The Supply-Side Experiment in E-Commerce: Is "Selling Stuff" Too Lowbrow, and "Making Consumer Connections" the Trendy Play? | FreeS Fund Business School

Why "Content" Beats "Search + Traffic"

Flash sales, spend-and-save, buy-one-get-one, discounts, mix-and-match deals... Do these e-commerce gimmicks still excite you?

According to CNNIC's 2016 Statistical Report on China's Internet Development (No. 39), growth in PC-based online shopping in China slowed to 12.9%, while mobile growth hit 29% — both recent lows. The demographic dividend for e-commerce was nearing its end, and new online traffic was drying up. This meant rising customer acquisition costs and the gradual erosion of traditional e-commerce's ability to guide purchases through search, navigation, categories, and price comparisons.

The "birds of a feather" approach to e-commerce was fading. Content naturally emerged as the new tool for retaining users and guiding consumption.

By tracing the evolution of content-driven e-commerce and comparing shifts in consumer preferences, this article proposes a "people-first" approach to e-commerce: centering on human beings, tagging users, and delivering tailored content for different demographics and consumption scenarios to guide purchasing decisions.

Shared values precede transactions. That's the playbook for content e-commerce. We also wonder:

• Why do users happily place orders through short-video shopping when they once scoffed at TV infomercials?
• What kind of content converts best?
• Is content-driven selling sustainable?
• How can established brands win over users in this wave?

Share your thoughts at the end.

The New Logic of E-commerce: Why "Content" Will Surpass "Search + Traffic"

Source / Sanjieke

Author / Guan Deyu (Xingcheng), 3.3 Program Cohort 4 alumnus, currently a brand e-commerce operator

The Past and Present of Content E-commerce:

Product Guides Are Nothing New

The concept of content e-commerce has taken different forms as times have changed.

Origins: BBS Forums

Sales posts

Predecessor: TV Infomercials

Late-night shopping channels on major networks were the godfathers of content-based selling

Pioneer: MOGU

Styling tutorials and topic discussions evolved into a UGC content-driven shopping platform

Next Wave: Influencers and Self-Media

"Live streaming + selling" or "soft content + selling" became standard fare for virtually all e-commerce

Another Phase: WeChat Commerce

Leveraging social relationships to sell through relentless Moments posting

Expansion: Xiaohongshu, SMZDM, and others

UGC-driven product guides marked the first phase of content e-commerce

The diagram above clearly illustrates how content e-commerce has manifested differently across stages. Yet one thing remained constant: the core of content e-commerce isn't direct selling, but influencing consumer purchase decisions and behavior through content extensions. This influence took the form of sales posts in the BBS era, program videos in the TV shopping era, and UGC-based guides on platforms like MOGU and Xiaohongshu. WeChat commerce leveraged social networks; influencers wielded personal clout.

Behind these shifts lay changes in the consumption environment and consumer needs. The legendary BBS posts of yesteryear weren't so different from today's self-media soft content; TV infomercials evolved into internet short videos. Against the backdrop of consumption upgrading and growing consumer autonomy, traditional platform shopping models lost their power to strongly influence purchase decisions.

We boldly imagine where content e-commerce heads next:

• Diversified content formats. Beyond simple text-and-image posts and live streams, embracing VR/AR/AI and other emerging technologies for richer content experiences.
• Diversified channels. Beyond third-party platforms. Multi-platform and even proprietary platforms become viable — think WeChat mini-programs or standalone apps.
• Deeper vertical specialization. Mining how to capture user mindshare within niche verticals.

In short, content e-commerce can use content as its compass to independently attract users and complete the full闭环 of "discovery — attraction — conversion." Among these, the content that guides user discovery becomes paramount.

The Shift in Consumer Psychology:

We Don't Lack Money, We Lack Good Content

Regardless of format, content e-commerce ultimately revolves around the consumer. The answer to "what determines a user's final purchase" has changed dramatically.

▍Active vs. Passive

E-commerce emerged from users' desire for more convenient shopping. This traditional mindset shaped a consumer journey in the classic e-commerce era:

Select purchase target

Active search (information gathering)

Compare similar products (price, features, etc.)

Make selection, complete purchase

In this logic, users held the initiative. Their consumption was highly purposeful and narrowly focused. Merchants could only influence user mindshare within the same category by controlling price and selling points — relatively passive, and easily held hostage by platforms and users.

In the content e-commerce era, user psychology shifted:

Receive soft information, get attracted

Compare with own life, discover what's missing (generate need)

Fill the need, trigger purchase

In this logic, users first passively receive information (purchase scenarios crafted by merchants, implicit product placement), then benchmark against their own needs (often latent needs). Take Mimeng's soft content: it first captures your attention, then tells you a story about why you need this product, how it will transform your life and elevate your quality of living. Such product information "moistens things silently," neutralizing resistance to promotional pitches and making it easily digestible.

▲ Content e-commerce subtly shapes consumer mindshare through quality content.

An example:

• Traditional e-commerce: My rice cooker broke, I need to pick a suitable home model — open Taobao, various recommendations and guides trigger my "comparison" impulse. This process is distracting and time-wasting. I might spend 20 minutes browsing only to end up choosing the first one I saw.
• Content e-commerce: I had no intention of buying a rice cooker, but after reading an article, the one described seems more technologically advanced, producing more fragrant rice where "every grain" tastes like happiness — I realize my current rice cooker is terrible — I absorb the information, resonate with it, and make a purchase.

▍Wary vs. Relaxed

In traditional e-commerce, product recommendations by merchants and platforms — whether algorithm-driven or behavior-based — always put users somewhat on guard. Users generally dislike being steered by others. This aligns with self-efficacy theory: users, centered on themselves during purchases, believe "what I buy is right," maintaining defensive skepticism toward merchants and platforms.

In content e-commerce, users first encounter engaging content, focusing more on the product advantages merchants want to highlight while selectively overlooking drawbacks. For instance: "This lumbar pillow looks great, my parents have back problems, I should get them one." In psychology, this is known as the halo effect. As long as the content is good and positively sparks user interest, the product becomes bathed in a glow, imbued with all manner of positive qualities.

▍Rational vs. Emotional, Price vs. Value

In the transition from traditional to content e-commerce, users gradually shift from rational to emotional consumption, from pursuing low prices to pursuing high value-add.

In traditional e-commerce, users know what they want. Faced with endless product options, they purposefully compare prices, sales volumes, materials, after-sales service, and more, ultimately selecting the most cost-effective choice. This rational comparison process makes for an imperfect shopping experience, and not everyone excels at finding the most suitable product from overwhelming information.

In content e-commerce, shifts in user psychology amplify emotional factors. Users crave ethos, stories, and interesting experiences. They're buying more than a product — they're buying the narrative and dream woven by content creators and brands.

An example:

Smartisan championed artisanal craftsmanship. Within the content universe Smartisan created, users perceived the earnest attitude behind its phone-making. People joked that Lao Luo's launch events were "comedy shows," but that comedy genuinely moved people, immersing users in the experience. When users purchased the product, their psychological expectation was that they were acquiring artisanal spirit alongside Smartisan's industrial design. Price ceased to be the primary consideration; value-add became the dominant factor in their purchase decision.

Capturing Consumer Mindshare:

A Conspiracy Between "Marketing" and "Sales"

After years of market conditioning, users are thoroughly familiar with traditional e-commerce tactics like discounts and markdowns. Doing segmented "people-first" operations and influencing user purchase behavior through content is something every brand and merchant must now prioritize.

Within the content e-commerce wave, we've identified many distinctive brands that have become user favorites. Below, we analyze Jiangxiaobai — which rose unexpectedly in the baijiu sector — as a case study for how merchants capture consumer mindshare in the content e-commerce era. Through this case, we can observe how brands seize consumer psychology, orient themselves around content for brand positioning and marketing, and build connections with users.

▍Foundation: Category Innovation Through Deep User Needs

In the Chinese imagination, baijiu is associated with "weight," "social networking," "long history," and "status symbol." Beyond obligatory business entertaining, young people have never been particularly enthusiastic about it. As post-80s and post-90s generations became the main consumer force, the baijiu industry stood at a transformation inflection point — yet no product on the market was specifically designed for young people. This was the trend and opportunity Jiangxiaobai spotted.

Jiangxiaobai founder Tao Shiquan once noted that China's copycat phenomenon is widespread; virtually every leading brand's biggest headache is the swarm of knockoffs. But following already excellent brands offers little chance of breakthrough, little chance of redefining what a great brand could be. The breakthrough point, paradoxically, lies in seeking opportunity from the contrasting opposite.

"I'm Jiangxiaobai, life is simple."

This line struck a chord with countless young strivers in cities, lonely in their psychology: after years of hustling, they wished life could be simpler. In 2016, this phrase went viral, kicking off Jiangxiaobai's brand marketing and content marketing efforts.

Jiangxiaobai deeply mined the consumption needs of younger generations, shifting baijiu consumption scenarios from banquet-table networking to simple, pure moments of casual drinking among friends, and from historical heaviness to youthfulness and personalization. Gradually, it established a brand perception in users' minds: Moutai, Wuliangye = premium; Jiangxiaobai = youth, personality. When a product happens to align with a user's emotional expression, brand formation becomes natural. Follow-on challengers face high barriers to breaking this brand perception.

▍Core: Content

"Once the product is out, the script follows. Once the script follows, the IP follows." This is Tao Shiquan's understanding of social marketing.

Traditional marketing follows this flow: product finalized — package product, assign concept — broadcast — promotion — get consumers to pay. This top-down process positions users at the final link; brands easily end up talking to themselves when broadcasting.

Tao Shiquan's model inverts this: deep user needs mining — build communicative product — find suitable channels — users pay — secondary spread. This bottom-up process is content-driven, embedding itself in consumer mindshare, using product as channel to bridge brand-consumer communication.

▲ Jiangxiaobai expression bottles, featuring user quotes on the label.

Take expression bottles as a brief case study. Expression bottles collect user quotes and print them on bottles, turning the bottle into a vehicle for emotional expression. Today everyone has their own circle; everyone is self-media, naturally possessing传播 needs, eager to express themselves, hoping their emotions gain others' recognition. Expression bottles transformed bottles into broadcast channels akin to Weibo or Moments.

Furthermore, expression bottles made users product creators. By scanning a QR code to access an H5 page, uploading a phrase or photo, and obtaining a customized bottle, users received a荣誉感-laden private customization experience. Some users would post their bottles on Moments to show off and promote, spontaneously becoming Jiangxiaobai ambassadors.

▍Amplification: Fans

Products soothe emotions; brands link emotions.

How to effectively mine fan economy value and construct emotional bonds with fans? Jiangxiaobai's approach was using drinking meetups to build proprietary IP marketing. Based on KOL precision marketing, it created city-based drinking meetups, getting regional influencers and community leaders to spontaneously voice support for Jiangxiaobai, with media following up on coverage. Drinking meetups gradually expanded from one city nationwide, with continuously heating buzz feeding back into product sales.

▲ Jiangxiaobai drinking meetup.

In short, in the content e-commerce era, users prefer to trust consumption scenarios crafted by merchants rather than seek things out themselves. Here's a proposition: human nature is lazy. If merchants help users eliminate all friction in the shopping scenario, that's success. Content is the key that unlocks users' hearts in this era. Reduce choices, let users immerse in content, and the distance to their placing an order and paying shrinks dramatically.

(This article originally appeared on Sanjieke. Feel free to share to Moments.)

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