Shopping, Streamed: How Selling Went Live and Got Inside Our Heads

October 28, 2025

By: Fay Hong

Courtesy of Mark König via Unsplash.com

Jolly ‘ol gifts galore

As the few trees left in the heart of New York City turn sunset orange and acorn brown, and the temperature dips into the fifties, it can only mean one thing… the holiday season is near. But beyond the colorful lights and flying reindeer, this time of year is defined by giving. Buying and giving loved ones gifts is a pillar of the holiday season, as much of the population, myself included, spend hours and hours scouring websites and stores, shopping for the perfect gift to give to the ones around them. The culture around shopping has drastically evolved throughout history: from the earliest marketplaces with ancient bartering systems to the specialty stores of the nineteenth century, then to the modern shopping malls and e-commerce storefronts that dominate our current consumption experience. But have we finally reached the end of this revolution, with the emergence of online stores?

Simply put, no. Welcome onto the scene, online livestream shopping — risen like a phoenix from the ashes of QVC!

The Seller's Spectacle

If you’ve spent any time on social media apps like TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram at all, you’ve probably stumbled upon at least one shopping livestream during your doomscrolling sessions. Salespeople (also known as livestream hosts) trying on clothing in dizzying succession, a woman plunging a mesh ladle into a barrel of water to scoop out gemstones, or even one of your favorite celebrities selling their latest collab. Whatever the case may be, these scenes have become a familiar part of the digital consumption landscape. But beneath the flashing graphics and frantic energy, do consumers really understand how they work and how they’re psychologically built to manipulate us into making more purchases?

Courtesy of Marcos Paulo Prado via Unsplash.com

A Little History First...

Infographic by Maya Shah

You’re Being Secretly Manipulated (but what’s new?) 

The consumer psychology behind why live e-commerce works so well is fascinating and reveals human nature. The University of Southern California defines consumer psychology as “the study of how individuals’ thoughts, emotions, and behaviors influence their purchasing and consumption decisions.” One of the cornerstones of marketing is understanding how consumers think, why they think the way they do, and how to appeal to psychological triggers that prompt a purchase. Skilled marketers take that understanding and turn it into campaigns or advertisements deliberately designed to make people like you and me want to buy a product, whether or not we truly need it. In the world of livestream shopping, the marketing psychological effects of real-time videos can be categorized into two main drivers: fostering engagement and using time to create urgency. With the added luxury of convenience, these aforementioned elements subconsciously guide consumers’ fingers toward the dangerously convenient Add to Cart button, and, eventually, the “Confirm Purchase” one.

Engagement as the Driver, Money as the Passenger Princess 

The most obvious aspect of livestream shopping that differentiates it from other e-commerce formats is the engagement and interactivity. Instead of passively scrolling through a website to look at listings, viewers engage with sales hosts in real time. Reminiscent of the personal shoppers who walk clients through higher-end luxury stores, viewers in shopping livestreams may chat with the seller, asking questions and requesting recommendations. This improves the e-commerce experience with personalization, as the hosts can recommend a product to a viewer in an approach tailored to their specific preferences, driving up engagement and the possibility of purchase. This result is what psychological researchers call the “Online Flow Experience”: “the state that consumers are completely immersed in a certain online activity.” Research from The National Library of Medicine shows that interactivity can enhance hedonic shopping values and lead to more unplanned purchases. Interactivity generates more positive cognitive and emotional responses from viewers, creating a shopping process that facilitates the “flow state”. Consumers thus receive heightened emotional engagement that increases impulsive purchases — because when you’re having fun, you think less and buy faster.

Live streaming also builds trust through authenticity and community. By allowing consumers to see the products live, it alleviates the online shopping worries of whether what they receive will truly mirror the photos or descriptions online. Engaging in livestream shopping gives consumers a transparent, unedited, and authentic experience with their potential buy through the screen, and when people are feeling more confident that they’re getting exactly what they paid for, they’re more likely to buy it. This trust is further fostered by the community around the brand and product that the livestream curates. Parasocial closeness then becomes a key factor in determining purchase behaviors. Viewers can hear honest reviews about the merchandise from the hosts and their fellow shoppers in real-time, creating an illusion of closeness that transforms into consumer loyalty. 

Courtesy of Heidi Fin via Unsplash.com

Time is Money (Literally)

Impulse buying, or really any purchase you make when you weren’t planning to, thrives under pressure. Real-time interaction in livestreams is designed to manufacture those pressured urges. Phrases like  “limited time offers” and “exclusive deals” that make you feel like you’ll miss an item if “you don’t act quick” weaponize the scarcity principle. Hurry! Even the host is yelling at you that the flash sale is ending soon! Quick! No time to think, put in your credit card information, go Go GO! Just reading that probably gave you an unnecessarily discomforting sense of urgency. Placing consumers under the stress of a time constraint reduces rational judgments, and in the case of flash sales, the process of deliberation is substantially shortened.  The scarcity principle states that people are more likely to purchase something if they believe it is in limited supply. When companies offer exclusive deals or inform you that a certain merchandise is almost sold out over livestream, the combination of countdown timers and flashing graphics intentionally triggers this subconscious reaction where perceived rarity amplifies desire. Last but not least, and perhaps one of the most psychologically appealing things about online livestream shopping, is simply the convenience. Popular livestream shopping apps like Taobao and TikTok allow users to shift from a product-display livestream to a link that automatically opens a product listing in the click of a button, providing a quick and effortless transition for buyers to go from wanting to getting. It’s not that we’ve become irrational shoppers overall; it’s that livestreams do all they can to facilitate irrationality. 

The Future is Live

Livestreams are undeniably entertaining. I know, I’m an avid Twitch and TikTok livestream watcher myself. In e-commerce, whether you’re looking for a rare collectible or an overhyped pair of jeans, the world of livestream shopping has it for you — and it’s just waiting for you to stumble upon it. Who knows, maybe sometime between now and the end of the year, it’ll be a random shopping livestream where you stumble upon that perfect niche gift to get your cousin with a strange paraphernalia obsession. 

I’ll save you the guessing. I’m the cousin.

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Fay Hong is a freshman at NYU Stern studying Finance. She enjoys studying consumer psychology, learning K-pop dances, and browsing the Hot Topic website.