The growth of e-commerce in Malaysia can be assured due to the fact that over 50% of the entire population of the country relies only on online shopping via mobile devices to search, purchase, review and promote a product.
The biggest reasons behind the massive success of e-commerce in Malaysia consist of the fact that the products sold have a higher margin, user penetration for online shopping is expected to grow up to 53.1% by and the e-commerce revenue of the region is analyzed to reach almost at US$ 9,675m by 2025!
If we specifically analyze the growth rate of the different modes of e-commerce, then we see that each of the three modes of e-commerce viz a viz Cross Border, B2B and Domestic e-commerce (B2C) have their own strengths and differentiators in the Malaysian e-commerce ecosystem.
E-commerce Growth in Malaysia: Different E-commerce Selling Models
Cross Border E-commerce
Starting off with Cross Border e-commerce, the top countries in the list of every Malaysian online shopper include Singapore, Japan, the United States, South Korea and China from where a variety of products right from beauty to electronics are purchased and paid for via online transactions due to the superior safety and trust of consumers around Malaysia.
Seeing the opportunity, even the government has several business regimes and foreign business strategies in place to support Cross Border e-commerce in Malaysia, making the growth rate of this mode quite high.
B2B E-commerce
If we talk about the B2B e-commerce mode in Malaysia, the current numbers show a growth of USD 3.4 billion and indicate that B2B e-commerce is a quickly growing section for SMEs. Over 61% of small to medium businesses and brands trust the growth vertical of the B2B e-commerce mode in Malaysia and continue to adapt to high functioning technological advancements right from mobile shopping to online payments to enhance their products and services
B2C E-commerce
For the Domestic e-commerce or B2C e-commerce, Malaysia is turning out to be a profitable market as local businesses, sellers and retailers are being offered immense opportunities by the government to upscale their business offerings, rise cash flow, etc., to help them grow more and contribute towards Malaysia’s overall GDP.
With the strengthening of local as well as cross border e-commerce practices in Malaysia, the sellers, the consumers and the overall country is expected to become the next battleground for brands and businesses to provide the best of services to the shoppers, gain more and more profits and experience a vertical growth curve.
Latest E-commerce Trends in Malaysia
- Rapidly Growing Online Marketplaces
User penetrations for online shopping are expected to hit 53.1% by 2025 and so, as the online audience grows, multiple businesses, sellers and retailers are moving towards either creating their own websites for users to have an uninterrupted shopping experience or are integrating on leading marketplaces including Shoppe, Lazada, Zalora, 11Street, etc.
Post understanding the benefits of selling products via these online mediums, especially on marketplaces, brands and businesses have managed to experience the change in numbers for their sales, profits and overall growth.
- Booming Economy
Solely the e-commerce consumer goods market in Malaysia is expected to grow to US$5.9 billion by 2024, due to the huge mobile shopping audience. This indicates the rapidly growing economy of the nation which plays a key role in deciding the success of e-commerce businesses in the region.
As Malaysia is set to surpass even Singapore in being the fastest growing and immensely successful e-commerce market, the government of the country has put forth several policies and national laws to help brands and businesses to invest in the e-commerce arena and in turn strengthen the economy of the nation even further.
- Quality Over Price
Malaysian online shoppers prefer to buy high-value goods and services and can easily oversee the pricing put on a product if that suits their needs. This happens because of the relatively younger population of the nation in comparison to other South East Asian countries.
Also, as the frequency of customers shopping online is more than 59% a month in the region for major categories of Fashion, Electronics, Home Decor, Groceries, etc., it is quite evident that the market can substantially increase its revenue by simply providing good quality products no matter the rates.
- Flexibility to Try New Products
The audience of Malaysia is not afraid to try new things and as the major population comprises of youngsters, with a social influence bigger than anything in the region, businesses that offer unique, quirky and fun products will not vary of customers and can expect good profits.
Also, more than 95% of the Malaysian audience is pretty happy with the services and the kind of variety they can find whenever they shop online making it even better for niche businesses to go online and sell their products.
- Last – Mile & Same Day Delivery
Faster and last-mile delivery not only plays a crucial role in increasing the customer experience for any business, but for the Malaysian audience, it is a key factor because most of the population expects their online purchases to be delivered to them as much as in 3 days time.
These expectations form a basic requirement for any e-commerce business or seller to speed up their dispatch and shipping processes and to ensure that the products even reaches to the most remote customers.
E-commerce Strategies for Successful Business in Malaysia
New markets businesses, products and services are emerging at a very fast pace in Malaysia and in no time will the country define new avenues of e-commerce growth.
So what should you as an online seller or brand that is just starting their e-commerce journey do in order to make the most of the growing market?
Keeping in mind all the latest trends and developments going on in the Malaysian e-commerce industry. Here is a list of crucial strategies that you can adapt to and achieve greater results for your e-commerce business:
- Strengthen Your Social Media Presence
Due to a mobile-first audience, it is one of the most important factors to focus on your social media presence and interactions in for you wish to have a loyal and satisfied customer base.
- Sell on Multiple Leading Marketplaces & Own Website
By integrating with the big and multiple selling platforms present in the Malaysian e-commerce market, you can maximize your customer reach, strengthen your brand presence and increase your overall profitability.
- Ensure Wider & Diverse Product Range
When you are constantly working on building your brand presence and aiming to provide a seamless experience to your customers, one of the ways that could help you is to keep on adding, revising and maintaining your product listings.
- Manage Inventory in Real-time to Avoid Stock-outs or Dead Stocks
A proper inventory management solution will not only help you better track your inventory, but will ensure that you never run out of your products and always have fresh stocks ready to roll.
- Track Customer Behaviour and Preferences
Personalization is key for amplified sales and increased customer satisfaction and this can be done by rendering automated tracking systems that analyze your customer buying patterns, their choices and needs, etc., in order for you to give them useful suggestions.
- Provide Seamless Omnichannel Shopping Experience
Omnichannel is the newest and most effective way of providing streamlined services to your customers as it ensures that no matter where or from which medium your shoppers are browsing or purchasing items from, they always get the same user experience.
- Empower Your Warehouse Operations
To achieve higher sales, increase customer satisfaction and to enhance your serviceability, it is very important to strengthen your warehouse operations by utilizing a robust warehouse management system that allows you to improve order fulfilment, stock keeping, etc.
In Conclusion
Analyzing the trends in place and what strategies you should follow to empower your e-commerce business, the road to success in Malaysia is not too difficult to achieve only if you are determined and have a clear vision of where you want to be and what kind of services you want to offer.
Once you know what you want to achieve, having an e-commerce enablement solution by your side can truly make the difference as it takes care of all your supply chain needs right from inventory, order to warehouse management fulfils your Omnichannel requirements and much more!
Check out our blog which highlights in detail the biggest opportunities present in the Malaysian e-commerce market for you to become a successful online seller and the possible challenges you might face in your road to success.
Don’t wait up, get the right support and start your successful e-commerce journey today!