Dec 14, 2023|
JD Worldwide Launches the “Bayern Pavilion” in Cross-Border E-Commerce Initiative
On December 8th, 2023, JD Worldwide, the cross-border e-commerce platform under JD.com, announced a new collaboration with the city of Munich, Bavaria (Bayern in German), and digital marketing agency Hylink to introduce the “Bayern Selectives Pavilion.” This themed flagship store is designed to provide Chinese consumers with a convenient one-stop online shopping experience to discover and purchase a variety of Bavarian products and cultural items.
The inaugural brands launched in the store include Roeckl, Die Rockmacherin, Werner Christ, and Online pens, featuring a diverse range of categories such as apparel, accessories, food and beverages, and stationery. In response to evolving consumer preferences, the Pavilion intends to expand its product range by offering skincare and beauty brands, delicacies, and many more.
During the pavilion’s opening ceremony, key partners from the state of Bavaria, including Clemens Baumgärtner, Head of Munich’s Department of Labour and Economic Development; Helmut Käs, Head of BMW Group Classic and Managing Director of Munich Tourism Promoting Association; Michael Käfer, CEO of Käfer; Caroline Lauenstein, founder of Die Rockmacherin; Alexandra and Thomas Batsch; and Alexander Apfel, founders and CEO of ONLINE, recorded video messages expressing their enthusiasm and support for the Bayern Select Pavilion, emphasizing its role in extending the reach and accessibility of premium Bavarian products to the Chinese market.
Tong Defa, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate in Munich, highlighted the significance of this collaboration as a milestone in Sino-German trade relations. In his remarks, he noted that “China is the world’s largest import market of cross-border e-commerce. JD Worldwide’s expansion will create increasing global opportunities, benefiting more countries and regions like Germany and the state of Bavaria.”
Luke Liu, Head of KA, duty-free and global sourcing in Europe of JD Worldwide, said, “We are thrilled to seamlessly integrate Bavaria’s premium brands and products, JD’s highly efficient sales channels, and the aspirations of Chinese consumers for high-quality goods through the establishment of the Bayern Selectives Pavilion. We strive to enhance services across consumer scenarios, marketing, quality of products and customer services, and merchant recruitment to become the preferred gateway for international brands entering the Chinese market.”
Wenjing Wang, Managing Director of Hylink Germany, which is the operator of the pavilion, said, “Hylink is dedicated to building communication bridges for premium brands between China and the world. Starting with the Bayern Selectives Pavilion project, we aim to collaborate closely with the Munich city to curate distinctive local products, inviting Chinese consumers to appreciate the craftsmanship, culture, and history of Bavaria.”
Imported European products, particularly those from Germany, have consistently found favor among Chinese consumers on JD.com. According to the “2023 Report on European Imported Product Consumption Trends” by JD’s Consumption and Industry Development Research Institute, young consumers aged 26 to 35 account for 45% of European product purchases. Furthermore, there is a growing interest in European products among consumers in rural and county markets in China, with a high appreciation for goods made in Germany.
Apr 29, 2024|
JD.com Teams Up with Brands to Launch “Trade-in Alliance for Household Appliances and Home Goods”
JD.com recently announced the “Trade-in Alliance for Household Appliances and Home Goods” in collaboration with over 100 renowned brands. This initiative, unveiled on April 27, aims to expand and enhance trade-in services across China and has already been successfully implemented in 20 provinces and cities.
The Trade-in Alliance allows consumers to access JD’s trade-in services for an extensive range of products, covering over 200 subcategories including TVs, refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, and more. The initiative caters to a growing demand, with more than 16 million users leveraging JD’s platform since 2023 to exchange their old household items for new ones. This represents a 200 percent increase in first-time users year-on-year.
To further enhance the customer experience, JD.com has introduced the “Three Free & Four Unlimited” trade-in service. This service includes complimentary door-to-door pickup, disassembly, and handling of old goods. Additionally, it places no restrictions on the trade-in items regarding their original purchase channel, brand, age, or condition. With just four simple clicks on the JD app, users can receive generous discounts from their old goods and enjoy the convenience of JD’s one-stop trade-in services.
JD.com also utilizes its logistical strengths to extend these services to even the most remote areas of China. For instance, customers living in Tibet at an elevation of 4,300 meters can now easily access JD’s trade-in options, including doorstep delivery and recycling of old appliances.
The Trade-in Alliance is built on six foundational pillars: service capabilities, brand support, marketing initiatives, industry chain synergies, omni-channel development, and category cooperation. By fostering closer partnerships with leading brands in the household appliance and home goods sectors, JD.com is setting a new standard for hassle-free trade-in services, offering unparalleled convenience and value to consumers nationwide.
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.
JD Technology’s Supply Chain Financing Extends to Third-Party Warehouses
