---
title: "\"Deep Distribution\" vs \"Deep Fan Marketing\": Has the Deep Distribution Theory Become Outdated?"
description: "This article is authorized. Source: Deep Fan Marketing (ID: sdfenxiao). At the end of the last century, facing competition from multinational companies like P&G and Coca-Cola, Chinese local companies creatively invented the deep distribution theory. Deep distribution leverages the multi-tiered and fragmented nature of Chinese sales channels to maximize channel penetration and terminal control, using \"channel-driven\" strategies to counter multinationals' \"brand-driven\" approaches. With this theoretical weapon, many local Chinese companies not only survived but thrived against multinationals, even becoming industry leaders."
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published: "2018-10-29"
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# "Deep Distribution" vs "Deep Fan Marketing": Has the Deep Distribution Theory Become Outdated?

> This article is authorized. Source: Deep Fan Marketing (ID: sdfenxiao). At the end of the last century, facing competition from multinational companies like P&G and Coca-Cola, Chinese local companies creatively invented the deep distribution theory. Deep distribution leverages the multi-tiered and fragmented nature of Chinese sales channels to maximize channel penetration and terminal control, using "channel-driven" strategies to counter multinationals' "brand-driven" approaches. With this theoretical weapon, many local Chinese companies not only survived but thrived against multinationals, even becoming industry leaders.

This article is authorized.
Source: Deep Fan Marketing (ID: sdfenxiao)
At the end of the last century, facing competition from multinational companies like P&G and Coca-Cola, Chinese local companies creatively invented the deep distribution theory. **Deep distribution leverages the multi-tiered and fragmented nature of Chinese sales channels to maximize channel penetration and terminal control, using "channel-driven" strategies to counter multinationals' "brand-driven" approaches.** With this theoretical weapon, many local Chinese companies not only survived but thrived against multinationals, even becoming industry leaders.

However, with the development of the internet and mobile internet, especially the rise of social media, the once invincible theoretical system has faced unprecedented challenges: the marketing environment has changed. In the past, you were shooting at fixed targets in one-dimensional space; now you have to shoot at moving targets, even flying discs, in three-dimensional space!

Facing this unprecedented change, a "**Jianghu FEN Zheng**" (a battle of ideas) has erupted in marketing theory circles: one school is represented by Teacher Shi Wei, the initiator of "**Deep Distribution**," who believes that deep distribution is still effective in the internet environment, but it needs to adapt and evolve. The other school is represented by Teacher Ding Ding, the founder of "**Deep Fan Marketing**," who advocates first placing products in users' hearts, building relationships before transactions.

**Has deep distribution theory become outdated? Which is more efficient: distribution or fan marketing? Who offers the best solution for the current marketing transformation?**

On October 25, at the Fan Factory headquarters, Teacher Ding Ding and Teacher Shi Wei engaged in a heated debate on these focal topics, inviting Teacher Liu Chunxiong, an advocate of the new marketing system, as a witness. Inke and over a hundred community groups live-streamed the event.

**Round 1: Has "Deep Distribution" Become Outdated?** ▲▲▲

**Shi Wei:** Deep distribution started around 1995-1997 at the end of the last century and remained a powerful tool for Chinese companies to expand their markets until the rise of internet e-commerce. It was a very effective model. In recent years, many people have stopped mentioning it. Why am I spending effort to write this book now?
One main reason is that I believe the internet hype has passed, and now is the time for clarity. After the dust settles, people will find that deep distribution still has vitality. We can analyze this from two perspectives:

**First, from practical examples, most consumer goods star brands in recent years have still succeeded through deep distribution.** For example, OPPO and VIVO phones, and the beverage brand Six Walnuts, still rely on the value chain. Even Jiangxiaobai's terminal layout and construction are admirable. So from the actual situation, deep distribution is not outdated; it is very effective and may need to be strengthened.

**Second, from logic and theory, as long as China remains a multi-tiered and three-dimensional market, it will be a brand-led channel value chain, and victory will be achieved by controlling the retail link. This is a product of the objective environment of an era or a market.**

**Third, and finally, deep distribution itself is an open system; it has never stopped evolving.** The earliest channel sinking brought together distributors, dealers, and agents, which was called 2B deep distribution. Later deep distribution focused on decision-making at the terminal, contacting customers at the retail level. I believe today's deep distribution is about marketing battles outside the store, such as in residential areas, buildings, among users, and even online. At this point, brand owners and retailers also need to organize communities. So I even think deep distribution is part of the organization, an open system. As long as it is deep enough and close enough to life, it will always have vitality.

**Ding Ding:** In the second stage of deep distribution, when it came to winning at the terminal, it actually reached people. I want to say that deep distribution is actually a massive systematic project. For mature companies with established brands, this approach is fine. When you have brand endorsement, you can do deep distribution, expanding your channels level by level. That is feasible.

But for most entrepreneurs and startup brands, relying on deep distribution is almost impossible. They cannot build such a large team because deep distribution ultimately depends on people; it requires continuous human development. In this regard, they lack the momentum. How can they develop channels? No one trusts you; you have no endorsement, no brand, no users, no visibility. Who would believe you? So the trust chain problem is not solved.

**Today, we have entered an era of personalization and niche markets.** In this era, more and more brands will be born, starting from zero and growing from small to large. In their journey from 0 to 1, deep distribution is impossible for them. They can only start with deep fan marketing, **starting from fan marketing and eventually reaching deep distribution. That is my logic, and I believe it is the underlying logic of a marketing system that builds trust chains in the new era.**

**Round 2: "Distribution" First or "Fan" First?** ▲▲▲

**Shi Wei:** From a general logic perspective, I think when entering a market, you should first establish a certain presence, and then select some customers from that presence to build relationships. Otherwise, as Ding Ding suggests, it seems infeasible because if you start with fans, your scale won't grow. Deep communication, especially heart-to-heart communication, is inefficient. You have to post articles, topics, and jokes daily, constantly maintaining warmth and stickiness. That is actually very inefficient.

My point is that initially, I would do deep distribution. For example, I would spread channels across a county or a prefecture-level city, conduct proactive marketing to activate the market, first let people know me, and then select some of them to become fans. So it's deep distribution first, then deep fan marketing. I don't completely deny fan marketing; it's definitely necessary. But her path, I think, is definitely not feasible.

**Ding Ding:** Teacher Shi says it's impossible, but I have practiced it. Based on my experience and practice, it is possible. **In my book, there is a core concept called the "All-Fan Value Chain," which means fans can be channelized, and channels can be fan-ized. This may be different tasks for companies at different stages.** What is the premise of fan channelization? For example, when we did Three Dads, we started with three "no's": no brand, no users, no channels. So we first built users, converted them into fans, and finally channelized the fans. The initial momentum was created. From the initial crowdfunding on JD.com exceeding 10 million yuan, we attracted many interested people, converted them into fans, and finally fans became channels. Many agents and channels have persisted until now, still supporting Three Dads.

My path is completely opposite to Teacher Shi's. I do fans first, then distribution. I don't disagree with distribution; I think it's necessary. **My logic is "trust chain + recommendation chain," which means first build a trust chain through fans, and then use the recommendation chain to recommend and spread.**

**Round 3: Is "Deep Fan Marketing" Too Inefficient?** ▲▲▲

**Shi Wei:** If two companies have the same product, my experience tells me that the offline model is faster than the fan model. What is the fan model? I'm not denying it, but it is inefficient. It cannot be spread out all at once; it requires awareness and recommendations. Think about how big China is; it's impossible to cover it all. Now some home appliance companies, with tens of billions or hundreds of billions in revenue, use a distribution network. They first spread products nationwide, then ignite the market with regional activities. They use channel push to tell consumers that this air purifier is excellent, and they might sell hundreds of thousands of units in a very short time. From the initial effect, channel construction and network expansion are definitely faster. There's no doubt about that.

Let me give you another example: I've never heard of Laocunzhang liquor doing Weibo. They just sponsor Guo Degang's show traditionally. Where there is Guo Degang, there is Laocunzhang liquor. They spread through offline channels. I don't deny your path; I'm just saying that using deep distribution like Laocunzhang is faster and more effective. And Jiangxiaobai succeeded because of deep distribution. I tell you, Weibo jokes and copywriting are easy to imitate, but Jiangxiaobai's channel capability cannot be imitated.

**We need to distinguish different products and different paths. I'm just saying that in current Chinese society, using the relatively traditional deep distribution model, it is still possible to build the market relatively quickly. There's no doubt about that.**

**Ding Ding:** In the mobile internet era, I actually think deep fan marketing is efficient. The greater value of fans is word-of-mouth value. **Joe Girard had the "250 Law," which states that behind every customer, there are about 250 friends and relatives. If you win a customer's goodwill, you win 250 people's goodwill; conversely, if you offend a customer, you offend 250 customers. So you must value every customer because one person can bring you 250 deals. That is the value and power of word-of-mouth.**

For example, when Xiaomi started, it didn't have many channels. Can we say Xiaomi was inefficient? Xiaomi started with a hundred "dream sponsors" and began to fission. After completing e-commerce channels, it geometrically amplified through offline channels. But in its 0-to-1 stage, fans played a huge role. So Lei Jun repeatedly says: "Because of Mi Fans, therefore Xiaomi."

**Finding the right people is the most important thing; they can help you fission quickly.** Today, I have amplified the value of fans. It's not just marketing and word-of-mouth value; fans also have channel value and beta testing value. These are all fan values, and they are all in my system. If these fan values can be utilized, the efficiency is actually very high.

**Round 4: Is "Fan Channelization" a False Proposition?** ▲▲▲

**Shi Wei:** Regarding "fan channelization," it is basically a special case. According to the principle of social distribution, some people are particularly good at channels, but these people may not be among fans. So using fans for business is not very reliable. For example, Xiaomi's most sales are done by professional distributors. Some fans can become channels, that's fine, but the probability is low.

Speaking of Xiaomi, I admit that its development initially had something to do with fans. But I remind everyone that other companies that don't do fans may not have smaller shares. For example, Huawei phones basically didn't do fans at the beginning. OPPO and VIVO now have larger shares. Of course, they also have fan activities, but the basic structure is not fan marketing.

I'm not saying the deep fan marketing model doesn't exist; I'm just saying there are better models. From here to Tianjin, you can take a green train for three hours, but now there is a high-speed rail that takes 40 minutes. Why wouldn't you take it?

**Ding Ding:** Let me give a successful case: Fan Deng Reading, which should be one of the most successful knowledge payment companies in China. You'll find that its earliest batch of agents were all fans of Fan Deng himself. They deeply identified with what Teacher Fan Deng did and his audio courses, loving them from the bottom of their hearts.

**When fans identify with what you do and who you are, they will promote it tirelessly.** Teacher Fan Deng once told me that his best-performing agents had never sold similar products before. They didn't know how to sell, and there were no ready-made channels. They succeeded purely on their belief in fans and trust in him.

I saw the power of fans in Teacher Fan Deng. I wrote his case in my book because I think it is a very typical successful case of fan channelization.

**Round 5: Is Strong Relationship Thinking Suitable for All Products?** ▲▲▲

**Shi Wei:** Additionally, I want to say that we should not absolutize the emotional, spiritual, and cultural relationships between a brand or product and customers. Some products, like medical services, knowledge services, and health products, indeed require deep communication between the brand and customers. But for most products, the brand definition for consumers is relatively simple and clear. For example, if I buy a bottle of water and drink it, I don't think it's necessary to have a "life-and-death love" for the brand. I have always believed that for most products, if the product is good and the channel makes it accessible to customers, that is enough. There is more value in that, and customers don't expect a special connection with the brand.

So in this sense, deep distribution is a theory closer to mass products, while deep fan marketing, I think, is a special case, a special form.

**Ding Ding:** Have you all seen Kotler's latest "Marketing 4.0"? Compared to his previous books, the biggest difference is that he says future marketing competition is ultimately cultural competition, essentially competition of values. I also believe competition has reached this level. With the great material abundance in society, there is spiritual emptiness, especially in China.

So at this time, for every brand, especially startup brands, your values and culture are particularly important. That is, **a brand's emotional perceived value has surpassed functional perceived value. Brands must not only meet users' basic functional needs but also their emotional needs.** This is why I emphasize converting users into fans and building strong connections based on emotional and value resonance.

**Round 6: "Product-Scene-People" or "People-Product-Scene"?** ▲▲▲

**Shi Wei:** In my understanding, it might be product first. Without product, how can you have people? Of course, some industries naturally have fans, like a university with many students and social groups. But for many new brands, there is no existing group or circle. I have to rely on product first. If my product is very good, it attracts people. Once I have initial customers, I can gradually attract more through word-of-mouth. That is feasible. But we shouldn't be overly superstitious about it because some people like sharing, and some don't. So links and recommendations cannot be absolutized.

Once you have a good product, you find the channel closest to customers, which is the scene. Then, as you accumulate people, you can gradually build relationships. **"Product-Scene-People" then "People-Product-Scene," and finally, when product and people are connected, the scene can become virtual.** But for most products, a short chain is not enough; I think offline experience is still needed.

**Ding Ding:** I may have a different understanding from Teacher Shi. He says the most important thing is product, and the order should be "Product-Scene-People." I think the order should be "People-Scene-Product."

When making a new product, I think the most important thing is to know exactly who your target audience is and which layer you want to circle. Don't always think about appealing to all ages and genders. Many business owners complain their products are niche, and they want to meet everyone's needs. Actually, in China, there is no small market. If you can thoroughly penetrate even a very segmented vertical field, survival is at least not a problem.

**The first interpretation of "scene" is scenario, and the second is place. It's a place based on scenarios.** I first know who I want to circle, then based on their life scenarios, I deduce what products they need. Next, Fan Factory will also launch its own products based on this logic: First, determine the target group, such as female users among the new middle class. Second, based on her favorite scenarios, what places are in those scenarios? Those places are where we plan to distribute in the future. Finally, we decide on design, packaging, and pricing based on the hobbies, preferences, and tastes of this group.

**Summary: Different Directions, but the Same Destination** ▲▲▲

**Liu Chunxiong:** This year, the three of us, without prior agreement, each published a book within less than two months of each other. Teacher Shi published two books, making him the most prolific.

These three books all think about the social and marketing problems we currently face together. We just focus on different points, or our proposed methods may differ, but in the end, they must be inclusive.

**Deep fan marketing emphasizes the trust chain, driving the recommendation chain through the trust chain to pull sales. Fans are supporters. Support doesn't have to be monetary; support is the endorsement of my trust chain. So sometimes fans are the most efficient because they bring their high-trust social circles into it.** So in this process, compared to doing B2B and pushing forward through B2B, it may be faster and more efficient. For example, Teacher Ding Ding's book sold out within a day of launch, relying on fans' purchases and recommendations.

Additionally, Teacher Shi is not stuck in the past; he keeps up with the times. I've read his book. This deep distribution is not what we commonly understand; it is **the evolution of deep distribution in the internet age, solving the retail problems of the internet era and how to establish connections with consumers.**

**Overall, the environment has changed. For example, in the past, many products had to be sold through terminals, through long chains of distribution. Now, with logistics development, they can be sold through medium or short chains. I think there are more sales channels and more touchpoints. So marketing theory must become more three-dimensional and inclusive.**

Highly recommend the new books of the three teachers. Buy them together and take home "Deep Distribution," "New Marketing," and "Deep Fan Marketing"~

> Teacher Shi Wei: Leading expert at Huaxia Jishi, author of "Deep Distribution."
>
> Teacher Liu Chunxiong: Associate Professor at Zhengzhou University, advocate of the new marketing system, author of "New Marketing."
>
> Teacher Ding Ding: Founder of Fanctory Fan Factory, author of "Deep Fan Marketing."

Source: Deep Fan Marketing (ID: sdfenxiao)
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