You抳e been working hard creating a brand, building a storefront, and growing a following on social media. You know you are ready to take your online business to the next level, but might be a little intimidated by the idea of live streaming. Throw a live shopping event like a pro by following these 6 easy steps.

1. Do Some Research
Watch people live stream. Interact on their livestream. How does their event feel? What do you love or hate about their live event? Even if it抯 not a live shopping event, watching and interacting with other people抯 livestreams is a great way to start deciding how you want your first live shopping event to go. Keep a notebook with you while you watch and keep a tally of what moments create the most engagement with viewers. Watch streams from people close to your brand and people who may have a brand that抯 completely opposite. You never know where a great idea will come from.

2. Plan Your Stream
Now that you have an idea of what livestreams look like and what gets more viewer interaction you are ready to start planning out your live shopping event. Remember your first livestream won抰 be perfect. By doing your first livestream you are opening yourself up to a new way of monetizing your social platform. It抯 okay to start small. Pick something simple. If you make jewelry maybe do a launch of your new necklace collection and throw a livestream shopping event. Pick something that will be engaging for viewers whether or not they are planning to shop. Revealing a new product like a necklace to your followers is fun! You can explain the process of designing it, creating it, and what inspired you.

Remember practice makes perfect. If you get nervous, write out and plan what you are going to say. Even professionals practice before they go live, so cut yourself a little slack. Try taping yourself to get a sense of how engaging you are. But, don抰 be your own harshest critic. Let it go and have fun!

3. Pick Your Platform
To successfully host a live shopping event you will need a platform that is equipped with dedicated live commerce tools. Amazon Live, Youtube, and Facebook Live offer these tools; however they do not allow you full control of your branding and take a cut of the profit from your sales during the live shopping event. For your first live stream you could certainly use one of these for the ease of starting small and with little to no investment. However, if you are planning on growing your business through live shopping consider using a streaming platform like Maestro to host your event.

Maestro gives creators more control over their branding and has the live commerce capability to link directly to your Shopify account. They won抰 take any of your profit from you and even offer actionable analytics to help you improve as you continue to host live shopping events. Consider trying them with their free trial for your first live shopping event.

4. Find the Right Tools and Equipment
When you are first starting out there is no need to invest in renting an expensive set or buying a new camera. Your phone is an amazing tool and can certainly be used for your first livestream. Get a tripod so that you can be hands free while you host your live shopping event. You may want to invest in a simple lavalier mic to have the best sound quality, but it抯 certainly not necessary for your first stream. Make sure that you have ample lighting. If you don抰 have a lot of sunlight in your home consider investing in a box or ring light. The better you look and sound during your live shopping event the more likely you are to gain followers and make sales.

5. Arrange Your Space
Make sure you are well lit from the front and there is no backlight to wash you out from behind. Find a space in your house that fits your brand. Remember, people like to see you as a human so hang on your couch or in your kitchen or workspace. Make sure the space you choose fits whatever it is you are going to sell during your live shopping event. While it can look like your home is lived in, it抯 usually better if the area is free of clutter and doesn抰 have too much business in the background. Look back to livestreams you watched for research: what did you like or not like about those setups? Build your live shopping set up from there.

6. Go Live
Lights. Camera. Action. You are set up. You抳e practiced. You have your platform. You are ready to go LIVE! Hit the button, have fun, and watch the sales flow in.

Sources:
https://www.maestro.io/ecommerce/
https://www.maestro.io/blog/how-to-live-stream/
https://www.maestro.io/blog/live-commerce/
https://www.maestro.io/blog/how-to-make-money-streaming/