JD Central, a major e-commerce platform in Thailand, is tapping into on-demand delivery services, riding on omnichannel strategies and committing to providing discounts in a bid to drive its revenue stream and retain its customer base.
Last year, Thailand's online shopping value reached US$50 billion, a 50% jump from a year before, according to the Electronic Transactions Development Agency. The strong growth is expected to continue this year.
"Online shopping has become a new normal behaviour among users as the recent easing of the lockdown does not result in a decline in online shopping," Korlarp Suwacharangkul, chief marketing of JD Central, said in a media briefing yesterday to mark its third anniversary.
JD Central is a joint venture between Chinese internet giant JD.com and Thailand's largest retail firm, Central Group.
He said a new on-demand delivery service, called Instant Joy, has been launched through cooperation with Grab and other partners.
The service will centre on fast-moving consumer products first and will broaden to other product categories.
"It takes 30 minutes to one hour for the delivery," he said, noting the company will also gear up for omnichannel strategy.
JD Central will also increase the assortment of service categories, particularly healthcare packages and insurance through its e-voucher business.
A broader assortment of cross-border products will also be offered. Key popular import products are electronic devices and fashion.
Popular export products from Thailand are food and beverage, such as durian, locally made products and aromatic inhalers.
For the first time in the market, JD Central also works with Facebook to launch "manage partner ads", a marketing solution feature that will support small retailers in automated advertising.
"We will work with Google for this too," he said.
According to Mr Korlarp, JD Central saw users' spend each time dropped to an average of 2,100 baht in the second quarter from around 2,400 baht previously.
Spending, however, rose to 2,600 baht in the third quarter, thanks to the company's investment in marketing campaigns, subsidies and discounts from brand partners, mainly those in electronic products.
Online shopping sentiment will remain strong in the fourth quarter driven by a large mega shopping campaign in the period and the seasonal gift festival that can drive spending, he said.
Amid strong competition in the segment regarding an assortment of products and prices, JD Central will focus more on the omnichannel strategy and improving customer experience, he said.
JD Central in June launched the "Joy Sure Tua Jing" strategy, highlighting its focus on genuine products and boosting end-to-end buying customer experience.
The move, Mr Korlarp said, has led to a 48% increase in its brand awareness and a 300% jump in new buyers in fashion as well as health and beauty products.
Since June, JD Central has run a Friday discount campaign with a subsidy of more than 65 million baht, he said, adding this has resulted in a 450% jump in new shoppers.
Starting early this month, a discount campaign for electronic items has seen a 35% surge in users and a 27% growth of basket size.
"This year, we have made a bigger spending in terms of brand awareness and subsidies to assist users in this difficult time and we hope that users will be with us in the long run," said Mr Korlarp.