HEYTEA: A look at its powerful digital operations capabilities

As a leader in the tea industry, how did Heytea, the brand of inspirational tea, capture the hearts of so many young people and carve out a new path? This article analyzes Heytea's digital operations, hoping to inspire you.

Unexpectedly, there is inspiration . Heytea, the tea of ​​inspiration, this mouthful of thick cheese is really greasy! From milk cap to fruit tea, Heytea has captured the souls of many young people. Their whole lives are given by Heytea and air conditioners! There are many players in the new tea track, such as Nayuki Tea, Shanghai Auntie, Cha Yan Yue Se, Fushimi Momoyama, and Cha Li Yi Shi. They are endless and have played the operation of "adding fruit to water" in a fancy way! The differences in urban areas, sinking areas, and marketing methods have once pulled the popularity of the new tea industry to a high level.

1. Building digital operation capabilities to lay a solid foundation for HEYTEA

2018 is a crucial year for HEYTEA. According to the report of iiMedia Research, in 2018, the number of offline stores selling freshly brewed beverages in China has exceeded 450,000, and the market size of new tea drinks has exceeded 90 billion yuan. The valuation of HEYTEA has reached an astonishing 16 billion yuan in this year, with more than 400 offline stores. Faced with such high market expectations and the continuous expansion of stores, improving store operation efficiency, improving digital operation capabilities, optimizing supply chain upgrades, and optimizing brand IP upgrades are the key decisions of HEYTEA this year!

It is precisely because of this background that the Heytea GO mini program was officially launched. We got some official data feedback from Heytea. After the launch of the Heytea GO mini program, the average waiting time for consumers to order in stores using the mini program was shortened by 1/3 compared to the previous waiting time in the store. The repurchase rate also increased by 3 times. More than 80% of the store's orders came from the mini program. It has greatly promoted the store's operating efficiency and the online rate of users.

2. Membership system upgrade, user operation enters a new stage of retail

Heytea's membership system is the most deeply felt means of digital operation for users. From the perspective of the growth of the user life cycle, from the new customer onboarding period to the development period, maturity period and decline period, membership is usually a necessary stage in the rapid development period or maturity period, and is also the key node for most of the user payments.

Compared with these traditional membership connection methods, Heytea's solution is just the opposite! Users can become Heytea members by default by registering and binding their mobile phone numbers on the Heytea GO applet. From the first step of the new member introduction period, the membership mindset is implanted, and the consumption points system, membership privileges, and customized discounts are smoothly pushed to users in one step.

In just four years, the number of member users has been pushed to 63 million. With the strong momentum of HEYTEA's product and brand advantages, it can not only continue to attract more new user members, but also reflect the continuous enhancement of the HEYTEA team's digital operation capabilities. It is precisely because of the large-scale expansion of digital members that the HEYTEA GO applet has become the core channel for HEYTEA to serve members.

In 2022, Heytea members underwent a comprehensive brand upgrade, upgrading from the previous Heytea Planet membership privileges to the VIP level. The VIP level is the gameplay of Heytea's membership system, which includes a level growth system , a ladder reward system , a rights and interests service system , and a special black card relegation system .

HEYTEA members are divided into five levels. The membership level is determined by the "growth value" accumulated during the validity period of the level (365 days). The higher the growth value, the higher the level and the more membership benefits you can enjoy.

The five levels are trainee VIP, advanced VIP, senior VIP, senior VIP and black card VIP; the supporting rights include free delivery for takeout on Monday, free extra ingredients on Tuesday, points-based flash sales on Wednesday, random discounts on Thursday, free delivery for drink together, random free gifts for drink together, priority production of new products, birthday tea gifts, exclusive discounts for wedding cards, inspiration ordering channels, free black card experience cards and black card customization. Each different level enjoys more of the above privileges and services.

From the perspective of user stratification and cultivation, Heytea’s membership levels and benefits are very cleverly designed.

On the one hand, the growth level of members is essentially the LTV for deepening users. In terms of the level rights and interests of HEYTEA's trainee VIPs and advanced VIPs, the core promotion is personal experience services such as free delivery, points-based flash sales, and free additional ingredients, which stimulate the first-order consumption of individual users and increase the consumption users and ARPU value of individual users; but for high-level VIPs and senior VIPs, the core rights and interests are to promote rights and interests services such as half-price for the second cup, buy one get one free, and drink together, which stimulate multiple orders and multiple users to consume, and explore the introduction of new users on the premise of increasing personal repurchases.

On the other hand, unlike the level service system of regular apps, Heytea's membership level has a validity period of one year. After one year, the system will re-level the membership based on the effective growth value obtained during the validity period. The new level validity period will be calculated from the day of the leveling, which is still 365 days. In other words, the level will be reset to the previous level within the expiration date. The essence behind this logic is the cultivation of consumption habits and the creation of core users.

New tea is a high-frequency and high-profit industry. For Heytea, all process systems are to accumulate strength for the ultimate "Black Card VIP". The requirements for "Black Card VIP" are 2200 growth points + more than or equal to 12 valid orders + more than or equal to half a year of registration. You should know that this growth point requirement is three times that of the previous level. It is relatively easy to go from level one to level four, but it is extremely difficult to upgrade from level four to level five "Black Card VIP".

Once in this field, these users will have formed regular patterns in consumption habits, registration time, and consumption dependence, and will be the most "loyal" users of Heytea. In addition, "Black Card VIP" has a growth and relegation rule that the first four levels do not have. As long as the relatively easy "relegation task" is completed within the validity period, the new "Black Card VIP" rights and interests will still be granted to individuals.

Behind this series is a typical user Ltv business plan, which gradually pushes users to the ultimate state, increases thresholds in the process, continuously cultivates users' habits and consumption mindsets, reaches the highest level, provides the highest equity rewards, reduces downgrade mechanisms, locks users firmly in core areas, and continuously reaps higher ARPU values.

3. Closed loop of online and offline users, global ecology locks in core users

2019 can be said to be the core explosion year for the development of private domain ecology. Whether it is the transformation of Internet companies or traditional enterprises, the means of user operation also focus on the private domain ecology. The same is true for Heytea. Starting from the private domain ecology of WeChat, multiple traffic touchpoints such as WeChat groups, public accounts, Moments, video accounts, and mini programs are operated in a differentiated manner to form a circular reach of users; secondly, the public domain traffic matrix such as Douyin, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu is also the second echelon of Heytea. The private domain ecology of the first echelon provides conversion and transaction services, and the public domain of the second echelon builds word-of-mouth communication. The two-pronged approach of public domain + private domain constitutes a three-dimensional user operation method.

The QR code signs that can be seen everywhere in offline stores, the receipts for user orders, the payment details page for online orders, the custom menus of the official accounts, the main interface services of the mini-programs, and the homepage menus of the video accounts are all concentrated on directing traffic to the corporate WeChat account. After adding the corporate WeChat account, they will join the Heytea community for cultivation.

Our actual test and observation found that the rhythm of Heytea's community operation is relatively friendly and clear. The official main promotion content is not much. In addition to the new member gift after joining the group, an average of 2-3 pieces of content are pushed every day from Monday to Sunday. Monday and Tuesday are focused on product promotion, Wednesday is a point flash sale event, Thursday is a top-up event, Friday is the game of the community lucky wheel (mainly full discount coupons, takeaway coupons and free drink coupons), and weekends are product promotion. Under the premise of not excessively harassing users, the marketing rhythm is guaranteed to be delivered in an orderly manner.

Douyin, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu are also part of Heytea's traffic matrix. Douyin's two official accounts have more than 1.66 million fans in total. The video content is mainly about mainstream beverages, new product launches, and brand promotion. Secondly, the homepage of the account shows the location of nearby stores, which also supplements the offline store traffic. Heytea's positioning on Weibo and Xiaohongshu is similar, with more user interaction and word-of-mouth building. Heytea's official Weibo has nearly 1.3 million fans, and Xiaohongshu has nearly 400,000 fans. 1-2 content is released every day, and more of them are rewarded interactions, topic interactions, and product promotions. More new product content is implanted in the form of pictures and texts.

4. HEYTEA’s user conversion strategy from the perspective of the AARRR model

AARRR is a key model in the user operation rules, which includes acquiring users – activating users – retaining users – repurchasing users – sharing and spreading. We combined the overall Heytea on HeyteaGO and the public domain operation rules to try to break down the strategies and methodologies of each link.

User acquisition: In 2018, the number of HEYTEA's offline stores has exceeded 400, and they are often overcrowded and have long queues. Offline users are undoubtedly a natural traffic pool. Combining the drainage of offline physical stores with the combination of online traffic matrix, offline stores queue up to guide users to scan codes and place orders, and online public accounts strongly guide users to mini programs, and online and offline users are centrally imported into HEYTEA GO.

User activation: Register as a Heytea member through Heytea GO to start Heytea's membership level growth system. The core of the rights and interests content is to promote the first-order consumption discount, and stimulate the conversion of the first order through benefits. In the process of different level systems, gradually cultivate user consumption habits. Secondly, Heytea's point system is also one of the means to activate users. Users can obtain proportional points through the consumption amount of each order, and can also obtain corresponding point rewards by completing various tasks in the "Task Center" in the Heytea GO applet. The final points can be exchanged for beverage vouchers in the points mall. Activate more potential consumption needs of users.

User retention: For user retention, Heytea's operation strategy is public domain matrix content + user reach. The community is the best place to recall and retain users. Product recommendation, flash sales promotion, and regular new product sampling can improve the efficiency of mini program retention faster and more accurately.

User repurchase: High-frequency categories naturally have the potential for user repurchase. In the process of the hierarchical rights and interests of the growth system, promotional forms such as half-price for the second order, buy one get one free, 12% off coupons for student cards, Axi group meals, limited-time events, etc. are all means to increase user repurchase. Through different subsidy marketing combinations, individuals, enterprises, and surrounding connections are guided to make multiple purchases.

User communication: Taste duplication in order sharing is a small highlight of Heytea's communication. After users complete an order in the Heytea GO applet, they can share the order, and other users can directly copy the same flavor, and recommend and share it with one click in the selection of sugar content, toppings, and ice. Secondly, similar experience cards can be shared and given to friends, and random discounts can be enjoyed when drinking together, and delivery fees can be waived when drinking together. While guiding users to make multiple orders, the construction of word-of-mouth communication is once again amplified.

Heytea’s digital operation is more like a solution for the new retail industry. The O2O closed loop improves offline store efficiency and online user digital operations, providing the best solution from the perspective of store operating efficiency and traffic acquisition.

Author: Leon; Official Account: Leon New Retail Notes