Live-streamed content is captivating young audiences more than ever. Twitch, the world’s leading live streaming platform for gamers has proved there is a big market for watching other people play video games in real-time. On the other side, influencers that partner up with brands to promote different products is nothing new. However, presenting those products within a live stream and enabling viewers to purchase featured items is a real success, especially in Asian countries. This is where Live Stream Shopping and influencers can do the magic.
In this article, we’re going to place the focus on influencers and brands in a Live Stream Shopping context. This partnership can revolutionize the way we shop and transform it into a social experience.
Live Stream Shopping for brands and influencers
An increasing number of brands begin to realize that live stream shopping is a powerful way to connect with consumers. As a result, Alibaba’s Taobao Marketplace has dominated so far, selling more than $15.1 billion in gross merchandise volume in 2018. Such platforms are great for fast-moving and practical consumer goods. As with any sales environment, as a marketer, it is truly important to find the most efficient way to reach potential buyers and therefore guide them through the purchasing process.
Beyond unboxing videos and try-on hauls, influencers can form partnerships with various brands and act as hosts during live-streamed shopping sessions. It can be looked at as the next step of making shopping a social experience. Influencers, also known as ‘key opinion leaders’ drive live shopping in China. Their role is to showcase products, try them on if possible, describe them for viewers, and answer live product related questions.
For brands, it is not enough to find an influencer with many followers to act as a host. Instead, the focus should be placed on finding influencers that inspire trust to their audiences. In China, Viya is the most known female Chinese influencer, with over 12 million followers on Taobao. Her followers trust her and are confident that she will never feature a product in her live stream unless she carefully tests it with her team. A successful influencer will most often have a team behind that success. In Viya’s case, her 200 employees filter products and strictly allow her to promote high-quality items from brands with a great reputation.
Another important aspect is to find an influencer with a follower base that matches your product and culture. Let’s assume that you own an outdoor brand. At first, you might think that an influencer with 2 million followers will be more efficient than one with 100k followers. That’s not true at all! If the one with 2 million followers is not passionate about outdoor activities, it is very likely that his/her followers are not either. On the other side, if the one with 100k is passionate about outdoor activities and apparel, his/her followers will most likely be as well.
