Live video shopping: in-store personal shopping assistance for online customers

While personalized service is among the must-haves in brick-and-mortar retail, so far live streaming video consulting has only been introduced on a testing basis in most instances. Video consulting is somewhat more prevalent in the service sector, with banks being pioneers of these types of services.

When online retailers offer consultation services, it’s called curated shopping. First, the customer indicates his/her preferences, likes or dislikes via an online form. Based on this information, the consultant will then make personalized product recommendations. In doing so, the consumer is not subjected to endless unfiltered e-commerce options. The direct dialogue with the consultant can take place via phone, e-mail, Messenger service or video chat.

Curated shopping – literally meaning “assisted“ shopping – thus combines the benefits of brick-and-mortar retail with the advantages of online retail: customers obtain the service of specialized retailers and a preselection from a large number of online options without having to leave the comfort of their own home.

This type of service also has positive effects for retailers. On the one hand, the information provided by customers allows insights into their preferences and buying behavior. On the other hand, the customer relationship can be deepened thanks to the personal contact, especially when you are able to see the other person and communicate in real time. Ultimately, curated shopping also results in fewer returns.

The skill that is required nowadays is to combine all customer wishes (experience, convenience, specialized consulting, quality, and price/performance ratio) in one omnichannel service experience as best as possible and hit the above-mentioned benefits for each sales channel. “Curated shopping bridges the gap between anonymous online shopping and personal consultation services at a brick-and-mortar store. The service component gives consumers a sense of individuality and retailers many cross-selling and upselling opportunities,“ explains Dr. Eva Stüber, Head of Research & Consulting at ECC Köln in a press release on the consumer behavior of smart natives.

“At this point, our customers have fully embraced the new service option,“ Phillipe Frères says about the introduction, though he admits that it initially took a lot of persuading. “You can only fully appreciate its added value once you have tried it.“ At the store, LiSA is attached to a height-adjustable rolling trolley stand, designed to make customers curious about the new feature.

Frères concedes that his associates were initially skeptical. “It was a major challenge to create training courses that made the sales associates comfortable with using LiSA. But as soon as they got in touch with the online customers, the sales talk was the same as always. And once the first sales figures came in, the staff was fully convinced.“

Although real-time communication and videos are increasingly important in customer service, live video shopping is not necessarily a guaranteed recipe for success. The Barbara Frères Boutique and its product selection might benefit from the fact that its clientele comes from all over the world – from Cologne to Hong Kong.

What’s more, a comparatively intricate solution lends itself well to service-intensive products. A store that sells luxury fashion definitely has a greater potential in this area than a discount clothing store for example. In clothing stores that sell mass-produced items, with narrow aisles, loud music, and higher foot traffic during rush hours, a sales associate who blocks the way for other customers with a bulky device and who tries to provide personalized consultation might be somewhat out of place. Having said that, space saving, mobile solutions like tablets or smartphones could be beneficial in those cases. At any rate, video chat services should be tailored to the settings at the store and the customer needs.