On the first day, entrepreneur Thai Cong live-streamed luxury product sales on TikTok Shop on January 9th. At the end of the live-stream session, Thai Cong was ranked in the top 'TikTok creators' in Vietnam with impressive statistics, including the hashtag #ThaicongTV reaching nearly 1 billion views, millions of people sending hearts, millions of views, tens of thousands of comments, and shares...
Thai Cong's TikTok Shop" has generated over 14,390 discussions and 289,720 interactions, making it one of the top 7 most attention-grabbing news on social media in the first week of 2024.
So why did a luxury brand like Thai Cong choose TikTok as opposed to other platforms? What is the primary factor that helped Thai Cong stimulate curiosity, interest, and generate such a high level of discussion and natural spread on social media in recent days? Where will this viral trend take Thai Cong? Let's explore all of these questions in the following article with UpBase.vn.
Who is Thai Cong?
Recently, the TikTok channel "Thai Cong TV" and the name of designer Thai Cong have been making waves on social media. Naturally, it has also sparked controversy due to the sale of luxury items and the provocative statements made by the channel's owner. As of January 14th, Thai Cong TV on TikTok has garnered 1.9 million followers and over 30.5 million likes. Most of Thai Cong TV's videos have reached millions, if not tens of millions, of views. So, who is this internet sensation?
According to the information provided on the official website of the Thai Cong brand, Quach Thai Cong is a German-Vietnamese interior designer. He moved to Germany at the age of 10, where his family instilled in him traditional Vietnamese values. Growing up and working in Germany, Thai Cong developed a profound understanding of Western culture, style, and aesthetics.
Having lived and matured in Germany for over 32 years, he graduated in Fashion and worked for many years as a Creative Director and Fashion Photographer, earning prestigious awards such as the Infinity Award from the ICP Council in New York, the Golden Lion in Cannes, France, and the Silver Award from the ADC Council in Germany.
In 2014, Thai Cong returned to Vietnam to establish Thai Cong Interior Design Company. Today, the company is well-known for its furniture in Ho Chi Minh City, and Thai Cong is renowned as a millionaire designer, leading a wealthy and happy life.
In 2018, amidst the booming trend of online marketing, Thai Cong created the YouTube channel "Thai Cong TV" to promote products and showcase the company's image. Since then, the company has experienced remarkable growth, with the YouTube channel reaching 350 thousand subscribers.
Recently, Thai Cong has achieved a new milestone by venturing into TikTok with unprecedented live-stream sessions, garnering astonishing achievements and attention.
Is TikTok Shop a suitable sales channel for luxury items?
Theo dữ liệu thống kê toàn cầu, TikTok là ứng dụng được tải xuống nhiều nhất vào năm 2023 với 3.5 tỷ lượt tải xuống. Vượt xa ứng dụng đứng thứ hai là Instagram với 1.47 tỷ lượt tải xuống. Đứng thứ ba là Facebook với 1 tỷ lượt tải xuống. Trung bình một tháng TikTok có hơn 1 tỷ người sử dụng.
Tuy không phải là ứng dụng được sử dụng nhiều nhất. Nhưng TikTok là ứng dụng có thời gian sử dụng trung bình hàng ngày cao nhất. Cụ thể, trung bình lượng thời gian hoạt động của người dùng trên TikTok đạt 54 phút mỗi ngày. Có thể thấy, TikTok gần gấp hai lần Facebook với 31 phút/ngày và hơn hai lần Twitter với 34 phút/ngày.
Với lợi thế về thời gian sử dụng trung bình hàng ngày cao nhất, TikTok đang trở thành một kênh bán hàng tiềm năng khi có thể kết hợp mua sắm và giải trí hiệu quả. Tỉ lệ các thương hiệu chuyển sang sử dụng TikTok đã tăng 16% trong năm 2023 so với năm 2022. Theo Metric, quý I/2023, TikTok Shop chỉ kém Lazada 3,5% doanh thu. Và đến quý II/2023, TikTok Shop vươn lên vị trí thứ 2 chỉ sau Shopee với mức doanh thu 16.300 tỷ đồng và 117 triệu sản phẩm bán ra.
Do đó, việc ngày càng có thêm nhiều thương hiệu lựa chọn kênh TikTok để tiếp cận thêm khách hàng, hỗ trợ thúc đẩy doanh số và branding cũng là điều dễ hiểu.
Tuy nhiên liệu TikTok có phải là lựa chọn phù hợp với tất cả các thương hiệu, đặc biệt là một thương hiệu chuyên các mặt hàng xa xỉ như Thái Công? TikTok sẽ giúp doanh nghiệp tiếp cận đến nhóm đối tượng chủ yếu nào? Chúng ta hãy cùng tìm hiểu về dữ liệu nhân khẩu học của người dùng TikTok Việt Nam.
Theo số liệu từ Tiktok Internal Data 2022: Tại Việt Nam, người dùng TikTok tập trung cao ở độ tuổi từ 18 đến dưới 24 tuổi. Một thống kê khác cũng chỉ ra rằng, lượng người dùng TikTok tại Việt Nam đang đứng thứ 6 thế giới, trong đó có tới 4 triệu người dưới 18 tuổi dùng mạng xã hội này. Từ đó có thể thấy, TikTok sẽ giúp các thương hiệu tiếp cận nhiều nhất đến đối tượng giới trẻ Gen Z. Và họ chắc chắn không phải là đối tượng khách hàng tiềm năng của thương hiệu Thái Công. Tệp người thuộc tầng lớp thượng lưu, có đủ thu nhập và nhu cầu mua các mặt hàng của Thái Công sẽ chỉ chiếm một phần khá nhỏ trong lượng người dùng TikTok.
In addition, TikTok Shop clearly demonstrates strengths in easily purchasable, user-friendly, and affordable product categories. For instance, in the Fashion and Accessories category, TikTok Shop has captured 30.9% of the revenue market share in November 2023. Furthermore, TikTok Shop also ranks second in the market for Beauty products, accounting for 21%.
The report from Younet Media also indicates that TikTok Shop has the lowest average value per product. On average, a product sold on the TikTok Shop platform is priced at around 114,000 VND (compared to 116,000 VND on Shopee and 162,000 VND on Lazada). Therefore, the platform is currently only suitable for businesses dealing with lower-priced products, the report concludes.
As a result, luxury items targeting the ultra-rich clientele of Thai Cong would not fall within the product categories where TikTok excels. The predominantly TikTok user profile is also not the target customer base for Thai Cong.Vậy tại sao Thái Công lại thành công trên TikTok Shop?
Stimulate curiosity and desire for ownership.
Known as a person specializing in interior design for the upper class with the goal of serving "10% of 1% of the rich in Vietnam", designer Thai Cong has caused a stir and enthusiastic discussion in the online community. when entering TikTok with "upscale" livestream sessions, filled with luxury goods at overwhelming prices.
Specifically, the products posted by this designer on the TikTok Shop shopping cart range in price from millions to hundreds of millions of dong. Worth mentioning, this is a quite high price compared to the relatively common features of these items such as scented candles, storage trays, flower vases, ice pickers, tissue boxes,...
Therefore, the livestream session on January 9 "labeled" Thai Cong and luxury products on the store created a relatively high level of discussion on social networks. Many opinions say that with such a high price, it is difficult for consumers to buy, not to mention the problems that arise during transportation, the risk for both the seller and the delivery person is huge. Since then, there has been a lot of humorous parody content about Thai Cong's delivery and receipt of goods. Create natural viral marketing effects at a cost of 0 VND.
From the most viral types of content that creators on TikTok create about Thai Cong, it can be seen that what makes them interested and excited about this brand is their curiosity about the lives of the wealthy and upper class that they have never seen before. Very few people know about it, rarely access it, let alone experience it directly. The prices of items with not so prominent and essential uses such as ice picks, storage trays,... are all numbers beyond imagination. From there, people began to become curious and wonder about the lives of the rich and the value of the items they use every day. Along with that is a feeling of wanting to once own luxury goods from high-end brands to experience the life of the rich.
Explaining about his booth, designer Thai Cong also shared that buying rare and precious items is difficult and that people can spend an appropriate amount of money to own the product, which is also a way to motivate themselves. Try harder in the future to bring happiness to yourself and your loved ones. Because clearly, with the above items, many people know the price but few people know the value.
“I sell products you don't need but want. Let's make a lot of money to enjoy a better life, elevate culture, enhance sophistication," designer Thai Cong shared.
According to this designer, if in China there are many people livestreaming high-value goods like Hermes handbags, then in Vietnam, he is a pioneer in selling luxury goods. All products are quality products, not fake, nor hand-carried, but through official import. And when shipped to customers, the items will be carefully packaged and specially delivered so you don't have to worry about breakage.
Are luxury products just "bait"?
While public opinion was still both admiring and skeptical, at the end of the livestream session, designer Thai Cong suddenly opened for sale a product priced at only 99,000 VND, or in other words, 1/100 of the price of the tool. pick up ice. It is a white tote bag with a similar design to products on the market, but the highlight is the words "Knowledge, Experience, Experience" with the signature of Thai Cong himself.
"Young people need to learn, adults also have to learn, old people also have to learn. You are not different in skin color, gender, religion but in knowledge. Accumulate a lot of knowledge every day, experience to There are interesting things and experiences in life. Knowledge helps us succeed and become more sophisticated. Thai Cong has been in Vietnam for more than 10 years and wants to bring positive things to young people today." , the designer emphasized the meaning of the special product.
After a day of selling via livestream, the "experience" bag sold out within a day.
And then, on the afternoon of January 12, Mr. Thai Cong also "launched" a red carpet to welcome young people to buy bags.
The 99k "experience" bag is sold directly at this businessman's business headquarters, on Hai Ba Trung Street, Ho Chi Minh City with a warning to customers to line up and park their cars elsewhere and then walk there. The number of people coming to buy bags is very large, including many young people.
Along with that, this designer also launched a toothpaste product priced at just over 200,000 VND. These are considered items that are easily accessible to the masses, create explosive sales for the brand and are perfectly suitable for online shopping platforms like TikTok Shop.
After the livestream session, the online community continuously discussed that designer Thai Cong selling luxury goods was just a marketing trick to create effects on social networks, thereby aiming to sell handbags and whipped cream. The prices are sky-high, but in reality, very few people buy luxury goods because it's clear that the upper class usually don't need to surf TikTok to hunt for discounted goods.
Considering from a media perspective, Thai Cong's pricing in a high segment and then launching low-priced products can be explained as follows:
Apply the High-Low strategy: When launching low-priced products, creating a big difference with items commonly sold in the shop, viewers may feel like they are getting a bargain even though the product is still expensive. more expensive than market price.
Create a live interactive experience: As the motto "sell things that people desire to have", when livestreaming sales on TikTok, Thai Cong evoked the feeling of wanting to own an item from a luxury brand. but cannot afford to buy it. But if you just watch without buying, without any other connection, you cannot maintain the "heat". Therefore, launching products such as "experience" bags or toothpaste at prices within the affordability of young people who are interested and have sympathy for the Thai Cong brand, they will not hesitate. Don't be shy and quickly buy these branded products. Since then, the brand has increased the level of interaction with the public, getting closer to the mass file to increasingly "radiate heat". In addition, rolling out the red carpet to welcome those who came to buy "experience" bags and being directly present to sign autographs has also made this brand closer than ever. This activity also attracts more people to directly experience Thai Cong's showroom and attracts the media to report on this brand's offline sales points.
The media targets the mass file instead of just targeting the main customer base
As mentioned above, the main audiences that Thai Cong reaches through TikTok, a social network whose users are mainly Gen Z, are definitely not Thai Cong's main customers.
Those young TikTok users may not help Thai Cong sell expensive products, but they are the ones who help spread information and images about the Thai Cong brand in a very powerful way.
The content of creators on TikTok about Thai Cong has helped this brand gain continuous coverage on this social network and caused the topic "Thai Cong's TikTok Store" to receive more than 14,390 discussions and 289,720 interactions, Reached the Top 7 most popular news on social networks in the first week of 2024. (according to YouNet Media)
So in addition to owned media channels, Thai Cong has been supported to spread on earned media channels at a cost of 0 VND. Content shared by other TikTok users has made the designer and brand known as the Top of Mind for luxury interiors in Vietnam.
Maybe when bringing his brand to TikTok and opening livestream sessions on TikTok Shop, how many high-end furniture items he sells is not so important to this designer, when the main purpose is BRAND POSITIONING.
From the support of young people to spread the media and create trends, Thai Cong will increasingly have the ability to reach its main target customers. Those who really have a need for Thai Cong products, after knowing and being impressed with this brand through popular content on social networks, may learn more and put Thai Cong in their list. Consideration when choosing high-end luxury furniture.
Above are some of UpBase's analysis and feelings about Thai Cong brand's TikTok Shop casestudy. What will this brand "launch" next, what is their long-term marketing strategy, and how far will this virality take Thai Cong? In the future, will there be more "Thai Cong" bringing luxury products to TikTok Shop? Let's wait and see!
