Live Selling Choices: Facebook's Ecosystem vs. An Independent Hub
Facebook, with its colossal user base and integrated tools, has long been a destination for brands connecting with customers. Facebook Live, combined with its commerce features, offers a way to engage audiences with real-time video and potentially drive sales directly within the familiar social environment. But how does this integrated approach compare to a dedicated, independent live selling platform like ThisIsMyLive.com (MY LIVE)?
Both platforms enable live video commerce, but their philosophies, features, costs, and levels of control differ significantly. Understanding these distinctions is crucial for choosing the right strategy for your brand or creator business.
1. Core Concept & Integration
- Facebook Live Shopping: Part of the vast Meta ecosystem (Facebook & Instagram). It allows businesses to go live and tag products from their Facebook or Instagram Shop directly within the stream. The aim is often to leverage the existing social graph and keep users within the Meta environment.
- MY LIVE: An independent, dedicated platform built specifically for live selling, on-demand video shopping, and multistreaming. It functions as a central hub controlled by the creator/brand, focusing on commerce enablement rather than being primarily a social network.
2. Checkout Process & Control
- Facebook Live Shopping: Offers the *potential* for in-app checkout if using integrated Facebook/Instagram Shops (availability and features can vary by region and have seen changes). Alternatively, creators can direct viewers to external links. In-app checkout offers convenience but less brand control over the experience. External linking provides more control but can add friction.
- MY LIVE: Always directs viewers to the seller's own external website or e-commerce platform (Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.) to complete the purchase. This gives the seller full control over the branding, checkout experience, and customer journey, though it requires the viewer to leave the MY LIVE context momentarily.
3. Commission & Pricing Structure
- Facebook Live Shopping: If using Facebook's native checkout features (where available), Meta typically charges selling fees or commissions per transaction. If linking externally, Facebook doesn't take a sales commission, but you forgo the potential convenience of native checkout. Advertising costs to boost stream visibility are common due to limited organic reach.
- MY LIVE: Operates on a clear SaaS subscription model (monthly fee based on tier/usage). Critically, MY LIVE charges ZERO commission on any sales facilitated through the platform. Sellers keep 100% of their revenue.
4. Data Ownership & Access
- Facebook Live Shopping: Meta controls the overarching platform data. Sellers using Shops get access to sales data and basic customer info needed for fulfillment, but deep customer behavioral data and direct relationship ownership are limited and mediated by Facebook's ecosystem and privacy policies.
- MY LIVE: Champions 100% seller ownership of customer data acquired through sales, as transactions happen on the seller's own platform. MY LIVE provides analytics on stream performance within its hub, but the core customer relationship data belongs to the seller.
5. Audience & Reach
- Facebook Live Shopping: Provides access to Facebook's massive user base and leverages existing follower/friend connections and Groups for community building. However, organic reach for Pages can be very low, often requiring paid promotion (ads) to achieve significant visibility for live events.
- MY LIVE: Requires sellers to actively build or bring their own audience to their hub. However, its key multistreaming feature allows broadcasting simultaneously to Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, etc., letting sellers leverage Facebook's reach while directing engaged viewers back to their commission-free, data-rich hub.
6. Key Features & Focus
- Facebook Live Shopping: Focuses on leveraging the social graph, groups, and integrated (though evolving) shop features. Strong advertising tools available.
- MY LIVE: Focuses on creator empowerment through zero commissions, data ownership, multistreaming (landscape/portrait), VOD shopping, content repurposing (downloads, highlights), co-streaming, and direct external linking for full checkout control.
Key Differences Summarized
| Feature | Facebook Live Shopping | ThisIsMyLive.com (MY LIVE) |
|---|---|---|
| Platform Type | Integrated Social Commerce (Meta Ecosystem) | Independent Live Selling & Multistreaming Platform |
| Checkout Location | Potentially In-App (via Shops) or External Link | Always on Seller's own website/platform |
| Primary Cost Model | Potential Commissions/Fees + Ad Spend | Monthly Subscription Fee |
| Sales Commission | Variable % (if using native checkout) | 0% |
| Customer Data Access | Mediated by Facebook (Fulfillment/Shop data) | Owned by Seller (via own checkout) |
| Audience Source | Built-in FB User Base (Low organic reach) | Seller Attracts Own Audience (Multistreaming to FB helps) |
| Key Advantage | Massive Potential Audience / Group Integration | Zero Commission / Data Ownership / Multistreaming Control |
Which Platform Should You Choose?
Your choice depends on your priorities:
Choose Facebook Live Shopping if:
- Your primary goal is leveraging your existing Facebook Page followers or Groups.
- You prioritize the potential (though sometimes limited) convenience of Meta's integrated ecosystem.
- You have a budget for advertising to overcome low organic reach.
- You are less concerned about paying potential commissions or having limited direct control over customer data.
Choose ThisIsMyLive.com (MY LIVE) if:
- Maximizing profit with 0% sales commission is essential.
- Owning your customer data and the end-to-end sales journey is critical.
- You want to reach audiences on Facebook AND other platforms simultaneously via multistreaming.
- You prefer a predictable subscription cost and desire advanced features like co-streaming, VOD shopping, and content repurposing tools.
- You have (or plan to build) your own e-commerce store for checkout.
Conclusion: Weighing Reach vs. Control & Profitability
Facebook offers unparalleled potential reach within its vast network, making it tempting for brand awareness and leveraging existing communities, though often requiring ad spend. MY LIVE offers a pathway to greater profitability (zero commission), complete data ownership, and enhanced flexibility via multistreaming and dedicated creator tools, putting control firmly back in the hands of the seller. By understanding these core differences, you can make an informed decision about which platform best serves your live selling ambitions.