Why might live streaming be the next big thing for your luxury ecommerce brand? 

It can be easy – probably too easy – for ecommerce brands based in the West to be initially dismissive of digital trends that first take off in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region… right up until they achieve traction elsewhere. 

Such a tendency seems to be emerging in the case of livestream ecommerce. But what is it, and what are the reasons why it is unlikely to prove a mere fad? 

The Covid Catalyst 

Even those who have worked especially closely over the past two years with a leading digital marketing agency for luxury brands may tire a little of hearing COVID-19 has caused many a trend.

But when it comes to livestream ecommerce, the fundamentals point firmly to the profound role the pandemic has played in its popularisation. 

As repeated worldwide lockdowns restricted customers’ physical movements and shut down brick-and-mortar retail, customers took to their laptops and smartphones at home or while on the move, seeking out the closest equivalent pleasures to in-store shopping. 

As an epicentre of the livestream ecommerce revolution, China has seen particularly staggering growth in this space, with sales exceeding $171 billion in 2020 and predicted to hit $423 billion this year. And this form of e-tail has already established its own distinct culture. The country’s popular livestream ecommerce platforms resemble a blend of QVC and TikTok – complete with highly stimulating flash deals and limited-time discounts. 

Even in the West we see the increasing permeation of livestream ecommerce culture, witnessing Apple choosing to launch its own QVC-esque video shopping platform - Amazon Live. Clearly, this is one ecommerce trend that has durability across international borders. 

It’s easy to understand the appeal of livestream ecommerce

Or at least, it is once one stops to think about it. After all, consumers across the demographics are already highly familiar with livestreaming tools like YouTube and Twitch, and video conferencing platforms such as Zoom, which has enabled them to get to grips with livestream shopping rapidly. 

And to return to our earlier point on customers seeking out an equivalent to ‘real-life’ shopping, livestream ecommerce most certainly ticks this particular box. 

While the viewers of a livestream may not be able to reach out and touch products themselves as they would in a traditional high-street store, the host or sales member can do that job for them. By rotating the item and generally interacting with it, they can help give the viewer something comparable to the tactility of real-life shopping. 

Deciding whether this fast-rising form of ecommerce could be suitable for you 

All of the aforementioned causes us to ask - could livestream retail be a central plank of your own high-end brand’s strategy for success online in the years to come? That question may be for you to answer, but it seems clear that livestream shopping could be very much the future of shopping. 

Contact our digital marketing agency for luxury brands today, and we can chat about the prospects for incorporating live streaming into the experience you give to shoppers. If we consider that it could make a big difference to your brand’s ability to survive, thrive and grow, we can then explore the possibilities of making it happen.