Accurate supply and demand matching, smooth production and marketing connection
Online personalized customized consumption "choose what you want" (online China)
People's Daily Overseas Edition (the 8th edition on March 17, 2023)
Searching for "customization" on the e-commerce platform, we can find that everything can be customized, ranging from cakes, umbrellas, backpacks, clothes, shoes, mobile phone cases to curtains, carpets, stoves, appliances, cars, as well as personalized services such as physical examination, fitness, tourism, and decoration. Experts believe that the online customized consumption that consumers choose is becoming more and more popular, which reflects the individualization, diversification and quality of people's consumption needs, and also reflects that production and distribution enterprises accelerate digital transformation, innovate business models, and make the supply and demand match more accurately.
User deep participation
"The cup pattern is my favorite painting, and my pen name is engraved on the bottom. What a surprise!" Recently, Hangzhou girl Bi Xia received a custom water cup for her 20th birthday from a friend.
Just provide a picture to the merchant to customize a unique personalized product. "Even the niche demand of customizing patterns for mobile phone data lines can be met by sellers. Participation in the design makes people feel a sense of achievement," said the relevant person in charge of Taobao platform.
To customize a washing machine, consumers only need to open the appliance manufacturer's APP and propose personalized customization requirements, and designers can provide an "exclusive" solution on the system platform. The manufacturer will cooperate with resources such as design, manufacturing and supply chain to schedule production immediately.
In addition to various personalized goods, customized services are also favored by young people. For example, on the tourism customization platform, you can place an order with one click only by providing information such as the departure place, destination, travel date, number of people, etc. The platform will quickly design a travel plan according to the tourists' budget and the specific needs of food, accommodation, transportation, play, etc. "After the tourists place an order, we will establish an online communication group including tourists, drivers, guides and others to follow the process at any time," said the person in charge of an online tourism platform.
It is understood that many newlyweds will choose "small and beautiful" weddings to pursue a more fashionable and personalized style. The online one-stop wedding solution can be specially designed according to the preferences of the newlyweds, responsible for the whole process from wedding planning to wedding banquet, and can also undertake services such as wedding room decoration, furniture and home appliances purchase.
"Online customization is a customized service model oriented by consumer demand, which can provide consumers with more personalized and accurate products and services." Xu Xin, a professor in the Department of Economics and Management of East China Normal University, said in an interview with this newspaper that everyone's needs and preferences are different, so it is difficult for traditional mass production to fully meet consumers' personal needs, Online customization can provide personalized goods and services for customers according to their needs.
Shi Yupeng, vice president of the China Internet Economics Research Institute of the Central University of Finance and Economics, said in an interview with this newspaper that online customization can meet the accuracy of supply and demand matching, meet the increasingly diversified needs of consumers, and also help fully tap the potential consumption demand and promote consumption upgrading. For enterprises, online customization can improve the stickiness of consumers, reduce the cost of intermediate links such as inventory and marketing, and improve the profitability of enterprises.
Businesses aim at new opportunities
When there is demand on the consumer side, the supply side will exert its power. In the intelligent shoe factory store of Shuangchi Industrial Company in Putian City, Fujian Province, a personalized customization device can identify the foot characteristics and data of consumers. Consumers can choose their favorite styles, colors, patterns, etc. After placing an order with one button, the data will be immediately transmitted to the factory intelligent system, and a pair of "shoes that know the most about feet" will be born.
Ms. Wang, who lives in Pinghu City, Zhejiang Province, has opened a women's clothing custom shop on the e-commerce platform, and her business has become increasingly prosperous in the past two years. "Young customers have more ideas. They like to choose their own materials and styles. They are also very interested in clothing production. We tailor them according to customers' wishes to satisfy customers. There are more and more repeat customers, and we have no inventory pressure. In addition to traditional suits and fashions, personalized work clothes and Chinese wedding clothes are also very popular. In order to achieve better customization process, the store has introduced more designers and manufacturing equipment. " Ms. Wang said.
It is reported that the online platform of Shangpin House has launched a new model of "random selection" of whole house customization. With the help of digital technology, it has built a "design factory" covering cabinet, soft decoration, electrical appliances, smart home and other categories, and can quickly provide customization solutions according to customer needs and assumptions. "To let consumers' choose what they want, we need digital technology and strong supply chain management capabilities. Digitization is not a single means, but through the integration of enterprise users, data and resources and other elements to achieve the transformation from point to surface." said the relevant person in charge of Shangpin Homestead.
"In terms of online consumption customization, it is necessary to improve product quality and delivery speed, build a good service and communication channel, and enhance consumers' trust and satisfaction." Xu Xin believes that through big data, artificial intelligence and other technologies to analyze consumers' behavior, needs, preferences, and provide more accurate personalized services, It helps the company to better manage product design and production. In addition, enterprises should further integrate the industrial chain of online consumption customization and establish cooperative relationships with suppliers, logistics, payment and other parties, so as to achieve an efficient and reliable customization service process, improve the efficiency of the entire industrial chain and reduce production costs.
"On demand" customization is increasingly popular
Internet platform is an indispensable medium to connect consumers with production lines. The Opinions on Further Releasing Consumption Potential and Promoting Continuous Recovery of Consumption issued by the General Office of the State Council last year proposed to smooth the production and marketing connection between manufacturing enterprises and Internet platforms, commercial circulation enterprises, and encourage the development of reverse customization (C2M), personalized design, and flexible production.
Reverse customization based on "demand" is becoming more and more popular. Many domestic manufacturing enterprises have set up "reverse customization" intelligent factories, etc., and major e-commerce platforms have also accelerated the layout of "reverse customization" mode: consumers can place orders through e-commerce platforms, and manufacturers receive personalized demand orders from consumers, and then design, purchase, produce, and ship according to demand.
With the rapid development of customization mode, there are still some problems to be solved. Some consumers report that they are worried about after-sales service when purchasing customized products. The relevant person in charge of the China Consumer Association said that the service rules in customized consumption need to be further improved. For example, in after-sales maintenance and other links, it is difficult to return or replace customized goods. If quality problems occur and maintenance is required, it may be difficult for the supplier and the demander to reach an agreement due to high costs. For another example, the billing rules for some customized goods or services are not transparent, and consumers do not have enough right to know.
Shi Yupeng said that customized production is based on consumer personalized data. Therefore, to develop the customized consumer market, we should pay special attention to strengthening the protection of consumer privacy, prevent information leakage, and let consumers feel confident and bold to carry out customized consumption. In addition, the relevant departments should also strengthen the quality supervision of customized goods to ensure that businesses do not cut corners on product quality while making great efforts on customized content.
