---
title: "What Marketers Should Do in 2020!!!"
description: "As 2019 draws to a close and 2020 approaches, food marketers face a challenging landscape marked by rapid internet growth, declining foot traffic in physical stores, and high costs. To succeed, they must maintain confidence, embrace platforms, ensure product freshness, innovate, execute marketing fundamentals, leverage internet communication, develop new channels, participate in trade shows, and manage finances meticulously."
author: "童苗强"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2019-12-19"
categories: "Brand Marketing"
language: "en"
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original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/xMroLGSLM7OHCMjF8zFlHg"
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attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/what-marketers-should-do-in-2020-a3940e84/"
citation: "童苗强. “What Marketers Should Do in 2020!!!.” New Distribution, 2019-12-19. https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/what-marketers-should-do-in-2020-a3940e84/"
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---

# What Marketers Should Do in 2020!!!

> As 2019 draws to a close and 2020 approaches, food marketers face a challenging landscape marked by rapid internet growth, declining foot traffic in physical stores, and high costs. To succeed, they must maintain confidence, embrace platforms, ensure product freshness, innovate, execute marketing fundamentals, leverage internet communication, develop new channels, participate in trade shows, and manage finances meticulously.

Time flies, and 2019 is about to pass, with 2020 on the horizon. As the new year approaches, let's discuss the future of marketing.

It's fair to say that the past year has been very difficult for food marketers. The main situation is that the internet is developing rapidly, having a huge impact on offline channels. Many people have developed the habit of shopping online, and foot traffic in physical stores is declining. High rents and high labor costs are eroding the advantages of offline operations, leaving many physical stores unprofitable.

With the development of the internet, online platforms are also seeing traffic fragmentation. Other e-commerce players must invest heavily to gain traffic, leading to severely imbalanced input-output ratios. Additionally, China's aging population is accelerating, and the mainstream young consumer group is shrinking.

Both online and offline businesses are becoming increasingly difficult. How should we conduct our business in the coming year?

**-01- Have Confidence**

**During economic fluctuations, the most lacking thing is not money but confidence.** In economics, confidence relates to expectations, and expectations influence behavior. "Most people in the world 'believe after seeing,' but only a few strive continuously for something before it happens. That's why China has Ma Yun and Ma Huateng, and the US has Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg."

**China is a populous country, and business opportunities always exist.** In recent years, both online and offline businesses have been harder than before, but even in good times, some companies go bankrupt, and in bad times, some make profits. So at any time, marketers must remain full of fighting spirit. Effort doesn't guarantee success, but without effort, there is no chance at all. With a goal in mind and hard work, there is hope for success.

**-02- Embrace Platforms**

With the advent of the capital market, the power of platforms is growing. Either join a good team or create one; otherwise, there is no opportunity.

In 2019, the B2B market is expected to reach 120 billion RMB with a penetration rate of 34%, and it will continue to grow steadily. After years of rapid development, the market has returned to rationality. Small platforms are gradually falling behind and exiting, with resources shifting to leading platforms. The B2B market still has high growth potential, and establishing cooperation with leading platforms has become the best choice for manufacturers to win in B2B.

Many small offline stores have installed apps to order directly from platforms like Lingshoutong (statistics show there are 6 million small stores in China, and Lingshoutong currently cooperates with 1.3 million, with 900,000 active customers ordering monthly), Baishidianjia, Zhongshang Huimin, Suning, etc. Many secondary wholesalers have lost their original end-retail customer base. Many distributors' original secondary wholesalers have significantly changed their purchasing channels.

With the deepening of capital, these platform economies continue to erode traditional distributor networks, and the sales scale of traditional distributors' original channels is shrinking daily.

From an industry trend perspective, cooperation between B2B and various channel roles is increasing. 86% of brands have started cooperating with B2B, a significant increase from 55% last year. It seems no brand in 2019 said they wouldn't cooperate with B2B, or strictly prohibited distributors or branches from cooperating with B2B. Such voices are almost nonexistent now. 40% of distributors have started supplying B2B platforms, and 74% of small stores have ordered from B2B platforms—these numbers are very high.

**At this time, manufacturers and distributor marketers should actively join these platforms to sell products. Once similar products occupy these platforms, there will be no opportunity later.**

Online e-commerce is basically controlled by e-commerce giants, using capital power to attract traffic with low prices. Traditional e-commerce represented by Alibaba sees its main traffic dominated by several capital-backed e-commerce giants (Three Squirrels, Beicaowei, Liangpinpuzi) holding major shares.

Manufacturers with production capabilities can consider cooperating with these platforms and also seek cooperation with other e-commerce platforms. E-commerce continues to grow; in 2019, online trading platforms are estimated to reach over 30 trillion RMB. Traditional marketers should vigorously develop quality e-commerce platforms while developing traditional channels.

**-03- Maintain Product Freshness**

As traffic in traditional channels declines, product sell-through rates slow down. Original ordering and delivery frequencies must be adjusted promptly.

Manufacturers or distributor marketers must consider customer and terminal sell-through rates, while also managing first-in-first-out and logistics. Original order quantities should be changed to increase ordering frequency, always maintaining freshness in customer warehouses.

Distributor marketers should adjust delivery quantities to terminal outlets based on actual sell-through rates, delivering in case quantities. Baishidianjia now delivers 3-5 packs per small store, with fast turnover, low inventory, and high capital utilization.

Many convenience stores now deliver this way, and their return rates are lower than many supermarkets and hypermarkets. Manufacturers should change box sizes, converting large boxes to smaller ones.

Generally, for supermarket snack foods, pre-packaged sizes should not exceed 20 packs. But specifics depend on product sell-through rates. Increasing budgets for product logistics and packaging is imperative. Some stores now see return rates of 10% for pre-packaged items, and suppliers must change this business model or it will be unsustainable. Once products become sluggish, even discounts won't attract consumers.

For slow-moving stores, leverage big data and data analysis to adjust delivery volumes and distribution points. Only by improving refined management capabilities can you enhance marketing power.

**Great undertakings are achieved through attention to detail; difficult tasks are accomplished through ease. Be brave to change your original sales habits and operate with precision in advance to remain invincible in future operations.**

**-04- Innovate**

With intensifying competition, market size growth has hit a ceiling. Large companies are squeezing small companies' market share. The big fish eat small fish is the law. With internet development, traffic in traditional terminal outlets is declining, and most traditional categories or brands are seeing downward trends.

First-mover brands have occupied major sales outlets and channels, making it increasingly difficult for followers unless they have capital to burn on marketing (but burning money has proven unsuitable in recent years). This requires innovation in product packaging, quality, or marketing models.

In recent years, prices have risen rapidly, but consumers' pockets haven't bulged. 2020 is an economic downturn, generally favoring cheaper products. Mainstream price points for bulk snack foods (20-30 RMB/jin) and pre-packaged items (2-3-5-9.9-19.9 RMB/pack) remain unchanged, so designing reasonable prices for pre-packaged products is essential.

While ensuring profits, reduce quantity without reducing price. Small and beautiful, small-spec products cater to consumer needs. Consumers care about taste and experience, not exact gram weight.

Product packaging design must attract consumers' eyes. Simple Japanese, Taiwanese styles, or transparent packaging are popular. Internet-famous products need a viral concept that makes consumers feel cute, fun, and playful, triggering impulse purchases. But many designs are imitated; creating a differentiated product requires real effort.

**For small and medium enterprises, marketing innovation is crucial. For large companies, mature products are already on shelves and loved by consumers.** Latecomers must break conventional marketing theories, concentrate forces on a specific channel or region, and adopt differentiated marketing strategies to find breakthroughs; otherwise, no change is possible.

If you enter the market without innovation, the battle is lost before it begins. Marketers must provide actionable marketing reform suggestions to the company based on market visits.

**-05- Execute Marketing Fundamentals Thoroughly**

With the rise of new retail, many have almost completely negated traditional channel marketing theories. In my view, traditional channels remain the mainstream market. Marketing theories are not outdated; they need deeper reinforcement and enrichment. Improve distribution rates, enhance display attractiveness, increase product display space, multi-point displays, and coordinate promotional activities. These basic marketing theories must be executed more thoroughly in every customer's core sales outlets to win against competitors.

Strengthen training and incentives for distributor teams. Training includes eight steps for store visits, model stores, sample market creation, and assisting distributor teams with new product distribution methods. For customers, develop one-customer-one-marketing methods based on local market characteristics to increase the likelihood of effective customers.

**-06- Leverage Internet Communication**

With internet development, publicity has shifted from TV to mobile. WeChat usage in China has reached nearly 1 billion; almost everyone with a phone uses WeChat. Whether in the car or at home, people are inseparable from their phones.

Our promotional tools should also move to mobile. **Strengthen self-media promotion: WeChat, Moments, Weibo, Douyin, Kuaishou, and official accounts to promote company or product.**

Publicity should achieve maximum effect with minimal resources, being omnipresent and constant. Let potential customers and consumers frequently see and hear about company products. Every employee should practice全员营销; every customer and employee is a promotional window.

Currently, mainstream online snack brands are rapidly expanding offline distribution, threatening to replace offline brands. Especially Douyin, Kuaishou, and Taobao Live are growing fast. This year's Double 11, Taobao sold 265 billion RMB, with influencer live streaming contributing 50 billion.

Many influencer live streams charge a slot fee (also called坑位费) plus commission. Slot fees range from 0 to 1 million RMB per product, with commissions typically around 20%. Influencer agents predict sales performance to determine slot fees. The less certain the sales, the higher the slot fee.

Companies must shift marketing thinking and proactively connect with influencers. Influencer sales require the lowest prices nationwide for logistics and packaging, making it hard to profit. For most companies, influencer live streaming is unprofitable.

**But companies must allocate a portion of profits each year for influencer live streaming promotion; otherwise, consumers won't see your products on their phones.** A German propagandist said well: **"A lie repeated a thousand times becomes truth."** This shows the importance of publicity.

**-07- Develop New Channels and Pathways**

With internet development, consumer habits have changed. Young people's habit of shopping at supermarkets is largely gone.

Channels are increasingly fragmented, making single-store breakthroughs harder. It's necessary to seize key new channels. This raises new demands for channel reform. As the saying goes, where people are, money is.

Fruit stores are developing rapidly with high foot traffic. Many communities have several fruit stores, and consumer numbers are increasing. Developing products suitable for fruit store prices and packaging can boost sales. Generally, fruit stores sell bulk items but can also sell pre-packaged items. They prefer boxed or bottled pre-packaged items with retail prices within 20 RMB and gross margins of at least 30%.

In recent years, fruit store retail has been the fastest-growing channel. Typically, fruit stores sell to retail customers in dry goods markets or other new channels like mother-baby stores. These channels have fewer participants, so competition isn't yet fierce; early entry can secure a share.

Besides new physical channels, there are e-commerce channels like WeChat business (three-level distribution: co-founder - general agent - official or regional province-city-county distribution, stockpiling, single-product focus, usually high-margin products like cosmetics, women's products, health products, adding a product every three months).

Social e-commerce (membership system, each member pays 365 or 395 RMB annually as entry threshold, with minimum annual consumption for sharing rights). Community group buying (6-8 single products daily, focusing on novel or clearance items like Hi Group; many groups with core leaders, leaders, and group owners, forming groups of 100). Community group buying (each community has a point with a leader who pulls community consumers, mainly for fruits and fresh produce). Also, influencer video带货.

**In 2019, community group buying and video live streaming are estimated to reach 1 trillion RMB. Traditional channel marketers must learn to develop this channel. Embrace new things, or face elimination due to channel reform.**

**-08- Participate in Trade Shows and Persist in Investment Promotion**

With the development of e-commerce and emerging channels, many new customers and channels have appeared. Relying solely on traditional marketers makes it hard to find these customers, and these new channel platforms also struggle to find product contacts. Trade shows are an excellent intermediary platform, such as Spring Sugar, China Food Exhibition, Candy Exhibition, etc.

During trade shows, choosing a good location, having a good investment policy, and novel decoration can attract platform buyers' attention and demonstrate company strength. More contact with large platforms increases cooperation opportunities.

As marketers, manufacturers should regularly participate in such trade shows to let platform buyers see company products and facilitate transactions.

**-09- Implement Refined Financial Management**

With changing consumption habits, many physical stores struggle to survive. Retail stores with low traffic and high rents face closure or sluggish sales. Distributors and manufacturer marketers must watch their pockets, minimize credit sales, and set clear credit terms and amounts for retailers with payment periods.

If credit terms or amounts are exceeded, stop supply or demand payment promptly. Product profits are thin; protecting costs is paramount. Companies must treat financial risk control as a top priority. At each month's end, conduct a comprehensive review and settlement of monthly credit accounts. The goal is profit maximization; only by safeguarding capital can you win the future.

**2020 is both the worst of times and the best of times.**

For marketers, channels should be divided into three dimensions: online, offline, and community space. In the future, enterprise channels must be re-laid out around these three spaces.

**Finally, a message for marketers: A thousand sails compete; the brave prevail.**

Source: China Marketing Communication Network

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## Citation metadata

- Publisher: New Distribution
- Author: 童苗强
- Published: 2019-12-19
- Canonical: https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/what-marketers-should-do-in-2020-a3940e84/
- Original source: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/xMroLGSLM7OHCMjF8zFlHg

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