Livestreaming Latest, February 2022

Live shopping has taken off during the pandemic and continues to pick up steam each month. Coresight Research’s Livestreaming Latest series provides regular updates on the variety of approaches that are emerging around the world, across different retail sectors.

We present recent market developments and discuss three trends we have seen in the livestreaming space recently. We also offer examples of notable livestreaming events.

Recent Market Developments

• On January 6, 2022, Microsoft-owned LinkedIn added live audio to its Live Events tool, which will provide more capacity for connection and interaction within its professional social network. LinkedIn reported that virtual event creation grew by 150% in 2021.
• On January 10, 2022, Whatnot, a livestream e-commerce site for collectibles and fan merchandise, onboarded mixed martial artist and Ultimate Fighting Championship star Jorge Masvidal to promote his own shopping channel, The BRKRZ. Masvidal plans to hold weekly shows on Whatnot and auction sports cards that he’s collected, his own merchandise and items that he uses before and after fights.
• On January 11, 2022, Swedish live video shopping tech provider Bambuser announced a partnership with retail real estate property tech company Placewise to provide a tailor-made marketplace with live video shopping for retail property owners. The partnership is a joint reseller agreement with facilitated integrations, available to all property owners globally.
• On January 13, 2022, CommentSold, a cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that enables small and medium-sized retail businesses to implement live social selling across multiple shopping platforms, announced that its gross merchandise value increased by nearly 40% year over year between January and November, reaching more than $1 billion by the end of fiscal 2021.
• ·    On January 13, 2022, Turnip, a Bengaluru-based gaming community platform, raised $12.5 million in a new financing round co-led by Greenoaks and existing investor Elevation Capital. The platform allows its users to livestream and monetize their interactive experiences on existing platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitch. The company will use the fresh funding to deepen its footprint in India, Southeast Asia and Latin America by the end of 2022, and expand product development.
• On January 14, 2022, Bambuser enhanced its One-to-One Live Video Shopping solution by adding commerce functions. When a brand representative invites customers into a private video call, products can now be showcased, compared and added to the cart upon the viewer’s request, improving the one-to-one shopping experience.
• On January 14, 2022, Canada-based virtual selling platform Salesfloor completed its acquisition of Automat, a startup that uses AI to personalize e-commerce experiences for its clients. The new capabilities will further strengthen the Salesfloor proposition, offering store associates an arsenal of tools with which to engage with customers.
• On January 14, 2022, BeLive Technology, a Singapore-based provider of livestreaming solutions, raised US$4.5 million in a bridge funding round led by FTAG Ventures. The company plans to use the new funds to develop AI and machine learning capabilities in livestreaming, and hopes to team up with e-commerce giants, apps and brands to expand its operations across international markets, such as the US, Europe and the Middle East.
• On January 20, 2022, UK-based SaaS e-commerce platform VTEX announced strong momentum with the success of its VTEX Live Shopping app, which is used by more than 100 brands across 10 countries, including Caterpillar, Oster, Victoria's Secret and Xiaomi. The platform’s conversion rate during its live events has risen by more than 30% in the past year.
• On January 20, 2022, short-form video app TikTok announced it was looking at enabling creators to charge subscriptions for their content through a series of limited tests. The platform is seeking new ways to bring value to its community and enrich the TikTok experience. The move will allow it to compete more directly with Twitch, another major social media platform whose streamers regularly receive a substantial portion of income via paid subscriptions.
• On January 24, 2022, the media network NBCUniversal deepened its partnership with TikTok, which helped extend its reach for the Tokyo Games last summer, to promote the US coverage of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. The network is looking to ramp up its efforts to reach young consumer through social media. The Olympics coverage is presented in the NBCUniversal app, including through an event hub aggregating its various accounts and livestreams featuring behind-the-scenes coverage led by a TikTok creator.
• On January 27, 2022, the mobile-first livestream shopping platform NTWRK helped Interscope Records, a US record label owned by Universal Music Group, to celebrate its 30th anniversary by releasing a limited-edition vinyl series featuring new artwork on classic albums for sale exclusively via NTWRK. Famous artists including 2Pac, Billie Eilish, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Gwen Stefani, Lady Gaga, Mary J. Blige, MGK, Selena Gomez and U2 featured in the series of 57 albums that was on sale during the five-day event.
• On January 27, 2022, Chinese fresh grocery e-commerce retailer Missfresh announced a strategic partnership with digital marketing platform Ocean Engine and an expansion of its presence on Douyin (known outside China as TikTok), both of which are owned by ByteDance. Missfresh plans to launch a livestream grocery shopping service offering delivery in under one hour in Beijing and Shanghai. Missfresh and Douyin intend to extend this livestream shopping experience to all 17 cities where Missfresh currently operates its on-demand distributed mini warehouse business, and offer private-label products to Douyin livestream consumers.
• On January 31, 2022, it was revealed that TikTok is offering UK businesses vouchers and cash incentives to use its platform. Small businesses in the UK are being encouraged to become TikTok Sellers for the chance to win up to £10,000 ($13,500).

Three Trends We’ve Seen Recently

1.  Brands and Retailers Are Targeting Chinese Shoppers Ahead of Chinese New Year

Shopping for Chinese New Year is a tradition in Chinese culture that we are seeing shifting online. Livestreaming offers e-commerce businesses an opportunity to capture a greater share of Chinese New Year spending.

• On January 18, 2022, UK department store Selfridges launched its first livestream shopping session in Cantonese on its website. Hosted by store associates, the session presented a wide range of fashion items to cater to Chinese consumers in the UK and Hong Kong. The company also established a WeChat live channel on January 15, 2022, with curated social content targeting the local market ahead of Chinese New Year.

[caption id="attachment_141533" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Selfridges associates presented items in Cantonese during the live shopping session on January 18, 2022
Source: Company website[/caption]

• On January 19, 2022, L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific partnered with China Duty Free Group (CDFG) to host a pop-up shop for its live shopping event, “Live It Up With Kiehl’s,” celebrating the start of the Year of the Tiger. The pop-up was set up at the Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex in Haitang Bay, where Chinese actor Leon Zhang and a virtual tiger avatar greeted fans both in real life and through a livestream broadcast on CDFG’s Weibo, Douyin and WeChat accounts.

[caption id="attachment_141535" align="aligncenter" width="450"] CDFG L’Oréal’s Chinese New Year pop-up
Source: CDFG’s WeChat[/caption]  

2.  Livestream Platforms Are Collaborating with Tech Companies

The business-to-consumer e-commerce space is experimenting with livestream shopping solutions to enhance customer engagement, and companies are increasingly collaborating to gain an advantage in the market.

• On January 12, 2022, Switcher, a Kentucky-based content creation and video-production software company, formed a partnership with Spockee, a Paris-based live shopping tech company, to offer customized shoppable video solutions for in-store salespeople. Prior to the latest alliance, Switcher entered a partnership with Canadian live shopping solution provider Livescale in December 2021 to expand its customer footprint globally. The tech partnership offers brands and retailers a powerful toolkit of features, including multiple camera angles, remote guests, prerecorded video insertion and graphic overlays.
• On January 13, 2022, the shopping network QVC expanded its live shopping services in Italy with the launch of “likeQ,” an interactive livestream shopping app, in partnership with the livestream shopping company OOOOO. The new live videos include a mix of premium brands and new products, along with limited time offers and viewer contests. The presenters share stories about each product and respond live to viewer questions and comments. Customers can research the products and complete purchases without leaving the livestream experience and can follow their favorite shows or search past shows by category in the app’s video-on-demand library.

[caption id="attachment_141536" align="aligncenter" width="400"] A Smeg toaster featured on a live shopping session on the likeQ app
Source: likeQ[/caption]  

3.  Media Publishers Seek To Capture Livestreaming Revenues

A number of e-commerce platforms, startups and retailers launched shoppable live videos to sell products since the onset of the pandemic, and media companies are starting to lean into affiliate e-commerce strategies by building online shopping hubs with their own editorially driven marketplaces.

• In January 2022, American online entertainment media company BuzzFeed continued its live shopping sessions on its own website with tech support from Firework. Having seen its commerce revenue increase by 67% year over year from in 2020, BuzzFeed has been seeking to improve its shopping experience by adding shoppable live videos as a destination for Gen-Z and millennial shoppers since June 2021. Given that the publisher has its own production studio and a collection of homegrown talent it has brought up through its own editorial series, it has an advantage for producing entertaining, non-scripted content that could keep audiences watching and shopping.

[caption id="attachment_141537" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Buzzfeed’s live shopping session in December 2021
Source: Company website[/caption]  

• In January 2022, French newspaper Le Parisien continued its live shopping efforts on its website with tech support from Caast.tv, a French live-video-shopping provider. After witnessing positive feedback from the previous session in November 2021, in association with sustainability intelligence provider Le Kaba, which offers guidance on sustainable consumption, Le Parisien is ramping up its commerce content businesses to acts as a centralized marketplace on its site for businesses in the communities it covers.

[caption id="attachment_141539" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Le Kaba’s associate (left) presenting products in a live stream in November 2021
Source: Company website[/caption]  

Other Notable Livestreaming Events

• On January 13, 2022, Austrian furniture store chain XXXLutz Group teamed up with German live shopping tech provider LiveShopping4U to offer live shopping on its own website for customers in Germany. Hosted by TV presenters Ilka Groenewold and Kati Conrads, the livestream showcased a mix of trendy furnishings and practical tips under the theme “tidying up made easy.” The company will continue the live shopping sessions with a focus on home and living topics.

[caption id="attachment_141540" align="aligncenter" width="400"] XXXLutz Deutschland’s first live shopping session on its website
Source: Company website[/caption]  

• On January 14, 2022, French department store chain Printemps organized a co-branded live shopping series with Paris School of Luxury. The school offered its third-year students a project task: producing a fashion-based livestream targeting Gen Z consumers. Through a series of live presentation formats such as roundtables, interviews and discussions of fashion, sneakers and NFTs (non-fungible tokens), the two finalists were selected to host the show on Printemps.com.

[caption id="attachment_141541" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Paris School of Luxury’s live shopping session on Printemps.com
Source: Company website[/caption]  

• On January 15, 2022, German family and mother-care retailer Baby Walz launched a weekly live shopping series featuring co-branded products from brands including Cybex, Maxi-Cosi and Nuna. The company offers on-demand and live demonstrations alongside its main e-commerce site to engage and retain its customer base.

[caption id="attachment_141542" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Baby Walz’s first live shopping session showcasing Cybex’s child seats
Source: Company website[/caption]  

• On January 18, 2022, India-based beauty marketplace Nykaa launched a series of live online shopping events to allow its mobile app users to buy goods used by influencers in real time. The series was hosted by a range of influencers including Nykaa marketing executive Vaishvi Adani. The live show focused on beauty tutorials using products available to buy on Nykaa’s shopping app, which viewers could purchase while they watched the tutorial.

[caption id="attachment_141543" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Nykaa’s livestream sessions
Source: Facebook[/caption]  

• During January 21–23, 2022, QVC hosted a series of education-focused live shopping events and masterclasses, offering free shipping on all beauty products from the livestream. The live sessions provided a variety of discounts on beauty products, daily deals and the option to break up the cost of each purchase into five installments.
• On January 25, 2022, New York-based lingerie brand Adore Me kicked off its first live shopping session with French livestreaming provider Caast.tv on its website, aiming to deliver more interactive, engaging and entertaining shopping experiences. The store associates showcased the brand’s exclusive items and explained the matching of products.

[caption id="attachment_141544" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Adore Me’s first live shopping session on its website
Source: Company website[/caption]  

• On January 27, 2022, live shopping tech company Buywith collaborated with TikTok influencer Spencer Barbosa, who has 5.8 million followers on the social media platform, to host a live shopping session on her account, sharing top picks for a self-care routine for mental wellness and positivity. With Buywith’s white-labeled live video screen sharing capabilities, Barbosa was able to lead an interactive shopping trip with online followers co-browsing together and communicating through live chat at the same time.

[caption id="attachment_141545" align="aligncenter" width="450"] Barbosa’s live TikTok shopping session
Source: TikTok[/caption]  

• On January 28, 2022, Marks & Spencer, one of the UK’s largest clothing, food and home retailers, tapped into livestreaming, allowing 13.5 million M&S.com customers to join a live broadcast, pose questions to in-store experts and shop while they watch. Supported by the livestreaming software company LiSA, the retailer kicked off a weekly series of interactive and shoppable livestreams. The first 22-minute episode, hosted by yoga teacher and health coach Rosie Underwood, and Marks & Spencer’s Head of Lingerie Design, Soozie Jenkinson, shared tips and insights on the retailer’s in-house activewear line Goodmove.

[caption id="attachment_141546" align="aligncenter" width="400"] A live shopping session by Marks & Spencer
Source: Company website[/caption]

• On January 28, 2022, San Francisco-based online retailer b8ta TV pushed the limits of live shopping by launching 24/7 livestreams of product demos and shopping video. By offering shoppable live videos non-stop, the platform is attempting to make the product-promoting services constantly available. It also utilizes pre-recorded content shopping segments, where online shoppers are able to access featured items that they may have missed in the previous sessions. In addition, the company has been working both with small startups and big department store chains to offer a wide range of products.

[caption id="attachment_141547" align="aligncenter" width="450"]
b8ta TV’s first live shopping session on Facebook Live
Source: Company website[/caption]  

What We Think

The pandemic caused a profound shift to digital services that resulted in significantly higher costs due to increased online competition. Live shopping campaigns can be a cost-effective and impactful option for marketers who are looking for returns from marketing investment in raising brand awareness. We expect more business-to-consumer marketplaces to add live shopping capabilities and expand their rapport with tech innovators this year, as livestreaming is a fast-growing channel.

Implications for Brands and Retailers

• The interactivity of the livestream, with shoppers getting more product information and one-to-one personal feedback, leads brands to build intimate engagement and loyalty on top of sales.
• Companies that are targeting Chinese consumers should fold live-video shopping into their strategies and can benefit from using local influencers and allowing viewers to purchase products through channels such as WeChat and Taobao Live.
• As the live commerce arms race continues to take shape, media publishers will gain an advantage by adding live shoppable videos as a new revenue stream.