Alibaba's DingTalk pursues global growth during a slump in the SaaS market

In the dynamic world of business, DingTalk, a Chinese workspace platform developed by Alibaba Group, is making significant strides. The platform aims to create a comprehensive ecosystem for business communication and productivity.

DingTalk has served hundreds of Chinese companies with overseas operations, such as JinkoSolar, Trina Solar, and Sungrow, in small-scale attempts in the international market. Now, these companies can manage both their domestic and international teams using a unified DingTalk account system.

The Chinese software-as-a-service (SaaS) market, despite the intense competition over the years, remains relatively small. Standing out in a market dominated by giants is a significant challenge for Chinese collaborative office software like DingTalk, particularly in terms of localized operations and overseas branding.

To overcome these challenges, DingTalk has developed an open platform offering applications in various fields, including market and category positioning, customer management, cross-border payments, network security, and human resource management. The IM chat and video conferencing applications have added international features, supporting translation in 15 languages.

DingTalk's international expansion will prioritise meeting the collaborative management needs of Chinese companies overseas, especially in industries like photovoltaics, lithium batteries, and electric vehicles. The company is hiring in regions such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore for regional managers and solutions managers for its international expansion.

Several departments of DingTalk have formed a joint team for this initiative. Chinese SaaS companies, including DingTalk, have accelerated their international expansion efforts, seeking growth in markets like Europe, the Americas, Japan, and Southeast Asia. Alibaba-owned DingTalk has designated international expansion as a strategic project.

However, the overseas SaaS market is crowded with giants, with Microsoft (Teams), Salesforce's Slack, and Zoom already capturing most of the market share. DingTalk's international strategy follows the path of Chinese companies going abroad.

To facilitate its international expansion, DingTalk has partnered with ecosystem partners to establish an international service ecosystem. Alibaba, with its worldwide presence in various sectors like technology, e-commerce, and services, has built networks and partners in different industries and regions that could indirectly contribute to DingTalk's success in international markets.

For instance, Alibaba Cloud provides global cloud services, supporting the infrastructure for DingTalk's expansion. Alibaba also has partnerships in the payment sector, which could be relevant for services like DingTalk. Additionally, numerous technology and software partners integrate their solutions with Alibaba products, which could influence the development of DingTalk.

For specific international partners of DingTalk, it would be beneficial to consult the official website or press releases from Alibaba to obtain current and detailed information. The DingTalk calendar desktop version has introduced automatic time zone conversion and provides intelligent time difference prompts when scheduling meetings, further facilitating international operations.

DingTalk plans to meet the overseas needs of its existing customers in its international expansion. The article was written by Yong Yi for 36Kr. After years of intense competition in the collaboration software market, the core domestic enterprises willing to pay for these services have essentially been covered, with few new demands emerging.

In conclusion, DingTalk's international expansion is a strategic move aimed at serving Chinese companies overseas and expanding its user base in international markets, particularly in industries like renewable energy and electric vehicles. The company's partnerships with Alibaba and other ecosystem partners, along with its robust platform and international features, position it well to compete in the crowded overseas SaaS market.