Top Ecommerce Websites – China Market

Unlocking the Power of Emotional Commerce: The Content Commerce Revolution

You are an artist who makes very beautiful cups by hand, each one with a lot of heart and soul. You put these cups on the platform e-commerce to sell, but you didn’t expect that almost no one cared about them. Everyone asks: Other people’s cups sell for $10 a piece, and they also have free shipping, why do you sell them for $199? Some people recommend that you sell cups with “seckill, full reduction, buy gifts, discounts” and so on, but the high price brought by the artistry and quality of your cup can’t compete with the 9 yuan cup no matter how you engage in activities

To solve the problem of “what to do,” we first need to understand the essence of this issue. Your problem is like putting Hermès products on a street market and then trying to explain why a $4,000 scarf is more than 100 times better than a $40 one. Each product has its suitable shopping environment. The essence of this problem is placing emotionally-driven “passive consumption” in an environment driven by price and parameters – the realm of “active consumption.”

What is “active consumption,” and what is “passive consumption”?

If my cup at home breaks, I actively search for “cup” on Taobao, choose the most suitable one in terms of functionality, style, and price, and place an order. This is called “active consumption.” Active consumers have clear shopping needs, and their keyword is “buying.” They find something reasonable, buy it, and leave. Active consumers are driven by price and parameters.

Today, I stroll through a shopping district and pass by an art store. Unable to resist, I go in to look around. The artist explains the meaning, origin, and special craftsmanship of each cup, and I end up buying one. This is “passive consumption.” Passive consumers have no specific consumption goal, and their keyword is “shopping.” If they come across something they like, they buy it impulsively. Passive consumers are driven by emotions.

So, if a consumer spends $199 yuan instead of $10 on a cup, what drives them? Clearly, it’s emotion. However, most e-commerce platforms are environments driven by price and parameters – “active consumption” environments where items are categorized by parameters and sorted by price, leaving no room for expressing emotions.

Content Commerce

So, what should you do? You can try: Content Commerce.

I am a loyal reader of the “Wu Xiaobo Channel.” Once, I “strolled” across an article on his WeChat account. It mentioned that he bought a small island on Qiandao Lake and planted 4,000 waxberry trees on it. Wow, Mr. Wu is so wealthy! I read on with great interest, thinking he was going to talk about the relationship between the island and the macroeconomy or the business logic of waxberries. However, he whimsically decided to make wine from these waxberries, named it “Wu Wine.” Haha, I could sense the literary flair. As I continued reading, a photo of Wu Wine appeared. Wow, it’s quite beautiful! At that moment, the purchase link for Wu Wine appeared: This is an experiment, only 5,000 bottles were made, don’t know if you’ll like it.

Guess what? Despite not being a drinker, I accidentally placed an order.

Once, when I met Mr. Wu, I asked him about the data. He said that batch of 5,000 bottles of Wu Wine sold out in 33 hours. In a later experiment, 3.3 million bottles were sold in 72 hours. Today, the valuation of “Wu Wine” has exceeded 1 billion.

This is Content Commerce. Content Commerce makes users “buy” because they are “browsing,” not “browsing” just to “buy.” It reduces sensitivity to price and parameters, making it easier to be driven by emotion. It is particularly suitable for selling products with high unit prices, non-essential needs, cultural attributes, and emotional added value.

Application:

So, how does the logic of “Content Commerce” solve other “what to do” problems in the business world?

You produce high-end air purifiers and want users to care about value, not just price. What do you do? You can try producing content, posting it on forums, Weibo, your own public account, or submitting it to influencers. For example, create an article titled “Heartfelt Words from a Lung Enthusiast Who Spent Nearly $200,000 on Nearly 30 Air Purifiers.” Professional and sincere content will generate trust and, of course, purchases.

You still make high-end air purifiers, but you’re not good at creating content. What do you do? Collaborate with someone who can produce content. For example, Alibaba has a program called “Ali V Task” that connects e-commerce businesses with content creators, allowing users to browse and buy spontaneously.

You create content, and your articles often have over 100,000 readers. You also want to venture into e-commerce. Looking at popular Chinese Bands on the China Market:  Take a look at the Chinese way; They have three ways to explore e-commerce platforms:

1) Collaborate with e-commerce platforms and earn advertising fees, like “Mimeng”;

2) Partner with e-commerce platforms, earn a share of sales, like “Yitiao”;

3) Run your own e-commerce, earning the price difference, like “Niangao Mama.”

Conclusion:

Finally, let’s summarize. What is Content Commerce? Content Commerce makes users “buy” because they are “browsing,” not “browsing” just to “buy.” People “buy” on platform e-commerce through “active consumption,” driven by price and parameters; people “browse” on Content Commerce through “passive consumption,” driven by emotions, making it particularly suitable for selling products with high unit prices, non-essential needs, cultural attributes, and emotional added value.