Retail News CRM

Tag: eTail Asia

  • The trend for personalisation in retail continues with much hype, but limited success

    The trend for personalisation in retail continues with much hype, but limited success

    This apparent failing owes much to a disconnect between the retailers view of personalisation, and what the individual customer perceives – and wants – as a personalised buying experience. It’s a balance that the retail sector has to redress, if the industry is to fully benefit from the potential gains of true personalisation – which can be quite considerable.

    According to research conducted by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), personalisation is key to increasing the rate at which retail organisations can convert occasional shoppers into regular customers, and increasing the lifetime value of those customers.

    Many retailers assume that simply because an individual looks at an item, they automatically want it. Crude attempts at personalisation based on this kind of assumption include putting someone on a remarketing list, then pestering them with discount offers for goods they may have simply glanced at out of curiosity.

    Clearly, the fundamental principle of personalisation (as understood by customers) is being misinterpreted by many retailers. And the message that their marketing is giving to consumers is breeding frustration and a lack of respect – hardly the intended result.

    In a truly personalised journey, power resides with the customer, who can decide whether or not they receive personalised advertising, the nature of the content they see, and the products they are able to access.

    Some retailers do appreciate this distinction, and take steps to customise their buyer experience in a manner more appealing to their consumers. The tailoring brand Savitude for example, requests minimal data from its customers, yet uses this information to produce outfits cut to suit the customer’s body shape, their individual preferences, and even the occasion they plan to attend.

    The tailoring analogy extends to current trends in consumption, which look for sustainability in the form of minimal purchases of curated goods, designed for longevity. The price tags associated with commodities like this may be higher, but consumers are increasingly prepared to part with their money if the products and services they get are specifically attuned to their needs.

    This is the kind of personalisation that customers want: a personalised service on their terms, with responsible data gathering, their consent requested from the outset, transparency, and clarity over how their information is put to use.

    How do you then quantify personalisation and put observation into practice? There is a small percentage of organisations getting it right, though many retailers are unclear what steps to take and which capabilities to build, in order to generate and sustain a truly personalised experience for their customers. Find out about the methodology here.

    From a generic standpoint, top-level retail organisations use a variety of tactics, such as personalised merchandising, loyalty schemes, and reward programmes. They use mobile, paid display, and paid search marketing to frequently activate more channels.

    Their technology stack typically includes infrastructure that enables predictive algorithms (which help retailers to make personalised product recommendations and offers), and to access integrated customer data in real time (which helps in developing deep insights into how customers behave, and enables rapid response).

    Get access to some recommendations on personalisation in retail with a free case study here

    Day 2 at eTail Asia highlights an all-star panel discussion on “How can you improve, personalise and simplify the customer experience, adding value through each journey?”

    With powerhouses such as Adidas, Flipcart, and Luxasia representing the speaker line-up, audiences are guaranteed to not only learn from the best of their category, but also get the unique opportunity to cross-learn from relevant case studies, all in the convenience of a single location.

     

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  • E-commerce Boom in Vietnam: The Rising Tiger

    E-commerce Boom in Vietnam: The Rising Tiger

    Vietnam can be truly called a land of opportunity for domestic and foreign e-commerce companies. Its young population, high Internet penetration rate and rising smartphone penetration rates play the key role here, making the country one of the most promising for e-commerce activities in the region.

    South-East Asia’s Surge in E-commerce

    According to the report Asia-Pacific B2C E-Commerce Market, over one half of total global online retail sales happens in the Asia-Pacific region. Based on the analyses it is concluded that over 50% of all the online shopping for retail goods and services takes place in the Asia Pacific region, and South-East Asia accounts for about 40% of the e-commerce market of the region.

    Southeast Asia is definitely a new big e-commerce hit, and the region is currently a very attractive market for big players involved globally in the e-commerce sector and smaller local companies. At a reflection point of Internet penetration and mobile devices rapid spread, the population of Southeast Asia is quickly adapting its behaviors to take advantage of new purchasing products and services online opportunities.

    According to the latest e-Conomy Southeast Asia 2018 report from Google and Singapore-based Temasek, the digital economy in Southeast Asia is on track to hit $240 billion by 2025, which is $40 billion more than previous estimates. The key factors are the most engaged mobile internet users in the world, as well as industries like ecommerce, online media, online travel and ride-sharing, which grew at never-before-seen rates.

    Flourishing Market

    There are currently 35.4 million e-commerce users in Vietnam, with an additional 6.6 million users to be shopping online by 2021. These 42 million e-commerce users will represent 58% of the total population. That’s why there is no wonder that throughout the last 5 years Vietnam is showing a constant rise in percentage of online shopping transactions.

    E-commerce market value in Vietnam from 2014 to 2020 (in billion U.S. dollars)

    Vietnam e-commerce Association (VECOM) reported that Vietnam’s e-commerce

    growth rate of some specific areas is explosive. For the online retail area, information from thousands of e-commerce websites showed that revenue growth rate in 2017 increased by 35%. For the payment area, the national Payment Corporation of Vietnam (NAPAS), in 2017, the volume of online domestic card transactions increased about 50% compared to 2016, while transaction value increased to 75%. For the online marketing area, the growth rate of some affiliate marketing companies in 2017 reached from 100% -200%.

    Vietnam’s e-commerce market has witnessed high growth rate since 2013, with online sales increasing from US$2.2 billion in 2013 to US$6.2 billion in 2017, averaging an annual growth rate of 20%. Little surprise there, as affiliate marketing sales constituted about 15% of the total sales, which sounds quite intriguing. About 80% of local brands rely on affiliate programs.

    The most popular products sold online included clothing, footwear and domestic (59%), electronic devices (47%), and household appliances (47%), among others, while payment and delivery methods have been used flexibly by enterprises.

    Moreover, the government has stepped in to try and usher in a new era of commerce. Vietnam’s legal framework and policies, especially Decree No.52 on e-commerce, have played a key role in creating favorable conditions for high growth rate of the retail e-commerce market.

    The decree aims to ensure fairness between e-commerce and traditional commerce, of which enterprises operating in e-commerce must comply with laws and regulations in equal to that of traditional one.

    Local Players Hit It Big

    Vietnamese e-commerce platforms Tiki, Thegioididong and Sendo entered the list of ten most visited sites in Southeast Asia by iPrice Group. Tiki, Thegioididong and Sendo ranked sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively, by average monthly web traffic. The top two leading positions took international corporations Lazada and Shopee, respectively.

    According to iPrice’s data on the Vietnamese market, Tiki, Thegioididong and Sendo made huge improvements in 2018 leading to attracting both user traffic and investment.

    Tiki is the fastest-growing retail company in Vietnam and has all the chances to be an industry winner. Their monthly website traffic increased by 80% within only six months, which took them from the fourth highest position among e-commerce websites in Vietnam to second place by December and the first place by monthly visits in April 2019, leaving international corporation Lazada on the second place.

    Similarly, Sendo.vn also grew by 55% in monthly website traffic within a period of six months and maintained a healthy fifth place in Vietnam, one rank behind Thegioididong. No wonder, it’s affiliate program is also one of the most rewarding in terms of revenue for the publishers.

    The most surprising entry to this list was Thegioididong. With focus on only one product category – electronic devices, the retail company still managed to gain an average of 29 million visits per month, according to the report.

    Although the leaders of the market are still Lazada and Shopee, which operate successfully in multiple markets, the three Vietnamese e-commerce companies’ inclusion is very remarkable, and is definitely a strong evidence of the size and potential of e-commerce in Vietnam.

    Affiliate Marketing Opportunities

    E-commerce success brings also a bunch of great affiliate-marketing offers. Sendo is definitely one of the most attractive ones. Up to now, more than 80,000 shops have been operating on Sendo.vn, offering a diverse range of products with over 5 million products from clothes to tech accessories. In 2018, Sendo.vn, the e-commerce subsidiary of FPT Corporation, also received $51 million from the Japanese SBI Holdings and other investors. After several effective improvements backed by investments, it is not hard to assume the retail will keep growing for sure.

    Besides from solely local market players, big international companies such as Lazada or Shopee are definitely still in the top in terms of revenue.

    Lazada is the pioneer e-commerce store in Southeast Asia. Present in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam it brings over 135,000 local and international sellers and more than 3000 brands online to serve more than 560 million customers which are increasing by the day. To counter Shopee’s expansion in Southeast Asia, Alibaba decided to invest another US$2 billion in Lazada to improve the company’s competitiveness, which actually gained the goal.

    Anyone who wants to eat a piece of pie and promote the Vientamese e-commerce giants like Lazada, Shopee, and Sendo, can join their official affiliate programs at Indoleads.com, one of the leading affiliate networks in Asia-Pacific.

    Investing paradise

    Vietnam is a true hotspot for investors from around the world. The burgeoning eCommerce market in Vietnam has attracted major investors from Japan, Germany, the United States, Korea, China, and Singapore. With six companies invested in Vietnam’s eCommerce market (BEENOS, CyberAgent Ventures, econtext Asia, SBI Holdings, Sumitomo Corporation, Trancosmos), Japan tops the list of foreign countries with the highest number of investors in Vietnam. In 2017, Japan invested a total of $9.1 billion in Vietnam, taking over Korea ($8.5 billion) and ranked as the largest foreign direct investment (FDI) country in Vietnam. The largest investors in Vietnam’s eCommerce market also include tech giants, venture capital firms and investment companies such as Alibaba, Tencent, Temasek Holdings, Dragon Capital and IDG Ventures Vietnam. Besides, Germany and the US are two countries outside of Asia that are actively invested in Vietnam’s eCommerce market.

    Forecasts

    With an explosive 33% compounded annual growth rate over the past two years, Vietnam ranks high among the fastest-growing e-commerce markets in the region. Its market has a great potential and it has already proved it within the last couple of years, so there is definitely no point in being skeptical. Based in the US Frost & Sullivan consulting firm forecasted that the E-Commerce market in Vietnam will reach a value of $3.7 billion by 2030. According to the Department of E-Commerce and Digital Economy, by 2020 an average online spending per person will reach US$350 annually.

    This e-commerce surge might be a great opportunity for many international and local players, as well as affiliate marketers. Indoleads.com, one of the leading affiliate platforms in South-East Asia, has an access to 500+ direct affiliate programs from over 60 countries around the globe that opens up a geography for local players to Asian, Brazil, US, UK markets.

    The key point of success of such worldwide e-commerce leaders like Zalora, Americanas, Amazon, Shein, Ssence, AliExpress, Lazada, Shein, Tokopedia, is affiliate sales. Register at Indoleads.com as a publisher to be a part of these top affiliate programs.

     

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  • Awards to recognise eCommerce merchants

    As Southeast Asia eCommerce merchants set benchmarks in a booming industry, their efforts are about to be celebrated with the launch of annual awards.

    Based in Kuala Lumpur, online shopping aggregator iPrice Group has launched the iPrice eCommerce Merchant Awards (iEMA) 2016 in partnership with eTail Asia, a service for eCommerce professionals, and Trusted Company, a review platform for eCommerce businesses in emerging markets.

    The first awards ceremony will be held in conjunction with the annual eTail Asia conference at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, on March 8 next. The inaugural iEMA 2016 will feature country and regional winners in two categories – Most Popular eCommerce Merchant of the Year and Highest-Quality eCommerce Merchant of the Year. Merchants do not have to submit entries as all qualifying merchants are automatically enlisted.

    “Based on studies by Google and Temasek, the Southeast Asian eCommerce market is expected to see exponential growth from US$6 billion to about US$90 billion in 2025,” says iPrice Group CEO David Chmelar.

    “With new players in the eCommerce industry coming up every left, right and centre, it is imperative we highlight excellence in the sector in hopes to further inspire and encourage both existing and upcoming merchants to excel further in Southeast Asia.”

    Consumer choice

    Finalists and winners for the awards will be chosen by consumers via the iEMA 2016 microsite. People can vote only once, with January 31 the deadline.

    Meanwhile, in an effort to also recognise special initiatives by eCommerce merchants that might have escaped attention, a third category has been set up to highlight efforts by businesses that have undertaken projects to support a social or non-profit organisation. This will be judged by a panel of experts from the eCommerce sector with only one overall regional winner being chosen. The judging panel comprises Chmelar, Asia Venture Group CEO/founder Tim Marbach, Worldwide Business Research GM Danny Levy, Trusted Company co-founder/MD Frederick Krass, Google Vietnam head of marketing Anh Nguyen and 500 Startups managing partner Khailee Ng.

    Submissions for this award are being accepted from for both consumers and eCommerce merchants through the iEMA 2016 website.

    Voting is being accepted at the iEMA 2016 microsites for Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

    iPrice Group is a Southeast Asian metasearch engine that enables shoppers to find products, compare prices and save. It seamlessly connects them to hundreds of eCommerce merchants in the region.

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