Challenge
Most US businesses didn’t know they could sell on Alibaba.com. The platform had strong recognition as a place to source products, but the idea of becoming a seller was largely off the radar for American small business owners. On top of that, Alibaba.com was introducing a new quarterly payment option for the first time, adding a second message the campaign needed to carry. Because B2B buyers rarely make decisions quickly, the creative had to build familiarity and plant the idea early, not push for an immediate sign-up.
Overview
Alibaba.com introduced new quarterly payment plan options for US sellers as part of its Seller Program in June 2023. I designed five series of social media ad banners to build awareness among US business owners and drive traffic to a dedicated landing page where they could learn more about the platform and explore their options. The campaign ran on Facebook for six months and on LinkedIn during two two-week windows in mid-July and mid-October 2023, with new creative added throughout the campaign window as messaging evolved.
Timeline
- Jun – Dec 2023
Role
- Visual Design
- Campaign Design
- Digital Advertising
Team
- Marketing Director
- Content Strategist
- Pan Lau (Sole Designer)
Flexible Payment Plans
This series introduced the new pricing model to US sellers for the first time. Alibaba.com had traditionally offered annual subscriptions only, so the ability to pay quarterly was a meaningful change worth leading with. The creative kept the message simple and direct, making the flexibility the headline rather than burying it in product details.
FREE for $1,000 Value
This series focused on a limited-time offer giving new sellers $1,000 in platform value at no cost. The creative leaned into urgency, using clear, bold messaging to encourage potential sellers to act before the offer expired. Keeping the visual hierarchy tight and the copy minimal made the value proposition land quickly in a fast-scrolling feed.
Business Opportunities
Rather than leading with pricing, this series spoke to what sellers actually care about: growing their business. The messaging centered on expanding domestically and internationally, with 300K daily buyer inquiries on the platform as the anchor stat. This angle gave the campaign a way to reach audiences who needed a reason to consider Alibaba.com before they were ready to think about subscription options.
Made for Your Business
Not every business owner thinks of Alibaba.com as a platform built for them. This series addressed that directly by speaking to specific roles, including owners, presidents, CEOs, wholesalers, manufacturers, retailers, and e-commerce managers, with messaging framed around their perspective. Running across both Facebook and LinkedIn, the creative made the case that regardless of your title or business type, Alibaba.com was built for sellers like you.
Carousel
In November 2023, a carousel ad format was tested on Facebook to evaluate performance against the static single-image banners running throughout the campaign. Two carousel sets were produced: one focused on the benefits of becoming an Alibaba.com seller, and another built around three practical tips for strong B2B service. The carousel format performed slightly better than static images overall, offering a useful data point for future campaign planning.
Impact
The campaign ran for six months across Facebook and LinkedIn, producing 30+ banners across five creative series. The ongoing structure allowed the team to test different messaging angles and creative formats as the campaign evolved, consistently driving traffic to the seller landing page with a CTR averaging around 1% across platforms. The carousel test in November added a new format benchmark for future campaigns, with performance that edged out the static image baseline.