New and Now

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, April 24, 2020 – Aibaba.com, the global business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce platform of Alibaba Group, held an online summit yesterday for Vietnamese businesses seeking to weather the current global economic downturn induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.

More than 2,200 export-focused businesses across Vietnam joined the "New and Now 2020 Go Export" Alibaba.com Vietnamese Seller Online Summit during which Alibaba.com unveiled 4 customised membership packages and a suite of digital solutions including AI-powered tools to help them go global and gain tips for connecting with buyers globally. There was a special sharing about new policies of the Government of Vietnam on e-commerce by the Vice Chairman of Vietnam E-Commerce Association (VECOM).

Mr. Zhang Kuo - General Manager of Alibaba.com and Mr. Kuo Yiling - Head of Asia Pacific, Alibaba.com shared insights regarding local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and global buyer trends in the market. They showcased solutions for SMEs to accelerate digital transformation and find a long-term sustainable direction. Mr. Zhu Yi - Deputy Country Manager of Alibaba.com Vietnam and two successful e-commerce entrepreneurs from Vietnam, further discussed steps for seizing global trading opportunities in the digital era.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Dung - Vice Chairman of VECOM stated: “The application of e-commerce in business is getting more popular and leveraged more strongly. For 2020, the Government has approved the project on management of e-commerce activities for import and export goods whereby Vietnamese SMEs can register their business, pay taxes and more online through e-signatures.”

In line with Alibaba Group Chairman, Daniel Zhang’s recent address talking about SMEs being the livelihood of an economy, Alibaba.com, one of the world's leading B2B e-commerce platforms, is taking steps to help SMEs triumph over this challenging economic situation. Mr. Zhang Kuo - General Manager of Alibaba.com said, “Our strategy is to help more SMEs go global, especially in Vietnam. We are reinventing online trade shows to make sure buyers can find suppliers through videos, live meetings and live streams. We have provided all kinds of tools to enable suppliers to digitalize their products, promotions and services in order to be discoverable all over the world.”

A recent survey showed that most global buyers are searching for products through search engines or e-commerce platforms. Mr. Kuo Yiling, Head of Asia Pacific, said, “With over 40% year over year traffic growth, today, nearly 20 millions buyers send inquiries or request quotations from over 200 countries and regions on Alibaba.com. Our Vietnamese suppliers have listed 600,000 products on Alibaba.com and receive an average of 50,000 inquiries globally every 30 days. Top local industries like food and beverage, home and garden and construction have seen impressive growth on the platform. ”

Alibaba.com has been at the forefront of leveraging big data and AI algorithm technology to enable SMEs all over the world. The ‘Smart Marketing Solution’, unveiled at the summit will help Vietnamese suppliers market their products at the right prices using big data. The solution makes it easier for SMEs to acquire new customer traffic and to understand their top products, market demand and conversion rates, which help them develop business strategies and future growth. The backend technology also helps companies save labour costs through automation.

Through various ‘Value Added Service Solutions’ available on Alibaba.com platform, suppliers can set up their business online quickly with support for product posting, creation of online store and verification services. Alibaba.com also launched an online training program called ‘Together We Can- Alibaba.com Seller Accelerator E-Course’ an exclusive and customized online training session aimed to help SMEs go through the special circumstances.

Ms. La Kim Nhung, Founder of IMITI CO., LTD, shared the growth story of her furniture company. What started with just 5-10 employees has now expanded to more than 10 countries, thanks to the Alibaba.com platform. According to her, businesses need to fight for digital transformation as it is the future. Also in this summit, Ms. Ngo Thi Thanh Hien, Deputy Director of Ameco Industrial Company, one of the leading mechanical companies in Vietnam, shared on how going digital is a must for businesses. The company's first overseas order came through Alibaba.com and today 70% of Ameco's production is exported to more than 50 countries around the world.

After more than 10 years in Vietnam, thousands of enterprises have successfully developed their businesses on the Alibaba.com B2B e-commerce platform. Individuals, entrepreneurs, enterprises, organization can watch the full playback of "New and Now 2020 Go Export” - Alibaba.com Vietnamese Seller Online Summit  on https://alibaba.shangzhibo.tv/watch/10027934