Online Shopping on the rise among Filipinos
Shopee paves the way for mobile commerce
Online shopping is on the rise. This is what the recent Google and
Temasek study predicts and Filipino online shoppers is expected to grow to 42
million by 2025, spending $19 billion (₱918 billion) and
a big contributor to this growth is the rise of smartphone users. Today, 61% of
Filipino adults own a smartphone and use their devices to communicate, work,
and shop wherever they are, creating more productive days, foregoing Manila
traffic, and skipping crowded malls altogether.
Shopee, the leading eCommerce platform in
Southeast Asia and Taiwan, has leveraged this mobile trend to great success,
converting shoppers from buying offline to online by creating a convenient
platform that combines the authenticity of a marketplace with payment and
logistical support. Shopee has amassed over 4 million downloads in the
Philippines and has virtually replicated the traditional shopping experience
online, like providing a live chat feature that allows buyers and sellers to
communicate directly -- even allowing the very Filipino tradition of “tawad” on
the app -- while providing multiple forms of payment including the popular Cash
on Delivery option.
“Filipinos typically spend over 3 hours per
day online using their mobile devices and are heavy social media users. Shopee
users spend 25 minutes daily browsing the app and are highly social, with over
86% of buyers chatting first with the seller before making a purchase compared
to only 75% in the other six countries Shopee is present in, mainly attributed
to Filipinos wanting to feel more secure about their transactions by speaking
personally with sellers. We take these and other user behavior into
consideration when improving the platform, prompting us to develop features
such as user ratings and reviews, live chat, and Shopee Guarantee, where
sellers only receive payments when their buyers have received their orders,”
said Macy Castillo, Head of Commercial Business for Shopee.
This focus on elevating customer experience on
the platform has resonated well with Filipinos, as Shopee has reached the #1
mobile shopping app spot in the country on both Google Play and the App Store
just 2 years since its launch. As more and more tech savvy Filipinos embrace
online shopping, Shopee is looking to become the Philippines’ mobile commerce
destination of choice, attracting new eCommerce users with its highly intuitive
and user-centric platform that integrates social, business, and logistical
functionalities.
“We realized early on that payments and
logistics was a big barrier for a lot of users wanting to shop online, and we
addressed this by giving all our buyers and sellers access to Free Shipping and
Cash on Delivery nationwide. Listening and empowering our users has been key to
Shopee’s success, and this will continue to be part of our strategy to leading
eCommerce in the country,” Castillo added.
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