Double 11: The Ultimate Chinese Shopping Festival

Double 11 was first created in 2009 by Chinese eCommerce giant Alibaba (parent company of Tmall, Taobao, AliExpress, etc), with the excuse of celebrating ... Double11:TheUltimateChineseShoppingFestival DigitalMarketing Howaboutreaching$39.5billioninsalesin24hours?  ThiswasthepowerofTmallDouble11in2019,easilysurpassingitswesterncounterpartyAmazonPrimeDay($7.16billion)orCyberMonday($9.4billion).   WhyDouble11ShoppingFestival? Double11wasfirstcreatedin2009byChineseeCommercegiantAlibaba(parentcompanyofTmall,Taobao,AliExpress,etc),withtheexcuseofcelebratingNovember11th-theso-called“Singles'Day”.NowadaysithasevolvedintothemostimportantonlineshoppingfestivalinChina,attractingotherdigitalplatformstoadoptandparticipate.  It’snotaboutsimplypushingonpurchase,butoffering360-degreeentertainmenttothecustomers.Inothereditions,eCommerceplatformssuchasTmallandJD.comorganizedgreatgalasandinvitedtopinfluencersorcelebritiestocreateafestiveatmosphere.Theideaisthatpeoplefindthemselvesbuyingmorestuffwhilebeinginahighspirit.   TmallDouble11ShoppingFestivalGalainlive   TaylorSwifton2019TmallDouble11ShoppingFestivalGala&Video    TmallDouble11SalesRevenue(in100millionRMB)eachyearandevolutionfrom2009-2019.   In2019,TmallDouble11engaged500millionconsumersand200.000brandsaroundtheglobe.IfwegodeeperandcountalleCommerceplatforms(includingJD.com,Suning,Tmall,Taobao,etc),2019Double11salesin24hourshavesoaredto$60.3billion,withayearoveryear(YOY)growthof30.1%. AttheoverallYOYgrowthofDouble11tendstoflatteninrecentyears,severalverticalsarestillshowingconsiderablegrowthinsales.Forexample,traditionallyTmallhasbeenstrongerinfashion,apparel,bags,andaccessories.However,thewinneroflastyearwasthebeauty/cosmetics/personalcareindustry,whichhitasurprisingincreaseof64.6%,thankstothestrongpushoflive-streamings.RegardingJD.com,thetrustedplatformfor3Cproducts(Computer,Communication,andConsumerElectronics),thefastest-growingsectorlastyearwasOutdoorSports(46.6%),demonstratinganexpandedsenseoftrustfromendconsumers. Bothplatformsarestillmaintainingtheircompetitiveadvantageandsecretofsuccessintraditionallystrongverticalswhiletestingandtryingtograbmoremarketshareinotherfields. Nomatterwhichplatform,theDouble11shoppingfestivaloffersatriple-winsituation:  Thedirectbeneficiaryistheconsumers.Theygetthelargestdiscountofthewholeyearand aperfectchancetopurchaseoriginallymid-highpricedproductsandstockupdailynecessities.   BusinessescanexpectasignificantportionofannualsalescomingfromDouble11.It’sagreatopportunitytoclearexcessstockbeforetheendoftheyear.  Fortheplatformsorganizingthefestival,Double11meansgatheringconsumers’trust,traffic,andnegotiationpowerwiththebrands,andreinforcingtheirstatusasbigplayersine-Commerce.    WhatwillDouble11in2020belike? DespitetheshadowofCOVID,ChinesebrandsandmerchantshavebeenbusypreparingforDouble11sinceQ3.Double11thisyearhasmorestrategicmeaningthanever,asitnotonlyisanindicatorofthenation’seconomicrecoveryandconsumerconfidence,butalsoagreatopportunityforbrandstofightforun-reachedsalesobjectivesandclearexcessivestockduetothepandemic. eCommercePlatformsareonfireaswell.TmalljustannouncedanewrulethattheDouble11thisyearwillhavethreeextradayswiththebiggestdiscounts:fromNov1toNov3,apartfromthetraditional24hoursonNov11.Alibabaestimatestheeventwillinvolve800millionconsumers,anambitious60%increasethanlastyear.JD.comisalsoambitious,offeringmorethan200millionitemsata50%discountthisyear,combinedwithnewproductlaunchestofreshenupconsumers’moods.Bothplatformswilltrytheirbesttoengageconsumersbyofferingendlesslive-streamingsessions,aglamorousfestivalgalawithcelebritiesandinfluencers,andofcoursegreatdiscounts.  Althoughit’sstillearlytosay,wecanobserveapositivetrendfromthefirstimportanteventafterCOVIDlockdown-618MidYearShoppingFestival-aprolongedfestivalfromJune1sttoJune18th.AccordingtoJD.com,theaccumulatedorderamountduringthisperiodhasreached$40.2billion,demonstratingapromising33.6%growthcomparedtolastyear.Tmallalsoannouncedthattheiraccumulatedorderamountofthesameperiodhasreached$104.4billion,showingrecoveredconsumerconfidenceandpurchasingpower. HowDouble11willfunctionthisyearisanimportantindicatorofeconomicrecovery.Wewillbelookingcloselyattheevolutionofthisgreatfestival.   Subscribetothenewsletter!   ThekeystoGoogle'sDiscoveryAds:focusonconversions Google ReadMore SnapchatLenses: Whatitisandhowitworks Snapchat creativity ReadMore HowtocreateavideoadstrategyonPinterest Pinterest ReadMore