Inventory of autumn consumption trends: Uncovering the autumn life of contemporary consumers

As the autumn breeze brings coolness, we usher in the harvest season. In this golden autumn season, consumers' living habits and preferences are also quietly changing. Growthbox, in collaboration with Douyin Life Service, has conducted an in-depth analysis of autumn consumption trends, revealing nine major consumption trends from catering to travel, from beauty to fresh food. This article explores which consumption trends are leading the market in this golden autumn.

From food, clothing, housing and transportation to exploring a variety of new experiences in eating, drinking and having fun, as people's life scenes become increasingly diversified and personalized, consumption is gradually returning from "abstract" to "concrete", and every seasonal node is quietly changing. This trend is particularly evident in the life service industry. Growth Black Box found many interesting trend signals from Douyin Life Service's data on hot spots, searches, consumption, etc. in the "Golden Autumn":

To this end, Growth Black Box and Douyin Life Service have captured nine consumption trends in three major scenarios through content consumption and product consumption data, and summarized a set of golden autumn business strategies from the dimensions of product selection, scenarios, content gameplay, and content strategy to help brand merchants achieve a great harvest in this year's "golden autumn"!

1. Part 1 User Preferences: In the golden autumn nourishing season, hot pot, tea, leisure and entertainment categories are experiencing a trend of health preservation:

As autumn cools down, hot pot returns to the top of the food list. In the catering category, hot pot is particularly popular. Especially after autumn, when the temperature gradually drops, users' demand for hot pot also increases, and they are more keen to explore hot pots of various flavors. Among them, Sichuan and Chongqing hot pot is searched the most by consumers. Whether it is the southern stomach or the northern stomach, when eating hot pot, they all pursue the excitement and happiness of spicy food.

No matter which city they are in, young people have a special liking for hot pot: the hot pot consumption power of young people in small towns, new white-collar workers, and urban blue-collar workers is significantly higher than that of Genz, senior middle-class people, middle-aged and elderly people in small towns, and urban silver-haired people. It is worth mentioning that women love hot pot more than men, especially those aged 31-40. This autumn, using hot pot to capture young people and female groups has become an unstoppable trend. At the same time, hot pot and other catering brands can also co-brand with other categories such as beauty and clothing, seize seasonal trends to enhance brand influence, and break the limitations of traditional catering marketing. For example, Feifei Shrimp Restaurant and the domestic cosmetics brand INTO YOU launched a "Shrimp Season" co-branded package. Consumers who purchase exclusive packages through the Douyin platform and go to designated stores to verify the experience will have the opportunity to win the "Xinmu Yu Ni Heroine Mini Lip Mud". This activity allows catering brands to accurately reach young female groups and enhance interaction and experience. Trend 2: Autumn health tea and seasonal healthy drinks are popular. "The first cup of milk tea in autumn" is no longer a joke. Instead, the golden autumn season has become the "Double Eleven" of the tea industry. Users who love to stock up on food coupons on Douyin are also happy to explore and try various creative drinks. Drinks are not only an important part of everyone's life, but also one of the important ways for people to socialize and express their emotions. Especially among the young Z generation and young people who pay attention to the quality of life, drinks are a high-frequency choice for them to satisfy their appetite. However, the value of various "happy waters" represented by milk tea is not just happiness, but also health.

Driven by the national health trend, healthy drinks have gradually become the new favorite of consumers. Low-sugar tea, original leaf tea, and new Chinese tea drinks are increasingly favored by consumers. Compared with the previous marketing that used "milk tea" as an attraction, this year's warm and healthy categories that are in line with autumn will become new business opportunities. By promoting the health attributes and seasonal advantages of products, new differentiated advantages can be established beyond the "taste" of the industry's involution, and marketing ideas around health and wellness are more likely to arouse consumers' emotional resonance in this season and generate stronger product minds. Trend 3: Relieve autumn fatigue, bathing and massage become seasonal hot spots Consumers' demand for bathing and massage in autumn has risen sharply. At the beginning of the year, content such as "Northeast Bathing" became a hot topic on Douyin. This golden autumn, the demand for bathing and massage will continue to rise, especially with the factor of autumn fatigue. More and more people will go to bathing and massage shops, bringing a new wave of growth to the industry.

Live broadcasts and short videos have not only made Northeast China's bathing culture a popular tourist destination, but also promoted the popularity of relaxation methods such as bathing and massage in various places. Merchants and products of this type of service are continuing to expand their market share, especially among the 24-40-year-old consumer group, including new white-collar workers, small town youth, and urban blue-collar workers, who are becoming the main force of bathing and massage consumption on Douyin. Consumers in Shanghai and Hangzhou, in particular, have outstanding purchasing power for this service. The strong consumption power of this category has also made it one of the ideas for cross-border cooperation to expand the increment. Last year, the foot bath massage brand "Golden Impression" and the catering brand "Jiujie Shufen Palm Treasure Chuanchuan" jointly launched a new joint product "You are my palm treasure", allowing consumers to enjoy a cup of palm treasure Chuanchuan after massage and leisure, and feel the little beauty of autumn and winter. While enriching the consumer experience, it also brings new growth points to the brand. As the temperature drops further, the relaxation lifestyle and attitude represented by bathing and massage will also stimulate the actual needs of more consumers. Brands and merchants can attract more consumers' attention and further expand their market share through cross-category cooperation or brand co-branding.

2. PART2 Node Prediction:

With more festivals in the golden autumn, the hotel, travel and accommodation industry has ushered in a new wave of growth space. Trend 4: Seize the tail of the long holiday and usher in a travel boom in the autumn. The golden autumn with long holidays has made the popularity of travel soar. We have observed that more and more Douyin users are accustomed to ordering travel packages. Because personalized group purchase packages are of high quality and cost-effective, compared with traditional self-service, travel packages designed by professional teams and free combination booking of air tickets, hotels, tour guides and other services are gradually becoming mainstream travel consumption habits. Consumers pursue a more convenient and worry-free travel experience and hope to enjoy the fun of travel more easily.

During long holidays and golden autumn, consumers prefer to experience city life in depth and go on a citywalk. Cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Sanya, Guangzhou, and Zhuhai have become the most popular travel destinations with their unique history, culture, and scenic spots. When it comes to key groups, the trend of family travel cannot be ignored. During the long holidays, parents prefer to travel with their children, so that their children can gain knowledge and broaden their horizons during the trip. Young people also like to take advantage of the long holidays to relax and explore the world. They not only pursue the freshness and excitement of the journey, but also pay attention to the personalization and in-depth experience of the trip. This year, the popularity of holiday travel is still strong. Package combinations for family travel and young groups, as well as supporting services and special projects, will be the growth point of marketing. This will not only adapt to the increasingly diverse scene needs of consumers and greatly improve the travel experience, but also spread through social media fission and bring more new customers with word of mouth. Trend 5: Citywalk, outdoor adventure, and special scenic spots stimulate the desire to check in and explore. The autumn weather is clear and the scenery is pleasant, which is very suitable for outdoor activities. Douyin users who enjoy exploring outdoor life are good at searching and discovering attractions in various places through the platform. Their enthusiasm has also made these places frequent visitors on the hot search list, attracting more people to visit and check in.

Among all the scenic spots, natural landscapes have received great attention. Cultural and ecological attractions such as cultural relics, ancient towns/villages, tourist blocks, landmark buildings and red scenic spots are also very popular. During the golden autumn season, people tend to leave the hustle and bustle of the city to experience the tranquility and beauty of nature, and at the same time they also show a strong interest in the rich history and culture of various places. The busy work of "three points and one line" in daily life makes consumers increasingly lack "freshness". However, China's profound history, culture and natural features can open a door outside of life for people and create enough surprises. This year, the game "Black Myth: Wukong" containing the historical features of Journey to the West has become popular, making Chinese folk culture the focus of consumers' pursuit, and "re-walking the Journey to the West" has even become a hot tourist topic. This golden autumn travel season, intangible cultural heritage tours, ecological tours, rural tours and other special projects will be natural hotspots for scenic spot marketing. In addition, the content marketing gameplay such as travel experts, celebrity live broadcasts, and the fancy out-of-circle of directors of cultural and tourism bureaus in various places will also bring a new wave of discussion and attention to scenic spots. Trend 6: High-quality accommodation experience becomes a new focus in autumn. When traveling during the holidays, users are more inclined to choose consumption that can enhance the travel experience. High-quality hotels have become a popular choice for consumers to enjoy the autumn time.

Douyin users who love to enjoy a good life are keen on searching for various types of "luxury hotel" content, followed by inns, high-end hotels, economy hotels, and comfortable hotels. Among all the consumption in cities, luxury hotels in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chengdu and other cities are particularly popular. This year, high-end and comfortable hotels will become the choice of more families and tourists. At the same time, high-quality hotel facilities and services will also become an important weight to attract mid-to-high-end tourism consumers. Brand merchants can highlight the advantages of "hardware" at nodes, such as swimming pools, fitness centers, spas, children's clubs and other supporting facilities, and add "software" to group purchase packages and group product strategies, such as the hotel's private butler, customized dining options and other services. You can also use marketing methods such as expert recommendations, lists and reviews, live pre-sales, etc. to attract a wider range of target customers and improve the loyalty of old customers.

3. PART3 Category Opportunities:

Following the golden autumn trend, the consumption of special sub-categories is on the rise. Trend 7: Welcome the autumn harvest, the popularity of group purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables is rising. With its convenience and community characteristics, as well as the node consumption habits of autumn diet therapy, the "online group purchase, offline verification" fresh fruit and vegetable service is becoming a rigid demand in people's daily life. On the one hand, users can enjoy more favorable prices and easily complete orders through group purchases in Douyin. On the other hand, verification points near the community can also allow everyone to "return to offline" and more conveniently redeem the fresh ingredients they ordered.

In terms of specific choices, seasonal and nourishing fresh fruit and vegetable products such as durian, beef, fruits and hot pot ingredients are more likely to be loved and chosen by consumers; we have observed that many merchants have also updated corresponding dishes around such nourishing ingredients. With the harvest season, providing a rich variety of categories and group purchase coupons in group purchases will help more merchants open online channels and increase business growth. In addition to the richness of the dishes themselves, merchants should also consider seasonal consumption scenarios, so as to launch more package combinations to provide consumers with convenient choices: for example, for single-person meals for holiday home scenes, daily stockpiling for the whole family, family/friends gatherings, etc., to create differentiated selling points in marketing and promotion, and attract different types of new users to come and purchase. Trend 8: With autumn colors, "beauty and renewal" continues to release potential "Beauty" is a constant pursuit in consumers' lives, especially when the seasons change, people are more eager to welcome a new chapter in life with a brand new image. Along with the trends of autumn Yadan style and Maillard style, users' group purchases of beauty products such as hairdressing, manicure and eyelashes, skin care, and spa and body beauty have increased significantly in autumn.

Overall, in first-tier cities such as Chengdu, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, and Beijing, people's consumption power for the appearance industry is particularly significant. Whether it is the young group aged 18 to 23, the working people aged 24 to 30, or the mature consumers aged 31 to 40, their passion for "becoming beautiful" remains unabated. In addition, male consumers also show their attention and pursuit of beauty. Relying on the richness of the crowd and the evolution of trendy gameplay, the beauty industry will continue to be popular. By providing marketing actions such as drainage packages and limited-time discounts for different scenarios, combined with a variety of content gameplay, attracting more people to experience the store is the secret of this year's golden autumn growth. During the golden autumn holiday, many consumers are happy to discover and experience new projects that can make them "beautiful", and they can enjoy more fun with their girlfriends. On the one hand, merchants should strengthen content creation, and express "beauty" more visually through full-process demonstrations, new styling displays, etc., and also use seasonal limited free packages such as 29.9 new experience coupons and half-price for the second person to expand customer flow. Trend 9: Non-standard commercial entities have become the dark horse of new seasonal categories. Non-standard commercial entities are gradually becoming a new place for young people on Douyin to check in online and offline. With the rise of the Z generation consumer group, the shopping places they pursue are no longer a single consumption space, but a complex space that integrates personalization, experience and socialization. In other words, in addition to various types of autumn goods, there are also offline activities such as art exhibitions and outdoor markets with themes of current trends and seasonal characteristics to help everyone better release their autumn emotions.

Non-standard commercial entities that focus on experience first have broken through the fixed model of traditional shopping malls, where "the first and second floors of the basement are for living and dining, and the first and second floors are for fashion consumption", and instead integrated a variety of scenes such as bars and nightclubs, gaming and e-sports, performance theaters, selected restaurants, and art exhibitions to create a vibrant multi-dimensional experience space. Online content platforms such as Douyin are also becoming an important part of the operation of non-standard commercial entities. For example, in the first half of this year, THE BOX Chaowai showed various creative activities of non-standard commercial entities through Douyin live broadcasts, breaking the restrictions of regions and resonating with young user groups online, thereby further enriching the brand image of non-standard commercial entities and increasing offline customer flow. Going viral with vivid and intuitive grass-planting videos on Douyin, and then attracting online users to offline experiences through group purchase experience coupons, will be a new idea for new specialty categories to quickly open up business circles.

Conclusion It is not difficult to find that as consumers' pursuit of quality life continues to improve, the "Golden Autumn" has also become a critical period for brands to demonstrate their own value and innovation capabilities. Consumers not only expect material satisfaction, but also desire spiritual pleasure and emotional resonance. More and more businesses are expanding their business positions in Douyin Life Services through creative content and precise marketing strategies, establishing deeper connections with consumers, and thus providing richer and more diverse options for eating, drinking and playing. By grasping consumer trends, innovating business models, creating attractive content and implementing precise content marketing strategies, we expect that in this golden autumn, more and more brand merchants will be able to reap a lot through operations.

Creative team｜Analyst of Growth Black Box Business Observation Group｜Yolo, Lyle Editor｜Jiangjiang Design｜Yang Brand Supervisor｜Zou Xiaokun Operation｜Helen-