Why haven't Vietnamese products made the most of online channels?

In discussions with us, many experts stated that although digital transformation is an inevitable trend, the failure rate of digital transformation in Vietnamese businesses remains high due to inappropriate mindsets and approaches.

Vì sao hàng Việt chưa tận dụng tốt kênh online? - Ảnh 1. — A young person is live-streaming to sell products - Photo: QUANG DINH

According to Mr. Duong Van Thinh (International Data Group - IDG), online shopping habits have changed consumer behavior, requiring businesses not only to invest in technology but also to enhance product reputation and comply with quality and safety standards.

Meanwhile, Mr. Tran Quoc Bao, CEO of the E2E channel, stated that Vietnamese businesses There is often a tendency to observe and learn about a trend, then stay out of the game due to certain concerns.

"I always encourage small and medium-sized enterprises to just give it a try; only when we're in the game will we understand the reality."

"If we don't act, we'll miss out on opportunities. For businesses that sell through multiple channels, revenue may not come in immediately. However, e-commerce will help them boost their overall brand value and complement their existing distribution channels," Mr. Bao said.

According to Mr. Bao, businesses need to view sales figures as only one part of the story when selling on e-commerce platforms.

For businesses with established brands and markets, e-commerce is a key point of contact with customers. Customer behavior is changing, and businesses must adapt to where customers are shifting. Customers may not buy through online channels, but they will likely choose other channels where the goods are readily available.

In reality, millions of orders or hundreds of billions of dong in sales are only a part of the story of online sales.

If fortunate and with sufficient resources for large-scale programs, e-commerce channels can still drive sales growth. However, the nature of e-commerce also reflects production capacity, if viewed as the point of contact with customers. This is the story of sustainable development.

According to Mr. Bao, changing consumer behavior and technological advancements have led to different shopping habits.

To make e-commerce sales, or more specifically livestreaming (live-commerce), a viable option, the supporting infrastructure must be robust, the ecosystem must be developed, and technology is a key factor...

Mr. Tran Tuan Anh, director of Shopee Vietnam, said that when working with small businesses, the platform found that Vietnam has a great advantage in manufacturing.

Vietnamese goods Domestic products are also increasingly improving in terms of design and quality, and are fully capable of competing with many foreign brands. The limitation here is that domestic products do not yet have many channels to reach a large number of domestic and international consumers.

Therefore, in 2024, with the goal of having 50% of communes and administrative units nationwide with merchants conducting online sales or service provision, Shopee introduced many practical business initiatives, balancing the interests between the e-commerce platform and the "three pillars": sellers, buyers, and the community economy .

"This not only promotes the inherent strengths of domestic products, but also helps businesses optimize their benefits." digital transformation "It also indirectly creates jobs for the local workforce," said Mr. Tran Tuan Anh.

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