Most urban Vietnamese women never let their smartphone out of reach. The first thing they do every morning is checking social media like Facebook on her phone to see what their friends are up to and what items are for sale. They believe that social networks help them keep in touch with friends and stay up to date with latest trend, and it is also a very effective shopping channel.

Vietnamese people prefer Facebook to local e-commerce sites because they can directly inquire sellers for the specific information they need. For fashion products such as closing items or shoes, they can decline to buy the items when they are delivered if they don’t fit or their quality doesn’t match what they expected, very conveniently. In the last few years, many Vietnamese people become social media savvy users who regularly shop on channels like Facebook, Instagram and homegrown social media site Zalo. They buy everything, from groceries and homemade products, to cosmetic, clothes and household items from informal online family run businesses.

In a user-friendly interface where sellers and buyers are easily connected, many Vietnamese are choosing social network shopping instead of going to big brands in the e-commerce industry which don’t always offer them the items they need. According to experts, since social networks in Vietnam, especially Facebook, have amassed a huge following with their newsfeed algorithms designed to grab users’ attention and boost engagement, these platforms have become the perfect market place.

In 2018, Vietnam’s rank on number of Facebook users is 7^th, and Vietnamese also spend more time on Facebook than any users in Southeast Asian countries, and they’re much more apt to use Facebook as a platform to start a business.  Most people sell their items on the social media site just to make some extra income on top of their day jobs. Nevertheless, there are those who take Facebook very seriously and base their entire business on it. A representative of Facebook in Vietnam reported that there are about 60 Vietnamese, who have become dollar millionaires for making money online. For them, selling online is a huge advantage as they don’t need to pay monthly rent like a brick and mortar business. In big cities like Hanoi and Hochiminh city, there are at least 40000 Facebook accounts that use the social media site as retail platforms.

Last but not least, the number of people who want to make Facebook their retail shops is increasing, and the government is trying to figure out way to collect taxes from these people.

Bibliography

Digitalinsia. (2018). VIETNAM: DIGITAL TRENDS & CONSUMER LANDSCAPE OVERVIEW. Retrieved from Digital in Asia: https://digitalinasia.com/2018/06/18/vietnam-digital-trends-consumer-landscape/

Tran, K. (2018). [MW Special Report] Content, media & social in Vietnam. Retrieved from The low down momentum asia: https://thelowdown.momentum.asia/mw-special-report-content-media-social-vietnam-will-capture-next-100-million-users/