The Heroes group AG shows you how to attract more customers and increase brand awareness with an interactive live shopping experience. A WORLD PREMIERE – the first live shopping event where products can be DIRECTLY purchased in the livestream or after the show in the VOD. The project was implemented with a web-based platform programmed by The Heros group AG, on https://global.tommy.com/live, on behalf of and in cooperation with TOMMY HILFIGER.

Heroes group AG

With the exit of Vidpresso to Facebook in 2018, the foundation of the Heroes group AG was laid. We are your live heroes, video stars, social media experts and blockchain professionals. Or less sensationalistic: Your experts for interactive live streaming and programming.

TOMMY HILFIGER

TOMMY HILFIGER is a global apparel and retail company with more than 15,000 employees worldwide and one of the leading designer lifestyle brands – internationally known for celebrating the essence of classic American “cool” style. Tommy Hilfiger’s distribution network spans over 100 countries and more than 2,000 retail stores in North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia Pacific.

Starting point

Let’s face it: the conventional way of online or teleshopping is (in plain English) boring, annoying and cumbersome. The viewer sees a product that he likes – and the trouble starts. In order to make a purchase, he needs to call a hotline, leave the site, go to another shop (and so on and so forth); and thus leave the video.

TOMMY HILFIGER was looking for a better, more innovative solution. After the exit of our clickable live shopping to Facebook, we found in TOMMY and their CEO Daniel Grieder the perfect partner to implement a brand new shopping experience. The large reach and brand awareness that TOMMY HILFIGER provides in combination with our live shopping made it happen: A WORLD PREMIERE – the first live shopping event where products can be DIRECTLY purchased in the livestream. No complicated clicking and searching required.

Solution

The problem with teleshopping? Media discontinuity: in conventional livestreams, the customer has to make a call or access an online shop in order to purchase a product. Buttons that allow the viewer to play or pause the video are present in every video – but there is no function that allows a direct purchase DURING the video. A button that could prevent that annoying searching, phoning and clicking process. Introducing: the BUY-Button.

In this new type of online shopping, products can be purchased directly through the player. For example: a model presents a certain item. By simply clicking on the item while watching the video, the product card can be viewed, the item added to the wish list or purchased – with a simple click. This process is not only smoother but also facilitates both buying and selling, thus resulting in more revenue.

Implementation

User interactivity was our main priority. Unfortunately, many companies neglect this crucial aspect. The consequences of doing so are fatal: due to a lack of interactivity, viewers feel alienated to and not considered by the brand. That’s why integrating interactive elements into the show is a must. After all, shopping at a brand you genuinely like is more fun, isn’t it? We wanted to provide the user with a live-like experience, making them feel as part of the show rather than spectators.

In order for this project to succeed, professional appearance and implementation are key. Our team has know each other for a long time and we work well together. There is no boss. Responsibilities are split between the team and each member takes fully responsible for his task. To meet the high quality standards, our production team works similar to a TV production. The set was built and equipped by us, the furniture custom made according to the preferences of our customer. Surface and technology were produced and implemented in-house. Back-End and Dash-End (to show and hide graphics and comments from the live chat) were streamed all over the world via one single landing page. The interactive graphics created with Flowics turned the live stream into an interactive viewer experience. We are exclusive Flowics partner for the EMEA market.

As the production took place during the Corona lockdown, we had to face some difficulties and obstacles. No brand manager could come to our set, all meetings took place via zoom. Even the model fittings had to be done via video call. Fortunately, this kind of cooperation is not completely unknown to us and its solution is something we have been dealing with for a long time. As partner for live streams and video conferencing solutions, we managed to overcome these obstacles (almost) smoothly.

Result

The numbers speak for themselves, proving that less pressure to buy leads to more purchases. We were able to provide the viewers with a casual, relaxed atmosphere and make the purchase something they REALLY want to do by using amazing pictures rather than intrusive persuasion techniques. That paid off: the number of hits on the online shops increased significantly and many products were sold out in the shops afterwards. Through voting, the audience was able to actively participate in the show. They determined for example which products were shown, were able to share their opinion with other viewers AND communicate with the brand. This made the audience feel integrated and the spectators turned in to loyal customers and TOMMY HILFIGER fans.

Conclusion

This project represents a win-win situation for TOMMY HILFIGER and the Heroes group AG. Purchase through entertainment and lifestyle gives the brand more power. TOMMY managed to increase its turnover and turn potential into regular customers. This project has taught us much about user behaviour and how to successfully implement a livestream with shopping elements.

LIVE – UNIQUE – A WORLD PREMIERE; this project is MANY things but first and foremost a SUCCESS.

This pilot project also marks the launch of our own platform VINIVIA. VINIVIA is a platform providing content creators, viewers and advertisers with the best possible user experience. The viewers are not bombarded with unnecessary advertising but receive relevant ads. Not only are these ads less annoying but they even increase the ROI. Content Creators can go live whenever and wherever they want, retaining all rights to their content. An e-commerce platform can now run live streams where buyers can ask questions, see live demos of products and make direct purchases. Introducing VINIVIA – video hosting for all needs.