Understand consumers clearly, and "hit products" won't be far away.

Our magazine’s reporters Sun Tingyang and Sun Bing

Want to snack but worry about exceeding calorie limits? Want to stay up late binge-watching shows, so you research health supplements? Consumers are sometimes hard to understand, but once merchants “see through” them, a “hot-selling product” is not far off.

“As a pioneer of konjac snacks, ‘Konjac Crisp’ has become a super bestseller with annual sales exceeding 3 billion yuan, and it is also WeiLong’s second growth curve, contributing over half of the sales,” the brand manager of WeiLong Konjac Crisp told reporters.

The manager explained that konjac’s low-fat, low-calorie, high-fiber characteristics perfectly meet current consumer health eating needs, and combining it with spicy snacks satisfies consumers’ flavor demands, which is why Konjac Crisp has become a “hot product.”

The “14th Five-Year Plan” outline proposed to “increase the proportion of development-oriented consumption, adapt to diversified and personalized service needs,” and to “promote the renewal and upgrading of consumer goods, meeting multi-level consumer demands.”

Qin Hailin, chief engineer of CCID Research Institute, told our magazine that leading new supply with new demand requires “understanding” consumers and finding “true needs.” “New demands open new tracks, forcing enterprises to upgrade the entire chain, while consumption upgrades also drive supply iteration in reverse. Only then can we achieve ‘supply optimization—consumption quality improvement—industry upgrading’ in sync, forming a virtuous cycle.”

Konjac Crisp

Zhumi Exhibition Booth

“Hot-selling products” are not accidental

“‘Hot-selling products’ are not simply about chasing trends, but about solving high-frequency real needs,” Qin Hailin said. He believes that “hot-selling products” are not accidental but stem from a systematic process of “demand anchoring—technological support—value empowerment—closed-loop chain.” Companies need to analyze scenarios through research and data, focus on unmet core demands of users, and distinguish false needs from genuine pain points— the former only supports short-term traffic, while the latter can create long-term “hot products.”

“The prerequisite for matching supply and demand is that companies launch products users need, which depends on deep insights into the market and users. Only by truly understanding what users need can targeted technological R&D be carried out. Not a bunch of engineers working in labs talking to themselves, launching so-called innovative technologies that they think are impressive but users actually don’t need,” said Xu Wenjing, product manager of Zhumi vacuum cleaners.

Based on this concept, Zhumi launched the “Long Hand” sweeping and mopping robots.

It is reported that Zhumi uses mechanisms like the “Ten-step Observation Method” and “Bubbling Algorithm” to identify users’ real needs, ensuring that each product development addresses genuine user pain points.

“For example, during a user survey, we found nearly 60% of users thought vacuum cleaners couldn’t clean wall edges and gave up buying. So, we pioneered biomimetic robotic arm technology to solve edge cleaning issues,” said Meng Jiajia, president of Zhumi vacuum division.

Zhumi also replicated this methodology across categories. “Zhumi’s pioneering EdgeHunter edge-tracking cleaning arm was developed after discovering that 34% of users were still dissatisfied with corner cleaning. Our edge-tracking arm can automatically extend 5mm, and with one click, extend 30mm, closely fitting corners and reaching under suspended cabinets for cleaning, achieving more comprehensive edge and corner wet mopping,” Xu Wenjing explained.

Zhumi has established a dedicated user insight team that works closely with R&D and design teams to engage in in-depth communication with users.

“We visit different users’ homes to understand their pain points in cleaning and uncover unmet cleaning needs. Our robotic arm technology, steam + hot water dual heating cleaning technology, and active anti-tangling technology are all designed to solve users’ cleaning difficulties,” said Xu Wenjing.

Precisely matching different demographic needs

In 2024, China’s per capita GDP is projected at $13.5k, with a final consumption rate of 56.6%. If calculated based on the same period in developed countries, with a final consumption rate of around 65-70%, there is a potential consumption space of about 10 trillion to 17 trillion yuan.

How to precisely tap into consumption potential? Policy has already “highlighted” key points.

The “Implementation Plan for Enhancing the Compatibility of Consumer Goods Supply and Demand to Further Promote Consumption” proposes accelerating the application of new technologies and new models, expanding the supply of特色 and innovative products, and precisely matching different demographic needs. By 2027, the supply structure of consumer goods will be significantly optimized, forming three trillion-yuan-level consumer sectors and ten hundred-billion-yuan-level hotspots, creating a batch of high-quality consumer products rich in cultural connotations and renowned worldwide.

Wang Chenwei, director and researcher at the Research Office of the National Development and Reform Commission’s Economic System and Management Institute, believes that building new consumption scenarios is key to promoting supply-demand matching.

“Should create personalized, digital, and intelligent new consumption scenarios, guiding consumers to quickly discover consumption needs and experience stronger consumption appeal,” Wang said. As digital technology deeply integrates into consumption, residents’ consumption patterns are quietly changing. Consumption is no longer just about buying products but also about integrating experiences, emotions, and other multi-dimensional and deeper content.

Fostering new consumption scenarios allows cross-industry and cross-field technologies to deeply merge within a specific scenario. Once such a new scenario emerges, it will generate enormous attraction, drawing consumers to experience and consume within it.

For example, live-streaming e-commerce is a new online transaction mode driven by data, supported by platforms, and coordinated between online and offline. It combines “live streaming” and “selling” into one. This model targets customer needs, enhances user experience, delivers personalized live content precisely, directly stimulates consumer desire, and unleashes strong consumption potential.