Foreign Trade Factories Lose Millions, Ali CCO Helps 100 Provinces To Transform Into Digital Enterprises

The bags in the warehouse of Zhou Xuguo, a Yiwu businessman, have been piling up for months. In late March, when the global epidemic broke out, Zhou Xuguo received information about cancelling orders or delaying delivery from overseas brands almost every day.

Since he started his business in 2002, Zhou Xuguo has experienced two financial crises, none of which is as difficult as this year. The order of Xuguo is thousands of bags per week. According to Zhou Xuguo's estimation, the loss of the factory has reached millions, and the order volume has dropped by at least 30% compared with last year.

In Yiwu, there are many foreign trade businesses like Zhou Xuguo. The difference is that Zhou Xuguo entered Alibaba 1688 platform eight years ago. Under the global epidemic situation, e-commerce has become the main path of Zhou Xuguo's transformation from foreign trade to domestic sales.

Since the restart of Ali's "Chunlei plan" in April, 40000 foreign trade factories have settled in 1688 in just two months, with an average of 667 factories settling in every day. Behind the settlement is the anxiety of factory merchants and the determination to transform domestic sales. According to the plan, 1688 in 2020 will help 500000 foreign trade enterprises to open up the Chinese market and help them transform into digital enterprises.

In order to better assist the transformation of businesses, Alibaba group customer experience business group (hereinafter referred to as: Alibaba CCO) launched the factory goods customer manager system after the release of Alibaba's "Chunlei plan" to help businesses one on one. At present, it has covered nearly 100 provinces and regions in China, involving beauty mother and baby, home appliances 3C, clothing bags, daily necessities and other fields.

　　 Transfer of foreign trade to domestic sales

Zhou Xuguo first heard of Ali's "spring thunder plan" in early May this year. At that time, the Zhejiang provincial government had signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Alibaba. Based on Alibaba's commercial and technological strength over the past 20 years, it served small and medium-sized enterprises for digital transformation and innovation.

Looking at the warehouse full of bags and bags, Zhou Xuguo, who has been doing traditional foreign trade for 18 years, is somewhat moved.

"In the past, when the foreign trade market was good, we didn't consider domestic sales or e-commerce. We opened a shop in 1688, but we didn't manage it carefully. " Zhou Xuguo said. After Zhou Xuguo's shop was opened in 1688, the local government didn't know when to start the shop.

When a large number of international trade enterprises grow smoothly, a large number of enterprises can find jobs. According to incomplete statistics, about 200 million people in China have employment related to foreign trade.

For a long time, B2B has been used to represent the large amount of foreign trade orders. Overseas supermarkets and brands send product design drawings to Chinese manufacturers. Manufacturers manufacture products in batches according to the demand of brand owners, and transport them to overseas brands to earn price difference.

However, large B2B order mode is rare on e-commerce platform, and small B2B order mode and C-end order mode account for more on e-commerce platform. For the traditional merchants who are used to a large number of wholesale, it is not easy to transform the digital road of domestic sales.

Yu miaojie, Secretary of the Party committee of the National Development Research Institute of Peking University, once said bluntly, "foreign trade enterprises usually have a black eye when trying to open up the domestic market."

On the one hand, there are differences in the aesthetic and demand of consumers at home and abroad, so foreign trade businesses need to explore the domestic consumer market again; on the other hand, the e-commerce platform represented by 1688 and Taobao has developed rapidly in recent years, and businesses have carried out digital transformation. When foreign trade businesses transform to domestic sales, digital new wholesale transformation is inevitable.

"Domestic sales and foreign trade are really different." Zhou Xuguo sighed. On the way to transformation, businesses need to guide people.

　　 Trust is more important than gold

A month ago, Fu Fu, the customer manager of the goods communication of Alibaba CCO factory, took the initiative to find Zhou Xuguo. After adding friends several times, the hesitant Zhou Xuguo finally approved the friend request. "One night, the business suddenly passed the friend request, and I was a little surprised." Fu Fu said.

After a moment of hesitation, Zhou Xufu understood. "The merchants want to do business on 1688, but they don't know how to start. Traditional foreign trade businesses and overseas brands have long-term cooperation, and both sides have a sense of trust. The e-commerce platform is a completely different new environment for businesses, and businesses have not yet fully trusted the platform. "

Zhou Xuguo said frankly that before contacting the customer manager of factory freight, he had explored a method of e-commerce operation, but the effect was not as expected. At one time, Zhou Xuguo attributed his dissatisfaction to the aesthetic differences between domestic and foreign consumers, believing that products designed by overseas brands could not be sold on the 1688 platform.

In order to let Zhou Xuguo regain confidence, fufu purchased several bags produced by Zhou Xuguo factory at his own expense. After getting the real product, fufu helped Zhou Xuguo redesign the store's product page and introduction, analyzed the target customers and pushed the products accurately according to the product characteristics. At the same time, fufu also recommended various activities on the 1688 platform to Zhou Xuguo.

The business of the shop began to pick up. Fu Fu feels that Zhou Xuguo is in a better mood and has more trust in the platform.

Under Fu Fu's suggestion, Zhou Xuguo, a traditional businessman, gradually opened his mind. During the period of tmall 618, Zhou Xuguo made his first live broadcast of his life and tried to bring goods with him. "I don't know a lot of things that Fu Fu told me. She's like a teacher, so I don't have to take a lot of detours. " Zhou Xuguo said.

"A lot of people say that confidence is more important than gold. Trust is more important than gold for online businesses in transition. The process of serving businesses is actually the process of building trust, which is the value of service. "

Looking back on the past two months, fufu believes that the service has served as a bridge for the transformation of traditional foreign trade businesses into digital domestic sales. Inside Ali, there is another name for Ali CCO team: Ali Roujun. Small and medium-sized businesses are determined to help the small and medium-sized businesses to feel the warmth through the transformation.

Zhou Xuguo and Ali's digital transformation plan are no longer doubted. He plans to set up a design department that combines 1688 data capabilities to produce bags for domestic consumers.

Even if the global epidemic is over, Zhou Xuguo will still insist on e-commerce. "I didn't know how to do e-commerce before, but now that the foundation has been laid, I have confidence in e-commerce. Maybe one day on 1688 to create a blockbuster, out of their own brand road. "