Alipay’s correct approach to social networking

It has been a while since Alipay ’s “Campus Diary”. At that time, Alipay was affectionately called “payment madam” by the national husband (this is so witty that you have to give a thumbs up manually). Looking back now, the idea of ​​trying to elevate users' perception of Alipay from a payment tool to a social portal by relying on the unsightly (but actually pleasing, embarrassing) photos in the "Campus Diary" was too direct and crude (not everyone likes direct and crude things). In the end, the top management apologized, the product was replaced, and the function was removed from the shelves, which caused a lot of sighs.

There have been various discussions in the industry as to why Alipay, as a wallet, wants to engage in social networking. I will not elaborate here. Social networking is a thorn in Ali's side. From the previous "Laiwang" to the "Campus Diary" a few months ago, it all shows that Ali attaches great importance to social networking as a strategic high ground. Social networking brings traffic, just like Cao Cao holding the emperor hostage to command the princes. It is really glorious. Even Alipay, which has been working hard in the payment field for many years, when it encounters WeChat Pay which starts with social networking and focuses on red envelopes, in just one year, it is enough for vegetable vendors to put up WeChat QR codes in front of their stalls and compete with Alipay. Alipay wants to fight back, but it shows more of a sense of powerlessness.

Since social networking is not a question of “whether to do it” for Alipay, but a must-do, then “how to do it” is the focus of this article (finally getting to the point, dear readers, thank you for waiting).

The author has explained in another article that if you want to engage in social networking after WeChat, you must start with strangers.

The primary problem encountered in social interaction with strangers is "encounter". Yes, it is encounter. It is an encounter when, where and why you meet someone. Just imagine our traditional way of making friends. We may meet a friend of a friend because we attend a party hosted by a friend, thus starting a beautiful encounter (which may be painful). It may also be that you accidentally knocked a book out of someone's arms while walking on the road, and when you picked it up, you took a quick glance and found that this person was the one in your dreams (what a bloody plot).

Well, there are many scenarios for traditional encounters, but making friends online is much simpler. After uploading your avatar, you can flip the sign like an emperor. If you don’t like it, turn left, if you like it, turn right. It’s so easy. My mom doesn’t have to worry about me not being able to make a boyfriend or girlfriend. Or you can look at the handsome men and beautiful women nearby based on your location. After a greeting, you find that there are very few responses. It’s rare for someone to reply. You find that they are either micro-businessmen or have ulterior motives. Where is the sincerity you promised? The adrenaline that has just risen also returns to normal with a cry of “They are all unreliable.”

I believe that many friends who love socializing have had the above experience, so whether it is traditional or online, appearance is still the primary criterion for whether lonely men and women (also men and men, women and women) can continue to "encounter". But unfortunately, you and I are all mortals. We can’t have a beautiful appearance just because we want it. Don’t ordinary people deserve love, friendship and gay love? So can we change our way of thinking about socializing?

Finally, it is Alipay's turn to appear. Alipay is an online wallet, transfer tool, and financial management platform in the eyes of ordinary people. It is really frustrating to let such a serious tool product with financial attributes to do social networking. However, there is always a way out. Alipay also has its unique advantages - payment data of hundreds of millions of users (and most of them are real-name users).

I'm sure someone will ask at this time, what's the use of this data? Do you have hair? Not a single one. (Such a familiar line)

Of course it is useful, because it allows Alipay to become a real-name dating platform that matches users through payment data. This is also what I believe is one of the few payment-related and ethical ways of socializing with Alipay. Let me explain in detail below.

Imagine if Alipay develops a function, after the user's consent, the system will automatically push some people of the opposite sex (or the same sex if the taste is unique) who have the same consumption records as you in the past period of time. These consumption records can be the bottle of purified water you bought at a convenience store near the community, or the cup of coffee you drank at the Starbucks downstairs in the office building, or more likely the shoes or bags you bought in a certain brand online store.

In short, fate began just like this, neither too early nor too late. It is different from an encounter that is completely based on appearance. Its dimensions also include chance and the matching of three values. Think about it, a person who has the same consumption preferences as you can more or less arouse your interest. I don't know whether it was a gender expert or a sociologist who said that the closer the values ​​and family backgrounds of a couple are, the longer their relationship will last. People with the same consumption records may mean that their living situations, consumption concepts and even family environments are relatively consistent. So at this time, we can shout out the slogan that I tailored for Alipay - "Meet people similar to you on Alipay."

The above is just the general gameplay of this function. For more details, you can use your imagination. For example, you can use big data to calculate the specific matching value of the two; protect privacy and not disclose specific consumption information; allow users to selectively expose their consumption places (to show their status); set rules so that you can only meet one person a day; guess where we have met before, etc. There are many ways to play, so you can use your imagination.

At this point, someone may ask, even if you have achieved the first step of making friends, "encounter", but after the encounter, if you really want to become friends, you will still shift your position to WeChat, isn't that making wedding dresses for others?

Well, after a brief thought, I can tell you responsibly that this is very likely the case. Because for users, they only need one IM (instant messaging), and they will use whichever one is convenient and easy to use. The logic is very simple.

However, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. We cannot give up our original dream (good chicken soup) just because of the final migration of users. At least through this function, Alipay can reversely deepen its moat in offline payment scenarios, and at the same time make it an entry point for strangers to make friends. It is hard to say whether it will become the most reliable blind date and dating platform in China in the future. Will Jiayuan.com and the like faint in the toilet by then?

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The author of this article @张宏攀 is compiled and published by (Qinggua Media). Please indicate the author information and source when reprinting!