Why did a bunch of ordinary bananas become an Internet sensation?

As a common fruit, it has now become a social media celebrity. On e-commerce platforms, bananas have captured the hearts of workers in different forms.

Bananas themselves may not have thought that they would become a social media celebrity this year! In the public consciousness, bananas are common fruits, but this time they became popular on the Internet because workers used bananas as green plants in hydroponics. On e-commerce platforms, searching for keywords such as "hydroponics bananas" and "banning green bananas" will reveal that there are many stores with sales of over 10,000 products, and some stores have recently sold more than 100,000 products.

According to data from an e-commerce platform, the search volume for "banana green" increased by 70% week-on-week, and the order volume increased by about 30%, and is still maintaining an upward trend.

How did this ordinary bunch of bananas become so popular? What are the deeper reasons behind the sudden popularity? Is there anything worth learning from it for brands?

01 Using "banana worry" to fight "anxiety", banning banana green has become popular

A new companion for workers in the office to slack off, hydroponic bananas, have become a new weapon for workers to fight against "anxiety".

After 7-15 days of hydroponic cultivation, bananas turn from green to yellow and can be "picked and eaten". The process of waiting for them to mature is very therapeutic. The ornamental and edible value of hydroponic bananas adds fun to workers, making hydroponic bananas a "favorite" in the office and a hit on major social platforms.

On the one hand, it is driven by curiosity. People have a strong interest in the taste of hydroponic bananas and want to know the difference between bananas sold in supermarkets and bananas grown by themselves. People who have not participated in hydroponic bananas are full of curiosity about the "purification theory of green bananas".

On the other hand, more importantly, this is a common choice of workers, using "banana green" to fight "anxiety". In addition to curiosity, another more important reason for the popularity of hydroponic bananas is that they have a beautiful meaning, which carries the workers' expectation of getting rid of mental exhaustion.

A pot of hydroponic bananas has been used by workers to play with them in many ways. Sharing the ripe bananas with the public is a way to share anxiety. In the process of sharing, you can "banana" with your friends, or you can have a team-building event in the office to eat the "bananas", creating a more pleasant and interesting office atmosphere. It has become a popular way for workers to resolve their negative emotions.

Not only that, netizens have also shown extraordinary creativity and have found more ways to express beautiful meanings. The pineapple debuted with the banana, which is called the "dynamic light pineapple", which is actually a hydroponic pineapple; there are also "berry troubles", "big orange is the most important", "stealing time in the mango"... These vegetables and fruits have been given new meanings by migrant workers and have become popular in the market and are deeply loved by the public.

02 Behind the popularity of ordinary fruits and vegetables is the emergence of social "emotional value"

From the popularity of "banning banana greens" to the new meaning of "serving fruits and vegetables on the table for team building", what has captured the hearts of workers? In Mr. Bingfa's opinion, it is mainly manifested in three aspects.

1. First, the sense of ceremony

Anxiety is something that cannot be seen or touched. The green plants that are now standard in workers' offices have the words "No Greening" in the form of work badges and text, which allows workers to express their deep-seated rejection of anxiety in a concrete way, creating a positive psychological suggestion of "green worries will dissipate" and waiting for "green bananas to turn yellow", and also gives them a sense of ritual in rejecting their inner mental consumption.

2. Second, satisfaction

The satisfaction that workers get from growing hydroponic bananas comes from social value and emotional value.

On the one hand, it is the satisfaction brought by social value. Sharing life every day is the daily routine of contemporary consumers. Following the trend of growing hydroponic bananas will naturally drive people to take photos to show off, which greatly increases the fun of sharing. When people find that there are many people sharing similar information, they feel that they have found "friends" and are not alone in this society. At the same time, sharing bananas in the office can liven up the atmosphere and serve as a lubricant for workers' workplace relationships.

On the other hand, it brings multiple emotional values ​​such as self-pleasing, healing, and recognition. In the fast-paced and high-pressure modern life, green hydroponic bananas soothe people's anxious emotions and give workers the opportunity to communicate with green plants anytime and anywhere. Rejecting internal friction is an idea and attitude. Choosing hydroponic bananas means choosing to please yourself and heal anxiety, while also winning the recognition of more people and generating multiple emotional values.

3. The third is a sense of participation

Only when users are deeply involved can more effective communication be achieved. When consumers choose hydroponic bananas, they are actually choosing a sense of participation.

As the bananas change from "green" to "yellow", workers need to change the water every three days and observe the subtle changes in the bananas in their spare time, until they finally ripen naturally and enjoy their delicious taste, giving people a real sense of presence in the entire change.

03 The road to fame of "Don't be green"

Can brands be copied? In marketing, it is important to be ever-changing and unexpected. Faced with the ever-changing consumer market, brands must firmly believe in the "power and role of momentum". If there is "momentum", you can follow it; if there is no "momentum", you can create it. It has to be admitted that the popularity of hydroponic bananas is due to the unexpected factors of time and place, but there are still things worth learning from.

First, pay attention to user behavior and seize fleeting "opportunities". The simple and unpretentious business war lies in capturing details. From a marketing perspective, brands need to pay more attention to emotional value. Whether it is to release pressure or to provide positive guidance, brands need to truly "understand" consumers' emotions and their true inner thoughts. Perhaps on the surface, hydroponic bananas are a follow-up behavior of consumers, but in fact, introverted workers in the workplace need an outlet for emotional catharsis. In the face of changes in user behavior habits and preferences, brands need to respond in a timely manner, after all, opportunities are fleeting.

Second, the selection of user touchpoints is particularly important. User touchpoints are the scenarios and methods of interaction between consumers and brands/products. Marketing touchpoints are diverse in themselves, but if you want to establish a closer connection with consumers, make marketing have its own hot spot effect, and achieve self-propagation, you need to carefully plan the selection of marketing touchpoints, focusing on factors such as experience, drive, recognition, personalization, and interactivity.