Writer | Mantis Observer

This year's Double 11 has truly changed.

Previously, when mentioning Double 11, both platforms and merchants focused solely on price. But this year is different. This year's Double 11 introduces a new approach – platforms no longer emphasize 'my price is lower than yours' but instead prioritize consumer experience and reducing the burden on merchants.

After 16 years of sailing, the large ship of Double 11 has begun to change course and blow a 'new' wind.

'You can buy expensive, but not overpriced'

Although the slogans of Double 11 vary each year, the exam question posed by the market to major e-commerce platforms remains the same: What do consumers really want?

In the past, it might have been 'low prices.' A year ago, Taobao launched campaigns like 'Everyday Low Prices,' positioning the lowest prices across the entire network as its core goal; JD.com shouted 'Really Cheap' and announced price protection for over 800 million products throughout the entire process... Major e-commerce platforms aimed their guns at 'low prices,' and the 'Lowest Price Paradox' enacted by Li Jiaqi, JD.com, and Haier was particularly impressive.

However, the market feedback for each platform proves that relying solely on 'low prices' cannot earn high marks from consumers. What do consumers truly want now?

Perhaps we can gain some insight from Liu Run's 2024 annual speech: I can buy expensive, but not overpriced. Today's consumers not only seek affordability but also quality, shifting from pursuing cost-effectiveness to quality-price ratio.

Merchants who understand this concept have become the first beneficiaries of this year's Double 11. One of them is the household appliance giant Bull.

As early as October this year, five of Bull's power strips were selected for Pinduoduo's 'Super Double Subsidy,' and they sold out immediately upon launch. 'We couldn't even restock in time,' said the person in charge of Bull's Pinduoduo store. Sales greatly exceeded expectations; originally, they anticipated a two- to three-fold increase during Double 11, but actual sales increased 12 times compared to September. This was not a 'price reduction for volume' but rather 'innovative supply.' To prepare for this year's Double 11 promotion, Bull cooperated with the Pinduoduo platform in August this year. Based on user feedback and other data, they customized and launched five power strips exclusively for the Pinduoduo platform, optimizing the appearance and cord length while maintaining quality and offering more affordable prices that better meet user needs.

The platform provides user demand profiles, and brands quickly innovate products through strong supply chains. With the deep integration of these two elements, a group of 'new-quality merchants' have emerged. Similarly, Bear Electric, which participated in Pinduoduo's 'Super Double Subsidy,' also sold out – two customized health pots and electric kettles saw sales increase by 7 and 9 times respectively compared to the previous month.

It is evident that this year's Double 11 promotion is no longer dominated by price. New-quality merchants and brands with supply chain advantages, such as Bull and Bear Electric, are standing out through innovative supply and becoming the new protagonists of the promotion.

In fact, it's not just Pinduoduo; major e-commerce platforms have almost collectively shifted this year for Double 11. Taobao, JD.com, Douyin, Kuaishou, and others have almost stopped talking about 'low prices' and instead followed Pinduoduo's lead, focusing on reducing the burden on merchants and supporting them in these two major areas, enhancing the consumer experience through 'new-quality supply.'

Pinduoduo Ignites the Double 11 'Supply Revolution'

The book 'The Tipping Point' puts forth the view that popular phenomena are often driven by a few key factors. Once triggered, they quickly resonate and are emulated by others. Understanding this makes it easy to see why e-commerce platforms are collectively shifting to new-quality supply.

First, let's look at the current e-commerce and consumer environment.

On the platform side, various shopping festivals have been saturated attacked one after another, and Double 11 has now entered its 16th year. Most marketing methods have already been utilized, leaving few marketing cards for Double 11 to play.

On the consumer side, with the equalization of internet information, the consumption concept of 'it's not that I can't afford it, but that XX offers better value for money' has taken root in people's minds. How to satisfy consumers' demands for both affordability and quality? The only way to break through is through innovative supply to enhance the consumer experience.

Everyone understands this principle, but implementing it is not easy: Merchants hope to reduce costs while gaining more profits, consumers want affordable prices and a better experience, and platforms must ensure that both parties' experiences continue to improve. New-quality supply has become the solution to achieving a 'win-win-win' situation for merchants, consumers, and platforms.

Pinduoduo took the lead in igniting this round of the 'supply revolution.' In August this year, Pinduoduo launched the '10 Billion Reduction' plan, announcing a reduction of 10 billion yuan in transaction fees for merchants over the next year. Subsequently, by lowering store deposits and withdrawal thresholds and eliminating logistics transfer fees in remote areas for merchants, Pinduoduo used 'real money' to earn unanimous praise from merchants.

In September, Pinduoduo continued to intensify its efforts, launching the '10 Billion Support Plan for New-Quality Merchants': Investing 10 billion yuan in resources over the next year, establishing special teams to delve into 100 agricultural regions and industrial belts, and providing full-chain support to new-quality merchants.

By investing 'real money,' the platform empowers merchants to develop useful and affordable 'new-quality products,' benefiting both consumers and merchants and promoting the sustainable development of the platform. This solves the 'impossible triangle' dilemma that has plagued e-commerce and Double 11 promotions.

With reduced operating costs, merchants have the space and confidence to innovate in products and technology, launching more quality-price ratio products that benefit consumers. Facts also prove that, thanks to new-quality supply, Bull and Bear sold out during Pinduoduo's 'Super Double Subsidy' with 10 billion subsidies. Taking Bull as an example, the person in charge of its Pinduoduo store said, 'Since the platform refunded promotion fees and red envelopes in late August, we roughly estimate that the total amount of red envelopes received has reached 500,000 to 600,000 yuan.' According to their internal tests, this reduced the cost per customer click by 11%.

As we all know, Double 11 originated from good brand supply. For example, in 2009, 27 brands such as Li Ning, Lenovo, Philips, and Jack & Jones sold 50 million yuan worth of products. However, as sales became the most critical indicator for e-commerce platforms, Double 11 became chaotic with 'low prices ruling and traffic supremacy.' Nowadays, Pinduoduo's solution of 'reduction + support' for merchants and focusing on new-quality supply has quickly resonated and been emulated by other platforms, and new-quality supply has brought a second spring to Double 11.

New-quality supply allows 'good products' to find 'the right people'

The greatest waste in the business world is the mismatch between supply and demand. For example, due to a lack of understanding of consumer needs, merchants may spend unnecessary costs to produce overpriced products. Conversely, consumers may have to pay a premium for unwanted product values because they cannot find suitable products. New-quality supply focuses on solving problems on both the supply and demand sides, enabling merchants to reduce costs and increase efficiency while allowing consumers to purchase quality-price ratio products, thus enhancing the consumer experience.

Taking the five power strips exclusively supplied by Bull to Pinduoduo as an example. By removing complex rounded corner craftsmanship and adjusting the cord length to 1.5 meters, slightly shorter than the conventional model, these changes reduced merchant costs by 5% to 10% and allowed consumers to spend less without compromising the user experience. For example, for a fixed power strip placed at a high location, 1.5 meters might suffice, and there is no need to consider whether rounded corners will cause bumps.

This is the result of Pinduoduo's 'reduction + support' measures, enabling merchants to reduce operating costs for product and technological innovation, leading to more quality-price ratio products.

However, this is not enough; it is also necessary to ensure that those who need it can see and purchase it. Therefore, Pinduoduo's second step is to leverage digital capabilities to help merchants accurately match demand, allowing 'good products' to find 'the right people.'

For example, in August this year, after a raw egg product from CP Group was selected for the 10 billion subsidy program on Pinduoduo, its sales doubled to tens of thousands of boxes in a short period due to Pinduoduo's precise matching. During the promotion period, it became a 'Super Double Subsidy' product, with daily sales reaching a staggering 600,000.

In fact, such cases abound on Pinduoduo. INTO YOU, an emerging beauty brand in the beauty field, customized four new-quality products – Fingertip, Refraction, Concentrated, and Mist – targeting core users aged 18 to 30 on the Pinduoduo platform. In just half a year, sales tripled compared to before. Its velvet mirror lip gloss, which is a focus on Pinduoduo, also achieved a 200% increase in sales with the help of platform activities such as the 10 billion subsidy and group-buying promotions.

From the first round of promotion data, various new and old domestic brands have made a successful start on Pinduoduo for Double 11 – in the beauty and personal care sector, sales of Coforu and Proya products increased by 442% and 385% respectively compared to the previous month; sales of household appliances such as Dreame, Vidda TV, and Xiaomi TV increased by 778%, 699%, and 164% respectively. The sales of CP Group's raw egg product, which has already sold millions, are expected to double in November...

This also means that while Pinduoduo's 'reduction + support' measures help merchants launch more quality-price ratio new-quality supply, its digital capabilities also assist merchants in accurately matching demand. This has been verified in this round of promotions, truly allowing new-quality merchants to secure a central position during Double 11.

This is bound to become an important turning point in the history of e-commerce development – a new era of e-commerce driven by new-quality merchants and supply has arrived.

*All images in this article are sourced from the internet