Leveraging sales during campaigns can be very profitable. I think you haven’t gone unnoticed of Black Friday, while Cyber Monday might seem new to you.
I often get contacted but companies that do their utmost to sell products cross-border on Tmall Global before 11.11. Nowadays, you’ll even find retail stores in Australia and Sweden that offer discounts during 11.11.
So what is 11.11, and maybe more interestingly, 12.12? In this article, I explain more about these events and how you can increase sales massively by joining these successful sales campaigns.
First, let’s have a brief overview of what 11.11 and 12.12 really mean practically.
What is 11.11?
11.11, November 11th, is the (unofficial) Single’s Day in China and celebrated among millions of young Chinese people, who take “pride of being single”.
In the past years, Alibaba Group (the owner of Tmall and Lazada) has started to use 11.11 to launch massive sales campaigns and seen great success. It’s moved over the Chinese borders to Southeast Asian countries.
You can look at it like Asia’s Black Friday, even if sales volumes tend to be much higher.
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- Selling on Tmall & Lazada
- Logistics & fulfillment options
- Payment gateways
- Incorporation & trademarks
What is 12.12?
12.12 is the second sales event held one month after 11.11. Why not make hay while the sun shines?
12.12 isn’t as old as 11.11, still, it’s gained much attention, especially in Southeast Asia.
Why should I sell on Lazada during 11.11 and 12.12?
Missing out on 11.11 or 12.12 can be a big mistake as sales volumes increase 5-10 times on average during these days.
We’ve seen new sales records, year after year, and can expect the same results in the future.
With an increased wealth and internet and mobile penetration in ASEAN countries the trend seems irreversible for the time being.
How can I attend 11.11 and 12.12 as a cross-border seller?
You can sign up for the sales events in Seller Center and via Lazada’s Promotion Tool, sent out before the event starts.
Keep in mind that you can choose between two solutions when shipping your products to Lazada’s sortation center in Hong Kong:
- Prepare single unit packaging and Lazada labels before you send your products in bulks from, let’s say, United States or Europe to Hong Kong
- Ship your products in bulks to Hong Kong directly and let Timeslogistics take care of the re-labelling and re-packaging of your products. They can even pick up your goods at the airport in Hong Kong, if you prefer
In order to save time, it can be beneficial to prepare the packaging and labels in advance, before you make a larger shipment.
This will save you time in case of unexpected sales pikes during the event days.
This is not required though and using the second option can be sufficient. Building up a safety stock of 3~5 times the regular sales amount is needed to meet the increased sales.
Key dates for sellers during 11.11 and 12.12
Below I’ve included important dates divided into preparation phases, teasing phases, and the sales campaigns.
The dates can change from year to year, so be sure to double check the dates.
1. Preparation phase
- Until ~Oct 31st: Sign up for Deals in Seller Center
- Oct 31 ~ Nov 2: Lazada final decision of deals to be featured
- Nov 2 ~ 9: Check stock levels, content revamp
2. Teasing phase
Nov 1 ~ 10: Activate Teasing Time to let potential clients fill up “wish list”.
3. Campaign launch (11.11)
Nov 11: Sales starts. Requires continuous monitoring, replenishing, and performance tracking.
In the Philippines, the event is held from 9-11th of November.
4. Second teasing phase
Dec 4 ~ 11: Activating second Teasing Time to let potential clients fill up “wish list” until the 12.12 event. In Philippines, it continues from December 1st – 6th.
5. Campaign launch (12.12)
The second campaign takes place and continues until December 14th (in the Philippines, it continues from December 7th – 12th).
What should I do during the preparation phase?
Taking part as a seller during 11.11 and 12.12 requires much attention and preparations.
Below, you’ll find valuable tips related to the preparation phases that take place before the sales events starts.
As informed by Lazada:
- Try to arrange dedicated packing areas, areas to mark products and to manage labelling in your warehouse. If you need temporary supporting staff, train them well and print a shelf map if needed
- Pre-pack best-selling products according to Lazada’s standards, to assure that the products can be sent out quickly once these arrive in Hong Kong
- Control and confirm that your internet and printers work perfectly. This is only needed in case you want to pack and label your products according to Lazada standards, before the products arrive in Hong Kong. Timeslogistics can pick up your goods in bulks at Hong Kong’s airport, so it’s up to you as a seller
- Contact your logistic contacts in your home country in advance to make plans about the coming shipments. Request bigger trucks if needed
Managing sales during 11.11 and 12.12
Below I’ve listed other valuable tips related to how you can prepare for the sales events.
- Pre-pack products to allow faster dispatch, once the products arrive in Hong Kong
- Have close contact with your logistics companies, in case sales volumes increase quickly
- Send a large shipment to Hong Kong, prior to the sales events (3~5 times the regular expected sales volumes)
- Choose your top selling products for the campaign
- Ensure that you have your sales team on duty during weekend to manage unexpected issues and stock levels
- Join the online training for the campaign, as provided by Lazada
Managing returns during 11.11 and 12.12
Returns are managed as usual and via Lazada’s re-routing program.
In short words, if a customer returns a product, it will be kept at a local cross-border venture for up to four weeks, ready to be dispatched to another seller.
The re-routing program is not available in Singapore, thus, your products will be sent back to Timeslogistics sortation center directly.
Vietnam, on the other hand, use the re-routing program but doesn’t accept any returns to sellers at all.
Lazada’s Promotion Tool
A Promotion Tool will be available in all Seller Centers prior to the events. The prices need to be lower than the past 30 days.
The minimum discounts required will be shown in the Promotion Tools on a country basis.
What should I do if Lazada rejects my deals?
You can revise rejected deals and submit them again, as long as it’s done before the submission deadline.
The results from 11.11 and 12.12 in 2018
Over 20 million shoppers bought products during the sales campaigns and with 1.2 million orders coming in during the first hour.
Some of the most popular brands include Enfa, Maybelline, RealMe, and L’Oréal Paris. The most popular product categories were mobile phones, diapers, milk powder, and beauty products.
We’ve seen some changes as people enjoy “having fun” while doing shopping during 11.11 and 12.12. Thus, Lazada has rolled out a number of games, like Slash it, Wonderland, and Shake it.
At the same time, a total of 50 million vouchers was handed out. If you check the search volumes on Google, “Lazada vouchers” is one of the top ranked terms used by consumers.
Below you’ll find the top selling products during 11.11 and 12.12 in 2018.
Top selling products in Indonesia 2018
- Maybelline Push Up Drama mascara
- Realme C1 (cellphone)
- Xiaomi power bank 25
Top selling products in Malaysia 2018
- Xiaomi power bank 25
- Milo (chocolate milk)
- Xiaomi Redmi 6A
Top selling products in the Philippines 2018
- Korean Roewe multifunction make-up pouch
- Shawl
- Korean cute puppy version girl ankle sock
Top selling products in Singapore 2018
- Nintendo Switch
- Logitech M220 silent wireless mobile mouse
- Xiaomi Mi Roborock 2
Top selling products in Thailand 2018
- Proclean spin mop 7
- Cooking oil
- Soya milk
Top selling products in Vietnam 2018
- Ensure Gold Vigor (nutrition shake)
- Xiaomi Redmi 6A
- Samsung Galaxy J7 Duo
Best selling brands during 11.11 and 12.12 in 2018
Below I’ve listed the top selling brands during 11.11 and 12.12 in 2018. Keep in mind that you might not be able to sell some of these product categories cross-border in ASEAN.
You should check, country-by-country, what products that are prohibited when selling cross-border.
Diapers
- Huggies
- Mamypoko
- Pampers
- Babylove
- Drypers
Home appliances
- Samsung
- LG
- Philips
- Sharp
- Coocaa
Make up
- Maybelline
- L’Oreal Paris
- M.A.C
- Laneige
- Wardah
Milk formula
- Enfa
- Pediasure
- S-26
- Promil
- Friso
Mobile phones
- Realme
- Samsung
- Xiaomi
- Apple
- Huawei
Skincare
- L’Oreal Paris
- Olay
- Laneige
- La Roche Posay
- Garnier
