As part of its push into eCommerce, YouTube is introducing a series of shopping features for creators through a new partnership with Shopify. This includes the offering to link storefronts and feature products from their Shopify inventory so viewers can see in real-time if something is out of stock. 

Creators in the US also have the option to enable onsite checkout, which means viewers can purchase products directly on the platform without having to leave YouTube.

The platform also plans to dedicate a section of the Explore tab that will display shoppable content for US, Brazilian, and Indian users beginning next week. And in regards to live shopping, YouTube is expanding tools to all eligible creators, allowing creators the ability to tag products during live streams.

We’re already seeing this move into live shopping do well on platforms like TikTok where product recommendations go viral, selling out in hours. However, with TikTok’s live shopping expansion in Europe and the US unclear, it’ll be interesting to see if YouTube will be able to capitalise on at this moment.

Your weekly round up of the latest industry news and platform updates collated by Digital Voices’ Strategy and Insights team.

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