The survival dilemma of platform Electric Quotient: The trap of category expansion and the bottleneck period of platform traffic

Veterans of the Monday article "from Amoy was sold to see the knot of vertical manufacturers of electricity!" Has aroused great repercussions in the soldiers ' friends. A lot of soldiers ask the vertical electric business day is not easy, is not to the platform of the electricity business transformation can solve the knot? If you see the following sets of data to know the platform electric business day is not good.

On the evening of April 29, Suningyun A quarterly report, the first quarter to achieve operating income of 22.869 billion yuan, down 15.93% from the same period last year, the main business income fell 16.15%, compared to the store (meaning January 1, 2013 and before the opening of the store) sales revenue fell 13.40 %, online business to achieve sales revenue of 3.3 billion yuan (including tax), the year-on-year decline of 26.65%.

Take a look at the data disclosed by the IPO prospectus at the beginning of the year. Jing Dong 2011, 2012 net revenue is 21.13 billion yuan, 41.38 billion yuan respectively, net loss is 1.284 billion yuan, 1.729 billion yuan respectively. In the three quarter of 2013 years ago, Jing Dong net revenue was 49.216 billion yuan, which was 28.807 billion yuan in the same period as last year 70%, net revenue was 60 million yuan, and the net loss was 1.424 billion yuan in the same period a year earlier. On the face of it, Jingdong has completed its turnround in the three quarter of 2013 years ago. But if it digs out interest income and subsidies, Jingdong is still losing money in the above period. According to earnings reports, in the three quarter of 2013 years ago, the Beijing-east operating loss of 316 million yuan, and the net interest income of 215 million yuan, and from other sources such as financial subsidies are 164 million yuan.

February 27, the domestic vertical electric business transformation of the typical integrated electric business-Dangdang officially announced back to profit track, the latest earnings data show that last year four Dangdang realized since 2011 Q1 first profit, net profit of 21.7 million yuan, profit rate of 1.1%, net revenue for the people 1.972 billion yuan, Including platform (GMV) Total revenue of 3.667 billion yuan.

These dismal sets of data represent the general survival of the platform's electricity quotient. Of course, except for the cat. Here we do not see the cat's revenue data, but can be from the U.S. Yahoo released data to glimpse.

According to a US Yahoo report, Alibaba's total revenue in the quarter of 2013 was $3.058 billion, up 66% from a year earlier, with a net profit of 1.363 billion dollars, up 650 million from the 110% dollar period in 2012. Alibaba quarter revenue soared, thanks to the electric business platform promotional activities, 2013 "Double 11" period, Alibaba's Taobao and cat mall sales amounted to 5.6 billion U.S. dollars. From a single quarter, Alibaba's revenue and net profit has surpassed Tencent and Baidu, of which Tencent 2013 fourth quarter revenue of 2.783 billion U.S. dollars, net profit of 641 million U.S. dollars, Baidu for 1.573 billion U.S. dollars, net income of 459.9 million U.S. dollars.

When all the platform electric dealers in the profit and loss line struggle back and forth, Ali electric business but earn pots full of pot, envy others. And on the other platform, the electric trader is still exporting to the capital market itself is China's first few big electric business, Ali but vigorously to the capital market to the electric business, show is comparable with Amazon, Google's technology company label. But the cat Taobao is Ali cash cow is an indisputable fact, without the soul of the electrical quotient, and then a good technical body are empty shells.

The survival dilemma of the Platform electric Power trader

1. Category expansion of the sleepy. The veteran in the previous article mentioned that the vertical electric quotient of several big knot is: High cost, low customer unit price, low repurchase rate. Compared with the vertical consumer, the customer unit price is low and high cost also exist in the platform, but fortunately the SKU enough, the platform of the user stickiness, high repurchase rate, which is the common advantage of the platform electric. At present, a few of the main platform electric dealers from the vertical electric business to expand the new category of extension, when the rise in the book, only goods will borrow clothing, Jing Dong early focus on 3C products, each platform in the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain will experience pain, need to change consumer brand awareness. The most typical is when, the loss of so many years before the basic footing, and like Suning chose the way of the leap forward blindly expand the category, foolish lost watermelon. The results of the development of various platform electric goods are more and more similar, are positioned in the user has a rigid demand and life-related popular goods, the more convergence of the quality of products, the future competition will become more and more intense. In the upcoming 51 Golden Week, the platform of the electric operators on the strength of the price war, and the price war behind the decline in profit margins and platform for the profits of the foreseeable future.

2. Standing in front of the big mountain. These platform electric dealers have a common enemy, that is Ali. On the flow of resources theory they are Ali not in a stall. And it's partly because Ali accidentally took a nap that the platform electric dealers can survive from horns. In the past few years after the ebay drive out of China, Ali too despise the existence of internal opponents, now the younger brother scraped a piece of meat after the pain has finally come to a recovery. Today Ali by collecting service fees and advertising costs of the profit model to play a price war is too easy, and does not affect the profit, the real will be injured is the weak platform of the electricity quotient. Say a not quite appropriate analogy, Arigan is to cut other people's meat to sell the business, cut other people's meat will not hurt themselves, businesses willing to cut meat because of survival forced! Cut and not cut, cut how much, can be discussed. But Jing Dong Suning when they are not the same, they want to cut their own meat, cut up pain unbearable. A few more cuts, blood on the streamer. Now the platform electric business looks calm, the electrical appliance Merchant's scenery is infinite, as long as which Day Ali command, estimated is the blood of the matter.

3. Platform traffic bottleneck period. The platform electric Trader's self hematopoiesis ability is stronger than the vertical electricity quotient. But like all other industries, every business has a life cycle. Electric business Enterprises will eventually encounter the bottleneck of the flow of the problem, it is only time sooner or later. Where is the time node of the bottleneck period of the platform electric Dealer? Even Ali, after the construction of such a huge electric quotient of the ecological Empire need to consider the question of growth. From selling physical to selling virtual products, from online to offline, from O2O to C2B, all of this is to keep the empire growing fast. Ali frequent takeover, the main purpose is to control more traffic entrance. Why should the BoE alongside Tencent, in addition to the public to build momentum, the more important reason is to get the flow of Tencent, delaying the arrival of their own menopause. In the future, we may see more platform electric quotient table Thigh phenomenon, this is the reality helpless.