Research E-commerce User Experience in China
From copying western online shopping sites to creating its own eco-system, China’s online shopping experience has changed dramatically during the last 10 years. In this case study, we want to share what we have learned from Chinese consumers to uncover why China has developed its unique way of online shopping.
Spend more time on browsing
Today, Chinese users go to Taobao and Jingdong not only to buy things but also to keep up to date with fashion trends, seek out the best discounts, and look for products that are a perfect fit. This can be credited to the efforts of the Chinese e-commerce industry in promoting UGC in the online shopping experience
Taobao and Jingdong are known for their content-heavy homepage and now create different themes on their home page, such as发现好货，魅力装扮，我型我塑，每日好店. Each theme leads users to a new, well-designed page with tons of products and online stores. Therefore, users can spend more time clicking around and browsing around the online stores that they are interested in, much like they do in real stores. The experience becomes more entertaining and practical.
Closed loop - Knowing, buying and sharing, all in one place
China’s Post ‘80s and ‘90s generation of people are highly attached to KOLs on Weibo, WeChat, and other forms of social media. E-commerce based on the KOLs is growing fast. According to the Weibo Big Data, Weibo Show Window ’s monthly trading volume in the second quarter of 2017 increased by 106.9% compared to the second quarter of 2016. Being aware of this, Taobao and Jingdong seized the opportunity by building their own online community and live stream service.
Today, Taobao and Jingdong heave become one-stop shops which close the entire shopping loop. Users can follow KOLs on these sites to find products to reduce switching between apps and websites and drop-outs. Users can gather product information and finish purchase just on a single streamlined shopping platform.
Trust customer reviews and certificates
Chinese users feel insecure if products are genuine. It is because Taobao used to have a long history of selling fake products. The U.S. Trade Representative put Taobao on its blacklist for the second year and the owner of the Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent brands sued Alibaba in New York federal court in 2015. Therefore, users rely on reviews from other real users, certificates, and international awards to make a purchasing decision.
• Chinese users want to see customer reviews, especially bad reviews which expose flaws a vendor may hide, in order to prevent themselves from encountering similar issues.
• Chinese users see official certificates as the guarantee of a genuine product. At the same time, they also expect to see third-party certificates and international awards which makes them think that the products are good and worth buying.
Expect to see detailed and comprehensive product information
In Taobao and Jingdong, displaying detailed information about brands, product figures and usage scenarios are mandatory. It is because the information helps users to make a decision. Large population from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities are at the stage of acquiring brand knowledge. They are eager to learn more when browsing online for the first time. The detailed information let them know if the products fit them and if they are worth buying. It is also because the websites with comprehensive information are more official which makes users trust them more.