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How Small Businesses Can Take Advantage of Amazon Live

Stefan Jordev
Stefan Jordev
business.com Member
Updated Oct 03, 2019

Amazon Live exposes your brand to a broad, diverse audience of online shoppers.

Amazon Live is a relatively new feature that brands on Amazon can use to connect with Amazon customers and showcase their products in real time. With Amazon Live, hundreds of thousands of potential customers can discover your video feed in several locations on Amazon.com or the Amazon app. 

Why use Amazon Live?

Video is the single best way to showcase your products and how they should be used. It is the ideal solution for the busy world we live in, giving potential customers an overview of your product. 

Further, livestreaming is a great way to reach more Amazon shoppers and show your brand's story in a visually appealing way. Since its introduction, only a few brands have jumped at this opportunity, so livestreaming on Amazon should be on your marketing to-do list. It will help your brand position itself as innovative and customer centric. 

Who can use Amazon's Live Creator app?

The app is only available for brand owners who use Seller Central and have permission to advertise within Seller Central. Amazon Live Creator is currently available to professional Amazon sellers who are registered in Amazon's brand registry and sell on Amazon.com; it's also available to  Vendor Central accounts. You can sign in to Amazon Live Creator with your Seller Central/Brand Registry/Vendor Central login credentials.

Where do consumers see the livestreams?

Livestreams are visible in various places on Amazon.com: on your product's detail pages as well as other pages where Amazon customers browse. It's also visible on the live page where customers can discover livestream content and browse recorded livestreams. When you livestream through the Amazon Live Creator app, your livestream could appear on Amazon.com/live. There is no duration limit for your livestream, but the longer you stream, the more likely it is that shoppers will discover your video on Amazon.

How often should I stream?

The length and frequency of your Amazon livestream depends on the products you offer and the availability of your team. However, Amazon recommends streaming several times a week to engage with shoppers. 

The benefits of Amazon Live

Livestreaming on Amazon offers businesses a powerful tool to interact with consumers while increasing sales and brand recognition. You can be creative with your video, you can answer consumer questions or simply demonstrate how to use your products.

How much does Amazon Live cost?

You can stream for free on your product detail pages, on your Amazon Store as well as other pages. If you want to drive more traffic to your livestream, you can pay to boost your livestream.

How to prepare for your first livestream

1. Check your internet connection.

The first step is checking your internet connection and confirming that it can handle streaming without any disruptions while you are live. Streaming from a wired connection is recommended.

2. Do a practice run.

Working in Amazon's practice mode allows you to practice livestreaming without actually being live and seen by Amazon shoppers. Practice mode is also a great way to check your audio quality and the stability of your internet connection. When you turn on practice mode, you are the only one that has a link to your stream. You can turn on practice mode and find your practice mode page when setting up your livestream.

3. Add a great title.

Choose a descriptive, tantalizing title to make your livestream stand out to customers. Similar rules to the optimization of your Amazon product listing apply to your video: The title should be compelling and illustrative. Also, make sure you use high-volume, relevant keywords, and highlight the brand in your livestream.

4. Add products to your livestream.

Once you're livestreaming, you can add products below the video that will show up as a carousel and will help your viewers find your products easily. Make sure, though, that you are placing them in the order you want them to show up.

The first product you select will be the first product displayed in the carousel, and it will be the most visible for viewers. You can edit the order of the product carousel by clicking the pencil icon near the product selector while creating your livestream. However, you cannot add or remove products from the carousel once your livestream has started.

5. Add a banner message to your livestream.

While you are streaming, you can add custom messages that will appear in a banner format on your video. You can display a custom message (the limit for a custom message is 60 characters) or share an eligible promotion. When you share a promotion, viewers can add it to their account by clicking directly on the banner in the livestream. You can't change your promotional message while you are live.

6. Schedule your livestream.

When you schedule a livestream, your channel page will indicate that a livestream will happen at your scheduled start time, and you may appear on Amazon.com/live as an upcoming livestream. You can always go live after your scheduled start time, but customers may be waiting. You can also livestream without scheduling it in advance.

Once a livestream has been scheduled, you can share the link to that livestream in other, non-Amazon channels, such as social media, email blasts, etc. The shareable link can be found while creating your livestream or by navigating to Streams in the app, finding the stream you want to share the link for, and then sliding left to expose the Share button.

7. Respond to viewers.

Responding to customers in real time is one of the benefits of livestreaming. You can engage directly with customers using the chat feature in the Amazon Live Creator app, or by addressing their comments/questions verbally during the livestream. We recommend posting an initial chat message when your livestream begins so customers will see that you are available to chat.

Summary

Livestreaming is a revolutionary feature on Amazon. Using it requires a lot of preparation, but it is definitely worth it. If you are interested in learning more, visit the Amazon Live Learning page.

Have you used Amazon Live yet? Tell us about your experience in the comments below!

Image Credit: Peera_Sathawirawong/Getty Images
Stefan Jordev
Stefan Jordev
business.com Member
Stefan Jordev is the Advertising Director at Bobsled Marketing, a digital marketing agency with years of proven results and experience in helping brands scale on Amazon and leveling up their sales. He is Amazon Advertising, Amazon DSP and Amazon Strategy and Planning certified. His multi-disciplinary digital marketing background includes Google Ads, Bing Ads, lead generation, email & social media marketing.