Vĩnh Long Province’s Chợ Lách Commune has employed a pilot model that aims to promote local products and increase their sales by creating a rural e-commerce ecosystem on TikTok. Photo baotintuc.vn

VĨNH LONG — A pilot e-commerce model has been launched in Chợ Lách Commune, Vĩnh Long Province, using TikTok to build a rural e-commerce ecosystem, increase sales, and promote local products.

At its launch on August 17, Trần Quốc Tuấn, director of the province Department of Industry and Trade, said e-commerce was a pioneering sector of the digital economy.

The pilot aims not only to increase the number of online shops and sales livestreams, but also to equip businesses with sustainable digital business skills at grassroots level, he said.

Businesses in Chợ Lách hope to digitalise their brands, bring local products online, and form a community of digital sellers through the model, hopefully connecting with customers year-round instead of relying on seasonal sales.

The pilot will run until December.

During the first three months, it will support at least 60 businesses in standardising a minimum of 20 products, operating TikTok channels and TikTok Shops to sell local products, and processing online orders.

The model focuses on equipping businesses with the skills needed to sustain digital operations after the pilot ends.

The department has provided guidance and coordinated with commune-level people's committees to implement the model.

TikTok Shop, the Vietnam E-commerce Association, the provincial Post Office, and other partners are providing support with platforms, training, communications, and logistics.

After the initial support phase, the commune is expected to have the accounts, data, processes, content, and personnel needed to operate the model independently.

The model has three main aims: creating and maintaining a community of sellers; improving sellers' digital literacy so they can build channels, produce videos, host sales livestreams, and process online orders; and establishing a shared communications channel to promote local products through stories about them and the artisans, farmers, and manufacturers behind them. 

Another key feature is a streamlined process for online sales, covering product standardisation, digital branding, online promotion, payments, logistics, and delivery.

The results will provide a basis for refining and expanding the model to other localities in the province in 2027-30, while supporting the development of the digital economy at the grassroots level.

Tuấn urged the Chợ Lách Commune People's Committee to encourage all 15 hamlets in the commune to adopt the model, help local businesses identify products with market potential, and provide timely support.

He also called on relevant agencies and partners to align their plans with local conditions and prioritise skills transfer. 

Production households, cooperatives, and businesses should take the initiative in adopting the model and raising awareness of their brands among customers, helping promote local products, he said.

Lê Thị Hoàng Oanh, secretary of the Chợ Lách Commune Party Committee, said households and businesses in the area had begun selling online, producing content, and hosting livestreams for a wide range of products.

This provides a foundation for the model to gradually introduce new ways of working that are better suited to local production, she added.

At the ceremony, partner organisations outlined the implementation roadmap and provided guidance on setting up storefronts, operating TikTok Shop, and using the platform's sales functions.

They also introduced video formats suited to products from the Chợ Lách-Vĩnh Long region and provided guidance on video production and developing TikTok channels.

The partners also presented logistics solutions, including order fulfilment, packaging, and shipping, and outlined plans to establish local collection points for e-commerce goods.

The initiative is part of the province's efforts to implement the Politburo's Resolution 57 on promoting science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation across sectors. —VNS