‘Rise’ thanks to livestream in China

Only about 5 minutes after the start of the live video (also known as the livestream), a famous Chinese streamer, the Xin Ba account, sold 42.5 million sets of Whoo Korean skincare products, generating revenue. up to 400 million yuan (approximately 57 million USD) on single 11/11 This is officially published by Kuaishou, a video sharing platform backed by Tencent, a Chinese technology giant.

For many Chinese, it was a “dream of a life change” overnight and it was the development of today’s mobile society that provided an opportunity for them to realize their dream. With well-known global brands, internet celebrities, also known as KOL (influencers on social networks), become an extremely effective, effective advertising channel. Thereby, brands will have the opportunity to reach hundreds of millions of Chinese consumers.

Austin Li Jiaqi, 27, is one of the most attractive beauty bloggers in China. Photo: Getty Images.

My full name is Xin Youzhin, from a farming family. His selling point is that the quality of products must go hand in hand with the value of money. His interpersonal skills are considered to be typical characteristics of people from northeastern China. This area is very famous because it is home to many actors, entertainers – people who have a relatively fast speaking speed. The economy here is “grappling” with industrial overload.

“ People in the northeast tend to be more open with the ability to create flexible improvisational communication, so the content they create is appealing to viewers across the country, even people from the root of the region. nam, ”said Hao Wu, director of the documentary with the theme of the lives of Chinese streamers, released in 2018 under the People’s Republic of Desire.

In the early days of the livestream movement, northeastern China was considered a “cradle” of streamers. Many viewers are willing to support them through virtual currency gifts.

In fact, the three northeastern provinces own the highest number of professional streamers in China, as of 2018, according to information released by social networking platform Momo. Citing official figures, the report said that as of mid-2018, China had more than 425 million streamers.

And this “pie” is getting bigger and bigger.

Austin Li Jiaqi, 27, is one of the most attractive beauty bloggers in China. Photo: Getty Images.

For Kuaishou accounts with over 1 million followers, the volume of transactions through these accounts has increased by 9 times, while the accounts have an average of 200,000 followers, this number is even higher. 34 times taller, Wang Yulin, CEO of Mockuai, a Kuaishou partner, spoke at a conference held in Beijing, December 17, 2019.

A representative from Kuaishou emphasized that these were only third-party statistics and did not share any further speculation that the company was planning to IPO in the US in 2021 with little valuation. 25 billion USD.

Raising barriers to entry

With these positive results, even lesser-known brands seek help from KOLs. However, this form of online selling is still completely overwhelmed by the big names, and the demand for professionalization is also increasing.

About a year ago, videos created by a user could easily attract viewers, but now, that person needs a lot of help from a large backstage team. , according to Kelvin Zhao, who has 4 years of experience working for a reputable content creation company in Beijing.

” For individual individuals, their heyday is over, ” Zhao said. He emphasized that the cost of creating a good live stream video on the internet is even equal or higher than the cost of making an online broadcast movie.

“ It will be harder to stand out, but not impossible. But the investment in your products will certainly be much higher . ”

According to a report published in March 2019 from TopKlout, a market research firm, there are currently at least 5,000 advertising companies that own multiple multi-channel marketing networks, who are doing the work of connecting the KOL with brands, and sometimes assist them in the content production process.

Pedro Yip, a retail partner at consulting firm Oliver Wyman, said intermediaries could earn between 10% and 25% of the commission, including money to pay the KOL.

” The earnings of KOLs will depend heavily on the popularity of that person in the market, ” he said. ” Usually the price can increase exponentially .”

Does livestream exist forever?

Even for people with a firm foothold, job insecurity remains relatively high.

It has been five years since Wu started following several streamers to document his film, saying that during the process, their income did not seem to have much change. The growth of followers of this type of sales has also reached the saturation level, when new video platforms such as TikTok have appeared on the market.

” They all have a backup plan ,” Wu said. “ But think about it, those people don’t have college degrees. They also do not possess better social knowledge than a normal person, they do not know how to run a business. They tried to invest capital to open restaurants, bars, and all failed . ”

Even Xin, who has nearly 34.7 million followers on the Kuaishou platform, is well aware that his livestream career will not last forever.

During an event held on the 12/12 shopping festival, he said he needed to continue to improve to attract more followers online. He will also try to develop his own product supply chain. However, he also refused to answer additional questions around his personal life.