6 features that Global E-Commerce Companies can learn from Chinese E-Commerce Ecosystem

As I am writing this post, I can spot a delivery vehicle of a Chinese E-commerce Company, right outside the window in a subzero temperature.

Chinese E-commerce Industry is already the biggest on the planet and growing with each day passing by. I have been living in China for over 1.5 years and the online shopping infrastructure here, comes across as an inspiration to many and I am not an exception to the same. 

Based on my close observations, I have noticed the following trends that make Chinese E-commerce market unique -

• Sales Spree - How does a monthly Black Friday sound to you? China had an online shopping festival last month on 11.11 (known as the Single’s Day). Last year, It was the largest single-day retail event in human history, producing $14.3 billion in sales for Alibaba. That wasn't it. Post that, there was another Shopping Festival known as 12.12, relatively less known. Overall, I love the way how E-Commerce companies use human psychology and understanding of numbers to relate it to business. These frequent festivals on specific dates are a win-win for E-commerce companies as this gives them a chance to clear their stock, as well as the consumers, who can get access to the products that are up to 90% cheaper. 
• Wider Variety - Each time I search products on Taobao (Largest C2C E-commerce website on the planet), I find products from Tmall (Largest B2C E-commerce company in China, with over 50% market share) on the top. Both the companies are owned by Alibaba, an E-commerce mammoth. This gives consumers a wider variety to choose from, as well as, they notice the real price difference of a product from an official store (On Tmall) to a 3rd party store (on Taobao). In the end, the consumers have more choices & that's how we like it. It may not convince some customers to buy one listing but it definitely confuses them to decide which one to buy and that leads to a guaranteed order as the more the customers obsess over a product, the higher the chances are, for them to buy it.
• Local Website Servers - One of my friends recorded a video of his online shopping experience from searching a product on an E-commerce website to paying for the order, I was shocked the moment I realized that the duration of the video was just 96 seconds! You are just 96 seconds away from buying a product in China! Chinese shopping websites are incredibly fast since they use a local server (due to the Chinese internet restrictions). Whereas, global E-commerce companies rather tend to rely on international servers that compromise on the speed.
• Payment Sourcing - What if you add a lot of expensive products to your cart and realize while paying that you don’t have enough money? It sucks. Right? Well, don’t worry. One online shopping website that I use named JD.com, provides a feature of generating a payment QR code to your order. Anyone can scan this QR code and it directly takes the user to the payment page. Now, send a picture of this QR code to your friend, lend some money off your friend and he/she can pay for you. The same can be done on Taobao by simply submitting your friend's Alipay number. Then, your friend just has to approve the payment request. That's all. Simple. Right?
• Value Added Premium - People don’t mind paying more for an order, as long as, a)They get the product delivery earlier, or, b) Get more quantity of a specific product in a combo offer. Chinese E-commerce Companies take maximum advantage of these 2 behaviors. Want the same day delivery? Pay more. Their efficient logistical network is capable of delivering a product ordered at 10 AM by 5 PM - the same day or buying 1 product for 20 yuan but instead of buying 1, buy 2 for 25 yuan. An extremely attractive combo offer will lean you towards buying 2. Both the Value Added Premiums are a win-win for both the parties.
• External Credibility- Last year, I bought a new phone and my friend approached me to buy it for me, from his account. Little did I understand, ever heard of an E-commerce website giving you a score based on how much you shop and this score can be used at banks to get your loans approved or even get a faster visa from various embassies to prove your credibility. How about, let’s club it up with your education degree, a national ranking of your educational institution, your current job and even the number of times you have been abroad. Well, the next time all you need to carry with you, wherever you go, is this score. It will get you all the attention you need. Welcome to a new era!

These steps can make many global E-commerce companies catch up with some important trends that can drive their growth. I have been fascinated by the Chinese E-commerce industry. I am sure its innovation has a long way to go.