This year's 618, 9.9 yuan and 1 yuan shopping became the protagonists

The 618 shopping event is coming to an end, and e-commerce platforms are showing different changes. What is different about this year's 618? This article starts from the 618 shopping event on e-commerce platforms, and introduces in detail the differences between e-commerce platforms and previous 618 shopping events, as well as the current development trend of e-commerce. Let's take a look.

618, with half of the calendar already torn off, presents different changes.

Dai Shan of Taobao and Tmall, Xu Ran of JD.com, Wei Wenwen of Douyin and Abu of Pinduoduo, the four female leaders, faced off for the first time. However, the battlefield that should have been fierce seemed a little quiet: the platforms that had a good start in the pre-sale stage did not publicize the dazzling GMV (platform transaction volume) as loudly as in previous years, and social platforms rarely discussed the achievements of the top anchors.

In the era of stock competition among e-commerce platforms, the focus of the consumer industry is no longer high-profile and rapid growth, but cost reduction and efficiency improvement and steady operation. The 618 platforms all chose to keep a low profile and compete secretly. The most noticeable change for consumers is the product level: the homepages of traditional e-commerce platforms such as Taobao Tmall and JD.com have added many content sections; Douyin has embraced shelf e-commerce, launching single product value purchases and mall channel theme days on the homepage of shopping.

“Taobao Good Prices” on Taobao’s homepage

Different platforms have different strategies, but they all end up launching similar themes: many consumers have found entrances with a "low price" mentality on the APP. Taobao uses "Taobao Good Price" to attract attention, JD.com brings "10 billion subsidies" to the center, Douyin quietly explores low-price e-commerce with a self-operated model, and Pinduoduo launches a price reduction list.

Consumers have sensed the changes in the APP and more "low prices", and merchants have sensed a shift in traffic during 618 - compared to previous years when traffic was tilted towards brands and large merchants, this year's traffic seems to favor small and medium-sized merchants more, and many white-label and brand-name merchants have "stood up" during this year's 618.

Some small and medium-sized businesses told E-Commerce Online that this year they can clearly feel that several platforms have begun to pay attention to small and medium-sized businesses. "They used to be cheerleaders on the sidelines, but this year they have become the main force on the field."

The 618 shopping festival has entered its tenth year. E-commerce platforms that have returned to their essence are using a more diversified ecosystem to meet the needs of consumers at different levels, and strive to keep users on the platform longer. Conversely, only when the basic and mid-level merchants are more substantial can the development of the e-commerce ecosystem be more sustainable.

2. Maogou Doupin offers “low prices”

Before the 618 pre-sale officially started, the APPs of various platforms had quietly changed.

"Taobao Good Price Festival" and JD.com's "10 billion subsidies"

There are multiple low-price entrances on the homepage of Taobao APP. "Taobao Good Price" has quietly replaced the former Juhuasuan and Youhaohuo channels, and the "Taobao Good Price Festival" has also appeared on the homepage. The two channels have similar names, but the content is somewhat different. The "Taobao Good Price" channel is similar to the previous "Juhuasuan", which brings together sections such as 10 billion subsidies, 1 yuan special zones and limited-time flash sales; the "Taobao Good Price Festival" is limited to the 618 period, with sections such as a 9.9 yuan cap, official direct reductions and interest-free installments. Both have white-label and branded products, and cover most categories, but the theme is "low price". In the official instant reduction of the "Taobao Good Price Festival", there is a Gree dishwasher with an instant reduction of 720 yuan, and a dressing mirror with an instant reduction of 4.5 yuan.

JD.com updated its app on May 9, and the 10 billion subsidy channel took center stage on the homepage. Previously, the "10 billion subsidy" channel was mostly branded goods, but now it has added a lot of white-label and factory-brand goods. The channel not only has Asics running shoes subsidized by 120 yuan, but also white-label dresses subsidized by 66 yuan.

Pinduoduo’s 618 section and Douyin’s “super cheap shops”

There are not many changes in the layout of Pinduoduo's homepage, but a 618 section has appeared in the navigation bar at the bottom. After users click to enter, they can view the price reduction list of recently browsed products, with small print on the side indicating how much the direct reduction is: This reporter had just browsed the Zelda game cartridge and saw the same product on the list with a price reduction of 182 yuan.

Douyin quietly launched its own low-price e-commerce "Super Cheap Shop" on the eve of 618, covering categories such as department stores, small appliances, and 3C digital accessories. Most of them are white-label products, and there are also brands such as Vinda and Liby. The vast majority of products are priced at 9.9 yuan, and many product main pictures also show that Douyin payment new customers can get as low as 0.01 yuan. The most expensive is a 30-pack of Qingfeng tissue paper priced at 45.9 yuan.

By allocating the deterministic traffic position on the homepage to "low price", each platform obviously regards "low price" as an important weight for this year's 618 promotion: when the e-commerce industry is gradually returning to its essence and starting to pursue products, services and efficiency, products are the most prominent, and the most easily perceived factor by consumers among products is price - this is also the factor that most influences consumer decision-making.

Taobao and JD.com both have 1 yuan free shipping special areas

All e-commerce platforms have chosen to use "low prices" as a breakthrough in this year's 618 shopping festival, hoping to attract and influence consumers with low prices. Most consumers tend to make rational decisions when faced with high unit prices, but rarely compare prices when faced with low unit prices, which can help them make transaction decisions and realize consumption.

When many white-label or brand-name low-priced products appear on the low-price channel on the homepage, it also means that the protagonists of the 618 shopping festival on various platforms this year have undergone subtle changes: the focus of traffic is quietly shifting from brand merchants to small and medium-sized merchants.

2. Are small and medium-sized businesses rising up?

From the earliest JD.com anniversary store celebration to the present, 618 has become a major promotion festival shared by all platforms.

In previous promotions, brand merchants and small and medium-sized merchants had different experiences: big brands have the requirements to control prices and have sufficient capital, and can also obtain platform traffic. Participating in promotions can also guarantee a certain profit. Small and medium-sized merchants need to bear the discounts, advertising fees and traffic costs during promotions, but the profits of their own products are not high. They need to do business at a loss during promotions: "Not participating in the event is waiting for death, and participating is seeking death."

Most small and medium-sized shop owners generally have a voice, that is, the big promotions on e-commerce platforms are the same as those in large shopping malls. The platforms will prioritize allocating traffic to brands or large stores, and the participation of small and medium-sized shop owners in the big promotions is like most people playing scratch-off tickets, who can only get a "thank you for participating."

This year's 618, as various platforms used "low prices" as their signboard, the protagonist of the big promotion has quietly changed.

Compared with previous years when more attention was paid to promoting top merchants and brand merchants, this year various platforms focused more on low prices, and small and medium-sized merchants became the focus of traffic.

A JD.com agent who was interviewed by E-Commerce Online previously said that when JD.com first started the "10 billion subsidies", most of the players participating were large stores and brands. "At that time, participating in the '10 billion subsidies' was conditional. Only some invited or eligible stores could participate. When the 618 promotion was approaching, the 10 billion subsidies channel was opened to all merchants. Many small and medium-sized merchants rushed to sign up, hoping to attract a wave of traffic at this time."

On the one hand, low prices can serve as a hook to bring traffic and short-term bursts to the store. On the other hand, JD.com’s “10 billion subsidies” have been featured on the homepage of the APP. Products participating in the “10 billion subsidies” can also be ranked higher when searching, and merchants can obtain more platform traffic.

JD.com’s previous 10 billion yuan subsidy training

Compared with JD.com, Taobao and Tmall directly created the "618 Taobao Good Price Festival" exclusively for small and medium-sized businesses during this year's 618, and also placed the entrance to the "Taobao Good Price Festival" on the homepage of the APP, so that small and medium-sized businesses in the channel have a more certain traffic entrance.

Mao Huaiyu, a merchant from Ningbo, participated in this year's 618 Taobao Good Price event with small appliances from his factory. In his opinion, the "low price" of Taobao Good Price is not a blind pursuit of the lowest price, but a pursuit of the best cost-effectiveness, which is in line with the characteristics of their products. "Our products want to achieve two points. The first is that at the same quality, our prices must be more advantageous than competing products. The second is that at the same price, our products must be more advantageous than competing products. We do not pursue the lowest price, but we pursue cost-effectiveness."

The "low prices" of the Taobao Tmall 618 promotion are seen by many participating small and medium-sized businesses as an experiment to test how much growth the "low prices" combined with the traffic entrances provided by the platform can bring to them. According to Mao Huaiyu's estimation, this year they can obtain more than 20% growth through the Taobao Good Price Channel, and may sell an additional 100 million yuan in output value.

The small and medium-sized businesses that were watching from the sidelines before have become the protagonists this time. The platform directs traffic to more affordable items and targets small and medium-sized businesses, not only because small and medium-sized businesses are the source of white-label and branded goods, but also because they can enrich the business ecology within the platform: the same user will have different shopping needs on the platform, and only when the business ecology within the platform becomes more and more prosperous can the different shopping needs of users be met.

Merchants offer “low prices” and the platform provides traffic entrances, forming a positive cycle and making the platform’s development healthier.

The relevant person in charge of Taobao also said that the ideal Taobao ecosystem is that brands solve the problem of certainty, and small and medium-sized businesses solve the problems of richness and creativity. "The more services that meet consumer needs, the more consumers will stay on the Taobao platform, and the Taobao ecosystem will be more vibrant."

3. Compete on price, content, and growth

During this year’s 618, all platforms returned to the core demand of the big promotion, namely “low price”, and also reached a consensus in one aspect: a prosperous ecology is the core of the healthy development of the platform.

"Low price" is actually more like a signal of the platform's shift: the once rapidly growing GMV and sales volume myth has gradually disappeared, and the e-commerce platform has also turned from short-term outbreaks to long-term operations, returning to the essence of e-commerce, from simple "selling goods" to real "consumption".

If you want to achieve deep user penetration, you need to keep users on the platform longer and enhance user stickiness. In this link, both brand merchants and small and medium-sized merchants are indispensable.

Previously, e-commerce platforms were more focused on solving users’ single needs, but now they are more like solving all aspects of users’ lives, allowing users to stay on the platform as much as possible: a user will not have only one need, he may want to buy a big-name skin care product, or he may want to buy a roll of cost-effective garbage bags.

This is also why many e-commerce platforms have begun to increase their content this year, making the platforms more "shopping"-oriented, allowing users to stay on the platforms longer, and allowing e-commerce platforms to gradually become a large online shopping mall or a rich media platform to meet the different needs of users.

Taobao and JD.com launched the “Shop” and “Go” functions on their homepages.

A business district with a sound ecosystem and sustainable and healthy development will obviously not only have many high-end stores, but also many affordable stores that meet the daily needs of consumers. The same is true for e-commerce platforms. Brands are an integral part of the healthy development of the platform. "Low-priced" white-label and factory brands for more consumers to choose from are also an indispensable part of the platform. The small and medium-sized businesses behind the many low-priced white-label and factory brands are also an indispensable part of the platform.

The platform is quietly reshaping consumers and merchants' perception of the platform by tilting traffic toward small and medium-sized businesses during the 618 shopping festival this year. The platform is competing for "low prices" and rolling out content, which is more of an introduction to the platform, hooking users and allowing them to stay on the platform longer.

The most competitive 618 seems to be a competition of prices, but in fact it returns to the essence of e-commerce.

Author: Wang Zhan

Source: WeChat official account: "E-commerce Online (ID: dianshangmj)"