Facebook trials live-streaming e-commerce with ‘Live Shopping Fridays’

Beauty, fashion and skincare brands will feature on Facebook’s new event, Live Shopping Fridays, aimed at bringing live-streaming e-commerce to a wider audience in the US.

Why it matters

Facebook hopes to encourage both shoppers and big brands to try live shopping, which ballooned in popularity in China last year as the pandemic kept consumers at home.

The details

• The trial will run through until mid-July, Facebook says, featuring live streams from such brands as Abercrombie and Fitch, Bobbi Brown, Clinique, Sephora, Dermalogica, Alleyoop, and Zox.
• The live events will be offered to consumers in multiple ways, says Facebook. Shoppers can follow a brand, and be notified when they are going to stream, for example. There will also be News Feed announcements where people can see when events are beginning. And the Facebook Shop tab will show a schedule of shopping streams happening across the platform.
• Live streaming shopping started on Facebook last year after a number of small trials targeting small and medium-sized businesses and “digital-first” brands.

Key quote

“The way that we’re thinking about this is that e-commerce has made buying incredibly convenient. So when you have a need, you pull out your phone, purchase, and your order is on its way. But buying is not shopping. When you’re shopping, people often want to hear from a live person, get suggestions, and see the product and context” - Yulie Kwon Kim, Head of Product, Facebook App Commerce

Sourced from TechCrunch