Hobbled by the pandemic, the flow of outbound tourists has almost come to a halt. Data show that the number of visitors from abroad to Japan totaled 96,300 in the first half of this year, a sharp drop of 99.4% compared to the same period in pre-pandemic 2019. This has had a huge impact on a large number of Japanese retailers. In response to the sluggish cross-border tourism and the challenges facing the retail industry, WeChat Pay recently joined hands with merchants in Japan to roll out a Tokyo Parkour for Discounts-themed event, helping local merchants expand their online channels in China, attract more customers, and finally realize growth despite the ongoing downtrend. The effort has given Chinese shoppers access to affordable, high-quality Japanese goods. During the event, user traffic on merchant Mini Programs surged by 6,459%, while the number of transactions skyrocketed some 900%. Transactions increased 900%, driving cross-border growth for local merchants "I've received a big-amount coupon! Come on, girls!" one Chinese shopper passionately exclaimed in the message where she explained how to play the Tokyo Parkour mini game. Users who participate in the game via the WeChat Pay event can receive a voucher worth up to RMB88 without restrictions when visiting the Japanese websites. With the discount in hand, the shopper visited the special online page selling the Japanese goods, and stocked up on some of her favorite items. "I can't believe that I could find the stores in WeChat Mini Programs that I liked most during my earlier visit to Japan. I cannot go to Japan due to the pandemic, but I still can buy something from there online. This is really amazing." https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1601611/image.jpg The event the Chinese shopper participated in was the just-concluded Tokyo Parkour for Discounts promotion, which showcased Hankyu Hanshin Department Stores, Don Quijote, Tsuruha Drug, Sapporo Drug Store, Isetan Mitsukoshi, Kyoto Selection Mall and Gifu Prefecture Cross-Border Mall, among other merchants. During the 7-day campaign, the number of visitors on Mini Programs jumped by 6,459%, while transactions witnessed a nine-fold hike. Moreover, new visitors and new visitors completing sales on Mini Programs accounted for 80% or more of the activity in the two categories. Many merchants successfully enhanced their brand awareness and watched their businesses grow as they attracted a substantial number of new customers, injecting new vitality into Mini Programs. Notably, the average daily exposure received by Mini Program stores during the event was four times the average daily number of Chinese tourists visiting Japan before the onset of the pandemic. This also reflected the growing preference among Chinese shoppers to buy their favorite Japanese products online, given the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. "The campaign worked really well! WeChat Mini Programs helped merchants directly offer preferential prices and quality services to shoppers. Genuine communications and interactions make it easier to win the trust of consumers. Chinese buyers insist on authentic goods, and the accumulated good reputation facilitates the conversion of new customers. The rapid growth of WeChat Mini Programs will usher in a new era of e-commerce," said a spokesperson for Tsuruha Drug. WeChat Pay opens online access to digital cross-border direct marketing In the context of the pandemic, WeChat Pay, with 1.25 billion monthly active users, has increasingly become the first choice for merchants who wish to connect to the market, with ever more merchants choosing the WeChat Mini Program ecosystem as the vehicle for their online business. During the Tokyo Parkour for Discounts promotion, WeChat Pay not only delivered a fun game experience to Chinese users, but also boosted business growth for merchants by satisfying their diverse needs for online transaction scenarios and effectively providing them exposure, traffic flow and growth. WeChat Pay's massive traffic numbers and the support it offers through its own promotional campaigns, provides merchants with a variety of marketing options, such as Mini Program live streaming, video accounts, WeChat address authorization, exclusive merchant pages designed to reach shoppers in specific overseas market, and other forms of market support, helping Japanese merchants grow their online businesses. Next, WeChat Pay plans to assist domestic cross-border merchants in achieving smart operations. Amid the pandemic, the venue where Japanese products are sold has shifted to cross-border e-commerce, according to a report by Nikkei Online. Statistics from the Japan External Trade Organization shows that the volume of transactions through the cross-border e-commerce management and supervision platforms of China Customs in 2020 increased by 63% when compared to 2019. Contact: Damon, damonzeng@tencent.com Source: WeChat Image Attachments Links: Link: https://iop.asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=399151