By Alithea De Jesus
The hunger for knowledge and added skills continue as young entrepreneurs and MSMEs continue to take advantage of the booming e-commerce industry in the country that grows by leaps and bounds.
From a very conservative behavior of Filipino consumers doing online transactions, the pandemic has unprecedently changed the behavior of many Filipinos with the advent of budding online entrepreneurs. The retail sector was also forced to pivot and embark on e-commerce transactions while keeping their brick and mortar stores.
With the growth of 70% in 2019 to 80.2% in 2021, experts see that the-commerce usage will continue to grow and may become a permanent trend in the retail industry. No less than DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez who made a forecast that it is likely that the pandemic will further accelerate the adoption of e-commerce, and the government is looking at around one million e-commerce enterprises by 2022.
As consumer behavior shifts, brands and retailers turn to online platforms to support and promote their businesses. Because of the transition, many new online sellers need the proper guidance and e-commerce knowledge to maximize the industry’s potential. Shopee, the leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, successfully concluded its second Shopee University Summit, garnering more than 35,000 online viewers.
Supported by illustrious companies like vivo, PULUZ, CameraHaus, Human Nature Manila Branch, WM Shop, and Design Center of the Philippines, the participants learned about developing the correct business branding, product photography skills, and leveraging Shopee tools and social media platforms to promote their businesses.
Martin Yu, Director at Shopee Philippines, said, “Shopee is proud of its successful second Shopee University Summit that aims to equip entrepreneurs with the right tools and knowledge to thrive in the e-commerce industry. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, Shopee ensures that sellers and entrepreneurs alike are ready to face the challenges and overcome them with confidence.”
A majority of brands and micro, small, and medium enterprises adapt to the current retail landscape challenges. Shopee and brands like Human Nature and PULUZ shared the best e-commerce marketing practices to support small businesses to recover and thrive in the competitive digital space.
Jillian Co, Branch Operator at Human Nature Manila Branch, said, “With Shopee, we overcame challenges to remain open for business. Being on Shopee also opened many growth opportunities and enabled us to continue to thrive. Its user-friendly platform and available marketing tools were convenient for the business to promote and sell our products. As the e-commerce industry rapidly expands and attracts many consumers, its impact will have a long-lasting mark and will change the industry.”
Carmella Peña, Brand Manager at PULUZ Philippines, said, “With our partnership with Shopee, we grew the business through their support and different tools in the Marketing Center such as Shopee Feed and Shopee Live. We can promote our products to attract more buyers. Shopee helped us reach a wider audience to share about our brand; we achieved almost 30,000 views on livestream in a month, something we couldn’t have achieved before on our own. We will continue to maximize the positive changes in the e-commerce landscape as we step up our business.”
Robenson T. Ong Lo, Vice President at CameraHaus, said, “Shopee helped us fulfill our goal to ‘be a friend to all Filipino photographers’ by bridging us to photographers in different parts of the country. With Shopee, we ensure photographers buy legitimate and brand new cameras with a warranty included. It also gave us access to widen our market range and reach people through the power of online convenience. Truly we are grateful for this digital platform.”
Missed the second Shopee University Summit? Watch the full video on Shopee’s official Youtube page: https://youtu.be/NYXH0BWUoOM. To learn about the onboarding process or if you’ve decided to start your e-commerce journey with Shopee, sign-up at bit.ly/ShopeeUniOnboarding.
Buy Load, Pay Bills, and Scan to Pay with ShopeePay. Download the Shopee app for free via the App Store or Google Play.
