COVID-19 has immensely changed the way we live, work, and consume. This is the first global pandemic of the digital age, and as Thailand continues to battle new financial stresses and challenges created by therecent resurgence of the virus, we know that many are spending more time online and the need to reach businesses is evolving even faster than usual.
In the region, economic recovery hinges on the survival of local businesses. For this to happen, they have needed to adapt quickly to customer needs and find ways to pivot their services. With our ongoing investment in business tools to enhance connection and experiences for people on our platforms, Facebook is committed to supporting businesses of all sizes to power through these challenging times.
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One reason why Thailand has seen incredible resiliency in its small-and-medium size businesses is the dramatic increase of conversational commerce in the market over the last five years, as local businesses recognize the power of personalized purchase journeys.
Thailand is a leader in conversational commerce, with personalized discussions occurring throughout the purchase journey – be it pre-purchase enquiries, shipping and billing details, and even customer support once the product has arrived.
Thais prefer a personal connection with the brands they shop with – and conversational commerce has allowed that desire to continue online. This has only increased further during COVID-19’s emergence: according to a 2020 Thailand Research Report by Facebook, 96% of Thais are open to contacting businesses via messaging apps.
It highlights how crucial it is for businesses of all sizes to learn and adapt to continually evolving trends to survive and remain resilient during the pandemic. Here are some of the key trends Thai businesses should consider for the remainder of 2021:
Generation Z becoming Thailand’s key consumers
Gen Z has exploded as a key consumer for Thai businesses over the last two years. Now moving into their second or third jobs, their spending power has increased, making them an important target audience for businesses.
As true digital natives, this generation values convenience and the latest innovative trends, with 83% of Thai Gen Zs preferring to contact businesses via messaging apps, compared to 60% for Baby Boomers and 75% for Gen X.
Gen Z also desires fun and relevant experiences when they shop online, meaning businesses should use dynamic and engaging tools such as short-form videos and Live shopping to capture their attention.
Retail Shopping, CPG and Entertainment lead the way for Conversational Commerce
As Thais shift further online during the latest wave of restrictions, the businesses gaining the highest connection with consumers on messaging apps are those providing Retail, CPG, Entertainment and Financial Services.
These preferences reflect the changing needs and desires of Thai consumers as they continue to stay safe and spend more time at home. Due to their creativity and pivoting to online channels, Thai businesses have been able to remain resilient and meet customer needs during the pandemic.
An example of this is BaanRaya, a Thai baby food startup. After implementing an automated chat experience and store management tool, they began receiving up to 300 daily customer leads on Messenger from Facebook. Despite limited resources to support mounting customer enquiries, they have been able to respond at scale, conversing with over 100,000 customers since building their business on chat and are continuing to grow at a flourishing pace.
Messaging increasingly an end-to-end solution for business
As more Thai consumers rely on digital channels for their shopping, so do their conversations with businesses online. Now, the average consumer contacts businesses throughout the entire purchase cycle, with 83% messaging them in the pre-purchase phase, 70% while purchasing and 58% post-purchase.
From discovery to post-purchase customer service, Messenger has developed into a viable end-to-end purchasing channel, meaning Thai businesses can personally guide customers through the entire journey without ever having to leave the chat.
In the pre-purchase phase, customers are using Messenger to enquire about products and FAQs. At the purchasing stage, Messenger helps businesses organize billing and shipping details, as well as receive payment in a single channel. Finally, during the post-purchase stage, Messenger allows customer support to provide order updates, shipping statuses and prompt feedback.
The power of Messenger as an end-to-end solution can be seen in the Thai home product brand HomeHuk. By implementing Click-to-Messenger Ads to increase leads, a chat experience with a live agent to enhance customer service, and an order and tracking management system with a Facebook Business Partner to program their retail operations, they were able to achieve a 47% conversion rate, 7x return on ad spend, and more than 19,000 orders placed via Messenger each month.
These key trends mark a new era of commerce. As technology continues to innovate at an accelerating pace, one thing remains constant: we all want interactions that are human, personal, and seamless.
No matter the size of the business, Thai leaders and owners must ensure their companies are discoverable and conversational, catering to its key audiences, and incorporating best practices from leading industries. These are essential ingredients for Thai businesses to remain strong during the challenging pandemic and help revive the local economy.
Content Contributor: Prae Dumrongmongcolgul, Country Director, Facebook Thailand
