Amazon has around 2.3 million active sellers and to make sure they are able to sell their products, the selling giant is always up for facilitating new measures. A recent addition to these measures is the Amazon Live feature. By using this one, a seller can engage with shoppers in real-time and drive sales with interactive live streams.
This is not the first time Amazon is trying to use the QVC feature for promoting products. Back in 2016, Amazon tried to use it as “Style Code Live” feature, where Amazon employees were hosting each segment of products and tried to create a promotion in the respective category. The feature didn’t last long and was canned in 2017.
But live streaming is more of a trend now and certainly, Amazon cannot let it go just like that. After two years, Amazon has once again launched a live streaming feature by the name of Amazon live, and this time it is the sellers are allowed to connect with customers directly. Today, Amazon Live is already managing hundreds of videos covering a wide range of products from electronics to home textile. In this article, we will discuss more on Amazon live, how it is helping sellers, who can use it, and how to go about it. Let us first start with what exactly is Amazon live.
What is Amazon Live
Amazon Live is a brand-new feature by Amazon that combines the fun and interactive nature of live video with online shopping. It allows sellers to promote their products by hosting their own live streams for customers on Amazon.
Amazon live feature allows sellers to stream live videos to engage with shoppers in real-time, and demonstrate products interactively. These live videos allow hosts to speak about more than already published information about products. Adding on, sellers can highlight featured product benefits, how they work, and chat with customers in real-time for a promotional engagement. All in all, by using Amazon live, sellers can drive shoppers to purchase their products by informing them more and in a real-time manner.
What makes Amazon live videos more efficient is their availability at more than one place at the same time. Once the streaming starts, shoppers can connect to them on Amazon’s website, featured product page, Amazon.com app, Amazon Store, and more. Another impressive aspect of Amazon live in the level of transparency it provides to shoppers as any product that is discussed in the particular live stream is right in front of the shopper. Plus, any question regarding it is answered within seconds.
Live streaming has become increasingly popular over the last few years, so it only makes sense to take advantage of a new opportunity to reach the massive audience of the world’s biggest retailer.
Benefits of Amazon Live
Possibly one of the biggest benefits of using Amazon Live is that it is free. This means now you can stream right in front of thousands of relevant buyers without paying a penny. But of course, you need to be an eligible candidate for using Amazon live meaning you should be a registered brand. If you are eligible that you can drive a lot of value from this live streaming feature by Amazon. Here are a few possible ways in which you can get benefitted from Amazon live.
Get Discovered
Amazon live offers a unique opportunity to demonstrate your product in front of hundreds or even thousands of potential customers, thus giving you and your product a window of getting discovered by the customers.
Offer unique promotions
If you are using Amazon live, you can offer a unique offer to the viewers while you are live with them. The offer can use the urgency for influencing the customer's mind and thus can help you make more sales during a live session. Moreover, it can encourage viewers to join you in future live streams.
Improved Interaction
Another benefit of using Amazon live is the improvement it brings in interaction. While you are live streaming, you can chat with your viewers, explain to them more about the product, answer their queries, and win their confidence. And by doing so, you can add more sales as well can impress customers for future offers as well.
Brand Awareness
This a fact that brand influences the overall sale of any product. There are so many ways of gaining brand popularity. Even Amazon live creates a way of doing so. On live streams, you can influence people to follow your brand page on Amazon so they can be notified every time you go live. This way not only you can promote a new brand but also can add more followers to an existing one.
Your live stream appears on your listing
The live streams from Amazon live also appear on the featured product’s listing page. This is great as it allows you to satisfy that group of customers who have already discovered your product but are looking for more information. This way you can convert those customers who are on the edge of buying your product but were having a hitch for some reason.
If you are a seller, by this time you are already impressed with Amazon live. However, the Amazon live feature is not available for everyone. In the next section, we have highlighted the eligibility criterion for Amazon live.
Who Can Use Amazon Live To Promote Their Products
Amazon Live can be used only via the Amazon Live Creator app. For now, the app is available on the IOs platform only. Further, the app is only available to the following segments:
U.S. sellers who are registered on Amazon.com for selling products.
U.S. Amazon Vendors who have an approved Amazon Store in Advertising Console.
Influencers in the Amazon Influencer Program with an active Amazon Influencer storefront.
The first two categories are simple to understand as they are straightforward. However, there is some more consideration in the third one. This category belongs to the influencers who broadly fall under the umbrella of the Amazon Associates program, and promote products on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, etc. for increasing the sales of a particular product amongst their followers. But for those influencers whose storefronts are suspended, revoked, or inactive are not eligible for using Amazon live creator app.
If you fall in any of these three categories, you are good to set up your Amazon Live Creator account and start streaming. After understanding the eligibility criterion for the Amazon live feature, the next thing to understand is where sellers can find their streams. Though Amazon has a level system to manage live streams, any eligible seller can improve on their level for getting featured on Amazon.com or other relevant pages. Let us see how.
Where Do Amazon Live Streams Appear
Amazon live manages the publishing of live streams on the grounds of seller levels. These levels are “Rising star”,” Insider”, and “A-List” and each of them has different eligibility and goals. The whole idea behind this level management system is simple; the more you use the live feature and make sales, the less time you take for climbing up from rising star to A-list level. Once a seller reaches the minimum requirements for each level, they need to apply to level up. Here is a summary of attributes related to each level
Rising Star (level 1)
Every creator starts off as a Rising Star in Amazon Live. As a Rising Star, you can live stream as often and whenever you want using the Amazon Live Creator app.
Allows Livestream link sharing from the Amazon Live Creator app
Provides notification of live streaming to amazon followers on the Amazon app
Livestreams are eligible to appear on:
Amazon Live site, in relevant product category rows, and the ‘Live now’ row
Detail pages of featured brand’s products
Insider (level 2)
When a seller has streamed for at least 90 mins in 30 days, they are eligible for a promotion to this level. In addition to the benefits of rising stars, seller’s live streams are eligible to appear on:
All Rising Star placements
The Amazon Live site top of page placement
A-List (level 3)
When a seller has streamed for at least 1,000 mins in 30 days, drive 5,000 sales, or sell 100 units in 30 days, they are eligible for a promotion to this level. In addition to the benefits of rising stars, a seller gets
Special access to Amazon Live events and opportunities
Priority support from the Amazon Live Creator team
Plus, the live streams are eligible to appear on:
All Rising Star and Insider placements
The Amazon.com home page
How to use Amazon Live
Using Amazon live is simple and anyone can do it. Even if you are a person who does not has much familiarity with technology, still you can do it. This is because the whole process is well defined and there is a lot of guidance available from Amazon itself.
There are a couple of things that you must be aware of. Before starting the live stream, prepare yourself properly. You can consider the best practices that we have mentioned later in the article. You can also go through already available promotional videos in a similar niche. Also, you can go through live streaming videos to understand more about how to act while you are in action. On top of all, if you are able to develop a script for the whole stream, nothing is better than that.
Another important aspect to consider before starting it the technical requirements for Amazon live creator app. For now, the Amazon Live Creator app is only available and optimized for the iPhone. Though you can use it on an iPad, the experience may not be great as it is yet to be optimized. Unfortunately, Amazon live creator app is not available for Android devices so the best way to go for Amazon live is via iPhone only.
Once you are ready with the technical requirements, we would recommend you to go for practice mode. Practice mode allows you to safely practice live streaming without being discovered by Amazon shoppers. Not only it is a great way to check your audio quality and internet connection stability but also reduces the likelihood of technical mistakes.
Considering that you are an eligible candidate and you have an iPhone to download the Amazon Live Creator app, here is a step by step description of how you can start using an Amazon live feature.
Step 1: Getting the app
Get the Amazon Live Creator app on your device. You can download it for free from the apple store.
Step 2: Creating an Amazon Live account
Once you open the app, Amazon will ask for login credentials. Here you can enter your seller, vendor, or influencer account details. Once the id and password are entered and accepted, you will get an associated Amazon live account that has details of the brand and details.
In case you want to edit your brand and profile name, you can do that too.
Step 3: Starting a live stream
After providing the details for the account, you are finally ready to go live and start your live stream. As said earlier, be prepared and use practice mode at least once before you actually go live. Once you are ready, you can press the plus button that is available in the center bottom of the app.
Step 4: Selecting the required information
After pressing the plus button, you need to provide certain information to go live. This includes the tile for the video and a starting time. This is also where you add the products you want shoppers to be able to buy directly from your live stream.
Step 5: Selecting the products
For a live stream to happen, you need to select at least one product. To do so, press the “Add products” button on the screen and you will be presented with a list of all the products associated with your brand to choose from. Hit save and you’ll be taken back to this screen.
That’s all. After adding the products, you can continue with practicing or go live anytime you want. There is no limit to the duration of your live streams, or how many times you live stream. In fact, with longer live streams you shall find more shoppers discovering about your product.
There is two more option on the app that helps in extending the reach of live stream video. The first one is called “boost video: which is basically paid boosting. It allows a seller to pay an amount for an extended reach of their live streams on Amazon. Currently, this option is only available for
Professional seller in good standing
Registered for advertising
Registered brand owner
Not that Amazon vendors will not see paid boosting in the Amazon Live Creator app.
The second option is “Engage with Viewers”. It provides you with a link that you can share with your email list or social media followers so they can watch along from wherever they are.
Amazon’s Best Practices For Your Live Stream
Although, you can find all of the best practices for using amazon live from amazon itself, here is a summarized version for quick reading.
Livestream for at least 30 minutes at a time as it can help in reaching more customers.
Try to encourage your audience for having an interactive session. You can ask them to ask questions, like, and follow your brand.
Remember to sell and restate key messages as new shoppers will be coming and going throughout your live stream.
Try to demonstrate your products in imaginative ways rather than describing them.
Share your live stream with your audience off Amazon
Consider streaming with an encoder to have better control over your stream audio and video quality, the use of multiple cameras, graphics, and overlays.
Livestream when your items have special deals and offer shoppers a promotion
Conclusion
Livestream is one of the latest and much-liked trends in online shopping as it further reduces the gap between buyers and sellers. Although Amazon has tried its hand at live-streaming functionality back in 2017, this time they have come up with a solution that is stronger and better.
Not only Amazon live streaming is a brilliant solution to tap a market space with more than 150 million mobile users, but it also lets you use your social media following to know more about your products. Plus, the benefits of selling products and taking care of customer needs in real-time is simply exceptional.
As you can realize, it a wonderful opportunity for any eligible seller to improve sales. It is super easy and, in a way, helps you to grow as a brand as well. Though amazon live is restricted to U.S. geography, for now, you can expect to have global coverage in near time.