Live shopping has taken online shopping experiences to the next level. It has become a huge hit with consumers in China in recent years, where 37% of online sales in 2019 alone were made during live broadcasts.

The trend is making its way to the other side of the globe—the other parts of Asia, USA, and UK. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and other tech giants are flocking to implement the live shopping feature. The livestream ecommerce industry is expected to grow thrice from 2021 to $35 billion in 2024. However, this ever evolving online shopping trend leaves brands even more vulnerable to counterfeiting.

Why live shopping?

What is so lucrative about it? First thing first, livestreaming is an entertainment, while shopping is categorized as a fun activity. Basically, live shopping combines entertainment and fun activities. During a livestreaming, the seller offers their products directly to audiences who can directly place their orders during the session.

From the viewpoint of brand owners, live shopping can help them in at least two areas. First, it accelerates conversion. As mentioned earlier, livestreaming is an entertainment that keeps people watching. The longer they watch, the further their experience as a customer will be streamlined from awareness to making a purchase. It is boosted even further if combined with a time-limited technique, such as a discount voucher that is only valid until the end of the livestream, to create a sense of urgency. According to a study, brands that have adopted the live shopping program have seen a 30% increase in their conversion rates.

Secondly, live shopping improves brand engagement, especially among young people who are keen on innovative shopping formats and experiences. Apart from that, it may increase visibility to existing followers and entice the new ones.

Brand risks on live shopping

While livestreaming may be beneficial to brands, it also increases the risk of a proliferation of counterfeit products, which is already a problem in a variety of categories such as cosmetics, technology, or food. Unlike traditional online shop platforms where products are displayed on the website, for live shopping, the products are only displayed during the live session.

As a result, it is more challenging for brands to monitor as well as to pinpoint the exact sections of the video that include the counterfeit products–a prerequisite for e-commerce platforms to remove the infringing video. Sometimes, following the sales rush, sellers may erase the material that infringes copyright and platform restrictions. Nevertheless, it is extremely easy for them to create a new video or do another live stream.

In China, it is fairly common for some sellers to sneak counterfeit products among their inventory in order to stay under the radar of the authorities.

Brand monitoring solutions

It is becoming more important for brand owners to take a proactive stance in protecting and maintaining their trademark online. One way to do this is to implement long-term monitoring and enforcement strategies.

The long term approaches are useful for identifying broader infringement trends in the market. Companies can use this information to develop tailored strategies to protect their brand in the long run. However, monitoring is not a simple job. It takes special strategies, consistency, and professional human resources in this field.

Integrity Asia is ready to help brand owners protect their brand identity and reputation by fighting the infringement of their products. Apart from removing counterfeit products from the online channels, Integrity Asia is also experienced in continuously monitoring to detect and identify whether the infringed product is being re-offered using a different account or channel.

Putri

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