"Ni Hao! Lao Tie! I am your foreign friend. Just have a bite of our organic apples and place your orders here!" Erik Nilsson, a Swedish traveler, greeted through Tik Tok livestreams in a village of Jiangxi Province. His appearance online increased that day's sale greatly. After experiencing a special day in the rural area, Erik said jokingly, "I wish I could change my job."
This village is not alone. Nowadays, China's e-commerce platforms have helped open up the market for Chinese farmers' produce, bringing an increasing number of sales online. This new trend has made livestreaming a new way to rid farmers of poverty, with mobile phones becoming "new farm tools".
"Everyone has brought their own agricultural products. How can you make the audiences believe that they're delicious through the screen in front of you? Now, let's feel the look on your face during the livestreaming!" A farmers' education and training center in Hainan Province invites professionals such as directors and stylists to teach farmers a variety of skills ranging from short video editing to livestreaming sales skills. "However, at first, only a few villagers had a strong desire. We helped them get training in livestreaming, short video marketing, and other courses. It wasn't fancy, but simple, practical, and effective."
"Everybody, please take a look. This is the best coconut. Taste it," said Pei Yanqin, 59, speaking Mandarin with a strong local accent and communicating smoothly with netizens through her livestreaming software. Just over a year ago, she was one of those villagers with the least intention to get training.
In 2018, the demonstration project of national e-commerce for rural areas was launched. Today, the village has developed eight e-commerce livestreaming courtyards. Some presenters work alone, while others are husband and wife teams. In the next step, the government will train more farmer presenters and develop in the direction of multi-variety sales.
