Even the most experienced live shopping providers make mistakes – it’s part of the Facebook Live experience!
If you’re hesitant about whether or not you should throw yourself into the concept of live shopping, let the data speak for itself; live sales will increase your company’s revenue and increase loyalty from your customers. Live video on Facebook has an organic reach that is six times higher than other social media posts, and viewing times that are three times longer than regular videos.
Going live, however, can make even the bravest salesperson nervous. If this applies to you, don’t worry, we are here to help, and we’ve gathered some tips and tricks that will assist you in overcoming your fear of live sales.
Know the products you plan to sell
It’s a good idea to prepare what you want to showcase during your live sale and become familiar with the various items you’re going to present. This will help you highlight the different features and details of each item. You can also prepare what items complement each other – this will increase cross-selling and additional sales.
In addition, you can plan the information and the flow of your event, which we outline below.
Plan your live sale
Although live shopping is all about spontaneity, not everything in your live sale can be improvised. But, it will give you a great advantage to plan what you expect to happen during the live sale, and have a clear idea of the overall structure of your session. Planning your intro and summary is particularly important.
Planning is essential, and, as a store, you’ll get the best out of your live sales, and you’ll also feel ready and prepared to go live with peace of mind.
For your introduction, use a short but catchy description of your sale. Write down some important points, such as how to present yourself and your brand, as well as the practicalities of how customers can buy. If you plan ie. contests during your event, make sure to mention them in your introduction as well. It will give your audience a bigger incentive to keep watching during your live shopping event.
Drafting a summary of what should happen during the live sale can help you keep track of the program. You could also note important information about the products to be presented and the competitions you will have.
In your summary, you want to make sure customers know how to finalize their purchase and when they can participate in your next live shopping event. Remember to tell them where they can follow your page when you’re not live, and be sure to thank them for attending. Perhaps now is a good time to ask them what they would like to see next time.
Practice
Practice makes perfect!
If you want to do a dress rehearsal or practice run, we have a tip on how to do it, with an opportunity to review it yourself. This can be done with the help of Facebook’s privacy settings: go to “Facebook Live”, where you select visibility to “only me”. When you go live, the video will be available by you and only you. If you are a beginner, it’s a good idea to practice without spectators. You will get to know where to place yourself, mirror the camera, how the lighting looks, etc. It’s also the perfect time to test your equipment so you can eliminate possible technical issues in advance. Having said that, live shopping is still about an authentic experience, and cannot be a totally rehearsed show, which brings us to the next point.
Embrace imperfection
Don’t let your fears of making mistakes keep you from going live. All live shopping providers make mistakes – it’s part of the Facebook Live experience!
Live selling on Facebook is a raw and authentic experience, and that’s what makes it so amazing. Mistakes and accidents show customers that ordinary people are behind brands – just like themselves!
So don’t let perfectionism stand in your way. The most important thing about your live selling is to be present, and to provide value and a genuine experience for your customers.
Summary
Live shopping is an organic and authentic way to extend your reach of customers, and to boost your sales.
With a little preparation, you’re in control of the framework and will be ready to show your products to the shoppers. Apart from a little practice, the rest is about spontaneity and the ability to embrace the imperfection of the live shopping experience. After a few lives, it’ll be like riding a bike, and become natural to you. You’ll probably wonder why you didn’t throw yourself into it sooner!
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