---
title: "Industry Observation | The Era of \"Terminal Dominance\" in China's Alcoholic Beverage Marketing"
description: "China's alcoholic beverage marketing has been continuously evolving with changes in the market environment, and companies that stick to old ways risk being eliminated. The author summarizes three past marketing eras—the idea marketing era, the hotel channel marketing era, and the consumer channel marketing era—and notes that a fourth era, the \"terminal dominance\" era, has quietly arrived, where success depends on strong performance at the point of sale."
author: "杨夫见"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2016-10-26"
language: "en"
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original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/AR47CxCtYtcMaD6nH0PXgg"
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# Industry Observation | The Era of "Terminal Dominance" in China's Alcoholic Beverage Marketing

> China's alcoholic beverage marketing has been continuously evolving with changes in the market environment, and companies that stick to old ways risk being eliminated. The author summarizes three past marketing eras—the idea marketing era, the hotel channel marketing era, and the consumer channel marketing era—and notes that a fourth era, the "terminal dominance" era, has quietly arrived, where success depends on strong performance at the point of sale.

**By Yang Fujian, Yuanjing Consulting**

> China's alcoholic beverage marketing has been continuously changing with the changes in the Chinese market environment. For companies that stick to old ways, what awaits them is likely to be eliminated by the market. So what changes has China's alcoholic beverage marketing undergone? The author summarizes that it has mainly gone through the following three eras, and the fourth marketing era has quietly arrived.

> **First, the Idea Marketing Era**
This era was basically before 2005. Many liquor companies achieved development and profitability by relying on a "one-trick" approach. The most talked-about marketing methods at the time included giving away lighters, scratching for US dollars, and winning mobile phones. Although the marketing methods were simple, they were very effective in the market environment of that time. Many companies rose to prominence and quickly made a big splash in the market. For example, Anhui's Yingjia, Hebei's Shanzhuang, and Hohhot's Aochun Libin all adopted dollar promotion strategies and heated up the market as a result. In fact, the names of related products became "dollars" in the mouths of consumers, showing the weight of this activity in consumers' minds. Another example is Lao Cunzhang in the Hefei market, which won over consumers through high-frequency mobile phone winning rates, quickly generating buzz among consumers and achieving rapid sales.

> **Second, the Hotel Channel Marketing Era**
From 2005 to 2010, China's economy developed rapidly, and people became increasingly enthusiastic about dining in hotels, especially for government and business entertainment, which was very prevalent and frequent. Anhui liquor represented by Kouzijiao quickly discovered this secret and immediately launched the hotel channel marketing model, capturing a large portion of government and business consumers, thus becoming the representative product for government and business entertainment. The advancement of the hotel channel strategy quickly enhanced the influence of Anhui liquor in the national market and prompted the rapid rise of companies such as Kouzijiao and Yingjia, making them representatives of Anhui liquor.

> **Third, Consumer Channel Marketing**
When Anhui liquor used the hotel channel to quickly occupy the market, the consumption environment was quietly changing. In response to the forced consumption phenomenon in the catering industry where bringing your own drinks was not allowed, domestic opposition grew louder, and the state had to issue relevant policies to strictly prohibit hotels from infringing on consumer rights. Yanghe quickly sensed the change in the consumption environment and vigorously launched the "trunk" project, leveraging the role of opinion leaders to achieve rapid corporate rise. When Yanghe's "consumer channel" marketing strategy gradually became familiar to competitors, Chinese liquor companies flocked to invest resources in the core consumer group of the "consumer channel," namely the group purchase channel. With the push of many liquor companies, the waste by public officials became very serious, to the point where the state had to pay attention. Coincidentally, with the change of national leaders, China welcomed a new atmosphere, and restricting the three public consumptions became the first move of the new officials. This policy, which won popular support, greatly affected the marketing strategies of China's liquor industry.

**From the above development history of China's alcoholic beverage marketing, the enormous influence of the consumption environment is evident. Every marketing change is inevitably accompanied by changes in the consumption environment. It can be said that changes in the consumption environment directly drive changes in China's alcoholic beverage marketing.** The restriction on the three public consumptions has become a watershed for China's alcoholic beverage consumption and marketing, which also means that the "consumer channel" strategy that prevailed before this policy will no longer adapt to the changes in the consumption environment. Of course, all changes in the market environment do not happen overnight. Just like the change of dynasties in Chinese history, it is inevitably accompanied by the desperate struggle of old forces and the fierce struggle of new forces. However, all efforts of the old forces will not withstand the crushing of the wheels of history. To this day, many companies still cling to the group purchase channel, immersed in the successful experience of the past. If they still do not make changes, they will inevitably be eliminated by the market.

The era of the third stage, consumer channel marketing, will eventually pass. So where will the wind of China's alcoholic beverage marketing blow? It seems that some liquor companies have already given the answer. With the hotel channel becoming a thing of the past and the consumer channel failing, **China's alcoholic beverage marketing has ushered in a new era—the "terminal dominance" era.** Companies that have done well in this regard have succeeded, such as Anhui's Gujing and the health liquor leader Jingjiu, both achieving counter-trend growth, but they share a common feature: strong performance at the terminal.

**"Terminal dominance" has become the next trend in China's alcoholic beverage marketing**, but doing well at the terminal is not easy. It requires efficient internal management mechanisms, refined management of the marketing team, and refined management of the terminal. This era has significant differences from the previous three eras. It tests the company's internal strength and comprehensive strength. There is no shortcut; you must train the team step by step, emphasize execution, and emphasize management. Yuanjing Alcoholic Beverage Marketing Consulting, as a pioneer in China's alcoholic beverage consulting, introduced terminal refinement operation mechanisms to clients early on. Clients guided by Yuanjing Consulting, in the context of this major adjustment in China's alcoholic beverage industry, not only did their performance decline, but many achieved counter-trend growth or expanded market share, such as Hebei's King Hengshui Laobaigan, Henan's Yangshao Liquor, and Jiangxi's Site Liquor. After years of market operations, Yuanjing Consulting has accumulated a large amount of experience in terminal refinement management and marketing team refinement management, and can quickly solve related problems for clients, avoiding detours or not taking them at all. This also brings hope to many liquor companies trapped in marketing difficulties.

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