How Elgiganten Smashes Their Black Friday Sales: Tips from a Live Shopping superstar

Summary and Key Highlights

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Elgiganten excels in Black Friday sales through Live Shopping, combining entertainment, expert advice, and exclusive deals:

• Live Shopping Revolution: Combines e-commerce with live broadcasts, offering a personal, engaging shopping experience from home.
• Audience Engagement: Hosts and expert guests build connections through product demos, interactive games, and credible insights.
• Strategic Timing & Deals: Spreading events over Black Week with exclusive, time-sensitive offers boosts urgency and sales.

Elgiganten’s strategy of merging entertainment with sales provides a successful model for businesses.

Black Friday is the pinnacle of shopping events for retailers across the globe. It’s a high-stakes period where businesses put everything on the line to capture consumer attention and boost their end-of-year sales. 

Among the retail giants, Elgiganten stands out not only for their deals but also for how they leverage Live Shopping to elevate the Black Friday experience. In this in-depth blog post, we’ll explore how Elgiganten's E-commerce Specialist and Live Shopping star, Hannah Piper, and her team are smashing their Black Friday sales goals using the magic of Live Shopping.

The Retail Revolution: Why Live Shopping?

Live Shopping isn’t just a passing trend—it's becoming a retail revolution, combining the best of E-commerce and live broadcasting. This hybrid model brings the in-store experience directly to consumers' screens, offering not just a product demonstration but also the personal touch of an interactive sales event.

For retailers like Elgiganten, Live Shopping is the perfect tool for building deeper customer relationships. By guiding potential buyers through product features, answering questions in real-time, and even adding entertainment value, Live Shopping turns passive viewers into engaged shoppers. During Black Friday, this approach amplifies success, as demonstrated by Elgiganten’s team.

Elgiganten's Black Friday Success Story

In the world of electronics retail, Elgiganten has positioned itself as a leader in Live Shopping. During their first Black Friday live event, they attracted over 24,000 viewers, with a peak of 3,600 concurrent viewers. But how did they do it?

According to Hannah Piper, who has been the face of Elgiganten’s Live Shopping efforts, the success didn’t happen overnight. They started Live Shopping just a month before Black Friday in 2022, but by the time Black Friday hit, they had already refined their strategy and execution. The results? A huge surge in sales, thanks to an engaging, entertaining, and informative Live Shopping format that made their offers irresistible.

Black Friday aside, Elgiganten regularly runs Live Shopping shows every month, and they are constantly evaluating, optimizing and improving their strategy for maximum impact. Their knowledge of Live Shopping comes from 2 years of first-hand experience. 

Building a Connection with the Audience

A key component of Elgiganten’s Live Shopping success is the way they connect with their customers on a personal level. One of the challenges of online shopping is the lack of human interaction that in-store shopping offers. Customers can’t ask questions or get immediate advice from salespeople.

This is where Live Shopping bridges the gap. Hannah Piper says:

We wanted to connect with our customers in a new way because online shopping lacks that face-to-face interaction you get in physical stores

"Especially for higher-priced items like electronics, customers need guidance. Live Shopping gives them that personalized experience."

Elgiganten combines a range of tactics during their live streams to keep viewers engaged, from expert product demonstrations to fun games and interactive segments.

Incorporating Entertainment and Gamification

One of the most distinctive features of Elgiganten’s Live Shopping events is their entertainment factor. They don’t just focus on selling—they entertain. From games like football challenges to playful interactions between the hosts, these elements make the events feel like a social gathering rather than just a sales pitch.

In a memorable moment from a past live show, Piper and her co-host played a football-themed game during their summer sales event, where viewers watched them attempt to kick a ball into a goal to win prizes. “We like to keep it fun and light, especially since we want people to enjoy spending their time with us,” Piper explains.

It’s not just about selling products—it’s about building a connection with the brand.

Gamification is another key aspect of Elgiganten’s Live Shopping strategy. Whether it’s Bingo, football challenges, or interactive polls, these games make the experience more engaging and fun. According to Benjamin Henriksson from Let’s Go Live, the agency supporting Elgiganten's Live Shopping, this strategy is crucial: "The balance between sales and entertainment is vital. If viewers are entertained, they’ll stay longer and are more likely to make a purchase.”

The Importance of Two Hosts

For Elgiganten, having two hosts is another strategic advantage. Hannah Piper teams up with Rasmus, a well-known food influencer, to create a dynamic duo on screen. Their rapport makes the live shows feel more natural and conversational, which puts viewers at ease. Rasmus’ expertise in cooking is particularly useful during live demonstrations of kitchen appliances, giving real-world insights into the products.

Having Rasmus as a co-host brings a different level of expertise to the show. It’s not just me selling—it's a collaboration that feels real and relatable. This helps build trust with our audience.

Bringing on Experts

In addition to their hosting team, Elgiganten often brings in external product experts from well-known brands. This allows them to delve deeper into product features, benefits, and technical details, which often leads to higher sales conversions.

For instance, during their Black Friday event, they featured an expert from Woods to talk about dehumidifiers. The result? A significant spike in sales, with many viewers purchasing the product after learning more about its benefits in real-time.

Timing Is Everything: When to Go Live

One of the most common questions around Black Friday Live Shopping is timing. When is the best time to go live? Should you aim for Black Friday itself, or is there a smarter strategy?

Hannah Piper suggests that starting earlier in the Black Friday week—now commonly known as Black Week—gives retailers an edge.

We don’t go live on Black Friday itself because it’s chaotic. Instead, we spread our lives out through the week to give people time to explore the deals before the final rush.

For smaller businesses wondering how to compete during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Piper advises diversifying live shows throughout the week, offering different deals and keeping the audience engaged in the lead-up to the big day.

Engagement Through Exclusive Offers

One of the tactics Elgiganten uses during Live Shopping events is the concept of live deals. These are time-sensitive, exclusive discounts available only to live viewers. This creates a sense of urgency and FOMO (fear of missing out), pushing viewers to act quickly. For example, during one live event, viewers could help lower the price of an Xbox controller by typing “Live Deal” in the chat. This tactic gamifies the experience and drives up viewer engagement.

We keep viewers on their toes with these live-only deals, which helps retain their attention throughout the show.

Tips for Businesses Looking to Start Live Shopping

For businesses looking to start their own Live Shopping journey, Piper and Henriksson offer a few key pieces of advice:

1. Start Small: You don’t need a huge production to begin. Use your phone camera and focus on creating a fun and engaging experience.
2. Build a Connection: Don’t just focus on selling. Engage with your audience, ask questions, and build a community.
3. Entertainment is Key: People want to be entertained. Incorporate games, competitions, or interactive segments to keep them hooked.
4. Spread Out Your Lives: Don’t just go live on Black Friday—consider having multiple events leading up to it, especially if you’re a smaller business.

Conclusion

Elgiganten’s Black Friday success story is a testament to the power of Live Shopping done right. With a combination of expert product demonstrations, engaging hosts, interactive games, and exclusive deals, they’ve managed to turn passive viewers into loyal customers. Whether you’re a large retailer or a small business, these strategies can help you make the most of Live Shopping this Black Friday.

Are you ready to boost your sales with Live Shopping? Take inspiration from Hannah Piper and the Elgiganten team—your customers are waiting!