It is obvious to all that the double 11 in the past ended up with a new transaction record, which is also the most direct sign of the success of the shopping festival. The difference, however, is that this year’s Singles’ Day is no longer focused on sales volume. E-commerce giants have started to lay out offline stores and incorporate them into the shopping extravaganza.
Tmall jingdong force offline stores, large-scale group battle is coming
If anything, this year’s Singles’ Day is different: buzzwords have been quietly replaced, and price cuts seem to be less touted by e-commerce platforms, replaced by new retail, smart logistics and unmanned stores. As the new retail trend becomes more and more prominent, the integration of online shopping and offline scene experience is also accelerating. As a result, a large number of brick-and-mortar businesses have joined the “shopping for all” campaign, including the launch this year of Tmall Stores and JD.com convenience stores. With the thrust of Double 11, these physical businesses are speeding up the pace of online integration.
In fact, it is nothing new for offline stores to participate in the Event. In 2015, Tmall teamed up with 30,000 offline stores to give out cash coupons to warm up the Event. Until last year, the integration of online and offline has entered a new stage. Tmall joined 30,000 offline stores, 500 cinemas and other commercial entities to participate in the Singles’ 11 activity, playing interactive games combining “black technology” and consumption scenes. This year, the online and offline double 11 is coming, and the scale is bigger, more and more offline stores are included in the “war” list.
It is reported that this year, Alibaba will have more than 1 million stores at home and abroad to connect online and offline, nearly 100,000 smart stores, 600,000 retail stores, 30,000 village shopping points and 4,000 tmall stores and other physical stores to participate in the grand carnival of Double 11. Similarly, JD.com recently announced that its JD.com convenience stores will participate in the Event, including several well-known brands. In addition, jd’s other offline stores will also be included in singles’ Day, including 160 JD Homes and JD stores, and more than 5,000 JD home appliances stores.
It can be seen that under the trend of new retail, Double 11 is no longer a lonely carnival for online merchants and consumers, but more and more targets are transferred to offline physical commerce, and the trend of integration of the two shopping scenes is becoming more and more prominent.
The offline store makes up for the online flow gap to form a diversion loop
For the virtual online shopping scene, the weak scene of online shopping has been the pain point of e-commerce platform. In recent years, many e-commerce platforms are adopting advanced technologies to make online shopping experience scenarioalized and improve consumers’ “shopping” experience. However, for this kind of virtual shopping space, it is not easy to achieve the same experience goal as actual shopping. Therefore, there are still many differences in shopping experience between online retail and offline physical shopping.
A recent Nielsen study found that people who shop in physical stores are more likely to do so for regular replenishment or emergency needs; However, the purpose of choosing online shopping is relatively concentrated in the time when the demand for goods is less urgent or the merchant sells special items. Therefore, offline stores joining Singles’ Day, combining the two shopping scenarios, will help online shopping go offline and bring benefits to both e-commerce and physical retail.
Take tmall Store as an example. It is reported that after consumers buy goods in physical stores, alipay and wechat scan the code at the cash register to draw red packets, which can be spent on Singles Day. On the one hand, it is an effective way to attract offline consumers to the online market, and at the same time, it can obtain consumer demand in close proximity. As we all know, the previous Double 11 shopping festival was actually a “lonely carnival” for online stores, and offline stores could only watch and see.
However, online shopping is a major pain point, is unable to directly contact consumers, do not know the real needs of consumers. Physical stores are powerful channels for zero-distance contact with consumers, as well as powerful fulcrum for e-commerce brand publicity. Through this channel, we can also understand the real needs of consumers on the ground. There is no doubt that this move will enable more consumers who have no access to e-commerce to directly participate in the Singles’ Day event, which reflects the trend of online and offline integration.
Secondly, offline physical stores can also separate part of online traffic. One pain point for bricks-and-mortar stores is the uncertainty of customer traffic. Limited to the limitations of physical stores, it is difficult to grasp large-scale user flow, it is difficult to grasp the level of performance. Therefore, if the advantage of large-scale online user traffic is connected, some online traffic can be obtained to increase customers for the store.
Take jingdong offline stores as an example. According to the way consumers purchase a certain brand product, they can be divided into two situations: one is that consumers browse the product online and buy it; the other is that consumers see the advertisement of the product on social media and buy it in offline stores. This is divided into three completely isolated scenarios: online shopping sites, social media and offline shopping sites. Therefore, the resources put by brands in these three independent scenarios are also separated from each other, and the big data generated from them cannot be integrated and the transaction information cannot be synchronized. According to these pain points, JINGdong will cooperate with Tencent to integrate online and offline shopping and social big data during Singles’ Day, helping brands realize one-stop online and offline marketing promotion, and helping to improve the conversion rate of online and offline stores.
In addition, in addition to tmall stores and JINGdong offline stores, some offline physical stores are also planning offline activities on Double 11. For example, during Singles’ Day, Tmall can provide users with online reservation and targeted experience service in offline smart stores. Brands are involved in clothing, FMCG and other industries. In addition, this way of online reservation and offline store experience can also enable consumers to experience VIP services in person and improve their shopping experience.
In this sense, the participation of a large number of brick-and-mortar stores during the Double 11 will indeed bring good news to e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retail. At the same time, from the point of view of consumers, the ever-widening channels and novel gameplay, consumers can participate in anytime and anywhere, experience this grand national shopping moment.
However, offline stores lack core competitive products, how to woo consumers into a problem
With the cooperation of offline stores, offline customers can be introduced to online stores, and online customers can be guided to offline stores. This is not a small temptation for e-commerce platforms or businesses. However, after considering the actual situation, e-commerce platforms such as Tmall and JD.com still have some problems to think about.
Take the Tmall store as an example. First of all, for Tmall stores, the goods are not complete is its current defect. The products sold in Tmall stores include popular products sold on e-commerce platforms, which provide offline purchase channels for consumers who often shop online and are also an important factor for consumers to choose to buy goods in stores. However, for other people who do not often shop online or have never shopped online, the products sold in Tmall Store are not very attractive. Tmall Store is just a newly opened convenience store, and the concept of online popularity may not exist for them. In this way, in fact, tmall and JINGdong offline drainage view may not be established, its docking or online consumers.
Second, while the presence of brick-and-mortar stores may bring a lot of customer traffic during Singles Day, it doesn’t seem to have a long-term positive effect. According to the experience of the previous Singles’ Day, after the annual Singles’ Day, the flow of e-commerce platforms will reach a low point. In a similar vein, offline stores may experience the same frustration as online stores, where consumers buy a particular item at a reduced price and then stop visiting the store.
In general, the presence of tmall Stores, JINGdong convenience stores and other physical stores on Double 11 is an important node in the overall layout of new retail. But that doesn’t prove that bricks-and-mortar stores will use the opportunity to truly connect to the Internet, bringing unexpected growth both online and offline. After all, in the stereotype of consumers, “cutting hands” online is more fun, and the convenience of “home delivery” online is also why they choose not to go to offline stores.
Offline stores become a catalyst, the arrival of the “two-line” shopping experience era
The final effect of offline stores joining the Singles’ Day war needs to be further tested. However, in order to realize the real online and offline shopping scene, it is necessary to really approach consumers and listen to their real ideas, so as to create a more perfect and popular shopping scene.
In addition, a large number of bricks-and-mortar stores will be a good time to test the new retail effect. A year after the new retail concept was put forward, whether this kind of online and offline channel marketing can provide substantial sales growth for e-commerce companies will be revealed during the Double 11.
However, under the guidance of new retail, physical stores are closer to the road of digital management. Today, the Singles Day shopping festival is no longer a lonely carnival for e-commerce merchants, but a battle of online and offline cooperation under the new retail trend. To sum up, the participation of offline stores represented by Tmall Stores and JINGdong convenience stores will bring more unique shopping experience to consumers. When new retail gradually integrates into this nationwide shopping event, Double 11 May no longer be called e-commerce shopping festival, but a new retail shopping festival worthy of the name.
Liu Kuang, meditation on the Internet, wechat official account: Liukuang110