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1-Page Summary of Alibaba

Overview

China is not only one of the world’s most rapidly developing countries with a booming economy; it also has advanced technology, including widespread internet and wifi.

But only decades ago, things looked very different. Jack Ma was born during this time and had a remarkably innovative mindset. He founded Alibaba, which is now one of the most valuable companies in China. It’s also incredibly successful at selling goods online to consumers in China. In these key points, you’ll learn how consumerism has changed over the years and what made his business so successful.

You will learn how Alibaba goes the extra mile to satisfy its customers by using webcams and toys, as well as Jack Ma’s expectations from his employees in return for offering free bikes and a beautiful artificial lake.

Big Idea #1: China’s consumer habits have been changing alongside the rise of online shopping.

Many people have conflicting opinions about China. The country is known to be a manufacturing giant, but it’s also known for having a powerful communist government.

Even though the economy of China is shifting toward consumerism, there’s a new trend emerging.

In the past, people in China spent very little money on consumer goods. The economy was mostly driven by businesses and government spending. Today, however, household spending makes up a larger percentage of the Chinese economy than it does in America.

The retail industry in China is changing. Back in 2009, only 27 shops were offering sales on Singles’ Day (11/11), but that number increased to 40,000 stores and 30,000 brands six years later.

One of the participating retailers was Alibaba. It specializes in online commerce, and during the first ten minutes of Singles’ Day in 2015, it made $1 billion in purchases.

Alibaba has been a leader in e-commerce. It’s growing rapidly as China embraces consumerism.

But, few people could have predicted just how successful Alibaba would become. Alibaba is often compared to Amazon, a popular shopping website in the United States. Just like many Chinese customers say you can buy anything on Taobao (one of Alibaba’s sites), they also say that about Amazon.

Alibaba is China’s most popular retailer. In fact, Amazon is only the United States’ twelfth-most popular retailer.

Alibaba is a giant in the e-commerce industry. It became so successful that it had the greatest IPO ever when it went public in 2014.

Big Idea #2: The secret to Alibaba’s success lies in free basic services and excellent customer service.

Alibaba has been very successful in China, but you might wonder what sets it apart from other online retailers. Alibaba’s competitive edge is that they provide free services to the merchants who use their sites.

Alibaba offers a free online marketplace for small businesses and merchants to sell their products. In fact, more than 9 million small businesses use Alibaba’s website to do just that.

If merchants want to have their products advertised on the site, they can pay for it.

Alibaba makes money by matching merchants with consumers. It’s a bit like Google, which matches advertisers to users. Merchants pay for clicks and visits to their product pages. With small budgets, this is an effective way for small businesses to advertise effectively online.

Alibaba also has a great customer service team. The company calls its customer service representatives “servants.” They act as mediators for any problems that may arise between customers and vendors, and they monitor the website to make sure everyone follows the rules.

Taobao’s popularity is due to its interactive shopping experience. The site has an advanced chat feature that allows customers and vendors to haggle over the price of a product via webcam, which Amazon does not offer. Taobao also offers free samples or even includes a toy in every package it sends out, both of which are unheard-of on Amazon.