Luckin Coffee, the undisputed king of CNY marketing volume

The Year of the Dragon is approaching. This article comprehensively introduces the New Year marketing of Luckin Coffee and objectively analyzes its advantages. It is recommended for all marketers to read.

As the Year of the Dragon Spring Festival is approaching, the annual CNY marketing war has begun again!

I believe everyone has reviewed the finished product that marketers have spent three to two months preparing.

In this Dragon Year marketing competition, Luckin Coffee has once again successfully broken through. Consumers from all walks of life seem to be discussing Luckin Coffee’s New Year communication.

Since January 22, Luckin Coffee has kicked off the New Year. From products to material packaging, from joint cooperation to fan marketing, it has launched all-round online operations by land, sea and air. It is like a raging fire and a blooming flower, and it has reached a new height!

1. Roll product: Luckin Coffee x Moutai: The first cup of Moutai in the Year of the Dragon?

Luckin Coffee had a joint venture with Moutai last year. We won’t go into details about how popular it was, but the sales volume of a single product exceeded 100 million on the first day, and there were more joint paper bags on the street than briefcases.

Just last week, Luckin Coffee launched the 2.0 version of its joint product with Moutai, the Dragon Year Sauce-flavored Chocolate , which once again became a hot topic on social platforms! It even topped the Weibo hot search list before it was even launched.

In fact, before the product was officially launched, some people were skeptical about this new flavor. But when it appeared on the order page, everyone wanted to try this new joint to see what surprises the combination of liquor, chocolate and coffee could bring.

Some netizens who have tried it said that it has a mellow taste, the alcohol flavor is lighter than that of the sauce-flavored latte, and the taste is sweet, with the flavor of chocolate with liquor in childhood memories .

And from everyone's comments, "Iced Chocolate" and "Hot Chocolate" are two completely different flavors, which has also aroused the interest of more consumers. Not only that, Luckin also gave away 100,000 cups of sauce-flavored chocolate. Buy one cup and you can get one chance to win, so that everyone can find the joy of scratch cards!

2. Roll packaging: Luckin Coffee X Han Meilin: The father of Fuwa comes back again!

Of course, Luckin Coffee not only put a lot of effort into the co-branded flavors, but also once again teamed up with Master Han Meilin, the "Father of Fuwa" , to launch a series of materials limited to the Year of the Dragon, including three zodiac-designed packaging bags, the same cup sleeves, red envelope stickers, etc., which are very eye-catching!

Some netizens gave a very appropriate word, called - Chinese high-end , in which both cultural heritage and aesthetics are well grasped.

One of the paper bags has the words "2024 New Year Luckin" and various "line dragons" with a bit of oracle bone script embedded in many colorful grids.

Many netizens said that at first glance it looks very similar to the "Archaeopteryx" jointly branded by Luckin Coffee and Arc'teryx, and they checked in one after another to say "It's not that Arc'teryx can't afford it, it's that Luckin Coffee is more cost-effective."

Consumers with good hands-on skills have already started to create their own products, posting pictures of their homemade mobile phone cases, handbags, refrigerator magnets, and Dragon Year lanterns on social platforms.

On the other two paper bags, one is a "colorful dragon" with the same colors as a rooster, and the other is a "blue stupid dragon" that looks a little smart but not too smart.

The two dragons are rich in color and have lively expressions, which instantly caught the aesthetic tastes of a large number of consumers, who couldn't help but buy each one.

This year is the second zodiac collaboration between Luckin Coffee and Han Meilin, and users can also sense the brand's long-termism.

Luckin Coffee has always had a group of loyal users who are obsessed with packaging collection. Since the launch of Han Meilin’s Year of the Dragon collaboration, last year’s Year of the Rabbit collaboration paper bags attracted another wave of attention.

If Luckin's zodiac co-branded packaging can really last for 12 years, it will indeed satisfy the collecting mentality of a group of collectors!

3. Volume endorsement: Luckin Coffee X Yi Yang Qianxi: Can sending a small card also make it to the hot search list?

At the same time, the topic #Luckin Yi Yang Qianxi Small Card# topped the Weibo hot search list, sparking heated discussions.

Although it is common for Luckin Coffee to be on the hot search list, and a series of fancy moves made it to the hot search list many times last year, it is indeed very rare for the gift of small cards to cause such a scene.

Ever since Luckin Coffee officially announced Yi Yang Qianxi as its global spokesperson, fans have been calling for Qianxi peripheral products. Now fans are saying that "Luckin Coffee has finally got it."

After the peripherals were officially launched, fans revived their carnival, and many stores across the country were overwhelmed with orders. Fans posted their "trophies" on social media platforms, and even "passers-by" joined in the fun under the influence of the carnival atmosphere.

In fact, the physical peripherals such as small cards and standees are one of the "four surprises" . Luckin also brought multiple surprises to fans, including Easter eggs in stores across the country, large screens at airports in 10 major cities across the country, and WeChat red envelope skins for spokespersons, giving the spokespersons enough face. The brand has refreshed its image in the minds of young consumers through the appeal of the spokespersons and the enthusiasm of fans; fans can not only collect the idol's peripherals and small cards, but also participate in surprise screen interactions in stores, greatly improving their consumption experience; and Yi Yang Qianxi can also verify his commercial value through this event, which is undoubtedly a win-win for all three parties.

4. Lightweight joint venture: Luckin Coffee x "Meta Dream Star": Meet in the game for the New Year's Eve

Nowadays, more and more young people have added "playing games" to the routine Spring Festival schedule of "going home, eating, and visiting relatives", hoping to enjoy this rare holiday in a more free and comfortable way.

In order to further enhance everyone's gaming experience, Luckin will also cooperate with the popular mobile game "Yuanmeng Star" which focuses on "happiness", customize Luckin barista skins, fireworks and rocket props, and parkour Luckin maps in the game, and build a Yuanmeng theme store in Shenzhen.

It is understood that Luckin also wrote an internal letter to pay tribute to its 110,000 barista partners, explaining the inspiration for this co-branded fashion.

This highly humanistic collaboration also allows us to see specific and vivid people behind the general labels of barista and consumer, and establish a warmer connection with the brand.

Before the event went online, some players began to look forward to this collaboration and had already made appointments with their friends to celebrate the New Year together in the game.

Imagine a few close friends drinking Luckin Coffee while putting on Luckin barista skins in the game. The dreamlike linkage of satisfying food for the soul is simply a New Year’s gift to the players.

I have to say, when it comes to understanding the preferences of young people, no one can beat Luckin Coffee!

This series of operations not only made products with beautiful meanings such as sauce-flavored chocolate, New Year's Red Dragon Latte, and Good Persimmon Daifuku the "hard currency of the Spring Festival" for young people to communicate their feelings, but also subtly enhanced the festive atmosphere, making the Year of the Dragon Spring Festival more "flavorful".

I believe that everyone can also find some new ideas for breaking through the New Year marketing from Luckin’s marketing layout.

Firstly, multi-point layout + high-frequency output + fancy operation, use the combination of cards to "king bomb" the Internet.

Consumers have limited memories of brands and products. If you want to have a place in the noisy "Spring Festival", you must appear in the eyes of consumers more frequently and deeply. So this Spring Festival, Luckin Coffee, in line with the principle of "speed is the only way to defeat all martial arts", took the lead through a series of high-frequency, intensive, and highly perceptible activities, and made a strong presence in a number of brand events.

Moreover, from a higher perspective, these playing methods that have been "rolled" to the extreme in a single track are not isolated from each other, but a set of highly integrated and mutually coordinated combination cards. This set of cards includes creative expressions that can increase the potential of the brand, as well as effective advertisements that create sales conversions. Only such "king bombs" that combine quality and effectiveness can break through the "threshold" of consumers' attention and become a "tourist attraction" worth stopping at during the Spring Festival.

Secondly, it continuously awakens the user's "dopamine" and makes the product a vehicle for emotional expression.

If you only focus on the functional value of your products, there is limited room for growth, and you will eventually fall into the dilemma of homogenization. Luckin Coffee has been tapping into consumers' emotional needs and injecting more emotional value into its products in different ways, making a cup of coffee more than just a cup of coffee.

For example, the 2.0 version of the Dragon Year sauce-flavored chocolate co-branded with Moutai caters to the consumption demands of "coffee hipsters" who love to try new things and share ; the Red Dragon Latte, Good Persimmon Daifuku and lucky draw activities with good meanings provide a full sense of ritual for consumers who want to get a good start during the Spring Festival; the materials co-branded with Han Meilin not only satisfy the aesthetic taste of national tide lovers, but also provide more inspiration and materials for handicraft masters ; the quadruple surprises given to the spokesperson's fans are not only a recognition of the spokesperson's appeal, but also a deep-level communication with fans; and the linkage with "Yuanmeng Star" also allows the holiday black party to feel the brand's attention to them.

Behind these seemingly scattered ways of playing, there is actually a clear main thread: that is, this Spring Festival, Luckin will accompany you to eat, drink, play and enjoy the holiday together.

Therefore, in the New Year atmosphere created by the brand, the brand role has also become clearer in the minds of the public.

Third, the online focus will break the offline circle and explore new product consumption scenarios with the New Year as the guide.

In fact, for new consumer brands, the Spring Festival is an important opportunity to break out of the circle and achieve growth.

On the one hand, it is because the brand’s popularity is mainly concentrated among the new generation who like surfing, and there are still many growth opportunities; on the other hand, it is because the product can enter the Spring Festival social scene as a "new year product", further broadening the consumption scenario.

For example, in the lucky draw event launched by Luckin Coffee, some consumers said that Luckin Coffee has become the "best companion" for regular meetings, fan support, and playing games with friends.

In scenarios with more complex user circles such as annual meetings and family gatherings, Luckin Coffee will be able to break through communication barriers because of its status as a "designated drink", be seen and understood by more people, and become a "topic of conversation" during social events during the Spring Festival.

I believe that for Luckin Coffee, the "king of money", this Spring Festival marketing combination is just a starting point.

In 2024, we will wait and see what new attempts the brand will make.

Author: Mr. Bingfa; WeChat public account: Marketing Bingfa