We have reviewed the branding and marketing actions of the first half of 2023, and summarized four major trends and eight topics to help you anticipate the marketing trends in the China consumer goods market.
Part 1 CONSUMERS: the State of the Consumer
Topic 1: Capturing User Emotions
In the first half of 2023, more and more brands are choosing to focus on user emotions for product and marketing activities to establish a deep emotional connection with their users. Want to get closer to nature? Brands are incorporating "nature" into their products! Want to go outdoors? Brands are organizing outdoor activities!
| Starbucks: Natural Series Star Cups
| Meituan x Tims Cobranding Frisbee
Topic 2: The Power of User Groups
Deeply connecting with user groups and shifting from "me" to "we" has become a key focus of brand marketing. For example, Have you joined the group led by the 'Crocs Enthusiasts' (洞门人)? Even user groups have started their own product creations and sparked multiple collaborative frenzy on social platforms.
| Crocs enthusiasts
| Derivative works: KFC Children's Day toys
| Derivative works: Heytea × Fendi joint product
Part 2 EMOTIONS: Empathy with Consumers
Topic 3: Responding to Emotional Nodes
Niche festivals are surging, and popular festivals are booming! Brands are coming up with unique ideas to establish a deep connection with their customers and respond to emotional nodes. Among them, some brands deeply explore traditional cultural elements that fit their brand's personality and integrate them into their products to create unique selling points. Others put a lot of effort into the sense of ritual during festivals, allowing customers to feel the fullness of the brand's intentions and thus gain more loyal customers.
| Combining Traditional Culture: MOYNAT Chinese New Year Gift Box
| Bulgari “520” Gift Box
| TUMI “520” Gift Box
Topic 4: Empathy with Local Culture
'Localization' that wins resonance from local users through regional identity has become a recognized and effective marketing method. Brands incorporate city elements and characteristics of surrounding neighborhoods into their product designs, creating brand experiential scenes with spatial memory points, thereby generating strong resonance with local users.
| Local Experience Scenarios：POP MART City-limited Special Exhibition
| Local Experience Scenarios：Heytea City Inspiration Store
| Combining City Characteristics：Heytea × Cultural Tourism City Refrigerator Stickers
| Combining City Characteristics：POP MART DIMOO Nonghao Shanghai Series
| Combining City Characteristics：POP MART MOLLY Wuhan Cherry Blossom Series
Topic 5: Empathy through Collaborations
In the market environment where "everything can be connected," how do brands face challenges and achieve new heights through collaborations? Brand collaborations with other brands create a refreshing feeling with the dual buff effect of precise target customers and brand differences. Collaborations with well-known IPs create a new product or service by creating relevance between the brand and the IP, thus gaining precise fan spread.
| Enhance brand freshness：Louis Vuitton × MANNER Cobranding Pop-up Event
| Enhance brand freshness：Starbucks × Kate Spade Cobranding Products
| Precisely disseminate to IP fans ：Luckin Coffee × Maltese Valentine's Day Series
| Precisely disseminate to IP fans ：Kiehl's × Genshin Impact Joint Series
Part 3 EXPERIENCE: Return to Offline
Topic 6: Wave of Offline Activities
In 2023, the vitality of offline activities has been fully unleashed, with outdoor activities surging and young people eagerly seeking to participate in offline activities. Brands have shifted their marketing direction to offline, with various flash sales, art festivals, and other activities reaching the core group of young consumers and winning a large number of loyal fans. The atmosphere of offline markets is relaxed and enjoyable, gradually becoming the primary marketing battlefield for young brands.
| Engage in fun interactions with fans：IKEA 25th Anniversary Purple Flash Sale
| Engage in fun interactions with fans：Common Gathering
Topic 7: Break down interest group barriers
Interest communities bring together people from different backgrounds and can grow to become mainstream. In the first half of this year, brands in the marketing industry have been using various strategies to break down barriers between different interest groups. Interest communities create a space for like-minded individuals to come together, forming a strong vertical influence. As these communities grow, people's values and lifestyles become more diversified, and individuals can choose to participate in a way that aligns with their personal beliefs. Have you unknowingly participated in any of these interest communities?
| Organizing Interest Communities： ECCO City Walk Event
| Organizing Interest Communities： Xiaohongshu "Bike-Friendly Plan"
Part 4 LONG-TERM
Topic 8: Sustainable Development
When it comes to sustainable development, actions speak louder than words! Brands are exploring and implementing green business models by incorporating the concept of recycling and regeneration into the lifecycle of their products. They are also continuously enriching the ways in which recycling and regeneration are presented to the public, and seeking suitable "green partners" to make environmental protection a part of daily life. By doing so, they are creating a brand-friendly image of sustainable development.
| Recycling and Regeneration： KAFFTEC's Coffee Ground Recycling Tour
| Recycling and Regeneration：San Dun Ban's Return Program
| Recycling and Regeneration：Kiehl's Empty Bottle Recycling Program
| Environmental Protection in Daily Life：Origin x KAFFTEC Environmentally friendly products
| Environmental Protection in Daily Life：Master Kong x KAFFTEC Eco-friendly Luggage
| BEAST Home x ifaw "Living with Elephants" Collaborative Products
