How to sell smart appliances on JD.com?

With about 80% of China’s families having used at least 1 smart appliance in their daily life in 2020 (15% more than in 2019) and the continuous rise of AI in the society, it is rather easy to understand why this market is extremely promising. It is also worth noting that as of 2021 Q1, China is generating most of the revenue for the industry.

China’s smart appliance market is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 45.3 percent between 2017 and 2022 and is likely to have a value of 162.7 billion yuan ($23.6 billion) by 2022

Marketing to china

Companies like Panasonic and its smart mirror, or the Haier Group, which offers a fridge that recognizes and catalogs food through what should be “facial” recognition, see the great potential and an economic source in China, in fact, all these companies want to increase their presence in China because the demand for everything that is technological and connectable is high.

From bicycle sharing to moneyless payments, China has evolved impressively over the last few years in a thousand facets. In-home appliances, entrepreneurs, and engineers compete for the next great idea in internet-connected products.

That’s why entering a smart market is a smart choice, but smart must also be the path you want to take.
One of the easiest ways to open a foreign business in China is online, but you also need to choose the right channel and the right platform. One of the most important is JD.com

Overview of China’s Smart Home Appliance Market

China is the king of global e-commerce. In 2019 it achieved  $1.93 trillion in e-commerce sales, making it the largest online shopping market in the world. And one of the market’s key players in the e-commerce market in China is JD.com. Indeed it is the country’s second-largest B2C online retailer and the closest rival to the market leader, Tmall.

Electronics and home appliances are one of the strongest product segments for JD and the company even has 10,000 retail stores selling these items. JD is also well-known for acquiring large electronic store chains in China. For example, it bought 46% of the large appliance retail chain, Five Star, valued at USD 190 million in 2019. Examples of specific products that are in high demand include vacuum cleaners, shavers, mixers, vacuum sealers, and more.

JD topped online sales of home appliances in 2019, according to a report on China’s Home Appliances Market released by the China Electronics and Information Industry Development Research Institute. JD accounted for 22.39% of the market share, while Suning and Tmall ranked second and third, respectively. China’s home appliance retail sales market reached RMB 891 billion in 2019 with the penetration of online sales reaching 41.17%, the first time to surpass 40%.

The outbreak of COVID-19 has had a negative impact on the sales of offline retailers, but also on online sales of home appliances. JD recently announced several measures to support home appliance brands and merchants throughout the COVID-19 epidemic, including lowering barriers of entry for merchants to join JD.com, decrease of platform operating fees and providing support to partners, including logistics, advertising, health, finance, traffic and others.

Why Chose JD to Sell your Smart Home Appliances Brand in China

JD is one of the most popular international ecommerce platforms in China: the commercial coverage covers the territory of well over 80 foreign countries, which include America, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Australia, France, Germany. JingDong provides an impressive database: over 8.5 million items available in stock, over 18400 foreign brands selected to retain Chinese consumers.

As of December 23, 2017, on the site it appeared that over 4500 retailers had joined the online sales service on JD.com, offering a vast assortment of products of various kinds. From products for mothers and children to health and wellness products, through cosmetics, watchmaking, furniture, imported food, car accessories, and many others.

At the moment retailers who have a B2C and B2B commercial organization are the most requested commercial partners of JD.com.

JD.com is one of the most competitive Chinese platforms due to the high number of sellers and SKUs (stock-keeping units). Sellers who do not invest in promoting sales using digital marketing can’t place their articles through JD.com. To have good visibility and sell thanks to the image of your brand you must try to direct traffic to the pages of the store.

To sell Smart Appliance Device on JD work on your Brand Awareness & Reputation

JD.com enjoys excellent popularity in China, above all thanks to the very short delivery times, competitive prices, and the wide range of products offered. JD.com dominates above all the market for electronic products and fresh food. Delivery times are the fastest in the whole country.

Consumers who need to buy a product with a certain urgency almost always turn to JD.com. They know they are cheap and can take advantage of the same-day delivery service (available for most products purchased by 11 am).

JD has a reputation superior to that of Alibaba in the fight against counterfeit products. Thanks to its network, JD is able to better control movements within its inventory. While Alibaba, due to the logistics entrusted to third parties, has some difficulties in controlling the movement of products.

JD operating models

JD operates on two basic models:

Pre-purchase of products from the supplier: JD assumes responsibility for aspects such as international logistics, customs aspects, warehousing, product page design, marketing, and after-sales services.

Brands can open a store and manage operations: Operations include customer service, landing page, and product page design, marketing, and after-sales services.
 

Sellers: JD is interested in partnerships with direct suppliers, but also works with trading companies with the necessary permits to distribute the products on behalf of the supplier.

Logistics: JD offers its international logistics services, including freight transport, compliance with customs duties, warehousing and delivery to the buyer.

Exclusive: JD.com often requests exclusivity on online sales (not valid for offline distribution). So sellers can sell their products only on JD and not on other platforms like Tmall. However, suppliers can get around this obstacle by creating different brands for an identical product. For example, a company that produces milk can create two brands using the same formula giving JD the exclusivity for selling a single brand and selling the other product on another e-commerce site.

Payment services for customers: Payments for products on JD are made via JD Pay and WeChat Wallet.

We help you sell your Smart Home Appliance on JD

• Business Registration in China
• Selling Licence
• JD Registration
• Logistics
• Promotion & Branding