Generally speaking, when 0 yuan's marketing is successful and consumers are hooked, the following profit models of manufacturers can be divided into "basic fees" and "usage fees".
The basic fee model is that the manufacturer asks the consumer to pay the basic amount, and then the consumer can "eat enough". This model has the mentality of "the more you eat, the more you earn", which can increase the viscosity of consumers' long-term use and fully display the benefits of 0 yuan. For example, at present, most ADSL operators, like cable TV, can surf the Internet indefinitely after paying a fixed fee every month.
The user payment model is based on the degree of use of products or services by consumers. For example, in 0 yuan or 1 yuan, the common mobile phone operation mode is that communication operators attract customers with free mobile phones first, and then focus on their phone bills later. Operators only subsidize the cost of mobile phones first, minimize the entry threshold, invite customers in, and then earn back the customer's phone bill together with the original subsidy.
In addition to mobile phones, even cars with much higher unit prices are marketed in 0 yuan and profit from royalties. With the new car sales market becoming saturated, after-sales warranty has gradually become the main profit of automobile manufacturers, while major automobile manufacturers have drastically reduced their prices because of oversupply. In fact, the era of automobile marketing in 0 yuan is not far away, and what manufacturers value in the future will soon be the huge expenditure of consumers after buying a car.
C. Software can still make big money without money
In addition to free hardware, 0 yuan's marketing tentacles have now extended to the software field-"free software, earning value-added services and advertising fees" has become popular. For example, many people use email, Internet search and even online photo albums and blogs every day for free. And these free services, in fact, have been trying to pursue a profit model.
"Give me a glass of water" with the signboard of free for life is a good example of making a lot of money by free software. The game company Digital Theater Unit earned 230 million yuan last year by introducing the Korean online game "Playing with Water". The key point is that it has accumulated 9 million members, which is the basis for the digital theater unit to make money for free. "Free games rely on crowd tactics," said Lin, chairman of Digital Cinema. Although the game of "playing with water and giving alms" is free, the huge number of players has made more than 2,000 kinds of props and surrounding goods developed by the digital theater flourish, and 65% of the high gross profit is attributed to this group of loyal players. "This is an era when the brain is more expensive than the hardware," said Chen Qianru, chief executive of Ogilvy & Mather, bluntly, similar to Google and Yahoo! For websites such as Qimo, intangible intellectual property rights are difficult to be replaced, and may be more expensive than tangible hardware. Although they don't charge consumers directly, they all build a high value-added service platform, and at the same time, because of the content service of the platform, they bring a lot of advertising revenue.
D. Three Secrets of 0 yuan Promotion
The first is quality. No matter what profit model, the premise of 0 yuan marketing is to provide consumers with good quality products or services. When marketing in 0 yuan, businesses should also weigh their own brand power. Chen Qianru, strategic director of Ogilvy & Mather, suggested: "The higher the brand loyalty, the more suitable it is to adopt 0 yuan strategy."
The second is the brand. Effectively operating 0 yuan marketing is also a good way to enhance brand power. For example, a piece of jewelry was once sold as a main commodity in TV shopping programs, and its own jewelry was given as a gift. This kind of "free" operation mode is actually to enhance the popularity of their products.
The third is simplicity. When marketing in 0 yuan, we should also keep the truth that consumers are "afraid of trouble". Take the strategy of "air conditioning is noisy and guaranteed to be returned" as an example. For consumers, replacing an air conditioner will be a very troublesome thing. Arrange the delivery time when installing, and have someone at home. These "troubles" will reduce consumers' willingness to replace it. According to the analysis of Ogilvy & Mather's strategic director Chen Qianru, there may be a lot of cost risks in Shengbao's use of the "free replacement" strategy, but it has not actually happened several times.
E. a new competitive relationship has been formed.
0 yuan marketing is subverting the rules of the game that consumers used to "spend money" to buy things, and it also allows sellers to redefine their competitors. The influence of competition in 0 yuan is not only the original competitors, but also related industries, forming new invisible competition. For example, car manufacturers offer preferential interest rates of 0 installments, which may also indirectly impact bankers' business.
Stimulated by 0 yuan, the scales and weights in consumers' minds are no longer applicable. Take the printer as an example. When buying a computer, it is often used as a free gift, but the price of the ink cartridge is still very high, which makes consumers want to change the printer directly every time they change the ink cartridge, because it may be more cost-effective.
0 yuan's consumption power is rising, and a single consumption relationship can no longer satisfy the desire of manufacturers. Through the power of 0 yuan marketing, manufacturers hope to develop lifelong relationships with consumers, but are consumers willing?
Although you can eat all sizes for free, it may also make manufacturers waste money. How to make good use of 0 yuan marketing and accurately grasp the target customer base is the highest measure of 0 yuan marketing.