Alibaba Launches Ad Campaign to Encourage Fresh Entrepreneurs

According to news, Alibaba.com has started a new marketing campaign that includes TV, print and online media as it targets small business owners and entrepreneurs. This campaign has been started with new microsite main for USA audience as success.alibaba.com. Initially, three videos "mocumentaries" greet visitors to the b2b website with entertaining stories of how fresh entrepreneurs used Alibaba.com to find suppliers and manufacturers to help them launch their businesses. Thirty-second television ads are running on CNBC and during ABC's new show, Shark Tank, and print ads are running in magazines including Inc., Fast Company, Women's Wear Daily and Purchasing.com.

Kelly Sang, General Manager of Alibaba.com for United States of America, said the new version of the microsite is designed to deliver an approachable, fun and engaging brand character by featuring more rich media contents with a focus on three key stories, each one telling the story of a character who uses Alibaba.com to "Find It, Make It or Sell It."

Alibaba.com is a B2B marketplace, bringing small businesses and entrepreneurs together with suppliers and manufacturers from around the world. When Ms. Sang from Aliababa was asked about how Alibaba.com came up with the campaign to bring the company's message to a broader audience, She said

"We conducted primary research with small business owners and entrepreneurs nationwide to really get a sense for what they are facing in today's marketplace and how Alibaba.com can help them compete. One of our key takeaways was that they were looking for new resources to help them achieve their goals. They were energized by the idea that they could "be like the big guys" on a global scale via Alibaba.com.

We then set out to create a campaign that would be visually refreshing for the B2B market and better explain who Alibaba.com is and how it can help their business. To do that, we created fictional characters that were indicative of the type of success businesses have created after finding the right partner on Alibaba.com - for pieces and parts, full scale production, or simply buying products directly from manufacturers to resell. Our central theme is just that - find the right partner for your business. We feel that this U.S. Brand expression of Alibaba.com also fits that theme - it's the right fit to meet the needs of modern entrepreneurs and small business owners.

The U.S. branding campaign by Alibaba.com is specifically to target small business owners and fresh entrepreneurs. These audiences have always been very important to us, and we're now taking our commitment to them to the next level with the launch of this campaign."

Alibaba previously has launched several campaigns that have given our members to achieve success. The message to entrepreneurs, Sang said further, is to "draw up your business plan. Lock down your prototype. And get on Alibaba.com to make it happen."

In addition to the character stories, the U.S. microsite of Alibaba.com features expanded training content, including live instructor-led webinars, quick-learn videos, quick tips and links to additional learning resources. An events and partnership page focuses on upcoming Alibaba.com events of interest to U.S. entrepreneurs and partnership deals for site users.