China’s Live Streaming Industry Is Booming

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Just as China sets the world pace in e-commerce, it’s doing the same for live streaming.More than 100 million viewers watch a live online video event every month, according to digital brand researcher L2.As an e-commerce tool, the typical live streaming format involves a celebrity demonstrating a product and answering questions from a digital audience.It takes place in real-time and usually on a smartphone,which accounts for some 95% of e-commerce activity in China.Live streaming has indeed become a powerful tool,with Deloitte1德勤，全球四大会计师事务所之一，另外三家分别是普华永道（PwC）、毕马威（KPMG）和安永（EY）。estimating that China’s live streaming revenue will hit $4.4 billion this year, up 32% from 2017.

[2]China is replete with2be replete with 全是，到处都是。live streaming webcasts, much of it non-commercial, such as young people discussing their lives, offering diet tips or demon-strating dance moves—similar to the role YouTube might play in the U.S.But live streaming has also become one of the most cost-effective tools for e-commerce in China, similar to what QVC3美国最大的电视购物公司，采用24小时直播的营销模式。QVC系Quality（质量）、Value（价值）和Convenience（便利）三个单词的首字母缩写。produces, but with even greater variety and impact.Although there are multiple platforms and service providers, Alibaba’s Tmall marketplace has the largest market share, according to L2.Sina Weibo operates a short video streaming app called Miaopai, while the biggest independent service provider is Yizhibo.

[3]Why are consumers and brands both embracing this medium?

[4]First, there’s a functional advantage to live streaming.It allows experts to show the product being used, to talk through techniques and permutations4permutation排列。,to demonstrate various techniques, and to point out the results.The audience can ask questions in anonymity, but the experience is interactive and immersive.

[5]There’s also a feeling of authenticity that comes from live streaming.Reviews and reactions of fellow consumers already weigh heavily on Chinese buyers’ purchasing decisions, and live streaming allows them to witness those reactions in real time.O.K., it is all a bit rehearsed, and celebrities are not exactly everyday people, but nothing beats live TV for surprises and emotional impact.Live streaming bridges the gap between advertising and a reality TV show.

[6]Consumers feel vicariously that they are actually handling the product themselves.They’re no longer picking a product off a shelf, they are now part of the process, shaping the outcome from the convenience of the living room sofa.The fact that it is real-time means the purchase can take place in real-time as well.The use of someone with public stature validates the results.The best live streaming allows room for spontaneity5spontaneity自发性；自然。, be it side chatter, a joke, or even a small mistake.After all, this is how friends talk with one another.

[7]What is absent in live streaming is the hard-sell shouting about the product that might occur in other settings.As consumers grow in sophistication and taste, they would rather participate in a chat.Live streaming invites the brand into the home in much the same way you would invite a friend.

[8]Consumers often times feel a sense of empowerment.The brand must be responsive to viewers in real time because consumers have the power to hold them accountable6hold somebody accountable 使某人负起责任。through questions and probes.Live streaming is closer to a job interview than to a product demo, with the audience conducting the interview.If it is a reality TV show,the consumer is the judge.

[9]Most importantly, live streaming allows brands to be introduced to consumers through a richer experience.Demonstrations allow for a dialogue that can cover more complex subject matter.It’s no wonder automakers have been using live streaming to launch new models.Perhaps the biggest group to adopt the practice is the beauty industry.A study by consumer research group L2 showed that two-thirds of beauty brands in China held live streaming events on Tmall, and many other platforms are being used as well.Indeed this same study showed that 14% of brands used at least four different platforms.

[10]Live streaming can also be particularly potent for niche and new-tomarket brands who do not have the ability to generate a buzz7generate a buzz 制造人气，产生轰动效应。.Live streaming provides assurance the product is used,accepted and loved.

[11]In that same vein8in that/the same vein 以类似风格（说话、写作）。, live streaming can generate word of mouth9word of mouth 口口相传，口碑营销。.If you can explain it, you have internalized the brand’s value proposition.Every product demo is like a wine tasting.Once the sommelier explains the wine to you, you can play that back in your head and repeat it to others.Now you have become the expert.■

中国在电子商务领域引领世界潮流，在视频直播行业也是如此。据数字品牌调查机构L2反映，有超过1亿人每个月都要看一场网络视频直播。作为电商营销工具，典型的网络直播是由某位名人展示某个产品并回答线上提问。直播一般通过智能手机实时进行，而智能手机承包了中国约95%的电商活动。视频直播俨然已成为一件利器，德勤预计中国今年的直播收入将达到44亿美元，较2017年增长32%。

[2]中国有大量的互联网视频直播节目，其中很多与商业无关，例如年轻人讨论生活问题，提供饮食建议或者展示舞蹈才艺——和YouTube在美国扮演的角色相似。但在中国，直播还成了一条性价比颇高的电商营销渠道，有点像美国的QVC，但内容更丰富，影响也更大。据L2消息，虽然直播平台和服务提供商林立，但阿里巴巴旗下的“天猫商城”拥有最大的市场份额。新浪微博运营着短视频应用“秒拍”，而“一直播”则是最大的直播服务独立提供商。

[3]为什么消费者和品牌都接纳了这一媒介呢？

[4]首先，视频直播有其实用优势。专家可在直播中展示产品，详细介绍功能和使用方法，演示各种功能，总结产品的效用。观众可匿名提问，整个体验充满互动和浸入感。

[5]视频直播还给人以真实感。中国消费者的购物决定在很大程度上会受其他买家的评论和反馈影响，而视频直播使他们能实时地看到这些反馈。当然了，直播也是有台本的，名人亦不同于寻常百姓，但因为出人意料和富于情感冲击，直播节目具有无法匹敌的优势。视频直播拉近了广告和电视真人秀的距离。

[6]通过观看直播，消费者有了自己亲身使用商品的代入感。他们不再是从货架上挑选商品，而是参与其中，坐在客厅沙发上舒舒服服地施加着影响力。视频直播的实时性意味着购买也可以实时进行。公众人物使用该商品使结果更有说服力。好的视频直播还会给临场自发行为留出余地，比如闲聊、说笑，甚至小失误。毕竟，朋友之间讲话就是这样子的。

[7]其他营销环境中可能出现强行推销产品的情况，但这在视频直播里是不存在的。随着消费者愈加成熟及自身品位提升，他们更愿意参与到一场聊天中来。视频直播引入品牌的方式，和你邀请朋友做客很相似。

[8]消费者时常会觉得自己被赋予了权力。品牌必须对直播观众做出实时回应，因为消费者有权通过提问和详查来追责。视频直播与其说是一次产品展示，倒不如说更像是一场由观众担当考官的求职面试。如果要比作电视真人秀，那么观众就是评委。

[9]最重要的是，视频直播给消费者推荐品牌时提供了丰富的体验。展示过程可以进行对话，从而谈及更复杂的话题。汽车制造商使用视频直播发布新车型已经不足为奇，但采用视频直播的最大群体是美妆行业。L2的研究报告反映，中国有三分之二的美妆品牌在天猫上举办过视频直播，另外还有很多平台也涉及美妆直播。该报告还披露，事实上有14%的品牌使用过至少4家不同的直播平台。

[10]对于无力制造人气的小众和新晋品牌，视频直播更是一件利器。视频直播可以保证产品被使用、接纳和喜爱。

[11]同理，视频直播可以实现口碑营销。毕竟，如果你能推介一款产品，肯定是已经接纳了一个品牌的价值主张。每一次产品展示就像一场葡萄酒品鉴会，品酒专家向你介绍了这酒，你可以在自己脑海里过一遍，然后向他人推介。现在你也成专家了。□

（译者曾获第三届“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛优秀奖）