Local internet celebrities promote agricultural specialties in Shandong

Livestreamers sell wormwood products in Dong'e county, Shandong province. [Photo by Li Aiming/for chinadaily.com.cn]

Over 2,600 wormwood products worth nearly 70,000 yuan ($9,648.04), including wormwood sachets, pillows, and quilts, were recently sold during a one-hour livestream held by a themed post office in Aishan village, Tongcheng subdistrict, Dong'e county, Shandong province.

Since the beginning of this year, the county has been promoting the "internet celebrity economy" by leveraging the emergence of unique industries as well as the high quantity and quality of specialty agricultural products.

By increasing policy support and nurturing rural internet celebrities, the county aims to help its specialty agricultural products reach more markets, thus contributing to rural vitalization.

The county has also bolstered efforts to cultivate talent such as large-scale farmers, and small online business owners, as well as encourage returning college students to host livestreams.

Dong'e county has integrated e-commerce and cultural tourism resources, hosting a series of events to encourage customers to buy specialty products.

The county is also focusing on improving the infrastructure for livestreaming. It supports the development of livestream hubs like the Dong'e ejiao e-commerce livestream base, which features 15 operators and 40 hosts. The base's livestream activities span multiple platforms, including Taobao, JD, Douyin, and WeChat Channels, achieving a growth rate of over 100 percent for three consecutive years and being recognized as a provincial e-commerce livestream base in Shandong.

Currently, Dong'e county boasts 15 self-operated media accounts with over 10,000 followers each, including one with over a million followers. Driven by these internet celebrities, the county has been named one of the "top 100 counties for agricultural product e-commerce sales" for two consecutive years. (Edited by Yang Yi)