E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore

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Digital Cream Singapore 2012

November 18th, 2012

Digital Cream Singapore is a unique moderated roundtable forum for the most senior client-side digital and brand marketers to discuss and explore the latest best practice on emarketing procurement, business cases, investment, ROI and supplier selection. Attendees will also discuss their future online strategies and compare these with like-minded peers.

More details about Digital Cream can be found here:　http://econsultancy.com/sg/events/digital-cream-singapore-2012

The key to the event for senior buyers is to learn about gaining more budget and CFO commitment in digital marketing, better selection and short-listing of partners as well as suppliers and maximizing ROI longer term. There are 11 roundtable topics and each delegate chooses three table topics of their choice, each session lasting about an hour and fifteen minutes. Each roundtable is independently moderated and focuses on a particular topic with the roundtable attendees proposing specific questions or challenges they wish to discuss on that topic in the time available. The specific agenda for each topic roundtable will depend on the input of the delegates.

Digital Cream has been devised by the analysts and editors at Econsultancy in consultation with the most senior digital buyers in the world and runs in London, Dubai, New York, Chicago, Shanghai, San Jose and now Singapore.

Each Digital Cream Singapore attendee will receive three months free trial to Econsultancy Silver membership, which provides unrestricted access to 400+ best practice guides, stats compendiums and surveys.

Attendees pick three tables from the following topics:

1. eCommerce & Onsite Conversion Rate Optimisation

2. Online Advertising: Strategy & Maximizing Returns

3. Email Marketing

4. Cross Channel Online Marketing

5. Search Engine Marketing Optimization & Data Analytics

6. Social Media Optimization– Managing, Marketing & Measuring

7. Strategic Content Development, Curation & Marketing

8. Customer Experience Management

9. Mobile Commerce, Marketing and Apps

Program

09:00 – 09:30 Registration and coffee

09:30 – 09:45 Welcome and introduction

09:45 – 10:15 1st Keynote

10:15 – 11:30 1st Roundtable session

11:30 – 12:00 Morning break

12:00 – 13:15 2nd Roundtable session

13:15 – 14:15 Lunch

14.15 – 14.45 2nd Keynote

14:45 – 16:00 3rd Roundtable session

16:00 – 16:30 Moderators’ Panel Round up and closing remarks

16:30 – 18:00 Reception & networking

More details about Digital Cream can be found here:　http://econsultancy.com/sg/events/digital-cream-singapore-2012

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Posted in E-Commerce, Singapore

China and other Top 10 Potential Markets for E-Commerce Growth

June 29th, 2012

China holds the most e-commerce potential among emerging markets, but still suffers from a lack of reliable transportation options and relatively low Internet availability, two problems that could dampen growth, according to a new report from consultancy A.T. Kearney.

Its inaugural e-retail index of emerging markets, entitled “Online Retail: The New Frontier for International Expansion,” puts China at the top of a list of 10 countries with potential for big e-commerce growth. The company calculated growth potential by assessing such factors as overall market attractiveness, online infrastructure development, digital laws and regulations, and retail development. China beats out such countries as Brazil, Russia, Chile and Mexico (see below for the rankings).

That’s mainly because of what the report calls “China’s vast online retail markets—at $23 billion, second in the world behind the United States.” E-commerce has increased by a 78% compound annual growth rate since 2006, the report says, and will reach $81 billion over the next five years. (The report’s spending figures do not include business-to-business e-commerce, but only “consumers purchasing goods in key categories,” a spokesman for A.T. says, explaining the differences between the report’s projections and those offered by other analysts, which are often higher.) The report goes on to say that China has 513 million web users—the largest online population in the world—along with 164 million online shoppers—who tend to spend their money most often on consumer electronics, apparel and beauty products.

But size doesn’t insulate China from challenges that affect the country’s e-commerce potential. Consumers living in the country’s rural areas use the Internet less often than do shoppers living in cities. Additionally, deliveries of products bought online can be hampered by poor roads and transportation outside of metro hubs, the report says.

“China’s infrastructure challenges hinder the realization of the country’s full e-commerce potential,” says Mike Moriarty, A.T. Kearney partner and report co-leader. “Delivery infrastructure varies outside of [urban areas] and inhibits the efficiency and effectiveness of the ‘last mile’ of online retail product delivery.”

Following are the rest of the top 10, along with notes from the report:

2. Brazil. Online consumers there will spend $18.7 billion by 2017, up from $10.6 billion this year, the e-commerce spending boosted in large by the country’s growing middle class, and by shoppers visiting group-buying sites that operate similarly to Groupon. Still, the country faces challenges related to logistics and online payment security.

3. Russia. The largest online population in Europe will create a $16.3 billion online retail market by 2016, up from $9.1 billion now. Only about 20% of Russian households possess a credit card, and the reliance on cash, along with relatively slow delivery times, remain challenges. Online retailers also have to work to win over the trust of consumers who are poorly protected by consumer-advocacy laws, and who suffer regular Internet censorship.

4. Chile. Unlike shoppers in Russia, Chilean consumers have embraced non-cash payments that make online purchases easier, with the average household having four credit cards. The online retail market there is set to double to $1.5 billion over the next five years.

5. Mexico. Its online retail market will triple to $4.4 billion by 2016, though relatively few consumers have Internet access, and those shoppers who enjoy web access often struggle with slow connections. But retailers are trying out what the report calls innovations, such as enabling shoppers to select products online, print out a voucher and then pay for goods in person at stores.

6. United Arab Emirates. The federation has a 76% Internet penetration rate and a strong retail presence, factors that will lead to growth in the U.A.E’s $227 million online retail market.

7. Malaysia. The Asia state can boast that half its households own computers and that 56% of its population connects to the web. That, plus the relatively high use of credit and debit cards, and the “high-quality logistical infrastructure,” will help to double the $250 million online retail market there.

8. Uruguay. With the highest Internet penetration rate in Latin America—48%—and 70% of its Internet users making online purchases, Uruguay’s online retail market of $46 million will double by 2016.

9. Turkey. Straddling two continents, the country offers relatively quick delivery of online goods and an Internet base that spends 30 hours per month online, and benefits from relatively strong consumer protection laws.

10. Oman. Perched along the edge of the Arabian Peninsula, the country may be small but has computers inside half of its households and 62% of its population connected to the Internet—including through mobile devices, as most citizens own more than one phone.

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Posted in E-Commerce

e-Commerce businesses in Singapore. The good, the bad and the dollars

March 21st, 2012

E-commerce in Singapore is booming. Emall.sg is testimony to the popularity of e-businesses in Singapore. It lists over 4,000 active local businesses including blog shops, coupon deal sites, grocery stores and education portals.

Livejournal alone reports it has 1.2 million Singaporean users and over 50,000 blogshops, generating more than US$72 million worth of transactions in Singapore in 2011. Livejournal blogshops transacted 6% of Singapore’s forecasted e-commerce volume of US$1.2 billion in 2011.

Despite the advantages of e-businesses above bricks-and-mortar retail, running an e-business is no cheap affair.

A survey conducted in Singapore in 2010 highlighted some significant challenges facing e-business owners in Singapore. Issues included under-capitalisation, high running costs and skills gaps.

To ensure an e-business survives past year one, there are three kinds of expenses e-business owners should consider when preparing a business plan.

Marketing spend

60% of e-businesses spend less than $5,000 per annum in online advertising. Only 10% spend between 10,000 and 50,000 per annum. A spend of $5,000 per annum works out to $415 per month, making it difficult to measure if this level of ad spend has any effect on sales.

Marketing spend per annum (S$)	Percentage of e-business owners
< 5k	60%
5k-10k	10%
10k-50k	10%
50k-100k	2%
100k-200k	2%
200k-1mil	0%
> 1mil	0%
Not sure	16%

Source: 2009-10 e-commerce survey initiated
by the E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore.

Given the depth of products e-businesses sell, and the dilution of online spend between customer acquisition and retention, $415 per month is a drop in the ocean.

An aggressive market entry would see marketing spend S$4,000 per month in online marketing, slowly reducing over time as the firm optimises online spend, and drops marketing channels which yield poor return on investment.

A typical spend pattern would see marketing dollars allocated to several online marketing channels, including mobile advertising (admob), social media ads (facebook ads), search engine marketing (adwords) and email marketing (mail chimp).

Tech spend

E-business owners under-estimate future capital expenditure. Building the initial website and brand is a one part of the investment. After receiving customer feedback, more dollars are needed to be spent if the website is to build a critical mass of users.

If entrepreneurs have not planned for this cash spend, they will be hemmed in. Unable to evolve their product, their competition will gain an advantage. They won’t have enough cash to introduce new types of technology not planned for at initial build.

The technology bill alone to keep up with user feedback could be as high as S$30,000 per annum in year one. This spend is enough to cover the front-end of the site. Additional spend may also be necessary to develop the back-end business functions, including inventory control, billing, sales analytics and hosting.

Talent spend

The report highlighted e-business owners have technical and marketing knowledge gaps that hindered the growth of their business. An online business will need up to three fulltime professionals. These specialists include a technician to continue improving the website, an online / social media marketer to get reach and a finance person to monitor spend and revenue.

This kind of talent can provide strategic direction. A technician can advise an owner whether to build on Ruby, or use an off-the-shelf solution like Magento. Or help the firm save money by outsourcing the webserver to cloud providers like Amazon.

A proficient online marketer could advise the owner on making the most of Facebook commerce.

The message from the research is clear. New market entrants into the e-commerce space will need more capital to steal market share from existing players, and offer new types of products and services to differentiate the brand.

About Futurebooks
Futurebooks is Singapore’s and Hong Kong’s most progressive bookkeeping company. Futurebooks offer affordable incorporation, bookkeeping, business planning and brokering, to entrepreneurs with big ambitions.

Whether your goal is to be acquired or to be more profitable this quarter, Futurebooks provide planning to keep your business on track and bookkeeping services that streamline the journey.

Using cloud computing solutions like Intuit’s QuickBooks Online, Xero, SaaSu, DropBox, Workflowmax, Vend, salesforce.com and Google Enterprise, Futurebooks are able to offer clients productivity improvements and reductions in the cost of accounting.

Visit our website and chat to us live or follow us on Twitter.

About the author
Anthony is the founder of Futurebooks Pte Ltd. Anthony is obsessed with helping start-up companies incorporate, conduct industry analysis and develop brand positioning. He has ten years experience in media and marketing, and was founder of Firestarter, a digital marketing agency.
Firestarter was acquired by Novus Media in 2010.

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Posted in E-Commerce, Singapore

Paypal Launched Mobile Shopping via QR Code in Singapore

February 14th, 2012

Recently Paypal is experimenting a new mobile commerce app in train stations in Singapore. The mobile app allows smartphone users to shop via their phone by scanning a QR code.

The campaign is ongoing in 15 SMRT train stations and will display products from 8 retailers, with special discount for Valentine’s day.

Mobile payment and commerce is not yet popular in Asia countries because the penetration rate of smartphone is not high and credit cards are not widely available. Clearly Singapore is an exception by being the country with the highest smartphone penetration rate, out of which the most market share goes to iOS devices. In addition, the transfer rate of mobile internet is also very high with nation-wide data network coverage, plus free WIFI network. These two points make Singapore the ideal location for Paypal’s mobile commerce experiment.

Smartphone users just need to download Paypal’s QR code reader and scan the products, after which Paypal login or credit card information should be provided to complete the shopping process.

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Posted in E-Commerce, M-Commerce, Mobile, Singapore

Invitation to join Google Engage for Agencies

February 8th, 2012

Thinking of offering Search Engine Marketing service to your clients?

The Google Engage program is designed to educate and support businesses who help their clients succeed online. Being a member of the program gives you access to free training materials and resources to maximise the benefits of AdWords and other Google products for you and your clients.

Google Engage for Agencies offers:

Training – Online education to help you master the Google advertising suite of products.
Incentives - A starter batch of 5 promotional US$75 AdWords vouchers – plus additional batches as your client list grows. Use these vouchers to attract new clients, build customer loyalty or get in touch with old clients who are not using AdWords yet.
Campaign setup service- Receive AdWords account setup service and phone support for new advertisers.
Sales and marketing tools- Sales and marketing collateral from Google to help you pitch AdWords to your existing and new clients.

And the best news? Participation in the program is absolutely free

Join Google Engage now

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Posted in E-Commerce, Singapore, SME

E-Commerce Fulfillment/Logistics Providers in Singapore

January 14th, 2012

Recently there are a lot of inquiries about Fulfillment/Logistics providers in Singapore who can service E-Commerce portals to process orders and ship to international locations.

Here is an initial list of such providers I know of. If you know of any other providers, leave a comment.

…..

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Posted in E-Commerce, Singapore

A list of Group Buying Sites/Daily Deal Sites in Singapore

January 11th, 2012

Group Buying Sites/Daily Deal Sites are obviously the coin of the realm in today’s e-commerce business. Singapore is no exception – there are a bunch of them in market.

Here is a list that I have compiled for your reference:

Groupon.sg

Deal.com.sg

bigdeal.sg

redmart

voucherwow

koovs

runway.sg

cozycot

alldealsasia

ubuyibuy

streetdeal.sg

reebonz

youdeal.sg

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Posted in E-Commerce, Singapore

Free eBook to download – “Web Load Testing For Dummies”

January 5th, 2012

Web applications that perform well can strengthen a company’s brand, reputation, and create customer loyalty. Web applications that perform poorly put all of that at risk. Web load testing is a critical component to any risk management plan for web applications.

You will learn:

The ins and outs of web load testing — know what to expect from web load testing
The importance of outside-in load testing — determine what the performance feels like to an actual user
Why and when to test — set goals, gather your team, and implement
How to manage ongoing analysis— monitor how your testing is going
How diagnostics tools combined with web load testing dramatically reduces time to problem resolution

This e-book is brought to you by Compuware

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Posted in E-Commerce

E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore Supports “Digital Cream Singapore”

September 21st, 2011

20-Sep-2011, Singapore – E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore has recently entered into a partnership with MediaBuzz and EConsultancy to promote the Digital Cream event to Singapore E-Commerce community.

Digital Cream event has been run in London, Dubai, New York and Chicago. And now it’s brought to Singapore thanks to collaboration between EConsultancy and MediaBuzz. This one day roundtable event on 10th November 2011 will bring together 100 senior digital marketing and e-commerce experts to discuss best practice in online marketing and e-commerce.

The event will feature 10 independently moderated round tables on various digital marketing disciplines including E-commerce & Site Conversion, Email Marketing, Online PR, Search Engine Marketing & Optimization, Social Media, Web Analytics and Data Analytics. Delegates will discuss online channel investment, technologies, agency selection and local challenges that they all face in delivering best practice digital marketing and advertising.

Each Digital Cream Singapore registrant will receive a complimentary copy of the “Asia: Internet Statistics Compendium”, which is recently published by EConsultancy. In addition to this, each Digital Cream Singapore attendee will receive three months free trial of Econsultancy Silver membership, which gives them fully unrestricted access to 400+ best practice guides, stats compendiums and survey results.

E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore, as one of the biggest E-Commerce community in Singapore, is happen to partner with MediaBuzz and EConsultancy to promote Digital Cream and believe it will add value to Singapore E-Commerce community.

To request a free seat at Digital Cream Singapore on November 10th at the National Library, visit http://www.mediabuzz.com.sg/events/mediabuzz-events and register.

About E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore
E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore is an independent website focused on latest E-Commerce related development, trends and events in Singapore. The objective is to make Singapore a preferred place for regional E-Commerce transactions and grow local merchants’ E-Commerce capabilities. E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore conducts annual Singapore E-Commerce survey and publishes a free report for public access.
For more information, visit http://ecommerce.org.sg

Expedia offers great business travel deal.

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Posted in E-Commerce, Event, Singapore

An Exclusive invitation to Digital Cream Singapore – 10th November 2011

September 20th, 2011

E-Commerce Alliance of Singapore has recently partnered with MediaBuzz and EConsultancy to promote the famous Digital Cream event in Singapore. Digital Cream is co-organized by EConsultancy, the global leading source of independent advice and insight on best practice digital marketing and e-commerce, and MediaBuzz, the leading digital marketing publisher in Singapore

Below is a message from Daniela, Managing Director of MediaBuzz.

“Imagine a gathering of 100 senior marketers who have a passion for marketing using digital channels, who want to share what they know with their peers, supported by some of the best thought leadership and best practice in the digital space…that’s Digital Cream Singapore…and I would like to cordially invite you to join the event for free as you fit perfectly to the group.

The concept runs in London, Dubai, New York, Chicago and now Singapore and is highly valued by attendees every year. Digital Cream has a unique moderated roundtable format for senior brand managers and marketers to explore issues, resolutions, trends and developments.

In one day you’ll meet your digital marketing peers, hear from two keynotes and sit on three moderated roundtables – discussing digital marketing strategies, investment and channel effectiveness. You will get a chance to join a great networking party on top of the National Library Building and receive Econsultancy’s ASIA Internet Statistics Compendium as well as a three months free trial of Econsultancy’s Silver membership (which means unrestricted access to 400+ best practise guides, stats compendiums and survey reports) complimentary right after the event.

Please, register at http://www.mediabuzz.com.sg/events/mediabuzz-events to request for a seat or get in touch with Andrew Lam from MediaBUZZ (andrew@mediabuzz.com.sg; phone: +65 6836 1807) “

Archive for the ‘E-Commerce’ category

Program

Marketing spend

Tech spend

Talent spend

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Google Engage for Agencies offers:

Download Free E-Commerce Report