In the past two years, Tmall e-commerce has created a batch of internet-famous products. Innovative brands such as Zihaiguo, Single Grain, Satuday, AKOKO, and Wangbaobao have been enthusiastically embraced by consumers upon launch, with impressive performance in popularity, sales, and reputation, earning them the nickname "internet celebrity brands." However, many believe these internet-famous products are merely a flash in the pan and cannot sustain their popularity in the long run. Shi Fupeng, a veteran in the FMCG industry and general manager of Zihaiguo, disagrees. He believes that in today's market environment, becoming an internet celebrity is a必经之路 for all brands. Zihaiguo is an innovative brand focused on self-heating convenience foods. Thanks to its unique packaging and aviation-grade food selling point, it was enthusiastically received by online shoppers upon launch. During the 2019 Tmall 618 shopping festival, Zihaiguo ranked first in the "Tmall instant food category" in sales, with total online sales exceeding 20 million yuan during the 618 period. Recently, Shi Fupeng shared his insights on brand innovation in a New Distribution live broadcast, which the author has organized and shared with readers below. -01- The Three Steps to an Internet-Famous Product: Rigid Demand, Good Looks, and Substance Every brand wants to create an internet-famous product, but not all succeed. A successful internet-famous product is the result of the superposition and amplification of three factors: a differentiated product that meets rigid demand, high aesthetic appeal that is easy to spread, and substance that aligns with consumer needs. 1. Differentiated products that meet rigid demand Internet-famous products must have huge sales, which means they must be rigid-demand products with a large consumer base, such as beverages and snacks. The broader the consumer coverage, the higher the chance of repeat purchases. However, having a large market size alone is not enough, because categories with large market sizes are more competitive, meaning you need a sufficiently differentiated product to impress consumers, such as unique flavors, healthy ingredients, or satisfying a certain emotional need. For example, Zihaiguo is first a rigid-demand product that saves consumers time by using self-heating technology, with a wide consumer base and high repurchase rate. Secondly, it offers differentiated and rich flavors, using FD freeze-drying technology to lock in nutrients and incorporating local specialty dishes into the pot. Another example is the light meal innovative brand Wangbaobao, which meets the needs of young consumers who want both self-indulgence and health. Therefore, the foundation of becoming an internet-famous product is to first satisfy a need; where there is need, there is a market. 2. High aesthetic appeal that is easy to spread Being an internet celebrity means being noticed by thousands, and what attracts people first is always appearance. Almost all internet-famous products have attractive packaging. High-aesthetic products can capture consumers' attention in the shortest time and trigger purchase desire. Moreover, consumers will actively share on social media. When consumers integrate the product into their lives and show it to others, it indicates that some aspect of the product has resonated. Additionally, a high-aesthetic appearance helps build brand IP, providing topicality and resonating with consumers. 3. Substance that aligns with consumer needs If high aesthetics helps acquire new customers, then substance that aligns with consumer needs helps retain them. Packaging, price, and topics are just the basics to attract users, but to make users dependent and generate repeat purchases, the product's inner quality is key. For snacks, deliciousness is the baseline; taste, texture, nutrition, and health are key to retaining users. For example, Zihaiguo continuously launches multiple flavors, bringing new experiences to consumers, and AKOKO offers crispy and fragrant cookies. These are key to retaining users. A good internet-famous product is innate, running through the stages of product creativity, R&D, production, and promotion. From concept collection to packaging, name confirmation, and taste and flavor development, it must be carried out from the consumer's perspective, so that the product can better understand consumers. -02- Content + Channels: Building a Marketing Closed Loop Facing thousands of products, consumers don't have time to learn about each one; they choose products that resonate emotionally with them. This means that today's products no longer wait for consumers to come to them but actively go out to find consumers. 1. Content is king In the internet age, products have more channels to reach consumers, which means traditional crude advertising is no longer suitable for today's market. Instead, creating content to trigger interaction with consumers is the key to the success of internet-famous products. This is because of the diversity of online transaction channels: e-commerce platforms, Douyin, Kuaishou, WeChat Moments, Weibo, Xiaohongshu, and other social apps have become new transaction channels. These social apps attract consumer attention through content creation. The barrier to brand communication is getting lower, allowing products to be continuously spread and shared through various fragmented content, making products more scenario-based and using different content to attract different consumers. 2. Interact with consumers A product that can get along well with consumers is definitely a good product. Recently, the activity of shaking Meiji Panda cookies into balls attracted hundreds of millions of consumer interactions and caused phenomenal spread. Products that actively interact with consumers are definitely those that understand consumers better; they can grasp topics and generate social interaction with consumers. Consumers are also willing to interact with such products. 3. Build reputation online, build presence offline With the change in commodity transaction channels, online has become the main sales channel for internet-famous products. Relying on huge online traffic, internet-famous products can quickly cover a large number of people in a short time and use online communication to trigger topic discussions. Offline, with the emergence of branded convenience store chains, premium supermarkets, and community stores, more and more internet-famous products are appearing in these scenarios. Offline channels can bring products closer to consumers. In fact, as long as a product solves consumer needs and resonates with them, the best approach is to combine online and offline. Online, build the brand, create word-of-mouth, and attract attention; offline, retain users and increase incremental sales. Rely on distributors' distribution capabilities to reach more scenarios, allowing consumers to see and buy the product anytime, anywhere. When consumers see an internet-famous product online and find it also available offline, their impression of the product will deepen, and they may make repeat purchases. Of course, successful internet-famous products are not only bestsellers but also long-sellers. However, from the perspective of internet fame, any internet-famous product has a life cycle because the essence of an internet-famous product is to meet consumer needs and solve pain points. But consumer needs change too quickly, and a single internet-famous product cannot meet all consumers' needs simultaneously. Therefore, to survive, internet-famous products must constantly update, but this method of chasing consumers is not a good one for internet-famous products. Thus, the ultimate destination of an internet-famous product is to transform from building a product to building a brand. -03- The Core of Success for Internet-Famous Products Is Brand Building Internet-famous products leverage powerful online communication channels, continuously create topics to attract consumer attention, and use various promotional activities to entice purchases through price. However, this behavior is short-term and will disappear as consumers' attention shifts, because in consumers' minds, a single internet-famous product is something that meets a temporary need. When attention shifts, internet-famous products are quickly forgotten, as a large number of online products are constantly attracting consumers. Therefore, for internet-famous products to endure, they must abandon price advantages and turn to value advantages. How to amplify product value? By building a strong brand. Looking back, those internet-famous products we remember deeply are not because the products themselves are unforgettable, but because the brands they built and the value extended from those brands occupy our minds. When we think of Zihaiguo, we think of its value of self-heating instant food, not a specific product. When young people want to drink, they think of Jiangxiaobai, because Jiangxiaobai has been conveying the brand value that this liquor is suitable for young people. Another example is Xiaoxian Dun, which focuses on fresh stewed bird's nest, representing China's pioneering brand in this category and solving women's health and wellness needs. Xiaoxian Dun has become the representative brand for fresh stewed bird's nest; whenever consumers have a need to eat bird's nest, they think of Xiaoxian Dun. Finally, looking back at those internet-famous products that have developed well, they have gradually moved away from the internet celebrity attribute and developed towards branding, becoming representatives in a certain category. A successful internet-famous product starts as a product and eventually becomes a brand. The internet celebrity attribute is a halo on its path, and behind the halo is the embodiment of brand value.