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Thread Newsletter – May Edition

Over the last years, China’s E-Commerce Festivals have been dominating news with jaw dropping headlines and this year was no different with record sales of $30.8 Billion in sales on Singles Day. Even though it’s the biggest and most well-known invented shopping festival on the planet, with 81% of Chinese consumers aware of it, it doesn’t actually mean it’s the best option for brands.

Sure, you (hopefully) see a bump in sales, but from a return-on-investment (ROI) standpoint, Nielsen has research showing a two-thirds dip in ROI when comparing to non-festival days.

So is it worth joining in on the 11.11 sales? That depends. There are a mountain of brands that participate, estimates are over 180 000 in 2018, which fight hard to get your attention and wallets. Luckily in China, 11.11 (and 12.12) aren’t your only chances, they’re just the most obvious. A handful of other shopping festivals have been added to calendars, some invented purely out of creativity like the upcoming May 17th Foodie Festival Day (because 5.17 sounds like ‘I want to eat / wo yao chi / 我要吃’ in Chinese) or Sept 9th Global Wine & Spirits Festival (because 9.9 sounds like ‘alcohol / jiu / 酒’ in Chinese), while others have latched on to special days like Western Valentines Day (Feb 14th), White Valentines Day (March 14th) or International Women’s Day (March 8th), because nothing celebrates Woman’s Rights quite like saving 10% on a handbag! If you need inspiration these brands made a mark on International Women’s Day by shifting conversations and stereotypes around women.

If you’re a brand that’s wondering what festival to join, make sure you choose strategically and communicate wisely. If you need help figuring out what’s best for your brand, reach out to us we’d love to chat!

Read the full newsletter here