ShopBack, the leading online Cashback platform announced ShopFest, a regional retail movement that is designed to help Asia Pacific consumers navigate the labyrinth of year-end sales and empower them in making smarter purchase decisions throughout this four-month shopping festival. ShopFest will be launched in seven countries with Malaysia being the first stop, followed by the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, and Australia.
In Malaysia, the inaugural shopping festival covers six major online sale events from September to December, namely #MYCYBERSALE, 9.9 Rewards Day (previously known as 9.9 Cashback Day), 11.11 Single’s Day, Black Friday Cyber Monday, 12.12 Online Fever, as well as Year-End Christmas & New Year Sale. Consumers can easily access the information of all major sale events and be aware of who, what, where, when, why and how to shop smart via its informative content portal www.shopfest.my.
“ShopFest provides an ease of understanding as well as a gateway for consumers to discover shopping deals and grab sweet bonus when they make a purchase from September to December. Currently, we partner with over 500 e-retailers to provide up to 30% cashback for consumers. Following the launch of ShopFest, close to RM10 million cashback is expected to be given out during ShopFest.
Over the past three and half years, ShopBack has grown from 5000 users to over 1 million users in Malaysia (over 6 million in APAC). It proves that consumers are eagerly finding ways to get more bang for their bucks, and we have to be proactive in shaping the smarter way for them. When we try to put ourselves in a consumer’s shoes, we understand the best sales normally come around year-end but it is hard to catch-up with the avalanche of events and offers,” Sharmeen Looi, Co-founder of ShopBack Malaysia said.
Once consumers visit the ShopFest page, a nifty calendar encompass all six major sales will be shown and each of it will lead them to a compilation of promotions and special cashback provided by e-retailers from Electronics, Fashion, Beauty, Travel, Groceries, Dining, Home & Living, as well as Sports categories for the respective event period.
“We are confident that ShopFest will efficiently connect both e-retailers and consumers specifically for the year-end when consumers are prepared to spend. Approximately 30 leading e-retailers such as 11street, Lazada, Expedia, Booking.com, etc. will top up for super cashback offer (up to 90%) during this period and there’ll be more than RM14 million worth of prizes to be won through ShopFest Treasure Chest and Ultimate Experience. Our collective efforts will surely amplify the awareness and e-commerce performance, even surpass the 10 times increase in average hourly traffic we achieved during 11.11 Singles’ Day last year.” Sharmeen said.
Q4 – the Busiest Period Across Various E-Commerce Industries
The launch also saw leaders from popular e-commerce companies sharing insights towards Q4 online retail landscape and their preparations gearing up to the busiest season of the year. Judy Wong, General Manager of Communications from online marketplace 11street indicated that the peak buying period in Q4 is expected to take place around year-end especially during 11.11 & 12.12 sales, with electronics being the top category and fashion coming in a close second.
“We are planning to upgrade our mobile app with a more user-friendly interface to create a wholesome customer experience. 11street is also very focused on improving the speed, cost and quality of the logistics system whereas some of the enhancements will include free and affordable shipping,” Judy said.
ZALORA, the leading online fashion platform highlighted that preparations need to be done way ahead to ensure customer experience is not compromised. “We were running 24 hours most of the time in Q4 last year, with the busiest day having over 1000 operators in the peak split over three shifts. It’s also important for us to have a clear understanding on the quality of the deals offered and depth of the inventory. The better the deals, the higher the demand,” its Marketing Director, Kiriat Argenio expressed.
She added that there is a spike in ZALORA’s traffic every day from 8pm to 12am, especially on mobile web and app. “This is the best time to engage with our customers and let them know about our new brand launches and other marketing initiatives.”
Better Savings and Travel Options throughout ShopFest
When it comes to customer experience, Expedia believes in the power of collaboration. “As one of the world’s leading online travel brand, Expedia works closely with like-minded brands to improve and elevate the online shopping experience. We are proud to partner with ShopBack and with the launch of ShopFest, we hope to add more value and savings to consumer’s year-end travel experiences,” Agnes Eng, Head of Brand Marketing, Southeast Asia, Brand Expedia shared.
Halif Hamzah, Country Manager for travel booking platform Traveloka in Malaysia and Singapore, disclosed that based on observations, there is an average of 50% increase in Q4 transactions compared to the previous quarter. “Consumers tend to buy in group during year-end as they travel with friends or family to spend holiday times together. By participating in ShopFest, we can provide affordable and easy access for a variety of airlines and hotel options,” he said.
According to Sharmeen, starting from 1st September, there will be online as well as on-ground activation for ShopFest powered by ShopBack and supportive e-retailers. To date, ShopBack has over 1 million users in Malaysia and the amount of cashback rewarded has exceeded RM25 million. To top it off, users are able to stack this atop their credit card’s cashback and transfer the money to their bank account once it gets validated. For more information, please visit https://www.shopfest.my or follow Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ShopBackMalaysia