Nov 2, 2023|
JD.com’s 2023 Singles Day Grand Promotion: Livestreaming, Cross-Border E-Commerce, On-Demand Retail, and More
BEIJING, Nov 1, 2023 – JD.com today announced its performance metrics for the 2023 Singles Day Grand Promotion, underscoring its position at the pinnacle of e-commerce innovation and robust growth.
On October 31st at 8 p.m., JD.com launched the 10-Billion Discount Campaign, one of the main programs during the Singles’ Day Grand Promotion. In less than four minutes, the campaign’s channel reached a transaction volume of over 100 million yuan. This rapid turnover is supported by JD Logistics’ industry-leading delivery infrastructure, promising same-day or next-day delivery for over 95% of JD’s self-operated orders.
Key Highlights Include:
- Explosive Sales for Brands and Merchants
During the first week of JD’s Singles’ Day Grand Promotion, starting Oct 23rd, nearly 30 brands achieved sales of over 1 billion yuan, and the transaction volume of nearly 15,000 brands increased more than fivefold YoY, with nearly 9,000 brands experiencing over tenfold growth in transaction volume.
- Within 10 minutes of the sales period opening on October 31st, iPhone, Xiaomi, Honor, Huawei, OPPO, and vivo mobile phones saw a 100% YoY increase in transaction volume. Within just 30 minutes, Levi’s exceeded its prior year’s entire day’s sales volume;, while ecco and UGG doubled their transaction volume. Lululemon’s online store transaction volume increased more than threefold. Premium luxury brands, including LV, GUCCI, and DIOR, saw their transaction volume more than triple YoY.
- Throughout the first week of the shopping festival, 15 watch brands, including Breitling, Tissot, and Seiko, saw their transaction volume increase by over 200%.
- Livestreaming by JD’s Product Managers Attracted Over 140 Million Viewers
JD’s own product managers, responsible for procurement and sales of products across all categories, showcased their prowess during this year’s Singles’ Day Grand Promotion. Transitioning from strategic behind-the-scenes roles, they embraced the limelight, presenting to over 140 million viewers with insightful product presentations and tailored recommendations. JD’s product manager-turned livestreamers approach eliminates the need for traditional advertising costs and influencer commissions. Relying solely on the unmatched product acumen and competitive pricing of their procurement and sales teams, JD has redefined audience engagement and inspired millions to shop.
- In the first week, the transaction volume from the livestreaming rooms of JD’s home appliances, furnishings, and digital products department increased tenfold compared to the previous month. JD’s supermarket livestream debut set a record with over 10 million views and sold over 350,000 items, with 50 products selling out instantly.
- Fueled by the enthusiastic atmosphere in JD’s own product managers’ livestreaming sessions, within just 30 seconds of the opening on the evening of October 31st, the transaction volume for the entire category of home appliances, home furnishings, and lifestyle exceeded 10 billion yuan.
- Trending New Products are Gaining Momentum
This year’s shopping festival witnessed an elevenfold increase in participation from individual entrepreneurs and small business owners compared to the same timeframe the previous year. This influx of dynamic sellers has exponentially diversified and elevated the product offerings.
- In the tech segment, transaction volume for gaming laptops, flip phones, over-ear headphones, and high-power portable chargers increased more than threefold, and the transaction volume for 3D printers increased by over tenfold.
- New energy vehicles and cost-effective car accessories emerged as consumer favorites during this year’s shopping festival. In the event’s opening week, the order volume for JD’s entire automotive category increased by over 200%, with new energy vehicle orders tripling. Moreover, the transaction volume for car charging equipment increased by 3.9 times, while the transaction volume for car wraps increased by 3.8 times.
- Strong Growth in Cross-Border E-Commerce
In the first week of the promotion, the transaction volume of over 700 brands selling on JD Worldwide, the company’s import and cross-border e-commerce channel, increased by over 100% YoY. At the same time, the vast selection of affordable products, coupled with efficient and worry-free logistics services, also greatly boosted sales in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. Transaction volume in Hong Kong doubled compared to the previous year, while Macau increased by 13-fold and orders from Taiwan doubled.
- Surging Demand for Travel Services
The travel sector saw a surge in consumer interest and engagement during the first week of the promotion. In the first week, the transaction volume of overseas vacation products increased to more than five times the previous year’s figures, while the transaction volume of flight tickets increased over 300%. Similarly, the transaction volume of flight ticket blind boxes and flight ticket bundles increased by over 13 times.
The promotion also kindled a significant interest in outdoor and recreational activities. Cycling apparel, road bikes, and skiing equipment transactions quadrupled, while badminton equipment sales saw an increase of 3.5 times.
- The Rise of On-Demand Retail with One-Hour Delivery
Just after 8 p.m. on October 31st, an illustration of JD’s advanced delivery capabilities was evident when Ms. Li from Jiamusi, Heilongjiang province, promptly received a cabbage she secured for a mere “1 cent” via the JD Daojia on-demand retail platform. Ms. Li from Jiamusi, Heilongjiang province received the cabbage she purchased for “1 cent” through JD Daojia on-demand retail platform. This rapid “one-hour delivery” feature ensured that, within the first ten minutes of the opening of the promotion on Oct 31st, customers from over 1,000 counties and districts across the country had received their orders.
During this year’s Singles’ Day, over 400,000 offline physical stores joined JD Daojia, doubling the number of participating stores compared to the previous year. Complementing this, JD Medicine’s dedication to offering 24/7 medication services was well-received, with the number of users placing nighttime orders increasing 2.5 times YoY.
(vivian.yang@jd.com; wangyuchuan@jd.com)
Apr 22, 2024|
JD.com Debuts AI Digital Representative of Founder Richard Liu During Livestream, Drawing 20 Million Views in Under One Hour
During a livestream on April 16th, JD.com introduced an AI digital representative of its founder, Richard Liu (Qiangdong Liu), nicknamed “procurement and sales manager Brother Dong (采销东哥).” Liu appeared in both JD Home Appliances and JD Supermarket’s livestreaming rooms, attracting over 20 million views within the first hour and generating RMB 50 million in sales throughout the entire livestream.
The digital representative almost perfectly replicates Liu’s facial expressions, body language, gestures, and voice, capturing even the subtlest movements of his fingers. Behind this technology is JD Cloud’s ChatRhino, an advanced large language model (LLM) that brings the avatar to life.
Behind the Technology
The LLM precisely mirrors Liu’s distinctive expressions and movements, naturally weaving in his occasional finger twiddles while he speaks, accentuating points with hand gestures, and adding nods at just the right moments for emphasis, creating a natural and authentic representation. Perfecting the voice proved to be a greater challenge. Those who have heard Liu speak are well-acquainted with the distinct inflections of his Suqian accent—a characteristic touch from his small-town roots in Jiangsu province. Observers will note the brisk pace of his speech, lighter enunciation, and his tendency to meld words in a seamless flow. His “sh” sounds carry a nasal quality, and he often addresses people as “brothers” to boost morale.
While programming the standard Mandarin dialect is relatively straightforward, teaching the AI to adopt the nuances of the Suqian dialect and Liu’s unique vocal patterns required a precise level of customization from the ChatRhino LLM. For example, the LLM had to provide accurate judgments on when to introduce the nasal tonality or the specific moments to merge words, ensuring the AI’s linguistic output mirrored Liu’s signature speaking style authentically.
Beyond replicating vocal characteristics, the AI’s voice must also be suitable for the casual, dynamic atmosphere of e-commerce livestreaming, such as adopting colloquialisms like “xiong di men” — a phrase comparable to “folks” or “guys” in English — to create a friendly rapport with the audience. JD Cloud’s ChatRhino team fine-tuned the model to focus on sociable nuances. The initial dataset for the LLM consisted predominantly of Liu’s formal speeches—spirited and compelling, yet too ceremonious for the interactive world of livestreaming. To cultivate a more congenial and approachable persona, the team utilized Liu’s recent casual conversations as the primary source material, rich with personal anecdotes and travel tales. This approach shaped the AI’s voice into one that is that is not only natural and approachable but also genuinely engaging for the end user.
As a fully self-developed technology product of JD Cloud, the ChatRhino Digital Representative solution has already served over 4,000 brand merchants, contributing to a 30% increase in order conversion rate during idle hours and helping merchants reduce livestreaming costs, enhance operational efficiency, and optimize user experience. Equipped with 50,000 hours of voice data, this technology enables digital representatives to intelligently adapt to various livestreaming styles dynamically.
The AI is also adept at managing 70% of routine live chat inquiries autonomously without any manual intervention, while also optimizing its responses with a self-improving algorithm. For instance, digital representatives can autonomously fields questions using product details and scripts, and post-livestream, and assimilate new information. Mirroring the acumen of seasoned sales professionals, it boasts a 90% accuracy rate in offering tailored product recommendations when solicited by customers.
The recent introduction of a cutting-edge livestream control console serves as the “brain” for the digital representative solution. It diligently monitors real-time inventory, adjusting the showcased products in the livestream and tailoring the script to ensure relevance—sidestepping items that are out of stock and spotlighting those in high demand. It also gauges and fine-tunes the frequency and style of interactions based on live audience engagement. With this advanced platform, businesses managing multiple livestreams can effortlessly operate thousands of sessions concurrently via cloud services, bypassing the need for intricate local setups. This innovation yields a substantial cost reduction of 30%.
Human-Machine Synergy
The intention behind digital avatars is not to outshine or compete with human talent but to harness the potential of technology to work in concert with livestreamers, maximizing overall growth. Essentially, the digital representative solution serves as a tool for brands and merchants to leverage long-tail traffic once real livestreamers conclude their broadcasts. JD’s analytics indicate this strategy can boost order conversion rates by 30% during off-peak hours, such as late into the night.
Digital representatives also excel in specific product categories that require detailed explanations, such as health products like nursing beds, electric wheelchairs, and oxygen concentrators. The solution can provide constant, round-the-clock guidance, adding substantial value to livestreams when traffic is typically lower.
Last week, JD.com announced an investment of one billion yuan into video content creation. This investment underscores JD’s commitment to leveraging the power of short videos and livestreams to transform the online shopping experience for its users and create new growth avenues for brand merchants.
Apr 20, 2024|
JD.com Unveils Ambitious Plans for 618 Grand Promotion: Aiming to More Than Double High-Performing Merchants
JD.com is gearing up for this year’s 618 Grand Promotion with an ambitious goal: to more than double the number of merchants achieving sales over one million yuan on its platform. At the recent Conference of Merchants and Ecosystem Partners on April 18, JD.com introduced a range of supportive initiatives aimed at achieving this ambitious target.
Sandy Xu, CEO of JD.com, noted at the conference that the company will dedicate significant resources to bolster traffic support, incorporate advanced AI technology, and enhance service capabilities. These efforts are particularly focused on empowering third-party merchants, including small and medium-sized enterprises in its marketplace.
Key initiatives include optimizing the platform’s traffic distribution ecosystem to prioritize highly-rated stores and products and competitively priced products through enhanced search and recommendation mechanisms. Additionally, JD.com will continue to offer merchants free access to high-traffic channels, which include significant incentives such as the popular 10-billion-yuan discount and free shipping programs.
To engage more content creators, JD.com recently announced that it will allocate over one billion yuan in cash incentives and traffic resources. This investment aims to cultivate a vibrant ecosystem that supports merchants’ traffic, business growth, and innovation.
At the core of JD.com’s strategy is technological innovation, which involves integrating AI-driven solutions into merchant operations. This includes the deployment of JD’s proprietary large language model, ChatRhino, and an AI-empowered merchant operation platform that offers are variety of free AI applications, and more. These technologies streamline various operations scenarios, enhance efficiency, and reduce costs for merchants.
For instance, On April 16th, JD.com unveiled an AI digital avatar of its founder, Richard Liu, as a sales host on its livestreaming platform. This event attracted 20 million viewers in just one hour and generated sales exceeding RMB 50 million ($6.9 million). This AI-driven virtual host technology, developed by JD Technology, is now supporting over 4,000 brands on the platform. Additionally, merchants such as a sashimi knife seller can utilize JD.com’s AIGC content generation tool to quickly produce high-quality demonstration images, bypassing traditional costs associated with product photography.
JD.com also continues to enhance its service capabilities, particularly for small and medium-sized merchants. This includes personalized business guidance, comprehensive training programs, and upgraded after-sales services, ensuring a seamless shopping experience for customers.
As of March 2024, JD.com has seen a significant increase in active third-party merchants on its platform, surpassing one million. This growth is a testament to the platform’s effectiveness and its appeal to both new and established merchants.
Ochama Announces the Launch of 2023 Singles’ Day Mega Sale with Discounts Up to 70% Off
