Observation of the sinking market: the daily illustrations of "Leisure Lifestyle"

This article provides insights into the daily life and digital consumption habits of the sinking market, and is recommended for brands and market strategists. It is recommended for mobile Internet, e-commerce and content creators to read.

1. Market size of lower-tier cities

The sinking market refers to the market in third-tier and lower-tier cities, counties, towns and rural areas, covering about 200 prefecture-level cities, 3,000 county towns and 40,000 townships, with a population of over 900 million. With the in-depth popularization of mobile Internet, the scale of Internet users in the sinking market has shown an upward trend, and has now reached 647 million. QuestMobile data shows that in March 2024, users in the sinking market accounted for 52.6% of the overall mobile Internet share.

Data source: QuestMobile 2024 Downstream Market Insight Report

In sharp contrast to the fast-paced, high-pressure life in first- and second-tier cities, users in the sinking market live in relatively small towns or rural areas. Their lifestyles and mobile phone usage habits are different from those in big cities. Internet practitioners went to six typical sinking cities, including Qinhuangdao, Fushun and Huanggang, to conduct street interviews, observe and experience the living conditions, mobile phone usage habits and content consumption in the sinking market.

2. Living conditions of low-end users

During the interviews, we observed that a stable life and a slow pace constitute the basic characteristics of users in the sinking market. Family is the most important part of their lives, while they tend to accept a "lay flat" attitude in their careers and lack a strong drive to work.

Data source: TouBao Research Institute

For users in the sinking market, family is the center of life. Whether inside or outside the system, people are willing to spend more time with their families. There are many scenes of people going home for lunch and accompanying their children. Work is no longer just a battlefield for fame and fortune, but more of a part of life. They tend to choose career paths that can make their lives more stable and comfortable, such as civil servants or public institutions. These jobs not only have stable incomes, but also bring social respect and ample personal time. Taking the civil service exam has become a popular option for the younger generation. In addition to the desire for stable income and security, it is also because in such a social structure, connections and status are particularly important.

Social activities here present a strong "acquaintance culture" feature. Friends' gatherings and family outings have become the main forms of daily entertainment. A drink after get off work is not only a way to relax, but also an opportunity to deepen emotional connections. In terms of interests, users in the sinking market do not have a wide range of interests and hobbies. Common activities include playing games, singing and playing cards, and some users also choose to dance.

3. The main theme of entertainment for low-end users: watching videos

As their pace of life is relatively slow, they usually have more free time, which allows them to immerse themselves in their mobile phones for a long time, which is different from the fragmented use of mobile phones by users in first- and second-tier cities. Further contact found that most of the users' free time is filled with entertainment, such as watching videos, reading novels, playing games and shopping.

Among them, video content is the first choice due to its intuitiveness, occupying a dominant position in user content consumption, while graphic content takes a back seat. In this visit, the ratio is about 8:2. Especially among the elderly, video has become almost the only form of entertainment because it is easy to understand and watch.

From the perspective of video watching scenarios, some people like to watch videos during their leisure time after a day's work or before going to bed. Browsing content that interests them can create a relaxing and pleasant atmosphere and effectively relieve daytime fatigue. In addition, for those user groups with more flexible daily duties, such as individual merchants or shop assistants, they also have a large amount of "nothing to do" free time even during "working hours". They will be busy for a while when there are customers, and feel bored when there are no customers.

For these people, they may even "swipe through" the recommended content and end up with nothing left to watch, so it is crucial for applications to continuously provide a large amount of fresh content to stimulate the fun and fulfillment of life. In terms of the types of video content that users are happy to consume, they can be divided into three categories.

The first category is entertainment and leisure. Unsurprisingly, this type of content consumption is the most common, including film and television analysis, humorous jokes, life anecdotes and other light content, which is a great tool for killing time; the second category is life. Some users are accustomed to learning practical skills through videos, such as gardening and cooking techniques, aiming to improve the quality of life or enhance personal abilities; the third category is news and current affairs, which is mostly composed of male users. They pay close attention to hot topics and news events on social media, and have a strong demand for the timeliness and breadth of information. This type of content can not only please themselves, but also is an important source of social conversation for users.

4. Watching videos gives rise to a byproduct - video creation

Users in the lower-tier markets are not only consumers of videos, but also the driving force of "video creation". According to users, their motivation for shooting and sharing videos comes from many aspects: first, to record bits of life, such as the changing seasons, cute pet stories, and precious moments of children's growth; second, to share life status, establish closer emotional connections with relatives and friends, and meet social needs; some businesses and individual operators try to use videos as a promotional tool. Although they are conservative about the effect of online traffic diversion, they still actively embrace this trend and seek new opportunities outside of traditional business methods.

From the perspective of tool experience, users are mainly concerned about the ease of use of editing and special effects and the final film effect. Combined with the current rapid development trend of AI, many products have used AI capabilities to improve video editing efficiency or enrich special effects and final film effects, which has boosted user creative behavior.

5. Extra Gain - The Attraction of Online Earning

In addition to videos, users in the lower-tier markets also expressed a strong interest in online earning activities. They tried to open up a path to increase their income in their spare time. Compared with frequent small withdrawals, they prefer to accumulate a larger amount before making operations. This mentality may be closely related to the equivalent linkage of physical value.

In their eyes, an amount of 15 or 30 yuan means two meals or more daily necessities, which is far more fulfilling and meaningful than a few cents each time. When it comes to making money, users in the sinking market clearly prefer ways with low barriers and easy operations. New user registration rewards, daily check-ins, and making money by watching videos, which do not require complex skills, have become their first choice.

VI. Conclusion

As a large and unique group, users in the lower-tier markets have different lifestyles and consumption habits from those in first- and second-tier cities. Their pace of life is relatively slow, and mobile entertainment plays a key role in the lives of users in the lower-tier markets, with video content being particularly popular. The lower-tier markets are not "sinking", and they enjoy the convenience and happiness brought by digitalization in their own way, while also showing a demand for more practical and life-oriented Internet services. I hope there will be more thoughtful designs and services that take their habits and expectations into account.

Author: MEUX; Source public account: Baidu MEUX (ID: 180796)