Livestreaming rejuvenates rural economy

Businesses in Wuxi, East China's Jiangsu province, have in recent days set their sights on promoting local specialties via livestreams.

"When our handmade foods are livestreamed on WeChat, it's hard to keep up with the orders," said Shen Jingjuan, owner of Wuxi Hongfeng Rice Cake Workshop and a livestream host.

Last year, Shen discovered that livesteaming is much more efficient than traditional marketing and e-commerce and decided to try it out on WeChat.

According to the host, livestreaming has not only brought in more businesses, but also offered over 60 jobs to local villagers.

Unlike high-budget livestreams with fancy backgrounds, Shen's livestreams show authentic rural life, including farmlands, country roads, and her workshop.

Liu Daming, another livestream host and a sophomore majoring in e-commerce at Jiangsu Vocational College of Information Technology, has been using his expertise to livestream about agricultural products for local villagers.

Cai Liwei, secretary of the general Party branch of the college's business school, said that the school has made efforts to cultivate livestream hosts in recent years and its livestream workshop, made up of students at the school, has helped promote Yangshan juicy peaches and rural tourism resources.

Incentives are expected to be rolled out by the local government to support the city's livestreams for rural products in terms of capital, policy, and professional talent, according to local industry insiders.