Shopee, a major e-marketplace in Asean, is ramping up a marketing strategy to broaden its customer base beyond youngsters to boost sales through the platform amid a sluggish economy.
Shopee, which is part of the global consumer internet firm Sea, chose to use Jackie Chan, the Chinese martial arts actor and superstar, as a major presenter in its 9.9 sale festival as part of its strategy to expand its customer base.
"We continue our promotion and marketing activities to attract new users to this platform," said Suchaya Paleewong, senior marketing manager of Shopee Thailand. "We also want to help brands increase sales."
Shopee's 9.9 super shopping day festival in Thailand runs from Aug 26 to Sept 9.
On Sept 9, entertainment activities will be broadcast live via the CH7 and Workpoint channels as well as via Shopee Live from 6-8pm.
On Sept 9 last year, 12 million items were sold in the first hour of the last year's 9.9 event.
Regarding its 11.11 campaign last year, 200 million items were sold via the platform on Nov 11.
For this year's 9.9 shopping festival, various special promotional campaigns will be offered, including daily 9-baht deals, 999-baht off vouchers, free shipping with zero minimum spend and midnight crazy deals.
For new customers who pay via ShopeePay -- Shopee's e-wallet -- each will receive a voucher code worth 200 baht with no minimum spend.
The event also features Shopee Chuay Pay, a discount incentive for new users to support cost of living and drive local consumption.
According to Shopee, online shopping will be more fun and enjoyable by featuring Jackie Chan in tandem with a range of activities linked to the shopping festival.
"He is well-known among users of all ages. He is an entertainment superstar with strong dedication to his work, similar to Shopee which dedicates itself to being an online shopping platform," said Ms Suchaya.
Shopee has 1.6 million active sellers and 2,600 brands are engaged in Shopee Mall, a dedicated space showcasing official brands.
Supphavit Hongamornsin, director of ShopeePay Thailand, said the pandemic is accelerating the adoption of digital payment.
Authorities are also stepping up efforts to promote cashless society by encouraging consumers to embrace digital payment for convenience and safety.
ShopeePay across Southeast Asia also sees a strong growth in its service, driven by the cashless society trend as a result of the pandemic, he said.
In the second quarter this year, ShopeePay handled US$4.1 billion in total payments through its e-wallet. Some 32.7 million people used ShopeePay for payment during that quarter.
ShopeePay recently worked with Mastercard to enable contactless payment at physical shops via smartphones.