Lives changed by technology

No longer a "virtual" world, behind the development of technology shines human faces and many lives turn a new page thanks to the application of technology.

Technology is creeping into every corner of life, starting with the simplest things. It could be the story of a father learning to send love through text messages, a young girl with the daily grind of work, or a traditional market vendor selling goods through a few hastily taken photos.

Those everyday stories are not just small slices, but the strong flow of a society that is constantly transforming towards digitalization.

In a small house in the suburbs of Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Trong, now in his 50s, still maintains the habit of waiting for a phone call from his daughter who works far away. In the past, texting on a smartphone was a big challenge for someone like Mr. Trong, who was overwhelmed by the development of technology.

“Up to now, I still can’t remember the position of each letter on the keyboard, my child…”. His eyesight was gradually getting dim, his hands were shaking, the only way he could contact his daughter was by phone calls. “But if I called a lot, I was afraid of disturbing her when she was in a meeting…”, Mr. Trong shared.

Opening Zalo, Mr. Trong “showed off” his new invention to save time typing each message full of spelling errors: Converting voice messages to text. Tech-savvy people can easily use daily communication tools, but for the elderly like Mr. Trong, finding a feature to solve such personal problems is not easy, when technology applications “favor” young users. Now, just by pressing the record button on the application, his caring words will be written into each line of messages sent to his daughter.

Without the distance caused by technology, the conversations between father and son became more seamless than ever. Each message from Uncle Trong was not just a line of text, but a sky full of love, a thread connecting family members, regardless of geographical distance.

According to statistics from We Are Social , the group of social media users aged 45 and over in Vietnam is growing at the fastest rate, up to 60% per year. This shows that social media is becoming a new and popular space for connection and entertainment for the elderly. The lives of the elderly today are no longer limited to traditional stereotypes. With the development of technology, this generation is proactively seeking new experiences and maintaining a more active lifestyle. From chatting with children and grandchildren, participating in online communities, to searching for health information, social media is playing an increasingly important role in the daily lives of the elderly.

Minh Anh (25 years old, Ho Chi Minh City) is a marketing specialist for a technology company. Her work schedule is packed: from online calls, exchanging documents, instant design files, to updating project information, Zalo has become an indispensable part of her busy work schedule.

"Zalo is not only a communication tool, but also my miniature office," Minh Anh shared. She talked about rushed mornings, when just a Zalo message or group call was all it took for the whole office to synchronize plans for the new day. Or on nights close to deadlines, when needing urgent feedback from partners, a Zalo message with friendly emoticons would be much more effective than a dry email.

For many young people, “symbiosis” in the digital space has become a part of life. This trend not only comes from personal needs, but is also a requirement of many businesses at the present time. According to the Annual Report on Digital Transformation of Enterprises by the Ministry of Planning and Investment and GIZ, the digital transformation process is taking place strongly, with the readiness level of businesses increasing from 0.7 to 1.4 points compared to the same period last year.

In that context, Zalo has become a powerful arm to help Minh Anh and millions of other young office workers work more effectively, save time and contribute to the overall development of the digital economy . It is not only a personal convenience, but also a proof that a "purely Vietnamese" application can completely meet and surpass other platforms, accompanying the development of the young generation and the goal of national digital transformation.

The noisy, bustling and hurried atmosphere is familiar at Ms. Trang’s meat stall at Tam Binh market. For decades, Ms. Trang has been accustomed to traditional wholesale trading. Regular customers come directly to the stall, while strangers come to visit through acquaintances. But in the past year, besides the familiar sound of knives and chopping boards, Ms. Trang’s phone has become much busier, not just with regular calls but also with the Zalo ringtone notifying of incoming messages or calls.

"Zalo is so convenient!", Ms. Trang said while quickly slicing meat. "Before, regular customers had to come to my stall. Now, many people live far away or are too busy to visit the market. They just text Zalo. I take pictures and send them to them, advise them on what kind of meat is good and how much it costs. They close the order and then I call a motorbike taxi to deliver the goods."

Not only that, the common Zalo groups of the market's traders also help Ms. Trang update information about goods sources, prices and even share some funny stories while doing business. "There were a few days when wholesale customers bought a lot of goods but reported it too urgently, I was afraid of losing customers if I refused, so I sent a message to the common Zalo group to ask everyone if any of the suppliers still had enough quantity I needed and then ran over to collect enough goods to deliver," Ms. Trang said.

For a labor trader like Ms. Trang, simplicity is the top priority. She has no time to learn complicated applications, is not familiar with email or digital books, so she chose Zalo because... "everyone knows how to use it, they don't need anyone to teach them, they can figure it out on their own". The interface is friendly, easy to use, with basic features such as texting, calling, video calling and sending photos and videos in an intuitive way, and is available on everyone's phone - from the warehouse owner to the retail buyer, from the driver to the whole market's customers.

Thanks to Zalo, Ms. Trang has expanded her customer base, from those who only live around the market to customers from neighboring districts. The application also helps her business become more flexible and modern.

Ms. Trang's story is a vivid proof that digital transformation is not only a matter of large corporations or high-rise office buildings, but has penetrated every corner of life, helping the most ordinary workers such as traditional market traders to access technology, improve business efficiency and integrate into the flow of the digital economy.

In the context of the country moving towards the goal of comprehensive digital transformation, Zalo is proud to be one of the pioneering applications, proving that a purely Vietnamese product can absolutely rise strongly, meet and even lead domestic technology trends. Zalo's strength lies in its ability to deeply understand the culture, habits and needs of Vietnamese people, thereby developing truly useful and familiar features.

Zalo's 13th birthday is not only an opportunity to look back on a meaningful journey of "national application" that has entered the lives of nearly 78 million Vietnamese people, but also an opportunity to move towards a sustainable, promising future when Zalo firmly plays the role of a bridge for each individual, family, or business across Vietnam.

Source: https://znews.vn/nhung-cuoc-doi-doi-thay-nho-cong-nghe-post1576563.html