HOW BRANDS CAN PARTNER WITH INFLUENCERS TO CREATE SHOPPABLE VIDEO

Social media has become an integral part of our lives. Many head to apps like Instagram and Facebook for product information and inspiration. Consequently, many social media users follow fashion, beauty, food or fitness influencers to stay informed on what’s hot. In an astonishing fact sourced by Google, 4 in 10 Millennials said their favourite influencer understood them better than their friends. This has placed influencers on a powerful pedestal that brands can capitalise to build a bigger, more loyal customer base.

How are brands partnering with influencers?

Brands have been using shoppable video and streaming commerce to connect with customers via influencers. The medium seamlessly integrates direct purchase options with immersive and interactive content. Smartzer’s interactive tag video platform adds a clickable overlay to video content. This might be over an influencers livestream, image or video post. The brand will add the desired links to Smartzer's software either manually, via Product Feed or via Product API. This will enable the viewer to click the products and access details and purchase options as the video continues to play. This tech speeds up the route to purchase for a consumer, increasing the chance of a conversion. By combining trustworthy influencers with instantly informative interactive video brands can win big.

Here are some of the ways brands are implementing this strategy…

NYX Pro Makeup: Livestream Shopping and Tutorials

The digital first brand targeted the social media generation during a time when bricks and mortar beauty counters were closed. By launching their large scale influencer outreach programme they have secured a close relationship with their customers. The livestream makeup tutorials with LGBT influencer Matt Bernstein reached thousands. Fans were able to see the products in action and purchase them directly from the livestream shopping video.

The Sport of Being Hannah Bronfman for Harper’s Bazaar: Shoppable Day in the Life

Famous online retailer, Harper’s Bizarre collaborated with DJ, fitness guru, model and blogger Hannah Bronfman to deliver a clickable and entirely shoppable editorial. Viewers could interact with the video by clicking on the pieces worn by Hannah. The video would then display the products, showing more information and the option to “Buy Now”. The shoppable video received 80K shares on social media.

Trisha Hershberger: Amazon Live Influencers

Amazon has created their own platform for influencers and brands to come together to promote products to the masses. This form of streaming commerce features live reviews that demonstrate how products work. These videos are tagged with the items for the viewer to purchase without leaving the video. Tag videos have the potential to reach huge audiences as demonstrated by gaming influencer, Trisha Hershberger. By partnering with influencers like Trisha to promote their gaming products, brands could reach over 145K potential buyers.

Sofia Schwarzkopf-Tilbury: Brown Thomas X Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Masterclass

Using Smartzer's shoppable livestream video platform, Brown Thomas teamed up with celebrity makeup artist, Sofia Tilbury to deliver an interactive beauty masterclass. Makeup enthusiasts pre-booked tickets for the exclusive event and tuned in for live makeup tips. Demonstrated products would appear in a shoppable side-bar for the viewer to purchase without leaving the stream. After the livestream shopping event, the video was made public on Brown Thomas’s e-commerce website with the aim to turn regular web traffic into qualified traffic. This bespoke, immersive form of streaming commerce can successfully increase engagement by offering a memorable and unique customer experience.

Influencer voices can help brands obtain thousands of new customers through just one video. It is clear that in 2021, influencer marketing is key to maintain customer trust and loyalty when physical stores are closed.