2021 Double 11 – How it happened and what you need to know to get ahead in 2022

While this year’s Double 11 turned out to be quite different from previous years, without any extravagant galas or world-class performers, you’d be mistaken if you thought that China’s biggest sales festival was anything less than record-breaking. China’s two largest e-commerce platforms, Tmall and JD.com, have recorded a combined gross merchandise value (GMV) of $890 billion RMB ($139.4 billion), shattering last year’s record by another 20%.

One thing is for sure – China’s Double 11 has evolved the e-commerce landscape into a whole new frontier, having lasting implications for brands and businesses looking to capture revenue during this lucrative event. Our digital experts in China have taken a closer look at brands that have succeeded in this year’s event and have a couple words of advice for all who are considering participating in Double 11 next year.

Livestreaming is Still the Rage

Much like previous years, livestreaming took center stage as a primary sales driver, with Taobao taking it one step further by placing their livestreaming channel directly on the homepage during Double 11. Latest GMV data shows that Tmall’s top 2 livesteaming KOLs generated over 20 billion RMB ($3.1 billion) in sales in just the first day of pre-sale on Oct. 20th, 2021. Beauty and food & beverages were the most popular products, with beauty products accounting for 91% of livestreaming sales.

However, as brands release more attractive Double 11 offers, they’re also opting to broadcast their own livestreams, limiting their reliance on top influencers, which often comes with a hefty price tag or steep product discounts. L’Oréal and Lanc?me both attracted over 5 million viewers on their own hosted livestreaming sessions.

Our Advice: Level up your creativity with in-house livestreaming

While live commerce isn’t as new or fresh a trend, it’s clear that livestreaming isn’t going anywhere. The decreasing reliance on influencers will ultimately increase the number of brand-run livestreams in future sales events, creating even greater competition for the attention of shoppers.

However, running your own livestream not only saves you money but gives you limitless flexibility and control with your creativity. As consumers look for deeper brand experiences, you can utilize livestreaming to provide audiences with an exclusive look behind your brand, product, and people, creating a sense of value and deeper connection with your shoppers.

What’s Up in the Metaverse?

If you haven’t heard of NFTs by now…well, where have you been? As the physical world becomes intertwined with the metaverse, Tmall created the first-ever “Double 11 Metaverse Art Exhibition” which introduced a brand new shopping experience. Hosted by virtual icons Ling and ASK, the exhibition featured several luxury brands including Burberry, Coach, Longines, and more, each offering first-time limited edition NFTs ("digital collectables") that people could purchase during Double 11. Burberry created an interactive digital deer donning a limited-edition scarf, created just for the sales event. Each purchase of the NFT was accompanied by the physical version of the scarf, with all 1,000 sold out within the first day of pre-sale.

Tmall also launched another virtual experience, the “Double 11 Metaverse Symphony,” conducted by a digital avatar of Beethoven and featured branded virtual instruments (in the form of NFTs) from Bobbi Brown, Coca-Cola and more.

Our Advice: Consider your brand and products’ place in the metaverse

Even though the longevity of NFTs and digital currency is yet to be fully determined in China, the rise of the metaverse is inevitable. There’s a real audience, and an engaged one at that, that is looking for unique brand experiences in the digital world.

Consumers today are more willing to buy digital memorabilia of brands that they feel connected to, opening the door for your brand to engage your customers in a whole new way. Allow your consumers to experience your products digitally, whether through virtual product trials or digitalizing your brand or mascot into the virtual world can give them a new perspective on your brand.

Consumption Is Going Greener

"Energy saving", "low-carbon" and "organic" were the top search terms during 2021 Double 11 on Tmall, as consumers become more environmentally conscious and took action to support green consumption. Over 500,000 green goods debuted on Tmall’s first-ever “green list”, showcasing a wide range of green appliances, green food, water-saving products and new-energy vehicles.

Shoppers purchased more than 25,000 water-saving lavatory products in the first hour on November 1st, which is estimated to save roughly 225 tons of water a day. More than 120,000 green home appliances such as smart washing machines, air conditioners and refrigerators were bought within 9 hours, which will ultimately cut carbon emissions.

Tmall’s logistics partner, Cainiao, recorded over 1 billion green behaviors since November 1st through their Carbon Measurement Information System, which equates to a reduction of 18,000 tons of carbon emissions. In addition, over 15 million green packages were sent from Cainiao stations.

JD.com also joined the "low carbon" campaign, developing recyclable packaging, deploying new-energy cargo vans, and adopting photovoltaic power generation in warehousing. During this year’s Double 11 period, JD Logistics reduced carbon by 26,000 tons and used recycled packaging 11 million times.

Our Advice: It's time to take environmentally conscious consumption even more seriously.

Consumers today are no longer just vocal advocates, but they’re also taking proactive actions to protect our environment. As such, they are seeking brands that not only align with their beliefs but are also actively contributing to tackling the global climate crisis. Take time to re-evaluate your brand’s environmental commitments and carbon footprint, from product design to logistics and shipping, as consumers will be more likely to opt for greener alternatives as climate action becomes more prominent. Make sure to also communicate your green initiatives, or better yet, let your audience experience the work you’ve done through livestreaming or perhaps even through the metaverse.

A Seamless Customer Experience

Tmall’s Uni-desk has become a truly invaluable advertising tool for brands looking to enhance their digital marketing performance during Double 11 this year. The platform connects to more than 30 top-tier media platforms (such as BYTE, Baidu, Netease, etc.,) to help brands achieve multi-channel coverage and enable them to engage with consumers at a variety of touchpoints throughout the user journey. Additionally, it creates a customized optimization model for different industries and integrates internal and external resources to make the platform a true one-stop Double 11 promotion platform.

Global skincare brand, Clarins, achieved nearly 40% YoY GMV in just the first sales period with the help of Uni-desk. Clarins increased their target audience pool and brand penetration by extending their prospecting beyond Tmall. Traffic from external search engines, mobile apps and more drove audiences directly to their Tmall shop, reducing on-site competition and capturing the audiences’ attention earlier outside of Tmall.

Our Advice: Create a unified experience for your customers

Uni-desk’s integration with external media platforms means that you will have access to the full customer journey, allowing you to create a comprehensive brand experience all the way from brand awareness, down to each individual purchase. Given the crowded advertising environment on Tmall during Double 11, the more brand engagements you have with your customers outside of sales event, the greater the customer intent you can nurture, giving your brand a greater competitive advantage against the millions of other products vying for the audiences’ attention.

This article was written by Kelvin Lee, with contributions from Christy Chen, Spencer Sun and Ming Guo.?