Brief:
- Spin Live this week launched its shoppable video service in the app store of Shopify, whose technology provides the e-commerce backbone for thousands of online merchants. Spin Live's app lets e-commerce sites sell products directly in shoppable videos from influencers, as detailed in an announcement.
- Fashion designer LJS Brand saw a 15% sales lift after using Spin Live's app to work with influencers and create special promotions in livestreams, owner Laura Jane Schierhorn said in the announcement.
- Spin Live has a two-click setup process for influencers to access products on a merchant's website and to start selling them in shoppable videos. Merchants can integrate Spin Live with product information, inventory and fulfillment.
Insight:
Spin Live's shoppable video integration with Shopify comes as retailers seek to reach consumers who are dissuaded from going to physical stores and malls during the coronavirus pandemic. The change in habits is driving innovation among brands and platforms that can connect with shoppers through digital channels that include services like livestreaming and e-commerce functionalities.
By including an influencer component, Spin Live may help merchants engage consumers who either rely on the expertise of online personalities or want to buy products that online celebrities showcase in their social media posts. While the pandemic led to a slight decline in influencer campaigns at its outset, there are signs of gradual recovery as marketers target more of their efforts at homebound consumers, a recent Forrester study indicates.
The addition of Spin Live to Shopify's app store follows other recent integrations between the e-commerce platform and third-party vendors of software and services. Last month, virtual shopping tech company Hero introduced its service to Shopify merchants, giving them a way to provide an immersive experience to customers. Hero helps to connect store employees with shoppers through text messaging and video chat, letting merchants answer questions, check inventories and provide personalized advice to shoppers.
Canada-based Shopify has seen its star quickly rise as merchants rush to transition their businesses online during the pandemic. New stores created on the platform spiked 71% in Q2 compared to the prior quarter, while revenue rose 97% year-over-year, according to CNBC. Traditionally focused on enterprise e-commerce solutions, Shopify earlier this year also centralized its consumer-facing services with a mobile shopping assistant app called Shop.
The company's expansion comes as pandemic-driven trends are expected to stick. Only 29% of U.S. consumers report feeling safe visiting a shopping mall, per a Morning Consult survey. While that percentage is higher than the 17% seen in the pandemic's early days, the level hasn't improved in several weeks, indicating continued discomfort about shopping at brick-and-mortar stores. Meanwhile, U.S. online sales jumped 76% to $73.2 billion in June from a year earlier, according to Adobe Analytics, signaling a significant upward shift in e-commerce's popularity.
