Selling Strawberries via WeChat Business: Farmer Chen Lei's Family Earns Over 1,000 Yuan a Day
"Now our whole family is in the WeChat business. Almost all of our strawberries are sold through WeChat, so we don't need to go to the market, and our daily income exceeds 1,000 yuan." Chen Lei, a strawberry grower in Shihuangdi Village, Wuzhu Street Subdistrict, Diaobingshan City, and his family were busy throughout the Spring Festival. Thanks to WeChat sales, their strawberries have become a hit.
On February 6, in Chen Lei's strawberry greenhouse, several picking guests were tasting strawberries. They found Chen Lei's strawberries crisp and refreshing, with a rich sweet-and-sour flavor and a faint fresh-milk fragrance. "What we grow is Dandong Jiujiu strawberries. We water them once a week, adding about 5 kg of milk to the water. We don't use pesticides or swelling agents, so the strawberries naturally taste very good," Chen Lei said. In the greenhouse, a thin white string above the strawberry plants caught the guests' attention. Small plastic bags containing green granules hung from the string at intervals of about 2 m. Chen Lei explained that the bags contained solid carbon dioxide, which not only prevented ventilation from damaging the strawberries but also supplied nutrients to them.
Before the Spring Festival, Chen Lei's strawberries came onto the market one after another. Because of their good reputation and excellent taste, his strawberries were in short supply. Not only did local residents come to buy them, but customers from other places such as Faku and Kangping also came to pick them.
Picking accounts for only part of the sales. Now most of Chen Lei's strawberries are sold through WeChat. At present, Chen Lei's 16-year-old eldest daughter, Chen Ming, is at home on vacation. Every day she uses her mobile phone on WeChat to post photos of the family's strawberries, the latest prices and delivery contact methods to her Moments. Then Chen Lei and his wife pick the strawberries, box them and deliver them according to the WeChat orders. The whole family, young and old, is bustling with activity. "These past few days, we've been receiving orders for about 15 kg on average each day, and sales are no problem at all," Chen Lei said. Once strawberries ripen and are picked, they are hard to store and can easily cause economic losses. Selling through WeChat provides a "double guarantee": on the one hand, they know customers' demand and pick only as much as needed; on the other hand, they can deliver to customers' homes immediately, ensuring that customers get the freshest strawberries.
The new sales method has brought real benefits to Chen Lei's family. Chen Lei said his family has two greenhouses of strawberries. The strawberries ripened and came onto the market before the New Year. The better strawberries sell for about 60 yuan per kg. Conservatively estimated, the income from one greenhouse is more than 40,000 yuan. "This first lunar month, our whole family, young and old, spent in the greenhouses. Although it's a bit tiring, the family is happy together. As long as income is high, every day is like celebrating the New Year!" Chen Lei said happily.