Video content has become the preferred choice for small businesses to engage with their audience. Livestream video content in particular has the power to attract strangers and turn them into loyal customers.
It should come as no surprise that live shopping is revolutionizing e-commerce given that its estimated market value in 2024 will be worth $35 billion in the US alone.
You can use live streaming to build relationships with customers, demonstrate your products, show off your brand’s personality, enter new markets, and generate leads.
Live streaming can make your business more interesting and build a strong community of engaged audiences. It makes your customers feel both included and exclusive at the same time.
78% of brands use live stream marketing e to build deeper connections with their customers, 59% of them use it to humanize their brand and to also engage social audiences (57%).
In this article, we’re going to take a look at some of the different ways you can use live streaming to benefit your business.
1. Use Livestream for Product Demonstrations
Not only is product demonstration a great marketing tool, but it’s also a great way to build customer loyalty and show potential customers the value of your product.
According to Wyzowl, 69% of consumers believe a product demo best assists them when making a purchase decision.
When you can show potential customers how your products perform in real time, you’re giving them an even better idea of what they’re getting.
This is especially effective for product categories like cosmetics and apparel, where before and after shots can improve perception and thus, increase sales.
Here’s an example of Sephora livestream on Instagram for product demonstration:
Source: Hashtag Expert
2. Host Live Chat and Q&As
A successful live shopping event can result in 10–20% of the audience making a purchase. There is also the range of communications available through chats and emoji reactions. By using these tools, brands can host live Q&A and chat sessions and offer an experience that’s close shopping in-person and amplify sales to a large extent.
Allowing customers to ask questions about your product in real time can help to boost conversions by giving them the information they need to make a decision.
An excellent example of this is the Heinz live commerce shopping event. Heinz received 1,544 interactions, resulting in a 7% live-stream interaction rate that is fourteen times higher than on Facebook and eighteen times higher than on Instagram.
3. Live Streaming for Product Promotions
As the world is increasingly moving online, businesses are finding new and innovative ways to promote their newly launched products and services. One growing trend is the use of livestreams.
According to Wyzowl, almost 80% of people state that product videos give them more confidence when purchasing a product
There are many elements to consider when you’re planning a product launch. One of the most important elements of a successful product launch is getting the word out to your customers.
There are a lot of ways to do this, but one of the most effective is through omnichannel live streaming on both your own website and on social media. It’s a great way to reach a wide audience and get your products noticed by people. You can use livestreams to build up hype for a new product or release.
For example, use live video to tease a new product update or upcoming launch on TikTok.
4. Give Exclusive Discounts and Coupons
As an online retailer, you can use livestream in a number of creative ways to boost conversions.
For example, you can organize virtual events, webinars and offer the livestream viewers exclusive discounts or coupon codes that can incentivize them to make a purchase at the time of the live show event.
5. Use Livestreams to Build Relationships
Live video is a powerful way for businesses to connect with followers and build relationships with customers and followers. A live video has a 10 times higher chance of receiving comments than one that has been previously recorded.
Real-time participation, whether it be through questions, comments, or simply getting the chance to directly communicate with favorite celebrity influencers is a big part of what makes live videos entertaining.
6. Show Your Personality and Build Trust
Live video is a great way to engage with customers and build trust. Not only can you see what they’re doing, but you can also hear them about how they feel and respond to their comments and questions in real time.
This makes for a more personal experience, which is always better than one-way communication. You’ll also be able to show off your personality and engage with your audience in an authentic way.
It is important to remember that your audience is looking for something genuine and unique. So try to be authentic and your true self, and let your personality shine through.
7. Use Livestream to Show Your Company Culture
Live streaming can help potential customers and employees see your company’s values in action.
Many businesses use live streaming as a way to give their customers and followers exclusive access to company culture, behind-the-scenes content, new product launches, and more. This helps to foster a sense of community and connection between the business and its customers.
8. Use Livestreams to Humanize Your Brand
What does it mean to humanize your brand? It means making your brand relatable and relatable to people. And one of the best ways to do that is by using livestreams. 59% of businesses are already using it to humanize their brand.
Live streams are a great way to show the human side of your brand. They allow you to show your audience the faces behind the brand and the personalities that make your brand what it is.
Research shows that customers are more likely to buy from and connect with brands on a personal level they can relate to.
Live streaming makes it possible for companies to connect with customers on a deeper level and to show them the human side of your brand.
9. Use Livestream to Market Your Brand
Live streaming is a powerful marketing tool for companies. Live streaming allows e-commerce brands to reach people all over the world, and gives them the opportunity to be seen by a wider range of potential customers.
In a 2016 live event, Kohl’s promoted their brand by livestreaming a workout on Facebook Live. Instead of aggressively pitching Kohl’s items, the broadcast offered a free exercise session with Kohl’s branding. The video, which was uploaded to YouTube following the live feed, attracted 38,000 viewers and has since gained more views.
Source: Facebook
10. Use Live Stream for Product Selling
Live streaming is a valuable tool for businesses looking to sell more and connect with customers in a more meaningful way.
Companies that implement live streaming selling strategies often see conversion rates as high as 30%, which is 10 times higher than the average conversion rate for e-commerce.
While companies selling luxury goods reported a 70% increase in sales.
Live streaming allows brands to connect with customers in real time and showcase products in a more engaging and interactive way. This can help businesses sell more by giving customers a better sense of what they have to offer and building trust and rapport with potential buyers.
11. Grow and Engage Social Media Community
Did you know that four out of the top six channels that global consumers use to watch video are social media platforms?
Businesses looking to grow and engage their audience can broadcast on social media.
In fact, 57% of businesses already use it to engage their social audiences.
By leveraging the interactive and real-time video, they can create more engaging and compelling content that can help them connect with their audience and drive growth.
12. Always Stay on Top of Mind
Live streaming solutions not only make it easy for businesses to connect with their followers and keep them engaged but also help to stay on top of the audiences’ minds.
When businesses start broadcasts on social media, their followers receive alerts as they go live. This helps them join the conversation and remember the brand.
13. Content Repurposing
Live streaming can provide a consistent source of quality content for your marketing team.
By recycling content from your live streams on social media, you can provide engaging information for your audience without feeling like you’re struggling to come up with new ideas.
This can also encourage customers who may have missed your previous live streams to make sure they attend your next event.
There are endless possibilities for how you can use livestreams to benefit your business. The key is to be creative and to think outside the box, and most importantly, choose the right e-commerce platform that supports your livestreaming activities and helps you scale.
If you want to reap the benefits of livestream videos to boost sales and brand awareness, but don’t know how to start, connect with us today. Vimmi is a renowned and trusted brand that powers video-based e-commerce brands all over the globe to run and scale their business.
Speak with us to know how we can help you too!