Increase in online shoppers and businesses joining digital transformation
A report with the theme of “Vietnam – E-commerce accelerates after COVID-19 pandemic” produced by the Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM) indicates that the country witnessed a skyrocketing rise in the number of online shoppers and businesses joining in the digital transformation process.
Tran Van Trong, general secretary of the VECOM, said the fourth wave of the COVID-19 outbreak has brought about several major changes in customers’ behaviour and shaped new trends. In line with this, businesses had been using many digital tools to connect with customers, including making sales on e-commerce floors, the company's website or mobile application, and social networks.
With COVID-19 forcing people to remain at home and spend time online, e-commerce has been thriving.
The report unveiled that the pandemic has triggered major changes in customers’ behaviour and shopping habits, with 58% of surveyed Vietnamese saying that they will continue shopping on online marketplaces because of its convenience. This habit is likely to remain in place in the future as 53% of respondents indicated that online shopping has now become a part of their life.
Vietnam sees strong e-commerce growth
Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy of the e-commerce platform Voso noted that the country’s e-commerce market was widely recognised for having the fastest growth rate throughout the Southeast Asian region.
Sales on e-commerce sites reached US$13 billion last year, an increase of 16% against the figure of US$11.8 billion recorded in 2020, thereby making Vietnam one of the top three Southeast Asian countries with the highest growth in online retail sales.
The figure may far exceed the US$13 billion mark seen last year, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic with e-commerce continuing to boom, thus changing customers’ behaviour and shaping new trends.
Economists believe that online shopping channels will record high growth in the coming time as this model has created greater convenience for consumers, while helping to push the retail chain expansion locally, thereby boosting sales of agricultural products, particularly during the recent strong resurgence.
According to Nguyen Ngoc Dung, president of VECOM, a series of e-trading floors have been formed, creating greater motivation for businesses and consumers to shop and transact more.
The majority of businesses are now in the process of developing their Industry 4.0 technologies. Instead of doing business whilst making use of the traditional method, enterprises have gradually focused on building websites and operating their systems through online tools via email and social media in order to save time and to achieve better results. This can be viewed as a good signal, especially as businesses continue to face great difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.
Lai Viet Anh, deputy director of the Vietnam e-Commerce and Digital Economy Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the terms of e-commerce and online marketing have become popular.
According to the e-Conomy SEA 2021 report released by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company, the nation saw the addition eight million new digital consumers last year, with 55% of them coming from non-metro areas.
This figure shows that the country’s e-commerce market boasts great potential, providing many opportunities for businesses to recover, enjoy stronger development, and overcome difficulties influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, he stressed.
