---
title: "Community Group Buying: Group Leaders Will Eventually Revolt"
description: "Community group buying platforms with large funding compete fiercely for group leaders on the front end while strengthening supply chains on the back end. Platforms without sufficient funds can only watch helplessly and quietly build their capabilities in their regions. How to win the group leader war? Platforms engage in empowerment battles to enhance their own group leaders' abilities and build defense systems, while also launching aggressive campaigns to poach group leaders from competitors."
author: "任小东"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2019-05-09"
language: "en"
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original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/ngxQJCfbtz2nRDE3SgFc2g"
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---

# Community Group Buying: Group Leaders Will Eventually Revolt

> Community group buying platforms with large funding compete fiercely for group leaders on the front end while strengthening supply chains on the back end. Platforms without sufficient funds can only watch helplessly and quietly build their capabilities in their regions. How to win the group leader war? Platforms engage in empowerment battles to enhance their own group leaders' abilities and build defense systems, while also launching aggressive campaigns to poach group leaders from competitors.

**The Unrelenting Battle for Group Leaders**
Community group buying platforms that have secured large funding are competing for group leaders on the front end and fiercely strengthening their supply chains on the back end.
Platforms without sufficient funds can only watch helplessly, retreating to their regions to quietly build their internal capabilities.
How to fight the group leader war? Platforms engage in empowerment battles to enhance their own group leaders' abilities and attempt to build defense systems; simultaneously, they launch aggressive campaigns to poach group leaders from other platforms.
**So-called empowerment:** Through platform business schools, group leader training, mini-programs, and personal branding on social media, platforms enhance group leaders' capabilities to sell more products.
Data shows that group leaders who have not undergone empowerment training earn monthly incomes of around 2,000-3,000 yuan, while those who have been trained can earn 5,000-8,000 yuan at the intermediate level and 10,000-20,000 yuan at the advanced level.
**So-called poaching:** Through exclusive agreements, exclusivity clauses, high commissions, differentiated commissions by category, tiered rebates, referral commissions for group leaders (similar to pyramid schemes), acquisitions of small group buying companies, dedicated WeChat accounts and work cards for group leaders, platforms both poach group leaders from others and defend against being poached.
At the same time, all platforms generally understand that winning the supply chain war is the true key to winning the group leader war.
The supply chain war is determined by three aspects:
  * **Product selection capability:** The buyer's eye determines the likelihood of product popularity and the profitability of group leaders;
  * **Scale capability:** Scale determines financing and whether the supply chain can extend from local to origin. Scale drives product quality and price;
  * **Fulfillment capability:** The stability of the technical system and the cost, efficiency, and support capacity of the warehousing and distribution system determine customer reputation and repurchase rates.
**How Long Will the Superficial Honeymoon Last?**
In fact, without saying it explicitly, the honeymoon period between platforms and group leaders is already running out. Perhaps the honeymoon is already over.
We always try to keep our eyes wide open to understand this complex business world. But changes happen too fast, and rubbing our eyes doesn't help much.
Group leaders no longer care about loyalty; they sell for whoever offers the highest commission. This has become public knowledge—private group transactions, company group reporting, and platforms turn a blind eye.
Platforms also know that group leaders are not dependable; once the big battle is over, they plan to deal with these profit-driven group leaders. Group leaders are well aware of this and are ready to take what they can and leave, or even openly rebel.
De-group-leading is inevitable for platforms: first, group leaders cannot be relied upon, and users must be secured on their own apps for safety; second, group leaders demand commissions of over ten points, while a pickup point only needs two or three points—anyone can do the math.
In this era, even Brother Qiangdong (referring to Liu Qiangdong) can't be relied upon, so stop talking about feelings; feelings are too costly.
Although everyone knows the honeymoon is ending, with capital support, platforms still spend lavishly to win over group leaders. For the sake of money, group leaders still display appropriate loyalty.
This is a puzzle game that remains unsolved until most platforms burn through their cash.
Money will eventually run out; even if they have customers, what can group leaders do?
**Professional Group Leaders Revolt, Diversifying Supply Chains in Reverse**
The group leaders' biggest trump card is that they hold the customers, with strong relationships and trust.
As long as their influence and trust in the community remain, professional group leaders will persist.
The conflict between platforms and group leaders is irreconcilable, and professional group leaders will eventually revolt. Where is the future?
**Group leaders will move upstream in the supply chain, and it will be a diversified supply chain.**
With solid user relationships, group leaders need high-quality, distinctive, cost-effective supply chain products and timely delivery services.
Don't worry about group leaders' ability to find quality supply chains; professional supply chain products and delivery services will emerge and find them.
**First, professional supply chain platforms evolved from community group buying companies.** Platforms that can't afford to burn cash may quietly develop exceptional product selection skills. They completely abandon the fight for and control over group leaders, focusing on upstream product selection, thus forming high-quality, distinctive product supply chains.
At this point, this is exactly what group leaders need. By giving up control, they may gain cooperation—how ironic the world is.
**Second, professional urban warehousing and distribution service providers.** Platforms like Wanchaobang have already provided mature, high-quality warehousing and distribution services to multiple community platforms. In the future, more companies will establish professional warehousing and distribution networks in more cities. Group leaders need not worry at all.
Who will be the third? Surprisingly, the most likely is brand owners! This could be one of the biggest dividends for brand owners in the coming years!
**Brand Owners' Dividend: 'Winning Group Leaders' Reaches a New High**
Brand owners are always sensitive; whenever a new channel appears, they will think about how to use it.
Now, the opportunity is here!
The community group buying model is one of the best ways to connect with C-end users and boost sales, aside from the B2C model.
It can be understood as an F2C (factory-to-consumer) model.
Previously, brand owners wanting to reach end users and complete sales had the following TO C methods:
1\. B2C model: Selling through platforms like Taobao, Tmall, and JD.com;
2\. F2C model: Selling through social e-commerce methods, such as platforms like Yunji and Beidian;
3\. M2C model: Selling through self-built micro e-commerce matrices, such as Youzan, Dian Dian Ke, Juketong, official accounts, WeChat groups, etc.;
4\. Direct sales model/group buying model.
Now, with the community group buying model, they can better reach users and boost sales—this is the fifth model.
The TO B direction is not expanded here; it roughly includes direct control of KA stores, distributor coverage, and B2B e-commerce cooperation.
Why is the community group buying model the fifth? **Quantitative change leads to qualitative change: Group leaders are the key to grasping C-class customers**
In summary, through the education, empowerment, and poaching by various community group buying platforms, the new profession of community group leader will become a basic unit of retail business, with numbers reaching millions or even tens of millions.
From the perspective of social traffic, pure social e-commerce (friend-circle interaction models, represented by Yunji, Beidian, etc.) and community group buying e-commerce (WeChat group interaction, represented by Xingsheng Youxuan, Ninwo Nin, Shixianghui, etc.) are both social e-commerce.
Currently, in the social e-commerce track, taking Yunji, which just went public, as an example, there are over 10 million store owners. It can be imagined that future community group leaders will be at least in the tens of millions. According to social e-commerce reports from 2016, 2017, and 2018, there are at least 20 million micro-business practitioners. Therefore, it is no problem for future community group leaders to reach 10-20 million.
What effect will such numbers bring?
**First, it will help a batch of community group buying platform companies go public.**
It is foreseeable that current leading community group buying platforms, with valuations of 5-10 billion yuan, all have opportunities.
**Second, group leaders will evolve into independent professional group leaders.** This is definitely good news for brand owners struggling to find new growth channels and marketing models.
For brand owners, if the previous slogan was 'winning the terminal,' the future slogan will be 'winning group leaders.'
We should thank the group buying companies for educating the market and cultivating group leaders. They have provided brand companies with a large number of 'salespeople + promoters + customer service staff' who do not require salaries or base pay.
From current practice, brand companies using group buying mini-programs, one-item-one-code, localized delivery systems, and leveraging their existing large offline promotion teams to develop community KOLs with strong relationships as group leaders (such as convenience store owners, stay-at-home moms, and small swimming pool owners) to do group buying, combined with official accounts, service accounts, micro malls, and SCRM systems, have done quite well. The author has seen impressive group buying data from many brand owners; cases are not listed here, but interested friends can contact me privately.
Similarly, this model and operation are also suitable for the vast number of distributors! It has extremely strong significance for new product launches and inventory clearance.
To summarize: **1. The independence and professionalization of group leaders are a dividend for brand owners; 2. Brand owners, by collaborating with group leaders, achieve integrated production and sales and do community business well.**
In conclusion:
1\. Group leaders have evolved into a new species and will become independent and professional in the future;
2\. Community group buying companies will transform into innovative supply chain companies, bringing a reshuffle of the business landscape;
3\. After the evolution of group leaders, it is a benefit and dividend for other retail enterprises and brand owners.
**Extended Reading on Community Group Buying Series Articles:**
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**China FMCG + Internet Professional New Media**
**Dedicated to FMCG manufacturers' transformation and upgrading and channel digital solutions**


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