How can Amazon sellers use Amazon Live to promote products and increase traffic 5 times?

You may have noticed that when you're scrolling through new posts on Facebook and Instagram, "Live" notifications often pop up, most commonly live broadcasts of conferences.

In this day and age, consumers don’t want to miss out on anything and want to be the first to know about the latest news, and live broadcasts on Facebook and Instagram are the ultimate way to engage with your audience in real time and share your experiences with them.

Just like Facebook and Instagram Live, Amazon Live also offers powerful interactive opportunities. It allows brand owners to host live broadcasts to promote their products.

Below is an example of influencer Marianna Hewitt live streaming her new private label Belei skincare solutions on Amazon. You can showcase your products below the video during your live stream so that users can easily access and purchase your products.

According to Amazon, live streaming can instantly increase traffic by 5 times, open up more traffic entrances, and your video will be exposed and displayed in the Amazon mobile app, and will be displayed on your product page or brand flagship store page. So how can sellers take advantage of Amazon live streaming?

Here are 3 ways to use Amazon Live for marketing and branding:

1. Educate shoppers through instructional and demonstration videos to entice them to buy . For example, QVC released demonstration videos on e-commerce to promote products so that shoppers can buy during the live broadcast.

2. Remind and inform shoppers of limited-time promotions you are running . For example, create a special promotion where only shoppers who watch the live broadcast during the live broadcast can purchase the promoted products.

3. Let influencers interact with consumers and promote your products , similar to how Amazon used influencers to promote its skincare brand Belei. You can work with influencers and regularly livestream instructional content to educate your audience and potential new customers.

To conduct a live broadcast, brand owners need to first download a mobile device app called Amazon Live Creator, but Live Creator is currently only available for iOS users.

Step 1: After downloading the app, you need to log in to your Amazon Seller Central account and click the “+” button to create a new live broadcast, as shown below:

*Tip: There is a "More" option button where you can change channel settings, link seller accounts, read live streaming tips, and more:

Step 2 : If you need to do some testing before going live, you can choose to do it in practice mode. Amazon will provide you with a unique link to see yourself live on your private channel page. If you live regularly on Facebook and Instagram and don't need any practice, then ignore this step.

Step 3 : Add products related to your live stream so that users will be able to shop immediately when they see you show the product in use. Once you’ve chosen your products, remember to name your live stream with your primary keywords for better Amazon SEO optimization results.

Step 4 : Add banners to your live video. You can choose to share promotions with your viewers or use them to display a custom message, as shown in the image below.

*Tip : Remember to include scarcity and a call to action in your custom message to encourage users to take immediate action.

Step 5 : If you want to attract more shoppers, promote your live stream. You need to link your merchant account to promote your live stream, similar to promoting a post on Facebook.

Note: Currently, the live streaming feature is only available to US professional sellers who have registered with Amazon Brand Registry, and does not support live streaming from China and Hong Kong . However, it doesn’t hurt to know how to set up live streaming, just in case Chinese sellers can live stream one day.

Compared to more established live streaming platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or Taobao Live, it remains to be seen whether Amazon Live will attract the same level of influencer/brand owner participation and drive traffic.

Taobao is one of China's largest e-commerce platforms owned by Alibaba. Taobao Live was launched in 2017 and currently has more than 10,000 anchors selling products online.

However, sellers selling beauty products should not miss this opportunity to take advantage of Amazon Live to promote and get shoppers to purchase their products.