E-Commerce and Digital Business in Chinese // 20+ Key Words
From Online Shopping Platforms to Digital Marketing and Virtual Payment: Level Up Your Business Chinese
E-commerce in China has probably become the world’s most valuable and active market.
With this booming market, it is extremely helpful to learn some Chinese words involved in this field.
In this blog post, we’ll introduce to you the most commonly used phrases and sentences to get actively engaged in E-Commerce in China.
E-commerce and Digital Business || Understanding Key Terminology in E-commerce
E-commerce and Digital Business || Vocabulary for E-commerce Platforms and Digital Marketing Strategies
E-commerce and Digital Business || Discussing Online Transactions and Payment Methods in Chinese
E-commerce and Digital Business || Key Phrases for Cybersecurity and Data Protection
E-commerce and Digital Business || FAQs
E-commerce and Digital Business || Understanding Key Terminology in E-commerce
First, let’s get you familiar with the fundamental terms used in e-commerce, specifically in Chinese markets.
When you’re referring to e-commerce, the Chinese usually use a shortened form for it.
电商
E-Commerce电商正在迅速发展。
diàn shāng zhèng zài xùn sù fā zhǎn
E-commerce is rapidly developing.
网购
Online Shopping网购越来越方便了。
wǎng gòu yuè lái yuè fāng biàn le
Online shopping is becoming more and more convenient.
And when talking about shopping online, you will never miss these two platforms from Alibaba.
支付宝
zhī fù bǎo
Alipay
我用支付宝支付了。
wǒ yòng zhī fù bǎo zhī fù le zhè bǐ dìng dān
I used Alipay to pay.
Taobao is the go-to platform for Chinese to go online shopping literally for anything you can think of.
淘宝táo bǎo
Taobao
我在淘宝上买了很多东西。
wǒ zài táo bǎo shàng mǎi le hěn duō dōng xi
I bought a lot of things on Taobao.
Nowadays, there are two rising phenomena that are going extremely viral in the e-commerce field. This is how the platform and merchants are tempting the customers to buy more online.
直播
Live Streaming昨晚直播又买了好多zuó wǎn zhí bō yòu mǎi le hǎo duō
I bought a lot of things again during last night’s live stream.
拼团
Group Buying我们一起拼团买这个产品吧。
wǒ men yī qǐ pīn tuán mǎi zhè ge chǎn pǐn ba
Let’s do group buying for this product together.
E-commerce and Digital Business || Vocabulary for E-commerce Platforms and Digital Marketing Strategies
Now let’s learn some local slang that’s viral for online shopping.
Currently, livestreaming is very popular, and a lot of brands hire influencers or hosts to sell products during livestreams with significant discounts.
带货dài huò
Livestream Selling
这个主播很会带货。zhè ge zhǔ bō hěn huì dài huò.
This streamer is great at selling products on Livestream.
During the Livestream, the discounts are very tempting. The merchants usually use this specific tactic during the livestream to prompt the customer to buy compulsively.
秒杀miǎo shā
Flash Sale
The word literally means kill in a second to show that the discounts will disappear very quickly.
这次双十一有很多秒杀活动，折扣非常大。zhè cì shuāng shí yī yǒu hěn duō miǎo shā huó dòng, zhé kòu fēi cháng dà.
There are many flash sales during this Singles’ Day, with huge discounts.
One specific social media platform Little Red Book has become a rising channel to drive brand awareness and attract online shoppers.
小红书xiǎo hóng shū
Little Red Book
Xiaohongshu Vs Instagram 🥊 What is RED and How Can It Compete with Instagram?
Xiaohongshu Vs Instagram is an intriguing comparison. Do you know what are the main differences between the two? Discover them with our complete guide.
我在小红书上看到很多推荐，感觉挺靠谱的。
I saw a lot of recommendations on Little Red Book, and they seem pretty reliable.These influencers will post a lot of content to arouse the desire to buy products. There’s a specific interesting word for this action.
The literal meaning is planting grass, which implies that the content is planting desires in potential customers.
There’s a specific word to describe the influencers sharing their products online.
| VOCABULARY | EXAMPLE |
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晒单
shài dān Show off an order |
他刚在朋友圈晒单了。
tā gāng zài péng yǒu quān shài dān le He just showed off his purchase in his WeChat Moments. |
|
种草
zhòng cǎo To be influenced to buy something |
这篇文章把我种草了，我也想买同款。
zhè piān wén zhāng bǎ wǒ zhòng cǎo le, wǒ yě xiǎng mǎi tóng kuǎn. This article has won me over and I also want to get the same one. |
Besides social media like Little Red Book, private traffic through acquiring followers and maintaining customer relationships in WeChat is also a common marketing technique.
私域流量sī yù liú liàng
Private Traffic
Keeping your customers in a WeChat group has been proven strongly effective for a high conversion rate and retention rate.
转化率zhuǎn huà lǜ
Conversion Rate
复购率fù gòu lǜ
Retention Rate
E-commerce and Digital Business || Discussing Online Transactions and Payment Methods in Chinese
Now let’s get to some specific terms for placing online transactions and paying methods on Taobao.
下单xià dān
Place An Order
最近有没有在网上下单？zuì jìn yǒu méi yǒu zài wǎng shàng xià dān
Have you placed any orders online recently?
As we previously mentioned 拼团 pīn tuán – which is group buying, has become quite popular to get better prices online. You’ll often hear your friends inviting you to form a group buying together.
| VOCABULARY | EXAMPLE |
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拼单
pīn dān Group Buying |
我们可以拼单买这个产品。
wǒ men kě yǐ pīn dān mǎi zhè ge chǎn pǐn We can group buy this product. |
|
优惠券
yōu huì quàn Discount Coupon |
记得用优惠券，可以省很多钱。
jì dé yòng yōu huì quàn, kě yǐ shěng hěn duō qián Remember to use the discount coupon, it can save you a lot of money. |
As you probably know, in Chinese culture, bargaining is very common, even for online shopping.
And the word for bargain literally means cutting price. So much fun, isn’t it?
砍价kǎn jià
Bargain
这款产品还能再砍价吗？
Can we bargain further for this product?Almost every merchant now uses free shipping; otherwise, you will get no orders.
包邮bāo yóu
Free Shipping
这个商品是包邮的吗？zhè ge shāng pǐn shì bāo yóu de ma?
Is this product eligible for free shipping?
E-commerce and Digital Business || Key Phrases for Cybersecurity and Data Protection
Here we also briefly mention some basic terminology related to cybersecurity and data protection in the digital world.
| VOCABULARY | EXAMPLE |
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网络安全
wǎng luò ān quán Cybersecurity |
确保网络安全对企业至关重要。
què bǎo wǎng luò ān quán duì qǐ yè zhì guān zhòng yào Ensuring cybersecurity is crucial for businesses. |
|
数据保护
shù jù bǎo hù Data Protection |
我们实施了严格的数据保护措施。
wǒ men shí shī le yán gé de shù jù bǎo hù cuò shī We have implemented strict data protection measures. |
|
密码
mì mǎ Password |
密码不要随便告诉任何人
mì mǎ bú yào suí biàn gào sù rèn hé rén Don’t share your password with anyone easily. |
Great, after learning all these essential terms, you should become a pro in discussions on e-commerce and digital business.a
Have you ever used Xiao hong shu, Aliplay or Taobao? Share your experience here!
E-commerce and Digital Business || FAQs
What does 电商 (diàn shāng) mean?
电商 means “E-commerce” in Chinese, referring to online commercial activities or online shopping.
How do you say “live streaming” in Chinese, and why is it important in e-commerce?
“Live streaming” in Chinese is 直播 (zhí bō). It allows real-time interaction between the brands and customers and has been promoting extremely high sales.
What is the Chinese term for “discount coupon”?
The term for “discount coupon” is 优惠券 (yōu huì quàn).
How do you say “free shipping” in Chinese, and why is it common in online shopping?
“Free shipping” is 包邮 (bāo yóu) in Chinese. It’s common for the online merchants to offer to cover the shipping cost and attract more customers.
What does 网络安全 (wǎng luò ān quán) refer to in e-commerce?
网络安全 refers to “cybersecurity,” which is crucial in e-commerce for protecting online transactions and customer data.
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