Thương mại điện tử xuyên biên giới: Xúc tiến các sản phẩm Việt Nam trên thị trường toàn cầu

CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE: PROMOTING VIETNAMESE
PRODUCTS TO THE GLOBAL MARKET
THƯƠNG MẠI ĐIỆN TỬ XUYÊN BIÊN GIỚI: XÚC TIẾN 
CÁC SẢN PHẨM VIỆT NAM TRÊN THỊ TRƯỜNG TOÀN CẦU
Nguyen Ha Minh Hanh – TS. Mai Hương Giang, PhD
Banking Academy
giangmh@hvnh.com.vn; minhhanh9998@gmail.com
Abstract
In the context of industrial revolution 4.0, cross-border e-commerce is an inevitable trend
of the world economy, and Vietnam is not an exception to that rule. To contribute some efforts to
shed light on its importance, this research has gone into a practical analysis of Vietnam’s export
cross-border e-commerce ecosystem. The concrete performance includes trading community,
service community and support community. Subsequently, channels of CBEC using marketplaces,
self-managed websites and multichannel to promote Vietnamese products to international markets
were analyzed. The results showed that cross-border e-commerce is of great strategic significance
to promote Vietnamese products to the global market. It was found that the number of Vietnamese
businesses selling through international marketplaces has been increased while the quality of
products being promoted through CBEC has been improved. Finally, the problems pointed out
in the previous article were confirmed, and the experience and lessons were summarized. At the
same time, some suggestions and recommendations were proposed to both businesses and Gov-
ernment bodies to promote the development of CBEC.
Keywords: cross-border e-commerce (CBEC); export cross-border e-commerce ecosys-
tem; marketplaces; social media; self-managed websites.
Tóm tắt
Trong bối cảnh cuộc cách mạng công nghiệp 4.0, thương mại điện tử xuyên biên giới là
một xu hướng tất yếu của thế giới, và Việt Nam không nằm ngoài xu hướng đó. Bài viết tập trung
nghiên cứu về “hệ sinh thái” thương mại điện tử xuyên biên giới, bao gồm nhóm thương mại,
nhóm dịch vụ và nhóm hỗ trợ. Tiếp theo, bài viết phân tích các kênh của thương mại điện tử
xuyên biên giới để đưa sản phẩm của Việt Nam ra thị trường nước ngoài bao gồm thị trường
trực tuyến, các trang mạng tự quản lý và kênh hỗn hợp. Kết quả chỉ ra rằng thương mại điện tử
xuyên biên giới là chiến lược đúng đắn nhằm giúp sản phẩm của Việt Nam tiếp cận thị trường
quốc tế. Cụ thể, số lượng doanh nghiệp bán hàng thông qua hình thức thương mại điện tử ngày
càng tăng lên, và chất lượng sản phẩm xuất xứ từ Việt Nam trên thị trường quốc tế ngày càng
được cải thiện. Từ đó, kết quả đúc kết lại các bài học kinh nghiệm cho lĩnh vực thương mại điện
tử của Việt Nam. Cuối cùng, bài viết đưa ra các gợi ý và đề xuất cho doanh nghiệp và chính phủ
nhằm hoàn thiện hoạt động thương mại điện tử này.
Từ khoá: Thương mại điện tử xuyên biên giới (TMĐTXBG); hệ sinh thái TMĐTXBG;
thị trường trực tuyến, phương tiện truyền thông mạng, trang mạng điện tử tự quản lý.
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1. Introduction
1.1. Research motivation 
There is no doubt that e-commerce market continues to develop swiftly, in spite of world
economic crisis and other negative effects. Businesses of all sizes are making every effort to find
partners from all around the world on the Internet and conducting their sales across borders
through online channels. It is clear that cross-border e-commerce has its popularity increasing
and has been widely adopted by small and medium enterprises in recent years, especially for
which in developing economies like Vietnam. The statistics of “White paper on Vietnamese en-
terprises” show that small and medium enterprises accounts for 97,21% of all enterprises in Viet-
nam, so their search for new export markets will be a motivation for developing the e-commerce
industry and the economy. Vietnamese merchants are attracted to global e-marketplaces which
allow customers to search for a broader variety of products and enable international sales at low
cost. According to Amazon traders, Vietnam has great potential to develop CBEC thanks to its
manufacturing advantages and abundances of labor supply plus many young talents. Besides,
Vietnamese enterprises have the opportunity to scrutinize and perfect their products, in order to
promote the quality of “made in Vietnam” goods when participating in online export (Pham Thiet
Hoa, 2019). This can help develop Vietnamese brands and promote Vietnam’s image closer to
international friends. 
Vietnam recently has been one of the countries that has experienced the fastest growth of
e-commerce, at over 35% annually, 2.5 times higher than Japan (Ta Lan, 2019). The bloom of e-
commerce has aided the development of CBEC as the total cross-border online transaction value
is expected to hit US$900 billion globally by 2020, making up 22% of global e-commerce value.
(CBEC benefits Vietnamese SMEs, 2019). However, the awareness of the importance and benefits
of e-commerce is not fully recognized by many Vietnamese businesses, wh ...  cross-border e-commerce exports
* Building a management system of e-commerce activities to connect stakeholders
The government should build an electronic port model to connect customs, logistic com-
panies, banks in the process in order to speed up the transactions. In the meantime, the department
specialized in controlling the quality of goods through CBEC transactions should be established
and the mechanism allowing exemption from inspection for the electronic transactions having
value under a specific amount to reduce time and volume of goods to be inspected
* Perfecting the legal environment
For e-commerce to flourish, it is necessary to improve the legal environment, through the
enactment and implementation of laws and bylaws regulating commercial activities, adapting to
international laws and international practices on e-commerce transactions. 
* Implementation of credit information disclosure system 
The credit rating standards should be set up to define the credit rating for the transaction
subjects and to show the credit rating of the subjects to the public. After completing an electronic
transaction with a foreign company, Vietnamese businesses can leave a credit rating on the system
and every business which registers with the authorities can log into the system and see the rating.
In the meantime, a blacklist system should be implemented. For those businesses or enterprises
with low credit rating, they should be named in the credit blacklist and transactions with them
should be restricted to purify the trading environment of Vietnam’s CBEC.
* Building a system to ensure safety and security
Businesses and the state need to join hands to create a reliable electronic security system,
using internationally recognized and coherent means to combat illegal access from unsafe actions
to steal personal information. The state should take the lead in making regulations and laws on
information security and guide businesses to comply with these regulations. In the meantime, the
penalty for acts of stealing personal information and infringing intellectual property rights in e-
commerce should be harsher.
4.1.2. Solutions to improve the quality and quantity of human resources
* Altering the education of e-commerce at universities
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Ministry of Education and Training should encourage universities to establish the faculty
of e-commerce and assist them in composing the study program to fit the current situation of
Vietnam. In the meantime, vocational guidance sessions should be organized to introduce the po-
tentials of e-commerce and job opportunities to students.
* Stakeholders should assist businesses in human resource training and the development
of an e-commerce training plan for businesses. 
Organizations and companies in the related field such as logistics, insurance, banking
should regularly organize meetings to exchange practical knowledge of e-commerce. At the same
time, the state agencies also need to encourage businesses to take part in the international E-Com-
merce conferences and courses hosted by Amazon Global to bring Vietnamese enterprises closer
to marketplace platforms. 
4.1.3. Solutions to improve the efficiency of cross-border e-commerce activities
* Developing policies on capital support for SMEs to sell on international marketplaces
in the early stage.
Vietnamese enterprises with small and medium scale have insufficient financial capacity
to pay for extra features. Therefore, it is necessary to have policies on low-interest loans to help
businesses overcome the initial difficulty.
* Completing the necessary infrastructure, invest in developing and applying new tech-
nologies in e-commerce 
The enhancement of infrastructure and technology applications is the premise for e-com-
merce to develop more firmly and in the long run. Businesses need to proactively allocate budget
to spend on e-commerce investment with a certain cost. In addition, businesses can also invest
in specialized human resources to invent their own proprietary technology products to save costs
and keep customer information confidential. If businesses can keep good security, it will be easy
for them to build trust with customers thereby improving the position of the company in cus-
tomers’ minds.
4.1.4. Solutions to enhance the competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses
* Branding online
Developing products is also an important solution. In particular, the authorities should build
solutions to help small and medium enterprises deploy e-commerce applications. Geographical
indications for some specialty and indigenous products have been created, however, the produc-
tion scale of these products is too small. Therefore, the Government should have policies to sup-
port businesses and associations to build brands through: a) Planning and building production
areas; b) Developing a system of product standards or harmonize international standards; c) brand-
ing on the media; d) providing support for participation in trade fairs and exhibitions; e) support-
ing businesses in creating websites and participating in international marketplaces.
* Completing the necessary infrastructure, invest in developing and applying new tech-
nologies in e-commerce 
The enhancement of infrastructure and technology applications is the premise for e-com-
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merce to develop more firmly and in the long run. In addition, businesses can also invest in spe-
cialized human resources to invent their own proprietary technology products to save costs and
keep customer information confidential. If businesses can keep good security, it will be easy for
them to build trust with customers thereby improving the position of the company in customers’
minds.
4.2. Recommendations 
4.2.1. Recommendations to the government and state agencies 
The state needs to focus on developing transport infrastructure along with the development
of multimodal transport and logistics. The state needs to invest in the construction of roads, rail-
ways, ports, etc.; creating favorable conditions for businesses to choose the mode of transporting
goods to maximize profits. Besides, state agencies should encourage banking institutions and
payment institutions to provide payment services for international e-commerce by simplifying
the process of currency conversion and tax calculation, establishing connections with multiple
payment options, improving security and reducing fraud.
4.2.2. Recommendations to Vietnamese businesses
* Applying for a registration of intellectual property rights
Intellectual property rights are not only for large companies and high technology. Viet-
namese businesses can register their rights in the target country to prevent copying, pirating and
the marketing of imitation products before launching their products in that country. Conducting
the intellectual property rights also help Vietnam businesses check whether the products they are
exporting will infringe a patent, trademark or copyright that has been filed in a foreign country. 
* Localizing the website to sell abroad
No matter what the main channel Vietnamese businesses choose to sell abroad, they need
to have their own website providing information about the products and contact information of
the company to show customers their professionalism. However, only having a website is not
enough to impress potential customers from all over the world. At least part of the website has to
present information in the native language of the target market. A localized process takes more
time, but it results in an increased familiarity and better user experience for the shoppers in that
region. The first step towards localizing should be to translate the website. Besides making shop
visitors feel more comfortable, it can make the website easier to find. Additionally, providing
customers with prices in their currency and the preferred payment method are well worth con-
sidering.
* Keep the return policy straightforward, clear, formal and accessible.
If customers would like to return the products to the sellers, establish rules for whom will
pay the international shipping. Lastly, since it can take two weeks or more to deliver products to
international customers, the return policy should provide time for delivery and for customers to
evaluate their products. Businesses should also indicate clearly how the return will be processed:
by cash, by credits for next purchases or a product exchange. In the meantime, businesses should
keep track of all returns, exchanges and refunds and require identification for all returns to prevent
any fraudulent activities from happening.
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Conclusions
After joining in the global e-commerce community, Vietnamese businesses have made
some certain progress when also successfully brought some of Vietnamese signature products to
the global market through e-marketplaces and self-managed websites. There is no doubt that Viet-
nam’s CBEC is thriving, however, not every merchant can take full advantage of those opportu-
nities to expand their business. Therefore, this research focus on a practical analysis of the current
situation of Vietnam’s CBEC based on established theoretical bases. Then, the author proposes
the solutions and recommendations to improve the effectiveness of Vietnam’s CBEC.
Although our findings yield important policy implications and contribute to the CBEC
analysis literature, there are still has certain limitations such as the shortage of detailed information
on Vietnam’s CBEC ecosystem due to the lack of time and human resources. Therefore, the au-
thors hope that in the future, other researches on this topic will be conducted so that the concept
of CBEC in Vietnam will become more popular with Vietnamese businesses, which can help
them to be fully-prepared to enter the global market. From this, opportunities of Vietnamese 
products to go abroad will be larger.
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