(L-R): Ian Ho, Regional Managing Director of Shopee and YBhg. Dato’ Mohd
Shukrie Mohd Salleh, Group Chief Executive Officer, Pos Malaysia Berhad
In just 6 months after its December (2015) debut, the free-to-use Shopee platform now claims to have accumulated over 12 million users and over a million app downloads. In a bid to attract more sellers to its platform, Shopee Mobile Malaysia (SMM) has now introduced an additional perk: Free Shipping Program for everyone in Malaysia, covering both the East and the West. The perk is now live and should give sellers an additional incentive to keep using the already free-to-use Shopee platform; for now, there’s no listing fee and no commission fee to sell on the platform. Shopee Free Shipping Program was originally scheduled to end on the 30th of June 2016, but has now been extended to July 31st. The Shopee mall can be accessed via mobile web browser, as well as via its iOS and Android apps.
The Free Shipping Program grants sellers a capped subsidy of RM 8 and RM 11, for deliveries of items to West Malaysia and East Malaysia respectively. What this means is that, if the shipping fee for the product costs RM 10 and it’s to a location in West Malaysia, the seller will only get back RM 8 from that particular transaction and the buyer will be charged the additional RM 2. Being a subsidy, sellers will have to foot the shipping charges beforehand and will be reimbursed within 3 days after the buyer taps the ‘Order Received’ confirmation button; which is also the same time that sellers get paid for the purchases. Reimbursements will show up in the ‘Me > My Income’ page once it has been processed.
This new initiative, in collaboration with Pos Malaysia, is the result of Shopee’s commitment in empowering local entrepreneurs by reducing logistics-related hassles and costs. With the Free Shipping Program, would-be entrepreneurs and existing SMEs can concentrate on growing the business and redistribute their limited resources to more pressing needs; instead of having to manage the distribution aspect of their transactions.
With free shipping, Shopee is not only attractive to sellers, but also to buyers. Customers on both sides of Malaysia can now make purchases without additional charges and, in most cases, will only need to concentrate on the actual price of the product.
Prior to the launch, SMM had at first introduced a beta version of the programme to selected sellers back in May of this year. This was done in batches so as to allow the company to gauge the growth and the engagement rate of the programme. With the roll-out to all sellers, it is apparent that the results have been positive, and the extension of the promo period is also a sign that the initiative has received great feedback from both the sellers and buyers.
In addition to the Free Shipping Program, SMM also announced Shopee University, its free entrepreneurship programs and workshops. Shopee University provides guidance on running an online business as well as insights into the latest eCommerce trends for sellers. Curriculum includes in-depth look at best practices of selling on Shopee, such as into marketing methods, product photography, and supply chain optimisation.
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