How Facebook Live Selling Can Boost Your Ecommerce Business

Social Commerce and Live Sales

Social commerce describes social media platforms to promote, sell, and purchase products and services. Users can browse through products on Facebook and make purchases without going to your company's website. This integration of social media and e-commerce provides e-commerce businesses with a way to simplify the purchase process and use social media advertising for their brands. Social media connects users, and it also plays a role in connecting marketers with buyers. With over a third of U.S. internet users using social media to connect with brands to learn more about products and services, user engagement focuses on brands and retailers.

While social media has always enabled users to become more involved with the brands and people they admire, thus more loyal to them, Facebook Live now allows fans to pause what they are doing and connect with their favorite brands on a whole new level. Facebook Live Sales enables this even further with personalized discounts, coupons, real-time product discovery, live Q&A, and social buying experience even more engaging. But first, let's take a step back to look at the current state of social media. However, Snapchat and Instagram Stories provide users with raw, behind-the-scenes action. The content posted on those sites is typically short clips rather than long-form material. People like watching videos. It's also evident that they enjoy watching live videos. As data suggests, people engage 6x more with live video than with a pre-recorded video, proving that live streaming is a highly successful marketing tool. With Facebook being one of the most popular social networking sites, it seems that using Facebook Live is the most effective way of increasing your reach and converting more viewers into loyal followers and customers.

China has shown the world the power of live commerce by making business worth USD 150 billion in sales alone. Many DTC brands are adopting this model to take this ahead.

In today's article, we will be discussing;

• What is a Facebook Live Sale?

• Why Facebook Live Sales?

• Essentials for Hosting a Facebook Live Sale

• Guide to a Facebook Live Sale

• Platforms that can help you make Facebook Live Sale

• Recommended apps for Shopify stores to host Facebook Live Sale

• Case studies of successful Facebook Live Sale.

• Conclusion

What is Facebook Live Sale?

The definition suggests that a Facebook live sale uses Facebook live videos to promote and sell products. Live videos are successful sales channels because they increase engagement in various ways.

Facebook Live gives brands, celebrities, retailers, and everyone else a platform to share valuable content in real-time. And Facebook Live Sales are the craze right now, and it's easy to see why! They put stores on a fast track of increased sales and profits.

You must be thinking about why to chose Facebook over any other platform. The answer is visible in any study conducted on social media live sales, but let's break it down in easy-to-understand terms.

Why Facebook Live Sales?

If your store isn't using Facebook Live, it's throwing up a serious opportunity. Why is this so? There are so many benefits of using Facebook Live.

Facebook Live assists in beating the Algorithm

If people like, share, and interact with your Facebook Live video, your post will be deemed necessary. And thus, it will appear more frequently in your followers' newsfeeds.

Live Sales are a Cost-Effective Idea

‍Today, video is one of the most popular types of content on the internet. But recording videos can be costly and time-consuming, which going live isn't. Moreover, live videos offer more engaging content. The requirements for Facebook Live videos are the least, and they do not need expensive cameras, editing, or elaborate set design. It is all about how you connect with your viewers, engage with them during the live stream, and provide good value to your viewers.

Live Sales generate Buzz and Enthusiasm for your Business

‍Because of the live video interface, viewers have a small window of time connecting to you and buying a product. Customers are more likely to buy if they have a limited time window. Facebook Live sessions can help offer your brand a personality and hype, making it a simple point of differentiation for your store.

Essentials for Hosting a Facebook Live Sale

• Smartphone - You're already signed up to social media on your mobile. Why not go live on it? There's no need for a fancy camera! A good smartphone camera will suffice.

• The laptop- Laptops are helpful for inventory management, previewing live broadcasts, and reading incoming comments and questions from your viewers.

The two most prevalent triggers of live sales interruptions are dying computers and poor internet. What is the solution?

• Power Source- A reliable power source or a power bank would solve the first issue.

• Fast Internet- The second issue can be solved using an Ethernet adapter or a fast WIFI network- one that can transmit data at 10-100Mbps. Say goodbye to low-quality videos.

• Tripod- Only a few things are more annoying than watching a shaky video. That is why you should have a tripod! A tripod can stabilize your video while still allowing you to display your products with your hands-free.

Guide to a Facebook Live Sale ‍

1. Get ready for all of the products you want to sell

Planning ahead of time will set you up for better results, making the task less stressful. You can't use mockups in live events because you'll need to get a range of products made ahead of time.

2. Choose a date and time

‍For a live stream, timing is all. Analyze your page insights and find out when your audience is most interested. This will help you decide when to write. If you want to go live regularly, keep the sale at a consistent time, ensuring that you have consistent viewers each time. Another piece of advice would be to go live for more than an hour.

3. Promote and advertise

‍Another vital point to keep in mind is to create posters to publicize the time and date of your live event. A teaser video will create excitement well before the live broadcast begins. Use a hook to entice the audience. Provide giveaways and rewards during the live for viewers to tune in.

4. Set up your equipment and space in the days before the live sale

‍Make time to assemble and troubleshoot all your equipment. You don't want a technical glitch to occur amidst the Facebook live. Also, don't forget to test all your technology. ‍

5. Make a list of notes to help you navigate the live sale

‍It may be the order of goods to be shown, the size of the products, the prices, and the numbers.

6. Connect with your audience, include them, and sell

Introduce yourself and start selling as soon as your live sale begins! As new viewers arrive at your event, greet them and remind them how to order the products they like. When using Facebook Live, don't ignore shoppers. Respond to their queries and encourage participation.

7. The Conclusion

‍Send invoices to shoppers as soon as possible after the live sale is over. Follow up with viewers who had questions or requested custom orders during the event. And don't forget to Ship products to your customers on time.

Read More: Checklist for Successful Live Stream

Platforms that can help you make Facebook Live Sales effectively

CommentSold 

Founded in 2017, CommentSold is an online social commerce platform for B2C businesses. The platform enables entrepreneurs to have real-time interactions and simplify business through social media platforms, websites, and mobile apps.

Advantages

• Billing and Invoice Software

• Inventory Management Software

• Multi-Channel eCommerce Software

• Social Selling Software

• ECommerce Software

• ECommerce Software for Small Business

Pricing

• Introductory Price: $49.00/Month

• Business Price: $149.00/Month

• Free Trial Plan of 30 days

BeLive

BeLive is an online video streaming platform that helps small and medium-sized businesses and content creators to stream their videos and engage with their audiences. The platform also enables video streamers to edit videos with the best audience engagement moments, which can later be posted on other social media platforms.

Advantages

• Audience Engagement

• Live Streaming

• Event Scheduling

• Multi-streaming

• Customizable Branding

Prices

• Basic: Free

• Standard: $23.36/Month

• Pro: $35.05/Month

Recommended Apps for Shopify Stores to host Facebook Live Sale

SoldLive: FB Comment Selling

Sold live allows your Shopify store to quickly sell products directly from your Facebook live stream sale. It generates invoices and sends them to customers who comment in the proper format during the Facebook live sale. The app can read details like size and color and match them with items to show your customers select and click on. Or else, they may define the specifics of orders in their comment.

The app creates an invoice and a checkout link for all the products any customer commented on and sends them for payment. When a product is sold out, it generates a waitlist and automatically notifies the waitlist when the item is back in stock again. When your live sale ends, your customers will check out, and you will receive the paid invoices automatically.

Highlight Features

• Your customers don't need to register on another website to sync with Shopify.

• During your live stream, shoppers can continue to comment to add more products to their cart.

• The software is also compatible with both Facebook pages and groups.

• The app is entirely automated.

Price: From $49/month. 14-day free trial.

Rating: 5/ 5

Case Studies of Successful Facebook Live Sale ‍

1. The Funky Fair Live Sale Campaign

Vicki Stewart, the owner of The Funky Fair, a UK-based online store that sells embroidered gifts for kids, organized a Facebook live sale campaign for four consecutive days. The idea behind the campaign was to liquidate the stock after making them personalized using the kids'' names for their overstock inventory.

The campaign ran three sales in 4 days for 20 minutes each and was such a massive success that it saw more than 7k views on day one and day two and more than 10k views on the third day.

2. L'Oreal' Malaysia

Another successful Facebook Live sales campaign was when L'Oreal Malaysia planned to host 24 24-hour live sales campaign on Facebook using Facebook Live and Messenger to boost sales. In this campaign, different L'Oreal brands had a chance to showcase their products for 1.5 hours. Customers could use a particular hashtag that initiated a conversation in Messenger with L'Oreal's'' customer support, who then guided customers through the order placement and payment process.

The campaign reached over 2.6 million people, increased sales by four times the average daily sales, and was a huge success.

Conclusion

Unlike traditional online stores, where consumers can only see pictures of the products, a live sale allows customers to see the items and how they are used in real-time. You will now reach the same level of success because you have every opportunity you need to go live. Remember that using Facebook Live is a perfect way to get your store to broaden its scope, increase profits, and cultivate a brand image.

So, please don't take too much pressure about it, smile, and happy selling.

Tanvi Bansal

Growth Marketing Intern in Upraft’s Team