“Anatomy” Group Purchase Website
Since the U.S. mission in March this year, on-line network has a collection of e-commerce, social networking and advertising platform for the Group buy three functions in one site, will become China’s Internet sector is one of the most popular business model. Groups in the United States after being pushed out of the F group, cool group, m group, handle network and many other similar sites. Insiders rough statistics, so far, the domestic small and large website has 34 100 Group buy as much.
But the Group buy either at home or abroad are not a new concept, in foreign countries, from the earliest discount site daily new deal, the new “day one purchase,” Woot, and then to the recent popular nationwide Groupon. “Buy” the connotation and extension of continuous innovation are entrepreneurs, they have the same origin, as it is more a process of evolution took place “mutation.”
November 2008, Andrew. Manson in Chicago created a Groupon. Groupon was formerly a public fundraising site The piont, the site encourages people to take collective action, such as fund-raising for the construction of a playground, if you are willing to donate one hundred U.S. dollars, while total contributions have reached the minimum budget required to build the playground, they do not immediately payment.
Manson will be followed by this “time-limited contribution” model for the Group buy website, a product every day, discounts are between 2.5-fold to 7.5 fold, the discount will disappear after a day, which limited trade by e-mail form sent to subscribers, the number of minimum consumption can be traded.
Groupon focused on providing unusual, special and interesting products or services to attract customer experience. This strategy to make it soon as he was on the line, they had been chasing businesses and consumers. It is said that once discharged to wait for the participation of the first 120 businesses. “Harvard Business Review”, John. Siwoqiya that, Groupon done with iTunes, please create a way to buy music serves the same purpose: clean, simple and exciting.
In his view, Groupon business model shows three prominent characteristics: First, a city, the day, a transaction, and consumers simple and effective interaction. Second, create an emergency effect, encourage people to launch a social communication get more customers. Finally, it’s temperament is brisk, so that the process fun, no other discount sites lifeless feeling. Siwoqiya commented: “In the Groupon appears, there are many followers, including the Buy with me, Live social and other sites. But Groupon obviously better, it allows customers to become involved in the transaction process simple and allow Group buy has created a sense of the scene. “
In fact, in June 2004 in Texas, is the founder of Woot “There is a purchase” pioneer. The website for online discounts given a brand-new color: no longer a wide variety of choices, but within 24 hours, only provide a discounted product.
Woot offerings, usually a computer hardware or an electronic gadget. Woot founder Matt Rutledge was once a wholesaler of electronic products, “There is a purchase” in the new business model is built on his ability to price low enough purchase on the basis of personal electronic products. However, Woot model’s success with its unique marketing strategy and user interaction are inseparable.
At first glance, Woot’s interface design is a personal, casual. For example, it never advance notice of upcoming new product tomorrow, every day the product description with “daily post” form, accompanied by humorous tone, with a humorous song. It does not sell electronic products for any customer service, but recommends that customers or to the manufacturer for help, or in the Woot forum exchanges with other users to resolve.
However, Woot attaches great importance to initiate a number of creative activities to enhance the user interaction. For example, it became the top 100 Twitter for a long time the official account; Photoshop contest at the forum users to provide cash and honorary awards. Woot users are happy to provide services in return, such as product standards inspection, message boards sidebar widget management and reporting.
Woot launch, imitation was a lot of online retailers, who in Groupon Woot can see the shadow. Obviously, they all made full use of the Internet have grown up under the background of this generation tend to via e-mail, Facebook, and microblogging to obtain information and consumer information used in this way.
Appears in Matt Rutledge, Woot, a new retail concept: “the opportunity to buy.” Woot on a quarter of the products are refurbished, some have been close to the product was added to the end, others are excess production, but this information is all public.
Evaluation of the main 席麦克泰斯勒 retail concept, said: “Customers who no longer believe in goods such as rejection, promotions, special words like, because they are over-use or wrong use. But they can explain to them for a ‘why the more cheap ‘web site will respond. “
E-commerce experts, Meng, founder of buy network Emigrant think, as service providers and consumers for different, Woot and Groupon represent two fundamentally different industry model. He said: “Groupon more like an advertising platform for the business services, and Woot is like traditional retailers, their getting goods to sell themselves.” The former mainly through the line team to sweep the streets, and business negotiations to select products, due to coverage more extensive and able to Group buy into a routine demand; the latter is the main advantage of using channels, word of mouth in the field of electronic products accumulated in a particular population to create consumer demand.
In contrast, Woot have more advantage in price, the total demand will not be too much; Groupon is more popular for groups, “hit customers” more likely. According to Zhang Zhiyong experience, currently the Group buy website, for every 100 users in three individuals will achieve the ultimate purchase.
It’s like the fence mesh network with the United States the difference between the groups. Demand from the user point of view, the fence is the first network feature has its own website, aggregate demand for a group of people who have renovated. First lock the crowd, then went to get discount merchants to meet the needs of specific populations. Whether renovation or purchase of personal electronics, essentially the “temporary” or “stage” demand.
This group of customers come in consumption over time will never come back. However, the cumulative long-term reputation and accurate positioning, when a new batch of user needs arise, it will automatically come its way. Customer Images of water over the constant turnover has been shown to add effect. The U.S. Mission Network put the Group buy into a “General Requirements”, to their own business and become an advertising platform between customers. Its advantage is large enough for the customer groups, needs every day, the key is how to enhance user stickiness.
Zhang Zhiyong that in accordance with the Group buy site behind the meaningful classification of resources, he is willing to specific business model in accordance with the characteristics of them into the “geographical division of the line model” and “Industrial Classification of online mode.”
Groupon Chinese imitators are mostly belong to the former, the main challenges in the operating line of the execution team. Such as total number of employees to sweep the streets more than a third team, and the bargaining power of local businesses, as well as the ability to develop new city. Its advantage is that, through the “swept Street” found in businesses, often with unique and attractive, easy to meet consumer demand for most people. Its disadvantage is that some small number of businesses to the bottom line Group buy is set too high, but face the avalanche of people and lack of appropriate service capabilities. How to help small business owners to meet sudden peaks Group buy, to avoid confusion, thereby enhancing the Group buy satisfaction is a priority.
Woot, fence nets, and Meng buy network belongs to the latter, is a minority Group buy Web site. To buy a network for example Meng, Zhang Zhiyong as founder and accumulated in the course of practitioners, including affiliate sites, and many other online business resources, from the outset defined as “advertising online business platform for suppliers operating Good User” . Group buy online site operators must be familiar with a variety of online marketing methods to improve the “instant promotion capacity.”
One of the common online marketing methods include: e-mail promotion, Adwords marketing, SMS marketing, microblogging communication, promotion, buyers of such Taobao. The advantages of this model: wide coverage, customers can buy all over the country, collaborating with vendors more and more choices. Group buy reached the focus is “selected items” after a period of data analysis, how to seize the current quarter, customer demand is fierce to buy network has been thinking.
If the line mainly through the expansion of the city occupied by more to achieve, then the online expansion is to transition by increasing the product category. Woot soon discovered the site as a Group buy electronics bottleneck faced. Since 2006, Woot just outside the main station, launched the Wine woot, Shirts woot, Sellout woot and Kid woot four sub-stations. On the basis of personal electronic products, an increase of alcohol, T-shirts, children’s products of three categories, Yahoo is also co-organized with a shopping channel. One of the most successful creative is launched in July 2007 Shirts woot. Since then, the site launched a weekly original T-shirt, most of the design from the Established artists.
In addition, Woot hold a design competition every week, users can submit their own works, and accept the public vote. The three most popular works will be produced for sale, designers receive cash awards.
Similar bottlenecks and transformation, but also fierce in the future to buy network designs appear, but no time to take into account the current Zhiyong temporarily. Currently, the most for his headache is customer service. To clothing category, for example, as businesses stocked enough, buy often occurs after the customer wanted a replacement but no goods can change the situation. Group buy website collects together the list, referred to the business, to the merchant ship, the time difference between delivery and often result in customer anxiety.
Although the refund can be solved, but how to appease the psychological needs of consumers, which is not a “deal of a single loss of a customer,” the situation is still a very challenging task.
Compared with foreign counterparts, the Chinese Group buy site more difficult living environment. Institutional investors found that this is able to “earn quick money” mode, but adopted the attitude of the future. These have accumulated in a given area individual entrepreneurs, the lack of sufficient capital, that are subject to public comment from the network as, 58 city and other “big business” and competition as well as annexation. But they represent a potential – the Internet venture of grassroots power, and no one can say that they do not appear among the favorites to change the competitive landscape.