Sauce TV is like a shoppable Netflix for retail brands, showcasing product demos, how-to videos, and customer reviews all in one place. It's a great way for brand owners to engage customers, especially since 90% of online shoppers watch videos as a way of making more confident buying choices.
Step 1.
Incorporate Videos from Instagram, TikTok, or Upload Your Own.
Let's start you off by enriching your content by integrating videos from sources such as Instagram, UGC & Influencers, TikTok, or even those created by you.
Sauce TV will automatically display all videos already added to your media library.
To add more videos, navigate to your 'Media Library' Added > Click 'New' > and select from either Instagram, TikTok, User lookups or Upload your own videos. Use the 'Add Media' button to add a video to your Added Media Library.
Quick Tip: Maximise your video's sales potential by tagging all relevant products. Videos with multiple product tags have been shown to increase basket size. So if your video features multiple products or variations, be sure to tag them all to boost customer engagement and sales.
Use the 'Add Media' button to add it to your Media Library
Tag all products showcased in your video.
These will be displayed to viewers as they watch the video on your platform, making it easier for them to make a purchase.
Step 2.
Configure Your Sauce TV Hub and Its Channels
In this step, you'll concentrate on establishing your TV channels and selecting the specific media to be displayed on each.
From your Visual Shopping menu go to > Sauce TV to edit your hub settings:
The settings for your hub are in the left-hand column.
Your hub will show one channel with all your videos by default. If you want more channels, you can add them in the 'TV Channels' section.
You can give each channel a Channel name, a description, and a #hashtag.
The #hashtag groups which videos appear in that channel. You can add hashtags to your videos to make sure they show up in the right channels. Just edit the video caption in the Media Library to include the hashtag. Let's do that now in Step 3...
Step 3.
Establish Channels and Allocate Videos to Them
After naming your channels and giving them a hashtag (like #DaeRituals), go back to the 'Added' tab in your Media Library. Then, add that hashtag to any videos you want in that channel.
Let's do this now,
Open the Media Library:
Click to 'Edit media' of a video and insert your preferred channel #hashtag into the caption box:
After you click the green 'Save' button, your video will show up in the channel that matches its hashtag, like #DaeRituals for the Dae Rituals Channel. Keep tagging videos until you have at least 4 in each channel. Then, go back to Sauce TV settings to sort the videos how you want.
Step 4.
Arranging Your Videos in Your Desired Sequence
In your hub settings, click on the 'Floating Video' in the bottom right to see how your hub and videos will look.
This one here:
Go to the channel you want to arrange and hover over the video thumbnail. You'll see a blue sorting icon on the top left. Drag this icon to move the video to a new position in that channel.
Step 5.
Achieve Your Desired Aesthetic
Sauce TV provides the ability to customise the look and feel of your TV hub, ensuring a seamless match with your website and a consistent brand user experience.
In this section, we will address the crucial layout options and design considerations. Feel free to navigate through the different settings. If any of these seem unclear, do not hesitate to contact us for a personalised consultation. Please note that all customisation options can be previewed within the dashboard in real-time, simplifying the process of taking your content live.
Layouts
Sauce TV offers four distinct layouts for you to experiment with, accessible from the 'Channel Layout' menu options.
The first layout has a 'Channel menu style' you can set up with a choice of different navigation styles. The other layouts are designed to display multiple channels at once, similar to Netflix. You can try out and preview different layouts to see what you like best. You can change these settings at any time, and the updates will show live on your website.
For instance, consider the first layout paired with the 'Pill style' channel menu option.
Alternatively, opt for the Netflix-style layout if you have a substantial collection of videos and desire a scrollable user experience. This is also the default setting for mobile devices when multiple channels are set up.
Clicking on a video thumbnail will prompt the video player to open, along with the corresponding featured products.
Choosing Alternate Grid Options
With the grid layouts, you can customise your grid thumbnail aspect ratio as well as the number of rows and columns within each grid. Note that these options are applicable to all layouts except the Netflix-style one.
Discover Additional Options
While Sauce TV makes it effortless for you to get started with the default settings for your video hub, a wealth of more detailed options is available to ensure your design is finely tuned and consistent with your website's aesthetic. From colour selections to typography, we've got you covered. Below is a quick summary of the options as they appear in your settings panel, along with a brief explanation for each. If you require expert guidance, we also offer one-on-one Zoom sessions and a "Done for You" service to get you up and running swiftly.
A Comprehensive Guide to All Settings
General
Video Hub Embed Code: This is the code you should copy and paste into your chosen template to make your video hub appear in the desired location.
Select your Video Hub: This dropdown menu enables you to effortlessly navigate between various hubs. Each hub houses your channels, and within these channels reside your curated videos.
Delete Hub: This option allows you to remove the selected hub. Remember, deletions are permanent, though your media content will remain unaffected.
TV Channels
Create up to 8 distinct channels per hub
TV Channels: Curate individual channels to display content categorised by hashtags. Each channel is associated with a 'Channel Name', which appears in your channel navigation or layout, a 'Channel Description' that provides a brief overview of the channel (this is optional), and the 'Channel Hashtag' used to filter the content displayed within the channel. If you leave the hashtag field blank, it will showcase all videos.
Channel Layout: Select the layout that best presents your content to your customers. To preview a layout, click on its icon, then click on the 'floating' video spotlight in the bottom-right corner to preview it within the settings dashboard. Keep in mind, layouts can be interchanged even when the TV hub is live.
Channel Menu Style: Opt between a variety of styles like Pills, Underline, Separators, Bubbles, or Tabs to best complement your aesthetic.
Display videos from: These options empower you to be selective about the video sources displayed in your hub. For instance, if you wish to exclusively feature videos from your TikTok, simply select 'TikTok' to exclude all other video sources.
Floating Video
The 'Floating Video' section manages the visual presentation of your spotlight floating video, which by default is positioned on the right-hand side.
Cover Video Style: Personalize the form of your floating video. Choices range from Oversized (9:16), Miniature, Round, Square, to Mini Movie.
Border Width: Determine the width of your floating video's border, measured in pixels.
Border Colour: Opt for your desired border colour, denoted in HEX code.
Gap bottom (px): In the event of a bubbly conversation from your messaging app lurking at the bottom of the screen, you might want to hoist your floating video above it to avoid a clumsy overlap. The 'Gap' settings are your trusty sidekick here, helping you maintain a comfortable distance and keep the peace between your speech bubble and video. After all, everyone needs a little personal space!
Gap right (px): Just as a master painter carefully adjusts their canvas, use this setting to fine-tune the horizontal alignment of your floating video. After all, a slight nudge to the right might just make everything 'picture perfect'. Remember, it's not just about avoiding overlaps, it's about striking that perfect visual harmony!
Hub Design
Welcome to the control room of your hub's aesthetics! This section is where you get to don your director's cap and call the shots on the overall appearance of your hub. Just like in the movies, the look and feel can make a world of difference. So let's roll!
Theme: Ready for a bit of mood lighting? Opt for Dark or Light and let us orchestrate a symphony of colours for your headers, borders, and background. While these two modes seem to have a knack for pleasing most of our users, don't worry if you're itching for a bit more creative freedom - we've got plenty of customisation options up our sleeves just for you!
Grid: Just as a master chef carefully plates a dish, these grid options let you tweak the aspect ratio of your video thumbnails to ensure a visual feast for your viewers. After all, presentation is everything, even in the digital world!
Rows: This setting allows you to define the number of horizontal lines of video thumbnails in your grid.
Columns: This determines the number of vertical lines of thumbnails, indicating how many videos will be lined up side by side.
Gutter width: Think of this as the buffer zone, the breathing space between your videos. Adjust the 'gutter width' to widen or tighten the gaps between your thumbnails. Personal space matters, even for videos!
Outer margin: This is like the frame around your favourite painting. It’s the space that surrounds your video grid, giving it room to shine in its full glory.
Rounded posts: This option softens the sharp edges of your video thumbnails by making them rounder. If your brand style is more "cuddly teddy bear" and less "pointy porcupine", you'll love this!
Zoom on hover: Want to add a touch of magic? With this option, your video thumbnails will gently zoom in when a visitor hovers over them, adding a dynamic layer to your hub.
Show Hub icon: Decide whether to feature your brand avatar in the hub's grid, offering a familiar visual cue to your visitors or leave it out, it's your call.
Autoplay videos in grid?: This function lets you control whether the videos in the grid start playing automatically or remain static initially. Autoplay is recommended as it often fosters enhanced customer engagement.
Video Hub Heading: Assign a compelling title to your hub. This is an opportunity to spark your customers' curiosity and guide their expectations. Consider initiating your title with action-oriented words like 'Discover' or 'Explore' to set the stage for an engaging viewing experience.
Sub heading: Further detail your hub's purpose or theme with a concise yet informative subheading.
Hub header style: Personalise your hub's header, comprising the title and subheading, to align with your brand's visual identity. By selecting the H1, H2, H3, etc. settings, the hub will adopt your website's CSS classes when embedded, thus maintaining design consistency. Opting for the default setting will display the hub using Sauce's distinctive font and style, providing a visually appealing alternative.
Hub header position: This setting determines the alignment of your headers, providing options for a left, right, or centered placement to best fit your design aesthetic.
Channel name style: Modify the appearance of your channel names, balancing readability and brand consistency.
Customise Appearance
In this section, you have the opportunity to personalise the visual aspects of your grids. With various options at your disposal, you can shape how your customers interact with your video content, enhancing their viewing experience and interaction with your brand.
Customise hover effect: Adjust the visual effect that appears when a user hovers their cursor over a video thumbnail, adding an interactive element to your grid.
Overlay icon: Select an icon to appear on top of your video thumbnails, providing additional visual cues about the content or its function.
Over icon colour: Choose the colour of the overlay icon, ensuring it stands out against the video thumbnail for clear visibility.
Overlay filter: Apply a visual filter to your overlay, altering its appearance and matching your brand's aesthetic.
Overlay BG colour: Define the background colour for your overlay, striking a balance between visibility and design consistency.
Overlay button style: Customise the appearance of the button within the overlay, considering factors like form, colour, and typography for user-friendliness and brand alignment.
Overlay text: Add text to the overlay, providing contextual or promotional CTA about the video. e.g. Shop, Discover, Watch etc.
Overlay text style: Choose the the style of the overlay text to keep it in line with your website, ensuring it is readable and visually appealing.
Tag appearance: Modify the look of your product tags / hotspots, determining how they display in the Lightbox video player.
Lightbox style: Choose the design for your lightbox, the frame that displays your video when a user clicks on it, to create an immersive viewing experience.
Lightbox panel: Select the colour HEX or RGB for the lightbox panel, making sure it complements your video content and overall design.
Lightbox backdrop: Choose a colour (HEX or RGB) for the backdrop of your lightbox, giving your video content the spotlight it deserves while adding a touch of visual finesse. You can even play with the opacity level if you want to let your website's layout design peek through ever so subtly. It's like creating the perfect ambiance for your videos to shine, with just the right amount of mystery and charm!
Product layout: Take your pick between displaying a single product (1-up) or featuring two products side by side (2-up) in the layout. This choice allows you to present your merchandise in the most visually captivating manner. If you typically have a smaller number of products tagged in your media, we generally recommend the 1-up option to optimise customer engagement and focus. After all, sometimes less is more when it comes to grabbing attention!
Shop button CTA: Customise the call-to-action (CTA) text for the "Shop" button that appears under your product listings, guiding customers to take action and make a purchase.
Link button CTA: Personalise the call-to-action (CTA) text for the "Link" button, allowing you to tailor it to your specific needs. This button serves as a direct pathway for customers to access external links or explore additional information related to the video content. It's like offering a VIP pass to a treasure trove of knowledge—a blog article, support page, or any other resource that provides valuable insights and enhances the overall customer experience.
Opens new window: Decide whether the product tags or external links from your videos should open in a new browser window or stay within the current window.
UGC attribution link?: Enable or disable the inclusion of an attribution link for user-generated content (UGC) videos, giving proper credit to the original creators.
Button hex: Select the HEX or RGB colour code to define the colour of buttons, ensuring they align with your brand's visual identity.
Button text hex: Select the HEX or RGB colour code for the button text, ensuring it maintains readability and harmony with the button colour.
Caption text: Customise the the HEX or RGB colour code for caption text that appears alongside your videos, providing additional context or commentary.
Captions links: Make your captions come alive by customizing the color of the links within them. You can use HEX or RGB color codes to perfectly match your brand's visual identity. This way, when customers read your captions, they'll be enticed to click on those captivating links, leading them to further exploration and engagement. It's like sprinkling a touch of magic within your captions, enticing viewers to embark on an exciting digital journey!
Rounded panel: Opt for a rounded panel design for your video player, adding a touch of sleekness to its appearance.
Show Avatar: It's decision time! Select whether you want to showcase your avatar, which is typically your Instagram profile image, in the video player. This adds a personal touch and helps viewers connect with the face or Brand behind the content.
Video starts muted: Determine whether your videos should start playing with the audio muted by default, ensuring a more user-friendly browsing experience.
Show prices: Enable or disable the display of prices within your video content, offering transparency and convenience to customers.
Embrace the Sauce TV Magic and Level Up Your Video Game
Congratulations, you're now armed with the knowledge to create and launch your very own Sauce TV hub! Prepare to unleash the power of shoppable product demos, GRWM videos, and authentic customer testimonials to take your online shopping experience to the next level.
But wait, there's more! Get ready to spice things up by customising layouts, tweaking settings, and refining your video content. And fear not, if you find yourself in need of a little extra sauce, our expert team is just a click away. We're always here to offer personalised consultations or even handle the setup process with our "Done for You" option. We've got your back!
So, what are you waiting for? It's time to dive into the Sauce TV revolution. Prepare to dazzle your customers, inspire confident purchases, and witness your brand reach new heights of success. Get ready to sprinkle some video magic and let the Sauce flow!
Let's turn up the heat and create an unforgettable video experience with Sauce TV. Get saucy today!