Intense competition in e-commerce: TikTok lowers the threshold for merchants to open "flash sales"

The latest version of the "Flash Purchase Function Management Specification" (referred to as the "New Rules") announced by Douyin e-commerce today shows that the threshold for opening flash purchases has been significantly lowered for merchants. As long as they have been operating steadily on the platform for 60 days, they can open the flash purchase function. In the fiercely competitive e-commerce market, Douyin e-commerce's move strengthens the differentiating feature of "instant transactions." According to public information, the public notice period for the new rules is from September 4th to September 10th, and it will take effect on September 11th. After the public notice period expires, the platform will separately release the officially effective rules. The core changes of the new rules are: except for specific product categories (such as jewelry and cultural products), merchants who have been operating steadily for 60 days can open the flash purchase function. The specific opening situation is subject to the "flash purchase entrance in the merchant's backstage live tool bar." The rules apply to domestic merchants on the platform who meet the requirements for opening the flash purchase function and use the flash purchase function for trading scenarios. Previously, according to the revised "Flash Purchase Function Specification Management" issued by Douyin e-commerce on June 6th this year, except for specific product categories, merchants opening the flash purchase function need to meet any of the following conditions: first, operating the official flagship store, flagship store, or exclusive store of a well-known brand; second, only operating well-known brands, and having authorized exclusive stores, corporate stores, or individual stores with GMV greater than or equal to 150,000 in the past 90 days; third, having a transaction amount greater than or equal to 600,000 for three consecutive months, and the store has been in operation for more than 180 days. It can be seen that Douyin e-commerce has significantly lowered the threshold for flash purchases, allowing more small and medium-sized merchants to quickly use the flash purchase function. Currently, the e-commerce market is highly competitive, with Taobao having a first-mover advantage, Pinduoduo attracting users through low-price strategies and social viral growth. In addition, JD.com, Meituan, and Taobao are all focusing on "instant retail," focusing on real-time demands and diverting some market share from traditional e-commerce. Live e-commerce is the differentiating advantage of Douyin e-commerce, and this lowering of the flash purchase threshold can strengthen the feature of instant transactions through live streaming. This article is reproduced from Caishishe, GMTEight editor: Chen Wenfang.