Prospects from online sales

Currently, online sales are considered a “fertile land” to expand product consumption markets and reach diverse customers.

Black Crow sticky rice products from Thanh Son district are livestreamed for sale on social networking platforms.

E-commerce is no longer a strange concept in society, especially in the current era of digital technology 4.0. This reality requires businesses to proactively change and adapt quickly to consumer trends. Many innovations in business methods to suit consumer psychology have been implemented by businesses, such as changing the form of buying and selling to online, delivery, improving quality, design, and reducing costs of products, offering shipping incentives, giving gifts, etc. In parallel with the traditional, direct business method, businesses in the province have quickly completed procedures and connected with e-commerce platforms to sell goods. In particular, businesses and cooperatives have actively brought products to major domestic distribution channels such as Shopee, Voso, Tiki, Sendo, Postmart, TikTok, etc.

Livestream selling goods in the grapefruit garden in Doan Hung district

Established in 2020, so far, Thanh Nam Tea Cooperative (Thanh Son town, Thanh Son district) has signed a contract to cooperate in growing safe tea with 80 households in Thanh Son and Tan Son districts, increasing the total area. The cooperative’s tea growing area increased to 100 hectares, mainly LDP1 tea, Bat Tien tea, O Long tea. Currently, the cooperative has 16 tea products of all kinds, of which two are high-quality Thanh Nam young shrimp tea and high-quality Thanh Nam jasmine tea that have been recognized as 3-star OCOP products.

Ms. Duong Thi Duyen, Director of Thanh Nam Tea Cooperative, said: In 2023, the cooperative will open two stores to introduce and sell OCOP products in Thanh Son district and promote the introduction of products on the e-commerce trading floor, promoting promotion and sales on social networks such as Facebook, Zalo, etc. Currently, the cooperative’s products have been exported to Saudi Arabia and are sold in a system of stores and supermarkets at home and abroad. The cooperative’s tea varieties are very diverse, serving the needs of many customer segments. Products range in price from 300,000 to 1.5 million VND/kg.

Sales on social networking platforms are invested in methodically and thoroughly to attract customers.

After 3 years of operation, VNS Phu Tho Bamboo Cooperative (Dong Luong commune, Cam Khe district) has now expanded its factory investment to an area of 500 m2 with modern machinery and equipment. Each month, the cooperative purchases about 2–30,000 bamboo trees throughout the regions inside and outside the province. Products made from bamboo, such as knives, spoons, forks, straws, household utensils, trays, kettles, cups, mugs, tea containers, tables and chairs, are loved by people, trusted and used. In 2022 and 2023, the cooperative will be recognized as a product group (knives, spoons, forks, bamboo straws) achieving 4-star OCOP product certification and a product group (trays, kettles, cups, mugs, bamboo tea boxes) achieving certification receiving 3-star OCOP products.

The Provincial Cooperative Alliance coordinates to organize training to improve trade promotion skills and apply social media platforms to promote, introduce and consume products for cooperatives in ethnic minority and mountainous areas of Phu Tho province.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Vuong, Director of VNS Phu Tho Bamboo Cooperative, affirmed: For sustainable development, in addition to traditional sales, participate in exhibitions and connect with product consumption locally and in neighboring provinces; VNS Phu Tho Bamboo Cooperative also set up a website and registered to sell through e-commerce platforms and social networks to introduce, promote and sell bamboo products to the market. So far, the cooperative’s products have been consumed throughout the country and exported to a number of countries, such as Korea, India, Japan, France, America, etc.

In addition to maintaining the effectiveness of their websites, businesses and cooperatives have maximized the utility of social networking sites to post articles, advertise product images, post videos, and livestream product introductions of the business’s goods for interaction, thereby continuing to receive customer orders. This also helps consumers, even though they do not go directly to the store, still fully grasp and update information and images about the quantity and quality of the product, thereby stimulating consumption demand.

Ms. Le Thi Hai Yen, Vice Chairman of the Provincial Cooperative Alliance, said: In 2024, with the theme “For the sustainable development of the collective economy and provincial cooperatives”, the Provincial Cooperative Alliance will deploy support for 14 cooperatives. Build a quality productivity management system, apply science and technology transfer, and implement digital transformation. Open training courses on planning and operating links to develop production and business along the value chain, trade promotion, and product consumption for livestock and farming cooperatives in Thanh Son and Tan Son, Yen Lap and Thanh Thuy. At the same time, promote propaganda and advocacy for cooperatives communities in ethnic minority and mountainous areas on e-commerce applications, connecting and expanding consumption markets for products by combining display, propaganda and product introduction, thereby creating optimal efficiency in building strategies to reach consumers.

It can be seen that e-commerce platforms with online consumption methods are an effective direction, helping to improve production value and open more sustainable output for farmers' products.

Thanh Tra