The 10th year of the Singles Day shopping festival was a success in the Philippines, specifically in terms of brand engagement on social media.
Lazada Philippines was the most talked about e-commerce brand with a 61.2 percent score and followed by Shopee with 35.4 percent, according to a study of social media conversations.
Intelligence firm Meltwater recorded this from November 6 to 12 based on all public conversations across social media in the country.
It stated that social conversations peaked on Sunday, November 11 or on the day of the sale. There was a 160-percent jump in social media mentions of Lazada, while Shopee saw a rise in mentions by 85.67 percent.
For Meltwater, the impressive numbers showed how the event is one of “the biggest shopping holidays in the region.”
“It is extremely reflective of the changing way consumers are shopping. In line with this change, brands have this year doubled down harder on digital-first marketing strategies like influencer marketing and social selling,” said Mimrah Mahmood, regional director of the agency.
The massive deals offered that day caused a mixture of emotions expressed by many Filipinos online.
Based on these posts, the names of Lazada, Shopee, Zalora, Althea Korea and Beauty MNL are the ones circulated around on Twitter and Facebook.
i never thought i'd say "may sale sa lazada" out loud ever but yes MAY SALE SA LAZADA
— millennial of manila (@MillennialOfMNL) November 11, 2018
beautymnl: 11.11 SALE ‼️📢🤑🛍
lazada: 11.11 SALE ‼️📢🤑🛍
zalora: 11.11 SALE ‼️📢🤑🛍
althea: 11.11 SALE ‼️📢🤑🛍
shoppee: 11.11 SALE ‼️📢🤑🛍
me n my bank account: pic.twitter.com/G4orkmIqnt— ✨ alexa-nta claus 🤶🏻🎄 (@tamondongalexa) November 11, 2018
One Facebook page even shared an album of memes that tell the struggle of saving money during sale season.
A previous study from Meltwater revealed that 30 percent of the total social media buzz in online shopping came from the Philippines.
It ranked second behind neighbor Indonesia, which provided 57 percent, during the seasons of Christmas, Black Friday and Singles Day.
Online shops on Singles Day in the Philippines
Lazada, Shopee and Zalora are the three e-commerce brands with the most social media engagements from November 6 to 12, data from Meltwater showed.
Lazada had a share of voice of 7,300, Shopee with 4,200 and Zalora with 407. Share of voice is a tool that provides insights on the amount of media coverage a brand or product is getting compared to its competitors.
Meltwater found that Lazada’s best performing posts were those that mention discounts and giveaways. These were typically shared in the afternoon.
“It’s beneficial for retailers in the Philippines to tailor their posts during the holidays to include messaging that announces money-saving promotions and deals or giveaways and that are scheduled to be posted in the afternoon or evening,” Meltwater said.
While the sale on Lazada had since passed, Shopee, Zalora and Beauty MNL still has a few discounted products left.
Origins of Singles Day
Singles Day or 11.11 is originally not a commercial event.
It started off as a simple anti-Valentine’s Day celebration for students of Nanjing University in China in 1993.
The date November 11, written as 11.11, was chosen since it resembles four separate sticks. The occasion is then formerly called “Bare Sticks Holiday.”
It was Chinese billionaire Jack Ma, the founder of the e-commerce and electronics giant Alibaba, who adopted it and turned it into a global shopping affair in 2009.
A Forbes report describes Singles Day as the Asian version of US-based holiday sales Black Friday and Cyber Friday, but racking up even bigger profits.
In the Philippine online market, Lazada, co-owned by Alibaba, Shopee and Zalora are still the top three leading brands.
There are local platforms that are gaining traction, though. These are lifestyle stores Beauty MNL and tech marketplace Kimstore.
