Singles Day which occurs annually on 11th of November is now the biggest online promotion period in the world. In China, where the tradition originated, Alibaba announced a new record of $30.8 billion in terms of gross merchandise value, a growth of 27% compared to last year. In Vietnam this year, early reports also showed great enthusiasm from shoppers across the country, but does it translate to actual participation?
To answer this question and gain a better understanding of the size of Singles Day Sales in Vietnam, online price aggregator iPrice has recently published a report analyzing e-commerce traffic data on the big day.
A massive 240% growth
Based on traffic data from iPrice’s own website, there is a huge surge of 240 percent in terms of Vietnamese shoppers participating in Singles Day Sales 2018 compared to the same time last year.
Interestingly, while big cities like Ho Chi Minh City, Danang and Hanoi have always been active during this period, 2018 witnessed an especially higher turnout on Singles Day from some smaller Northern provinces, such as Bac Ninh, whose number of participating shoppers increased by 405%, and Vinh Phuc, whose number increased by 378%. These figures show how widespread Singles Day is getting across the country.
Additionally, the report noticed that traffic from Vietnam on 11/11 was at its peak during 8 to 9 o’clock in the evening then dropped by 10 p.m. This comes as a surprise since data also shows that on most other days, online shopping traffic from Vietnam peaks around 10 p.m. iPrice’s analysts speculate that this means Vietnamese shoppers were excited for the sales, so they got online and started shopping earlier than usual.
Mobile usage increased exponentially
Another important data point from the report is that the percentage of Vietnamese using mobile devices to shop on Singles Day has increased from 67.9% in 2017 to an even higher 82.74% this year.
This trend was well anticipated by e-commerce merchants in Vietnam as Shopee, Lazada and Tiki had all been focusing on mobile-based promotion activities this year, especially by introducing interactive games on their apps.
Shopee even incorporated their mobile app with a live TV show featuring some of the biggest pop stars in Vietnam. During the show, Shopee customers were encouraged to log in to the Shopee app and play games to earn discount points from the merchant.
It seems that as Singles Day is getting more popular in the country, the occasion is now not only an opportunity for merchants to increase sales but also a time for them to test out more innovative ideas, be more interactive, and leave a better impression on consumers’ minds.
Source: iPrice Insights