Dec. 4, 2020 — The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) recently hosted the HKTDC Autumn Sourcing Week | ONLINE (ASWO) exhibition from Nov. 16-27.

The online exhibition featured more than 2,600 exhibitors and attracted more than 27,000 buyers from 132 countries and regions. Buyers attended from Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Mainland China, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Taiwan, the United Arab Emirates, the U.S., and more.

“The HKTDC mobilized its network of 50 offices worldwide to invite quality international buyers to the event, arranging more than 9,000 online business matching meetings according to buyers’ sourcing needs,” says Benjamin Chau, HKTDC deputy executive director. “This arrangement increased the chance of business collaboration.”

Chau shared that the number of exhibitors and buyers at ASWO was double the number attending Summer Sourcing Weeks | Go ONLINE in July, and that participation was more international. 

The event featured Click2Match, HKTDC’s online business matching platform which uses artificial intelligence to conduct automatic matching between potential business partners. The platform also helps participants to schedule meetings, conduct video meetings, chat in real time, and exchange e-business cards. The HKTDC conducted an online survey with exhibitors and buyers during ASWO in which respondents said that meeting scheduling was the most useful of the platform’s functions, followed by video meeting and live chat capabilities.

3D virtual booths were also a highlight of the exhibit, garnering more than 65,000 views. According to the survey, buyers shared that the virtual booths were useful for understanding exhibitors’ products and services, showing that the booths could help to attract more buyers, increase their interest in exhibitors’ products and services, and help them win more business.

Plus, more than 20 webinars were held during ASWO. The most popular included the “Symposium on Innovation & Technology” (4,400+ views), “Eco Asia Conference” (3,400+ views), “Hong Kong International Optometric Symposium” (1,100+ views), “Hong Kong International Watch Forum” (790+ views), and the “Hong Kong Toys Industry Conference” (750+ views). More than 100 industry leaders shared their insights in the webinars, providing global exhibitors with the latest market updates amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to the survey, a total of 96% of exhibitors said they had achieved at least one of the following through the event: exploring market potential, generating new sales leads, meeting new customers, maintaining their presence in the market, launching and promoting new products, promoting their company’s brand, and gathering market intelligence and product trends. A total of 64% of exhibitors surveyed said they would consider both online and offline platforms as their major promotional channels in the future, while 95% said they would participate in the HKTDC’s virtual and physical exhibitions again. Of the buyers surveyed, 85% said they would use online and offline platforms as their major sourcing channels in the future, while almost all (99%) said they would participate in both virtual and physical exhibitions organized by the HKTDC.

For more information: https://exhmultifairs.hktdc.com/dm/2020/aswo/10th_edm/index_en.html.