Another reason for brands to adopt live shopping as fast as possible is that it is still a new trend. The early-adopter advantages include standing out from competitors, creating lasting brand impressions and generating more conversions than late-adopters. 

What's next for live shopping? 

Live shopping is still a new trend and can be expected to see major changes in the next few years. For brands to stay competitive, they need to keep up with live shopping innovations and be prepared for what's next. Here are a few of the ways live shopping is predicted to evolve: 

  • Micro and nano-influencers: Using small influencers for live shopping and other promotion generally means reaching a small but very receptive fan base. A set of micro-and nano- influencers may be able to convert a high percentage of their audience than macro-influencers. Recruitment of influencers is likely to become a major part of live shopping strategies. 
  • Expansion into new sectors: Live shopping is mostly limited to retail, and within that, limited to certain types of products. As the format becomes more widely accepted and perfected, live shopping concepts may spread to other sectors. It may even make its way into B2B. 
  • Innovative formats: As AR and VR become more refined technology, they could become integral formats for live shopping. They may only be a quick fad, though, if consumers prefer video formats. 

How can e-commerce brands use live shopping to increase revenue? 

Shoppers today prefer video because it's interactive, and they can get answers faster. They want to see the product during their decision-making journey, especially in high-touch industries like consignment, jewelry and furniture. Using live chat and video to mimic the in-person sales experience lets you show the product in real-time, talk about quality and answer customer questions. 

Live Shopping with Optimy 

Optimy has an easy-to-use live video to help your brand get started with live selling. They offer a variety of features beyond live chat to make customer interactions as smooth and immersive as possible. 

  • Smoothly toggle between text and full screen or picture-in-picture video chats without asking customers to switch apps or find their phone 
  • Connect interested buyers to a sales expert with one click and quickly get them the answers they need as if they were in the store 
  • Allow up to 50 attendees to connect at the same time with the Big Room feature \
  • Personalize call to action with our Digital Toolkit and sell more with an engaging website experience and personalized offers and CTAs 
  • Reach out to website visitors at the right time with the Active Outreach feature, which uses AI to identify buying intent and offer a chat in the format of their choice — text, audio or video — to speed up the sale. 
  • Let our trained concierge pass off ready-to-buy customers. 

Interested in hearing more? Book a demo today.  

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