Classification Web site Evolution: From slow heat to fight

Content Guide: Classification information site charm no longer, 58 with the city CEO Yiu Jingbo will reshape the magical bets on the IPO

58 of the city is getting cooler. At the beginning of September, 58 City defeated the famous classified information website Craigslist, the monthly visitors to visit the world's first. It is worth mentioning that in 2005 its CEO Yiu Jingbo copied the american Craigslist Classified information website model to the local.

More to the news, September 28 58, the same city to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) submitted a prospectus, the United States to go to the NYSE listing, the highest fund-raising 150 million U.S. dollars. If the listing is successful, this will be Yiu Jingbo after the "education", the second trip to the United States bell. And for the 58 city, in the past few years, SNS, video, group buying market ice fire two days later, this or its most precious rite of adulthood.

"I believe this is the most anticipated IPO of the year," he said. "Youku, the founder of the network, Preangel investor cheerfully told the global entrepreneur." He believes that, with the largest difference in the field rivals, 58 with the city for merchants to provide a complete solution, and in each city line to form a strong ground control force, in the Housing rental, service recruitment, local services, second-hand cars and other fields become the first major platform.

Earlier, the company was plagued by negative news such as a broken capital chain and falling flows. Even worse, the classified information Web site after a high-speed development period, the past two years encountered bottlenecks, garbage information flooding and business model is single has become an indisputable fact.

A single business model that earns revenue only on the basis of online promotion and membership is hard to get the continued pursuit of capital. Two or three years ago, 58 with the city and rival net, respectively, threw heavily invited Red Star Yang and Chen Yao endorsement, launched a frenzied advertising tug of battle, visible competition in this industry fierce. "Now net to the electric business development, 58 with the city to the platform development, these years of development have not imagined so clear, also did not develop too fast." "said one of the net.

But it is not easy to survive. From the reality of the situation, founded in eight years ago, experienced the most brutal Chinese internet market, from the then 2000 classified information sites to today's few survivors, stick down the 58 with the city and Net is lucky. They obviously don't want to stop there. has been a number of rounds of financing, after several times of burning money war, how to enter a smooth profit model as soon as possible, listed to investors and employees an account, or become classified information field of war.

Not long ago, net announced that it had completed two rounds of financing last year and continued to make profits by the end of last year. and Yiu Jingbo to "global entrepreneur" that 58 of the city's profit "is not a problem, but their own choice." Now, is going to the United States listed in the 58 with the city, seems to be a step closer to their dreams, but the past few years has not been the Yiu Jingbo of capital heat, can successfully grasp this opportunity?

Slow heat

"My judgment was only three years ago," he said. 2005 Venture, 2008 to 2009 58 the same city should be very successful. But by 2009 we were a budding company. Only the industry, the Internet, this part of the people know. "Looking back on his entrepreneurial experience, Yiu Jingbo admits that 58 grew very slowly with the city.

Yiu Zeng Imagine in a large population, the rapid development of the Internet market, replication of the United States mature Craigslist model can usher in the market blowout, but the reality has given him a heavy comeback. 58 The same city is a similar to the traditional yellow pages, to provide users with basic life services company. As a result, the differences in lifestyles between China and the United States quickly emerged in business models. For example, the United States does not have a community concept, residential is a single building, in China, we have to consider the community factors and division of units. The United States has already established a more mature integrity system, Craigslist does not need to do too much credit evaluation, black and white list, audit mechanism. And for the 58 city, these procedures are related to the success or failure of the site, determine whether the user approved. The third feature is that China's small and medium-sized enterprises, local businesses are very developed intermediary groups. After any one category is developed, there are nearly half the information and transactions from the merchant to the individual. The difference is that the individual is a one-off, incidental behavior, and the merchant is a long-term resident in this. 58 The city must work out a complete set of solutions for local service businesses in China.

A few years after the establishment of Craigslist, only dozens of people were on the scale, but they were quick to make a profit. By contrast, 58 of the city is always wearing a "heavy mode" hat. Merchant certification, solutions, information Audit, the need for high cost into operation. Manpower layout also has a huge gap. Many relocation companies, real estate brokers and other localization services companies, the first office environment even the computer does not. To get their work online, 58 of the city had to set up offices in nearly 30 cities nationwide, visit local businesses, authenticate and even teach them how to use classified information platforms. Craigslist was founded in 1995, by 2005, the heat is higher outside to follow, has gone through 10 years course, all the way without competitors, and 58 with the city is in full white-hot competition stage into the classified information field, similar companies have reached thousands of.

Pressure forces 58 to find growth in the city. "In the heavy mode you must consider the profit model, the income model." "Yiu Jingbo said. For this reason, he has also tried many mistakes. Around 2006, 58 of the same city developed a mobile phone platform application, but in the mobile environment is not developed under the circumstances did not promote the closed. 2007 to 2009, in order to supplement the Internet leakage rate of the problem, 58 with the city has tried to promote the DM magazine. Even in the group buying industry hot, also joined the "Thousand Regiment War". In order to promote the market, it also swept all the Users express fee, a lot of moving money up to hundreds of yuan.

Such exploration is a huge investment, but it is also a potential indicator of the development of local classified information industry. "including group buying, wireless products, we are in many ways to explore different from the foreign classification of the introduction of information model." Basically the current Chinese industry model is 58 with the city set. "Yiu Jingbo said. But the heavy mode lets it realize this also is the competitive advantage. "The advantage is that once you've dealt with these things, it's going to take a lot of work to make them copy you," he said. ”

In the past, Yiu Jingbo 58 with the city's development into three stages: the first stage is from the establishment of five years, accumulated nearly tens of thousands of users, but basically no income. 2009 to 2010 is in the product research and development input, the user has the steady growth, but the income can be neglected. From 2011 to 58, the city entered the third phase and began to explore the profit model.

In fact, it is not easy to accumulate a relatively virtual life information, which is different from the available product information. 58 before the city was founded five years ago, Yiu Zeng led the team is rooted in this. Take renting for example. User inquiries are mostly based on the community, but the number of Chinese communities to the staggering. For example, Beijing has eight urban areas, more than 200 business district, more than 5,000 residential area, detailed to the street number of tens of thousands of. According to 1000 districts in the Medium-sized city, to cover 400 cities, it is necessary to reach 400,000 communities.

"If the information is not accumulated, the platform will not work." "58 Xiaohua, senior vice president of the city, told global entrepreneur." He said he could see a share of 10,000 people forwarding comments, but in 58 the same city 10,000 were distributed in different communities and could hardly be found. And 58 the city to do is according to "category + landmark" divided into hundreds of thousands of lattice, each user in their own grid to record and find information. "We want to accumulate more information in more cities and categories, and we have done everything we can." ”

2011 years later, 58 of the city's information has increased to 1 million to 1.5 million a day, expected to reach around 2 million in 2013. For this magnitude, xiaohua that rental information can be active for 3-5 days, recruitment information about one or two weeks. "This means that every day I have effective stock information in tens of millions of or even billions of times, the platform basically solves the problem of information." ”

New problems arise. The increase in the amount of information leads to user growth, but the latter has a corresponding increase in the quality of its complaints. Starting in 2011, 58 of the city started to solve the problem of information quality. First, ensure information authenticity and combat fraud. Second, judge the identity behind the information. 58 The city put tens of millions of dollars to pay the plan to show determination. It includes not only the anti-fraud team, the consumer Protection program, but also a huge information quality filtration system. For example, users want to sell an Apple phone on the Internet, the option will provide all product models, and whether there are scratches, standby time, use time, there is no warranty options. Therefore, "a few new" judgments are based on the statistics of multiple information, not user decisions. "I have 200% confidence." If there are 100 people in use, 99 people will think that the classification site can never think of this. "Xiaohua said.

58 The city's vision is to create a "service industry taobao." However, the standardization of service industry is far inferior to the high commodity level. "Nokia E71, Apple, they represent what is clearly defined, but the definition of different companies in the service industry is not the same, and it takes longer to structure it." "Yiu Jingbo said. Xiaohua had a vivid memory of MA in the "Win in China" program, when an entrepreneur said to the horse, "I have now certified 400 companies, no one in China." Ma interrupted him and said, "You have never seen the word, do you know how much Alibaba has done?" There are 400 people every day in the country to do certification, now has certified 200,000 business license. This is China's unprecedented. "I don't know what they are now, but there are more than 58 people in the city, and they continue to be certified." This is the hardest place. "In Xiaohua's view, Ma Yun used a set of mechanisms to build a new business civilization," but 58 of the city on this road is far from reaching. ”

The long front, so that 58 of the same city is often in the outside of the voice of doubt. Critics say it has missed the best time to go public, and Yao, who has made several rounds of financing and burning money, has had to design "Gao" for the future. "If 58 goes public, there is only one reason we want to turn ourselves into a negotiable company," he said. Let the employee's options have a flow and pricing channels, so that 58 of the city with the brand more recognized by SMEs. "Yiu Jingbo said.