Facebook launched new shopping features on its application and on Instagram that allow merchants in Thailand to sell and feature their products in live videos, as the social media giant gears up for Singles’ Day sales.
The new feature allows Facebook sellers in Thailand to list and tag their products on Facebook shops before livestreaming. The products will be listed out at the bottom of the video, where consumers can access the product information before buying. The social media giant also teamed up with local payment processors and banks, so as to foster direct payment in the chat, the company claims.
While the new features on Facebook only benefit selected sellers or Buy and Sell groups, the social media giant also rolled out new shopping features to its subsidiary Instagram on November 9, including shopping tags, allowing all businesses and creators in Thailand to tag their products on their feed posts, stores and Instagram TV content.
Chawadee Wongphyat, country manager for business growth at Facebook Thailand told KrASIA that the firm has partnered with more than 20 brands and businesses to prepare for the Singles’ Day sales.
“Our goal is to improve the experience for businesses who manually sell live on the platform today. Particularly in today’s context, we also want to provide an option for businesses whose current models might have been negatively affected by the pandemic as connecting face-to-face has become difficult for people and businesses impacted by COVID-19,” said Chawadee.
Thailand, the second-largest internet economy in Southeast Asia after Indonesia, saw a 173% growth in social commerce order volume during the second quarter, according to a report by Shoplus, a social selling service owned by Taiwan-based startup iKala.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has brought many businesses online, Thailand’s e-commerce sector has grown by 81% this year, offsetting the declines in the travel and transportation sector, according to the e-Conomy SEA 2020 report. Thailand’s internet economy is expected to reach USD 53 billion by 2025, the report said.
Facebook Thailand added that the firm has continued to help small businesses to sell online by offering financial support, digital training, and businesses resources.