16 years later, "Double 11" was overturned and restarted

As e-commerce giants break down barriers, this year's "Double 11" shopping festival has ushered in an unprecedented open pattern. Alibaba and Tencent ended their 11-year mutual blockade. Taobao shopping can use WeChat payment, and JD.com will also be connected to Alipay payment. At the same time, Taobao Tmall is connected to JD Logistics, and platform merchants can choose JD Logistics as a service provider. These changes not only released good news for this year's "Double 11", but also brought new vitality to the e-commerce promotion.

Will you buy anything on Double 11 this year?

This year's "Double 11" is destined to be different from previous years. On the eve of "Double 11", Alibaba and Tencent finally ended their 11-year "mutual blockade". Taobao officially announced that WeChat payment can be used for shopping, and the two giants have reconnected. In addition, there are reports that JD.com will also officially connect to Alipay payment, which is expected to be launched on the eve of "Double 11". In addition to the payment level, Taobao Tmall has also connected to JD Logistics for the first time. Platform merchants will be able to choose JD Logistics as a service provider, and JD Express has also connected to the Cainiao system.

This year's "Double 11" opened a new chapter in the changing situation. The interconnection of the leading platforms released unprecedented good news for this year's "Double 11"; this is also a rare and lively moment at a time when the popularity of e-commerce promotions has cooled.

1. The most open Double 11 in history

This year's "Double 11", the battle line was extended again.

According to the time announced by different e-commerce platforms, this year's "Double 11" may last for 26-34 days, while the 2023 Double 11 will only last for 22-24 days. The actions of these platforms also indicate that this year's Double 11 has become the "earliest Double 11 in history" and the longest Double 11.

In addition to extending the activity period, various e-commerce platforms have also successively unveiled their "trump cards".

In addition to the main promotional methods such as cross-store discounts, single product discounts and platform coupons, Tmall will invest an additional 30 billion yuan in coupons and red envelopes to promote transactions this year. According to Tmall’s official announcement, this year’s "Double 11" will be the one with the largest subsidies and the most red envelopes.

JD.com's "Double 11" still focuses on the strategy of "cheap and good". This year, it mainly promotes a cross-store discount of 50 yuan off for purchases over 300 yuan, and at the same time adds a platform subsidy coupon activity of 20 yuan off for purchases over 200 yuan; Pinduoduo, which has always been "low-key", also launched the "10 billion consumption coupons" activity for the first time this year and upgraded it to the "super double subsidy" policy.

But the biggest change in this year's "Double 11" lies in the interconnection between platforms, and the high walls and barriers have been broken for the first time.

As Alibaba and Tencent announced the end of more than ten years of mutual "blocking", Tencent has touched upon the e-commerce scene that Alibaba regards as its "lifeline", while Alibaba is expected to leverage the huge traffic entrance of the WeChat ecosystem to bring new growth opportunities to the Taobao system.

Not only WeChat and Taobao, but also "old rivals" Alibaba and JD.com have "opened up" to each other; according to "Qujie Business", at present, the system connection between JD Logistics and Taobao platform has been basically completed, and it is fully preparing for the "Double 11 Promotion". Many Taobao users have already experienced the convenience brought by JD Logistics.

"This interconnection will bring new growth to JD.com's logistics business, and Alipay will also earn more revenue from JD.com." Zhuang Shuai, a retail e-commerce industry expert and founder of Bailian Consulting, said that logistics and payment belong to industrial service businesses, which will play a more supporting role in Taobao and JD.com's respective main e-commerce businesses and promote each other.

It can be said that this year’s Double 11 is also the “most open Double 11 in history” and may also become a watershed moment for China’s e-commerce and even the Internet industry.

Some industry insiders believe that as barriers between platforms are gradually eliminated, the competition landscape of the e-commerce market may usher in a new round of adjustments; competition will focus more on core elements such as product quality, price advantage, and service experience, rather than simply a price war. For consumers, this is undoubtedly good news, meaning that they can find more cost-effective goods and services from a wider range of choices.

Zhuang Shuai also mentioned that "large companies are already in the stage of competition in the stock market. They all have the need for new growth and improved profitability. Rather than blindly competing, the correct approach is to leverage each other's advantages and strengths for complementary development."

2. The “darkest moment” of live streaming e-commerce?

It is undeniable that as low-price promotions become commonplace, consumers’ novelty and excitement about “Double 11” are gradually fading.

As the low-price competition among e-commerce platforms entered a "white-hot" stage in 2023, "Double 11" directly triggered the climax of the low-price competition across the entire network; but even so, the overall transaction volume of Double 11 this year did not achieve significant growth.

By 2024, "Double 11" has reached the next "crossroads".

Today, live streaming e-commerce has long become the focus of "Double 11". The top anchors not only contributed huge GMV to Double 11, but were also the highly-watched "traffic leaders".

However, after years of development, it is difficult for internet celebrities to easily open consumers' wallets by shouting loudly in the live broadcast room, and the live broadcast e-commerce industry is also entering a new turning point. Especially on the eve of this year's "Double 11", many top live broadcast e-commerce anchors such as Three Sheep and Northeast Rain Sister "turned over" one after another, causing the live broadcast e-commerce industry to encounter a serious "trust crisis"; how to ensure the sustainable and healthy development of the live broadcast e-commerce ecosystem has become an urgent problem to be solved in the industry.

Not only are consumers beginning to “demystify” themselves with the super-headline anchors, but merchants and brands are also gradually demystifying them.

"Live streaming e-commerce has entered a new stage of quality live streaming from the entertainment celebrity model." Yuan Yuan, general manager of Taobao Live Store, said that the quality live streaming model that combines professional anchors, brand inventory, and platform high-quality service guarantees has become the mainstream of the industry.

In her opinion, the widespread "cooling down" of top anchors has also made more and more businesses realize that the rhythm of "pulse sales" is not a long-term solution, and they should pursue more stable and long-term growth. "Both users and businesses should no longer excessively pursue online celebrity anchors to bring goods. Although cooperation with top anchors can increase business for businesses in the short term, it does not help much in terms of user retention and long-term business growth."

For the platform, the entry of new anchors naturally means new growth, but for the anchors who sell goods, the live streaming sales track is becoming more and more crowded.

According to the survey data of iResearch Consulting Report, compared with the early development of the industry, the growth rate of China's live e-commerce market will decline to a certain extent between 2023 and 2026. The industry will show a trend of steady growth in the future and enter a stage of refined development.

At the same time, in recent years, the government and platforms have also been continuously supervising and managing the chaos of online live broadcasting and live broadcasting sales from the perspective of laws, regulations and live broadcasting platform rules. On the one hand, the introduction of laws and regulations such as the "E-Commerce Law" and the "Administrative Measures for Online Live Broadcasting Marketing (Trial)" have clarified the rights and obligations of live broadcast e-commerce entities and provided a basis for legal governance; on the other hand, relevant regulatory authorities have increased law enforcement in the field of live broadcasting e-commerce, and punished illegal anchors and companies in accordance with the law, creating a deterrent effect.

Faced with the "trust crisis" in the live e-commerce industry, the supervision of regulatory authorities and platforms and the implementation of new policies have provided strong support for reshaping the industry order.

3. What else can you get on “Double 11”?

Unlike previous years when the main focus was on "low prices", this year e-commerce platforms have put a lot of thought into optimizing the user experience.

Judging from the information currently released, the "Double 11" event in 2024 will focus more on balancing the interests between merchants and consumers. E-commerce platforms such as Taobao, JD.com, and Douyin have successively introduced a number of policies to help merchants reduce costs and increase efficiency, in order to "compete for merchants"; at the same time, they will safeguard the user experience and shift from a "price war" to a "service war."

In terms of merchant support, JD.com proposed to help the number of small and micro merchants with "daily sales exceeding 10,000 yuan" to increase by more than 2 times year-on-year during the "Double 11" period, and at the same time, the number of merchants with sales exceeding 5 million yuan increased by more than 50% year-on-year; during the "Double 11" period, Tmall will provide free "pay later" services to all Taobao and Tmall merchants participating in the promotion, and invest 30 billion in consumer coupons and red envelopes, and 10 billion in purchasing traffic to expand customer flow for merchants; Douyin e-commerce has launched a series of cost-reduction measures for merchant freight insurance. The freight insurance costs of eligible merchants or influencers will be reduced by 10%-40%, and it is estimated that it can save merchants more than 4 billion yuan throughout the year.

On the user side, Pinduoduo announced that the policy of "compensation for overpriced items" has been upgraded to "double compensation for overpriced items", which will take effect two days after the official start of "Double 11"; Douyin e-commerce launched discounts such as 15% off per item and official direct discounts. The platform also launched service benefits such as "worry-free returns and exchanges" for clothing, "inspection before shipment" for jewelry, "refund if broken" for fresh food, and "trade-in for old for new" for home appliances, allowing consumers to place orders with ease.

In the view of Cao Lei, director of the E-commerce Research Center of the China Internet Network Information Center, the various support policies launched by e-commerce platforms during the "Double 11" period are conducive to reducing business operating costs, attracting small and medium-sized businesses to settle in, and thus optimizing the platform ecology. For businesses, the operating burden is reduced, service efficiency is improved, and more exposure opportunities are increased; for platforms, it can optimize the business ecology, increase the types of businesses, and provide consumers with more choices, thereby indirectly improving consumer experience.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that as the domestic market enters the stage of stock game, domestic e-commerce platforms have already spread the "Double 11" war overseas.

AliExpress has launched the "10 billion subsidy" brand overseas promotion for Double 11. According to "Fun Business", this year is the first time that AliExpress's 10 billion subsidy has participated in Double 11. Brand merchants will have exclusive venues and deterministic overseas solutions.

In major overseas markets, "Double 11" has become the new top trend, making various e-commerce platforms and retail companies, and even companies in industries such as payment and logistics, compete fiercely during this period.

Taotian said that during this year's Double 11, Taobao's overseas expansion will be upgraded again, and the free shipping areas will be expanded to 10 stations; JD.com, thanks to its direct procurement and self-operated, nationwide bonded warehouse network and efficient logistics network, JD.com International promises that 80% of its popular products can achieve "211 next-day delivery", and direct procurement products from Japan, France, the United States and other places can also provide direct mail services.

In fact, foreign media have long called "Double 11" "a global social collaboration."

In October 2019, PM Network, a well-known American project management research magazine, selected the "50 most influential projects in the world". The "Double 11 Shopping Festival" was selected together with the Internet, the Apollo moon landing, and the Human Genome Project, ranking sixth. The magazine pointed out that this carnival has fundamentally changed the way people shop and opened up the boundary between shopping and entertainment.

In the future, if e-commerce platforms want to achieve new growth on their own “Double 11”, what else do they need to do?

Cao Lei mentioned that after-sales service has become one of the key factors that distinguish the quality of platforms. "Good word-of-mouth communication is crucial for e-commerce platforms. After all, we are now in the stage of stock market competition, and only with users can we have traffic."

The sustainable growth of "Double 11" must be based on a deep insight into the market and its evolution. The core of this competition has gone beyond a simple price war. E-commerce platforms must put consumers' real needs first and continuously optimize products and services to keep "Double 11" vibrant and growing.

Author | Yin Le Editor | Interesting Business Consumption Group