Live-stream shopping has proven to be a massive success in China and the Asian region, which is the main reason TikTok and other social media platforms are pushing for in-app shopping features and live-stream product promotion. 

The sister app Douyin in China has created a large market for social selling, and after witnessing its success and the efforts that brands put into TikTok to promote their products, a few new features were born.

About Douyin the Chinese sister app

Douyin was launched before Tiktok both under the Beijing-based company ByteDance. Thus, Douyin is steps ahead of the popular TikTok app, working as an experimental field for the company, helping them test new features before incorporating them into all platforms. 

Despite being slightly different than the TikTok we know, Douyin is simply the Chinese version of TikTok with more features and creator tools than what’s available in the West.

Amazon, which is always ahead of its game, has already adopted similar strategies that TikTok is pushing for. Amazon Inspire allows users to purchase products from content generated by influencers with a click of a button. TikTok needs to catch up with its launch of new features, and ByteDance is currently racing other social selling apps like Amazon to inspire to dominate the market.

Livestream shopping on TikTok

The concept of selling products through live streams came from creators on the app rather than the parent company itself. Wholesalers and Retailers in China used the platform to stream their daily activities and offers, creating a whole new market.

Social media platforms saw the accelerated growth of brands leveraging live streams and began launching new tools. 

The following listed tools, such as the in-video link feature, allow creators to simplify the purchasing process and secure a sale without overwhelming navigation of profiles and sites. These new changes allow creators and brands to make an extra dollar and add a whole new meaning and advantage to the app. 

Promotion of Live-stream Shopping 

However, Tiktok is courting sellers and influencers to speed up the growth process of its new in-app shopping feature by incentivizing its users. That platform has been testing in-app shopping features since November of 2022 and finally invited shop owners to create their online Tiktok shop and diversify their income streams. 

With all the expected growth, consumers are still working to build comfort and trust in the new features, and early adopters of the technologies will be rewarded the most. 

As of early April 2023, the popular short-form content platform has offered three new incentives that encourage users to adopt its unique features, and one is only for a limited time. 

Free Shipping and Discount Coupons 

TikTok offers users and brands free shipping coupons, discounted prices, and more to incentivize users to purchase from the platform. The platform discounts reach 30% on select products. The promotions are presented as redeemable coupons or through meeting a minimum purchase amount on different products. Additionally, you can find free shipping coupon codes from 3rd part apps such as Dealspotrs, 101 vouchers, and more based on your region.

Creator Affiliate Commissions 

TikTok’s affiliate program is a new feature tested in different regions and is now available in the US ad UK, enabling creators to earn commission on promoted products. However, with TikTok emphasizing the promotion of livestream shopping even more, it is now easier for creators to earn commission on what they advertise. 

You can earn a commission by visiting the TikTok shop Seller Center and clicking the affiliate marketing button at the top. You will then be granted the option to choose from different plans that include: 

• Shop Plan: Quickly set a basic flat commission rate for all products.
• Open Plan: Create a unique program for particular products available to all creators.
• Targeted Plan: Invite certain creators to promote selected products.

Link insertion in live-streams 

Taking it a step further, TikTok is testing a feature that allows users to add clickable links on their videos and live streams that ultimately direct users to e-commerce stores or sell whatever product or service is promoted. TikTok shop is just the start of turning TikTok into a highly profitable end-to-end commerce platform. 

While these new encouragements aren’t a direct promotion of live-stream shopping features, TikTok is using them to build trust and give creators a sense of how profitable social shopping 

will be for them. 

How to sell on TikTok Shop? 

To sell on TikTok Shop, you must first create a business account or change your creator account into a business account. After completing this step, you must go through sales account data and verification to include important information such as your bank account, location, currency, tax settings, etc. 

You can add your products to the shop and promote them using embedded content and links. Through setting up your store, you can start to work with influencers and assign commissions to each creator you collaborate with. 

While the app hasn’t yet determined the percentage it’ll take from affiliates and brands, the current steady rate is roughly 5% of profits. 

Evaluation 

Despite TikTok’s emphasis and pushing of its new in-app shopping features, it is still in its very first stages. There is much to be modified and included to get the most out of the app as a user-to-user commerce tool system.

A good example of required modifications and tweaks include the common glitch that doesn’t allow users to access specific links posted on lives and content videos. 

The shift from an Entertainment to a nascent logistics business, at least on business accounts. Covering everything from printing labels and sale calculations should allow customer service inquiries to be integrated into the commerce system, following the strategies of similar platforms like Amazon Inspire. 

Conclusion 

As we all know by now, there is never a better time to utilize a new feature than during its testing or launching phase. Features usually offer exceptional growth and have the highest growth potential throughout these stages. 

If you’re in the US, UK, China, or Indonesia, this is your chance to tap into vast revenue potentials by hopping onto this new trend before it takes off and become oversaturated with influencers and brands.