Jun 20, 2023|
Twenty Ambassadors to China Collaborate with JD.com for JD618 Grand Promotion, Showcasing Unique Products from their Respective Countries
by Vivian Yang
On June 16th, ambassadors from 11 different countries, including Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka visited JD.com’s headquarters to promote the imports of their respective countries’ specialty products during the peak of the 618 Grand Promotion.
Over 100 National Pavilions Showcasing 50 Countries
Currently, JD.com has established more than 100 online stores known as national pavilions for over 50 countries. Sales data shows that during this year’s 618 shopping festival, the total transaction value from these national pavilions increased over fourfold year-on-year. Exotic and novel specialties such as Sri Lankan Ceylon tea, Cypriot blue wine, and Kazakh camel milk are among the most popular items sold under the national pavilion project.
Yanzhong Yao, Senior Vice President of JD.com, expressed gratitude for the strong support received from authoritative institutions, including various embassies in China. Since JD.com launched its first national pavilion in 2014, the company has continuously expanded its offerings of high-quality international specialty products to meet the demands of the Chinese market. Currently, JD.com’s national pavilions offer over 5,100 specialty products annually and attract over 100 million active users. The national pavilions serve as a unique window into different countries’ cultures and as a bridge for communication between nations.
Prominent Endorsements and Praise
The success of JD.com’s national pavilions is evident in the endorsement from world leaders and diplomats. In May, President Tokayev of Kazakhstan personally witnessed the launch of JD.com’s Kazakhstan national pavilion in Xi’an, becoming the first head of state to do so. Minister Counsellor of the Kazakh Embassy to China, Shalkarbayev Askar, was amazed by the enthusiasm of Chinese consumers, as 80% of the products sold out within the first hour.
The Pakistani Ambassador to China, Moin ul Haque, commended JD.com’s national pavilions for their positive role in promoting trade exchanges between China and Pakistan. He extended an invitation to JD’s team to further explore Pakistan’s finest products, including Basmati rice and premium mangoes, to delight Chinese consumers.
Tourist Products Now Available at JD’s Cyprus National Pavilion
For the first time, JD.com’s Cyprus National Pavilion now features tourist products, supported by the Cyprus embassy and tourism department. Visitors can directly book tourism routes, including airfare and hotels, within the pavilion, offering a unique opportunity to experience the beauty of the island of Aphrodite. JD.com is actively preparing to launch cultural and tourism offerings from countries including Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and Latin America, further enriching the e-commerce platform’s role in promoting international communication.
Ambassadors Promoting Country Specialties
At JD.com’s June 16th national pavilion event, ambassadors and counsellors from numerous countries recommended their respective nations’ specialties and cultural products. H.E. Dr. Palitha Kohona, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to China, became a spokesperson for the “Island of Gem,” recommending the country’s high-quality blue sapphire products while inviting Chinese consumers to explore the country’s rich specialties. Czech Republic’s Agricultural Counsellor, Ondrej Placek, recommended locally brewed beer, honey cake, and Bohemian crystal glass crafts. Kyrgyzstan’s Commercial Counsellor, Bekboev Daniiar, recommended a variety of pure, natural, and additive-free delicacies such as honey and dried fruits.
Indonesia’s Commercial Counsellor, Budi Hansyah, and South Africa’s Agricultural Counsellor, Molatelo, Enos Mamadi, expressed their appreciation for the value that JD.com’s national pavilions bring in enhancing their countries’ brand visibility in China. They eagerly anticipate strengthening cooperation with JD’s national pavilions to showcase a diverse range of national specialties and cultures.
Meeting the Demands of Modern Consumers with Diversified and High-Quality Offerings
As highlighted in JD.com’s 2023 Import Consumption Report, JD.com has emerged as the largest sales channel for many international brands and imported goods in China. The company continuously enhances the quality of products to meet the diversified and personalized consumption trends of its customers. By establishing innovative models like national pavilions and overseas direct procurement, JD.com has created a “fast lane” for high-quality products from all over the world to enter the Chinese market.
Confidence in the Chinese Market
Denmark’s Minister Counsellor, Mr. Morten Kruse, and New Zealand’s Commercial Counsellor, Mr. Chris Metcalfe, both expressed confidence in the enormous consumption potential of the Chinese market. They eagerly anticipate more small and medium-sized brands, as well as new brands from their countries, entering the segmented Chinese market.
JD.com’s total procurement of imported brand goods reached 500 billion yuan from 2019 to 2022, exceeding the target of 400 billion yuan set at the 2nd China International Import Expo in 2019. This year, JD.com introduced the groundbreaking “Morning Dawn Initiative” to foster an open ecosystem by minimizing entry barriers for merchants, including overseas brands. The initiative simplifies entry processes, enabling Chinese consumers to enjoy an extensive selection of imported goods, enriching their shopping experience with a wider range of options.
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.com’s 2023 618 Grand Promotion: Surpassing Expectations and Setting New Records
