Philippines — Union Bank of the Philippines, whose digital banking division services micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and major e-commerce platform Lazada, have collaborated to enable online sellers to have more options when it comes to bringing their products closer to customers.

With the memorandum of agreement signed last 10 March 2022, UnionBank, through its digital MSME online platform UnionBank GlobalLinker (UBGL), will be creating a special site for all Lazada sellers, while the latter will be doing the same for UBGL sellers. All existing Lazada sellers prior to the partnership will be automatically included.

According to UBGL and Lazada, the joint initiative aims to encourage more sign-ups in both of their respective marketplaces. It will help entrepreneurs expand their online presence much easier, as enlisting with either platform automatically opens up another virtual storefront for them, resulting in more opportunities in doing business with customers.

Signing up offers numerous benefits to sellers. First, they will have access to a dedicated Lazada Onboarding Team. This crew can provide guidance on a number of ideas ranging from selling to strategies; help those who have questions or concerns, and notify sellers about the latest initiatives within the Lazada platform.

In addition, sellers can utilize the following campaign features for free: Members Exclusive Campaign in the home page banner, landing page, and Lazada live, New Seller Campaign Access, and Mega Campaign Access. The first 150 signups will also enjoy service marketplace packages amounting to more than PHP1m in support. These include product photography, product upload, and store builder design, among others.

Lazada will likewise be promoting the UnionBank GlobalLinker platform to its own Lazada Seller Community, so that they too, can reap the benefits of the UBGL Platform.

Jaypee Soliman, vice president and head of SME and Micropreneurs Segment for UnionBank, said that right now, we are, without a doubt, in the golden age of e-commerce in the country.

“We want more enterprising Filipinos to thrive in this period of exponential growth for online shopping, which is why our enhanced partnership with Lazada is very timely. This is all part of our efforts to support the country’s MSME sector, bolster our “Tech-Up Pilipinas” advocacy, and promote inclusive prosperity for Filipinos,” Soliman said.

Carlos Barrera, chief operating officer of Lazada Philippines, commented, “With more MSMEs going online, the partnership with UnionBank is definitely a great step forward in enabling Filipino businesses to grow and scale their e-commerce presence. As we go into our 10th year of empowering MSMEs to go digital, we share an equal mission with UnionBank to continue to uplift Filipino entrepreneurs and further fuel the local digital economy.”

Lazada has been a consistent partner of UnionBank in backing the country’s MSME sector and making online shopping easier for customers since 2020. During the peak of the health crisis, the two companies provided an emergency credit lifeline to Lazada sellers who were heavily affected by the pandemic. In August of the same year, they launched the UnionBank Lazada Credit Card, providing numerous perks to Lazada shoppers.

Manila, Philippines – As the month of June draws to an end, the observance and celebration of Pride Month is still on a roll in the country, a society that despite the growing movement to recognize the LGBTQIA+ community, still experiences stigma due to the conservative Catholic nature in the country. As a result, many in the LGBTQIA+ community tend to say ‘sorry’ for who they are.

Such is the message the Philippine arm of e-commerce platform Lazada aims to put across in its latest campaign in celebration of Pride Month.

Released as part of its newest short film series ‘Apology’, the first campaign shows three separate instances of members of the LGBTQIA+ community being stared down or perhaps misjudged, prompting them to say ‘sorry’. Then, on a positive note, the campaign shifts to its core message of understanding others, self-acceptance and love.

The film series is directed by esteemed filmmaker, Pepe Diokno.

“We at Lazada Philippines believe that Pride represents values such as inclusion and unity that should be embraced every single day. For 2021, we wanted to continue encouraging Filipinos to do their part in nurturing a culture where diversity is celebrated, inclusion is valued, and respect is championed,” said Neil Trinidad, chief marketing officer at Lazada Philippines.

As part of its Pride Month celebration, Lazada Philippines will bring together and spotlight talented artists from the LGBTQIA+ community through a series of live streamed events with ‘Pride is Alive’ from 23 to 27 June. From a live fashion and drag show to a make-up tutorial session and live talk sessions, consumers can enjoy a series of celebrations with film director Antoinette Jadaone, writer and actor Juan Miguel Severo, chef and author Clyde San Pedro, Cebu fashion designers, and drag queens Eva Papaya, Ms. Letket, Precious, Eken, Turing & Bench.

In addition, Lazada Philippines also teamed up with platform LoveYourself, Inc., to showcase a special Milkwear x LoveYourself Pride Month capsule collection where all proceeds from the sale will benefit LoveYourself, Inc.’s HIV awareness and free-testing projects.

Noel Evasco, head of partnerships at LoveYourself Inc. adds, “We are grateful to have this partnership with Lazada that allows us to not only be able to expand our reach to more people but to also continue spreading the message that now more than ever, we need to do our part in nurturing a culture that allows people to thrive authentically as they are.”

Manila, Philippines – As the Philippine arm of e-commerce platform Lazada celebrates the middle of this year, they have recently appointed Philippine actor Alden Richards as its latest brand ambassador, which coincides with Lazada’s upcoming ‘6.6 Mid-Year Sale’ happening from 6 to 8 June.

Richards, who is recently signed as an actor to Philippine media network GMA, is best known for his multiple roles on Filipino television, including as on-screen partner of Philippine actress Maine Mendoza on the popular TV segment ‘Juan For All, All For Juan’ on noontime show ‘Eat Bulaga’. Aside from his roles on TV series such as ‘Ilustrado’, ‘Victor Magtanggol’, and ‘Destined to be Yours’, he is also a recording artist, entrepreneur, and online gaming streamer.

“I am very grateful to be a part of the Lazada family. I had the opportunity to work with them for their Birthday Super Sale last March, and I loved how everyone was just so excited and engaged. I’m definitely looking forward to this year’s 6.6,” the actor stated.

Meanwhile, Neil Trinidad, chief marketing officer of Lazada Philippines, commented, “We are half-way through the year and as we kick-off our 6.6 Mid-Year Sale with Alden, Lazada wants to turn this shopping festival into an opportunity to re-ignite hope and inspiration. We hope that our customers will continue to celebrate making it this far and finding ways to thrive during a very challenging time.”

Richards joins other local brand ambassadors of Lazada in the current lineup such as local actress Kathryn Bernardo, Philippine pop group SB19, and social media star Mimiyuuuh

The upcoming Lazada 6.6 Mid-Year Sale will allow shoppers in the Philippines to join, play, and stand to win ₱10m worth of vouchers and prizes on Lazada’s ‘6.6 Game-Game Super Show! 6.6 Sa Premyo at 6.6 Sa Saya’ this 5 June at 10:15PM, which will be livestreamed on LazLive on the Lazada app and GMA Network, and will be hosted by the whole lineup of Lazada Philippines’ brand ambassadors.

Manila, Philippines – The Philippine arm of e-commerce platform Lazada has announced that Philippine pop group SB19 is the brand’s newest brand ambassador in the country.

The all-boys group, composed of five members Sejun, Stell, Josh, Justin, and Ken, will join existing Lazada brand ambassadors actress Kathryn Bernardo, and social media star Jeremy Sancebuche, also known as ‘Mimiyuuuh’.

The group SB19 is known for their tracks “Alab”, “Go Up” and “Hanggang Sa Huli”.

“We are very honored and happy to now be part of the Lazada family. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to represent the brand we truly admire,” SB19 stated in Lazada Philippines’ press statement.

The new brand ambassadors will premiere on Lazada Philippines’ ongoing campaign #NasaLazadaYan, where they will join fellow brand ambassador Mimiyuuuh on January 20 for the launch of Lazada Philippines’ music video of the campaign.

“With their vibrant, encouraging, and unique individual personalities, SB19 definitely lends their energetic and fresh youth to our already dynamic roster of Lazada Ambassadors in the Philippines. We hope that our customers would also be inspired by the band’s enthusiasm and passion,” said Neil Trinidad, Lazada Philippines’ chief marketing officer

The newest marketing campaign encourages online shoppers of the platform to shop conveniently for the best products, price points, brands, and sellers through Lazada’s smart ranking where suggested products are ranked based on the preference and experiences of millions of shoppers, as well as Lazada’s unique personalization technology where relevant products are recommended based on the shopper’s search behavior.

“With shopping behaviors of Filipinos dramatically shifting online since the onset of the pandemic, Lazada remains committed to providing the best service and shopping experience to our customers. With Nasa Lazada Yan, we want to provide Filipinos the ease of finding what they need to tackle their to-do lists all with the help of the Lazada app,” Trinidad added.

Manila, Philippines – Local telecommunications company Globe, through its SME arm myBusiness, is launching its annual #GiftLocal campaign to encourage local support from micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME).

The campaign further encourages that Filipino consumers should buy gifts from local MSMEs, especially with the forthcoming holiday seasons this year. This is accompanied by Globe myBusiness’ partnership with e-commerce platform Lazada to host a three-Day e-Bazaar that will feature partner MSMEs such as Bayongciaga, Punta Riviera Resort, Old World Food Enterprise, and Robi & Peach RTW clothing.

“This year’s Gift Local campaign will serve an even greater purpose, as we feature the products of our SME partners that will delight Filipino customers for their gift giving celebration, while supporting our local SMEs bounce back in these challenging times,” Maridol Ylanan, Globe myBusiness strategy and marketing head stated.

In addition to online presence, Globe myBusiness will also feature products from their partner MSMEs to partner malls such as Ayala Malls and SM Premier Malls.

The annual #GiftLocal campaign coincides with the government’s “Ingat Angat Tayong Lahat” advocacy that pushes private corporations and SMEs to build consumer confidence to rebuild the Philippine economy.

Manila, Philippines — Earlier this month, Lazada Philippines, launched its newest service Lazada Sponsored Solutions which enables brands and sellers to increase customer engagement and visibility on the platform. Leveraging Lazada’s technology capabilities, these solutions were crafted to help sellers market their products efficiently with their relevant audience, optimizing return on investment.

The services offered under Lazada Sponsored Solutions include: 

  • Sponsored Search – About 30 million searches are made by shoppers on Lazada every day and about 50% of sales start from the search bar. Sponsored Search gives brands & sellers the opportunity to boost their product’s visibility and reach customers in the search results page.
  • Sponsored Affiliate –allows brands & sellers to tap Lazada’s pool of over 3,000 affiliates and their vast networks. The cost per sale model guarantees that brands only pay when a sale is made, making it an efficient marketing investment.
  • Sponsored Display – offers increased visibility on Lazada’s online assets, including homepage banners, app pushes, electronic direct mail, and more. 

“At Lazada, our goal is to find effective solutions to help our brands and sellers boost their marketing strategy through our platform and our technology. In this first half of the year, we onboarded almost two times more brands and sellers compared to 2019, hence it is imperative we continue to improve and add new solutions to the roster that allows existing and new partners to grow their businesses on Lazada,” said Neil Trinidad, Lazada Philippines Chief Marketing Officer

Utilizing the service during the recent 6.6 Bounce Back Sale was brand partner Coocaa that saw six-times more store traffic which resulted in an increase of 300-times more sales. The brand also emerged as a top performer in the electronics category during the 6.6 campaign. 

“Lazada’s Sponsored Search gave us better traffic and boosted our overall campaign results. With the results of the recent 6.6 Bounce Back campaign, we are keen to sustain such a cost-effective onsite solution,” said Cayla Li, Coocaa Philippines Business Manager. 

TinyBuds Business Unit Head for Baby Care, Lorina Tan agreed, “Utilizing Sponsored Search was a gamechanger for us as we launched our new products during the campaign. We achieved one of our highest return of investment with about 85% increase in sales.”

L’Oreal, one of the platform’s biggest brand partners, managed to leverage a record GMV sell-out for all of their brands within just a month using Lazada Sponsored Solutions.

“We saw a significant increase in visitors & page views with Sponsored Display, maximized the targeting capabilities of the CRM tool, and gained significant exposure for our newly-launched product on Sponsored Affiliate and Sponsored Search. The tools are straightforward and easy to use, and the Lazada Marketing Solutions team is always ready to help provide insights & recommendations to further optimize performance!,” said, Steve Ladan, L’Oreal CPD Group Platform Manager.

Apart from brands, Lazada’s partnership with media agency GroupM has also proven to become a cost-effective marketing solution for their roster of clients. “Sponsored Solutions is an essential component of the eCommerce ecosystem when it comes to driving stronger return on investment. With these tools, it enables us to take advantage of the massive organic traffic on Lazada to gain more visibility and grow our clients’ sales,” said Laurent Goirand, GroupM Head of Digital.

Trinidad added, “We are happy to hear great feedback on Lazada Sponsored Solutions even though it is a new tool. Lazada is constantly innovating and creating effective tools to aid our partner merchants as more SMEs diversify their retail strategy with online selling.”