A universal brand marketing formula

A niche domestic brand, without any Taobao marketing investment and relying solely on WeChat to sell its products, has quickly accumulated more than 100,000 loyal users in one year.

What is the secret behind this?

Continuing from the previous article, we revealed the “universal formula” for building niche domestic brands: brand vitality = the ability to stand the test of time + uniqueness + beauty.

We have broken down the three elements of the formula: “time-tested”, “unique” and “beautiful” (those who have forgotten can click here to read “Sold out as soon as it was put on the shelves! How this domestic brand achieved 0 marketing and more than 60% repurchase rate with a “universal formula”).

In this formula, "standing the test of time" is the premise, and "unique" and "beautiful" are the final results of the brand.

And "being able to stand the test of time" includes three elements: the genes of the founding team, the long-term value of the category, and the empowerment of traditional culture.

01 Long-term value of the category

If it is a category with long-term market demand, it will undoubtedly make it easier for the brand to "break out of the circle" and survive longer.

As for choosing between essential or non-essential products, it is well known that essential products are becoming increasingly difficult to meet in the current market. Even in the basic necessities such as food, clothing, housing and transportation, many companies are now leading the upgrades and are no longer limited to meeting functional needs.

It can be said that the entire new consumer market has now passed the era of rigid demand and is moving towards the era of addiction. Brands are committed to exploring users' hidden itch points and turning these itch points into pain points. For example, paying for knowledge used to be an "itch point" that people could do without after get off work, but now it has become a "pain point" that urban white-collar workers have to deal with. Many people worry that if they don’t study after get off work, they may fall behind others, may not make money, or may lose the opportunity for promotion and salary increase. This kind of panic and anxiety that comes from the heart has forced everyone to start purchasing paid knowledge products to a greater or lesser extent.

Similarly, the fragrance category is still an "itch point" now, but it is gradually turning into a "pain point" because the comfortable smell of fragrance products can help users relieve anxiety and regulate emotions.

Does smell really have such a big impact on people?

In the words of Christian Poda, general manager of Four Seasons Hotel Beijing, "Smell and emotion are inextricably linked, and the emotions evoked by a wonderful fragrance are irreplaceable. The journey may have an end, but the exclusive memories will last longer." In the high-pressure urban culture and in a social environment where involution is prevalent, brands that provide emotional value are most likely to gain priority in gaining people's attention and brand growth, and fragrance is a luxury product that can give people a sense of happiness.

The data results also prove the development potential of the fragrance category: in addition to lipsticks, lip balms, and beauty tools, the best-selling category on the entire network in 2020 is the perfume category. Affected by the epidemic in 2020, the overall beauty economy has declined, but there is one category that is going against the wind, that is, perfume products. In the first half of 2020, the perfume category grew by more than 33%, becoming one of the hottest beauty categories at the moment.

Data source: Business Advisor

According to the "Global Perfume Industry Analysis Report", the Chinese perfume market currently maintains an annual compound growth rate of approximately 15%, and the market size is expected to exceed 40 billion yuan by 2022.

In the age distribution of the fragrance market, those born in the 1990s and 2000s have become the main consumers in the fragrance market. This group of users who are willing to pay for themselves and their personality, and are willing to consume to "please themselves" within their means, will inevitably be the core consumer group in the fragrance market in the future.

However, the current domestic fragrance consumption market is still dominated by international brands, with mid-to-high-end products at the forefront of the market, and well-known brands have not yet appeared in the domestic market. The Scent Library, which has good sales, has verified the long-term value of the fragrance market, but it is a crossover from perfume and has perfume as its main product line, so its brand association and extension still need to be improved.

Therefore, although there is long-term demand in the domestic home fragrance market, the pattern is far from being finalized, and fragrance is still a blue ocean category. This leaves a lot of market room for imagination for Guanxia, ​​which is positioned as "focusing on fragrance therapy and healthy living."

In addition, the new generation of users are more receptive to domestic brands and are more inclined to self-pleasure consumption, which also creates opportunities for domestic fragrance brands.

As the new generation of consumer main force, those born in the 1990s and 2000s were born in an era of rapid national development. They have lived a wealthy life since childhood and are full of confidence in the national culture. Therefore, they are no longer overly obsessed with international brands like those born in the 1970s and 1980s, but are more willing to support domestic brands.

If users in the past needed to find a suitable reason for their non-essential consumption, such as buying an expensive watch for work or social events, users nowadays are more willing to consume to please themselves, such as buying an expensive watch to please themselves or to find joy in life.

The new generation of users adheres to a new logic: What I think is good is good. For brands, the more they dare to express their products, the easier it is to impress these users with independent personalities. Brands that dare to speak out will be far superior to those that try to please others or follow the trend. The more a brand can express who it is and which group of people’s preferences it represents, the more it will win the favor of users.

In addition, for general fragrance products, the unit price of six or seven hundred yuan is actually a very high premium, but for ordinary people, this price is still an affordable luxury. Therefore, fragrance is actually a luxury item that people can easily use to reward themselves.

In summary, Guanxia has occupied the blue ocean market dividend of the category, and combined the two favorable factors of domestic production and "self-pleasing". The brand has made a wonderful move in expressing "beauty".

03Empowerment of traditional culture

As a domestic brand, if we can infuse traditional culture into the brand, it will be like finding the "roots" of these trees for users. It will undoubtedly be easier to connect with users and resonate with them emotionally.

For Guanxia, ​​at a time when the domestic fragrance market is heavily dominated by European and American voices, if she wants to convey her own unique voice, using "Oriental fragrance" is actually a good entry point. But it is indeed not easy to break through the strong competition from European and American luxury brands.

But people must do difficult things, because simple things are particularly easy to be eliminated. There is an old saying that goes "If you aim for the best, you will get the middle; if you aim for the middle, you will get the worst; if you aim for the worst, you will get nothing." Doing something harder may be really difficult at the beginning, and no one can persist. But if you persist, you will have the opportunity to touch that 30% probability of closing a deal, and you will have the opportunity to solve more complex problems.

Therefore, "Oriental Fragrance" became Guanxia's differentiated brand positioning. Guanxia’s oriental fragrance does not just stay on the surface of the aroma, but is more rooted in oriental culture. It seeks stories related to fragrance from oriental humanities, art, and history for creation and expression.

Take Guanxia’s most popular “Four Seasons Aromatherapy” as an example. The inspiration for the Four Seasons Aromatherapy comes from the natural scenes in different city seasons, such as the Golden Osmanthus in the Summer Palace, the Peach Blossoms in Xixi, the Boiling Snow in Kunlun, the Lotus Pond in the Academy…

Speaking of these names, as a native Chinese, I will more or less have some natural associations. For example, the scene of "Kunlun Boiling Snow" reminds me of the summer when I was a child, lying on the bed, eating watermelon and watching the scene of "The Six Major Sects Besieging Guangmingding" in "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber". The comfort and peace of mind at that moment seemed to travel through time and space back to my mind, allowing me to temporarily forget the stress and anxiety.

Not only that, the product introductions of Guanxia often include descriptions of the use of incense and lifestyles of ancient literati and scholars. Texts, historical stories and quotations with oriental poetry, such as "The wind blows through the pine waves, and the heart and ears become quieter", "Facing the wind and rain, I meet old acquaintances, and I know from afar that the hometown is deep in late summer", can be seen everywhere.

In terms of product design style, Guanxia also adopts the "Oriental New Modern" style, printing Chinese traditional cultural symbols and stories on the packaging, reflecting the differentiation from other fragrance products in the details.

Oriental New Modern refers to expressing traditional oriental imagery in an international way. New modernism is a classic design style that has been recognized internationally. The "Oriental New Modern" expression that eliminates complex elements and adopts minimalist design can transcend national and cultural barriers, allowing the world to understand Chinese brands and show Guanxia's international vision and oriental characteristics.

Guanxia's "Oriental New Modern" is reflected in the products. In addition to leaving the logo, it also leaves Chinese characters representing Chinese characteristics such as "Gui", "Kun", "Mo", and "Xi Xi Peach Blossom", while the rest of the place is left blank. At the same time, Guanxia also injects inspiration into product design from Chinese bamboo joints, jade vases, and Song Dynasty Ding kiln ceramics. This style is not only an aesthetic interpretation of minimalism, but also directly reflects Guanxia’s blood roots in Eastern culture.

Guanxia insists on basing itself on oriental plant intentions, presenting oriental tones in its name, series name, packaging, scenes, and artistic conception. The fragrance of the product inspires people's imagination through content and design. For consumers, the charm of fragrance is not only an olfactory experience, but also stimulates people's imagination of fragrance and triggers resonance with oriental stories and culture deep in people's memories. The beautiful expressions of fragrance left by online users will also help the brand drive a new round of spontaneous dissemination.

Conclusion

Time is the firewood and nature is the ingredients to tap into the emotional complex in the memory of the Chinese people. Guan Xia wrote, I think it has done it.

In this era where traffic and channels are king, Guanxia has achieved the myth of zero marketing investment and high repurchase rate through its precise brand strategy and brand communication methods.

As a niche domestic brand with rapid growth and great vitality in recent years, we have divided the "tested by time" into three dimensions: the genes of the founding team, the long-term value of the category, and the empowerment of traditional culture. We have excavated the "uniqueness" and "beauty" of the Guanxia brand, helping everyone to restore the thinking process behind its brand building, hoping to give you some inspiration.

Finally, I couldn’t help but show you my recently purchased “Orange Soda”. I put it on the entrance of my house, so when I open the door and see it, I will feel like I am embracing the whole summer and sharing it with you~

Author: Luuuuke

Source: Luuuuke