Why young people like idle trading
□ Wei Jiayue
"Collect - waste products, refrigerators, color TVs, washing machines..." Jiang Xiaoxue, a "post-90s generation", remembers that when she was a child, she and her mother would take the newspapers, old books and bottles and cans that had been sorted out before hearing the elongated tones from the speakers. Floor, you can change it for more than ten yuan back, and you can also buy a popsicle on the way.
Nowadays, the melodious shouts from the horns of scrap carts are gradually fading away. Many idle trading scenes have moved from mobile scrap carts, community recycling stations, and flea markets to online. The items traded have also changed from the relatively simple waste books and plastics back then. Products, home appliances, mobile phones, etc. have expanded to more diversified categories such as beauty, clothing, exhibition and performance tickets, etc. As time goes by, people's attitude towards idle items has also quietly changed: from the "old things used by others" that were dismissed in the past, to the "highly cost-effective items" that are now favored, idle transactions are being accepted by more and more people. accept.
The "2021 China Idle Second-hand Trading Carbon Emissions Reduction Report" released by Tsinghua University's Institute of Energy and Environmental Economics and other institutions shows that the domestic second-hand consumer market has exceeded one trillion yuan in 2020, and it is expected that by 2025, my country's idle item transactions are expected to exceed 30,000 yuan billion. Among the increasingly large ranks of idle consumers, young people have begun to occupy the majority.
According to the latest data released by Xianyu, the average daily transaction volume of Xianyu has exceeded 1 billion yuan. In the past year, more than 100 million people posted idle items on Xianyu, and 4 million idle items were posted on Xianyu every day. In May 2023, the number of Xianyu users exceeded 500 million. Judging from user profiles, the "post-95s" are active members of Xianyu users, accounting for 43%, and the "post-00s" account for 22%.
Why are young people keen on idle trading? In addition to increasing revenue and reducing expenditure, what else did they gain from it?
Make the best use of everything
Dong Chenyu, a lecturer at the School of Journalism at Renmin University of China, conducted a survey among Xianyu users aged 18 to 27. Among the young people interviewed, "saving money" and "recovering blood" were the first considerations in idle transactions. "Some interviewees compared Xianyu to a piggy bank, which only sells but does not buy; others compared it to a noodle shop at home, which is cheap and full." Dong Chenyu observed: "Compared with our generation, today's young people Be more pragmatic, not overly pursue the value of symbols, and not easily pay for brand premiums.”
An important reason for increasing revenue and reducing expenditure through idle transactions is that "old things never become old": in the period of accelerated product update and iteration, items with long lifespan and low frequency of use are more likely to be "idle", and selling idle items is the key to realizing the exhaustion of items. A reasonable understanding of its use. Dong Chenyu mentioned that if objects have a social life, then idle transactions seem to make them move among many adoptive families. "Take baby strollers as an example. Nowadays, better-quality baby strollers can be used for at least ten years, but a child can only ride on them for two years. With a limited budget, it is very difficult to buy a second-hand baby stroller with better quality at a cheaper price. A good choice." Similarly, for young people who are still studying in school, books, textbooks, examination materials, etc. often become idle after being read and used. Only by finding the next "adopter" can they continue to exert their value. The search process is different from the trading scene restricted by geographical conditions more than ten years ago, and the online platform has given full play to its unique advantages.
During her college years, Jiang Xiaoxue joined more than ten idle trading WeChat groups on campus. During the graduation season, some groups had nearly a hundred messages every day. “After sorting out the pictures and prices of the items and posting them in the group, some classmates added us on WeChat to ask.” She said, “Not only did I get rid of the unused items, but I also made a little money. I really felt a sense of accomplishment when the transaction was completed. .”
As a generation that grew up in a period of rapid development of information technology, young people are able to skillfully use the Internet to expand information channels, choose appropriate platforms to publish and obtain information based on their own needs and item characteristics, and efficiently collect and collect information.
Zhao Ting, the brand public relations director of the recycling fashion e-commerce platform Hongbulin, believes that young people who have just entered the workplace have a high demand for branded clothing and bags, and the idle market with high cost performance is often their choice. However, at present, the idle market The products are of mixed quality.
"We can provide users with identification, rating and pricing services for more than 2,000 fashion brands, and are responsible for the entire process of shipping, delivery and after-sales service." Zhao Ting said, helping young people save time and energy in screening and negotiating prices. This is Hong Blin’s business experience as a platform service provider.
For young people, idle transactions are no longer an unspeakable prudent calculation, but reflect the consumption rationality of making the best use of everything. Rather than downgrading consumption, it is better to talk about upgrading consumption concepts. While cleverly avoiding commercial marketing routines and various consumption traps, we can increase revenue and reduce expenditure, save money when we can, and make full use of multi-party information channels and trading platforms to meet our own consumption needs.
Interest monetization
Young people are driven by consumption rationality to engage in idle transactions, but if you look closely at the items they trade, they are full of sensibility and personality: niche accessories, vinyl records, blind box figurines, opera tickets... Hang up the things you like. On idle trading platforms, most of the people who come to ask for prices are "comrades" with similar aesthetics and interests. As a result, idle buying and selling has also become a display of individuality, using objects as a carrier to present oneself to strangers, and to meet like-minded partners through inquiries and transactions.
But who says that only things are idle? When young people looking for ways to make money began to take stock of their own resources and skills, and developed "new idle jobs" such as following photographers, making up girls, walking dogs, helping to write programs, and even teaching dialects, the concept of "idle" also became broader. "Transaction" is not limited to "paying money in one hand and delivering goods in the other hand", it can also be the exchange of hobbies, peripherals, resources and skills.
Saving money means looking for high-quality and low-priced items, and expressing one's personality at a relatively low cost. Source money means converting resources and skills into capital, realizing interests and enjoying it. Taking idle transactions as an entry point, young people show a diverse lifestyle, use their creativity to bring economic value to their hobbies, and even start a business based on it.
For Jenny, "starting a business in idle time" was unexpected but natural. Not long after she entered college, she began to become interested in fashion collections. She often posted photos of her outfits on social media. Some netizens saw them and asked if they had more clothes for sale. "Because I like it, I buy more and more, and when I have more, I sell some of them and leave them idle." Jenny said that in the process, she got to know some players in the industry, so she opened a file on Xianyu with a few friends Fashion store.
Rather than thinking about whether he can make money by opening a store, Jenny enjoys the process of communicating with friends in the industry. Every time a collection of clothing is hung, in addition to the regular size and condition, there is also an important "note" in the introduction, which specifically explains the clothing's designer, design elements, sources of inspiration, materials and fabrics, etc. On the social media account of the same name of the store, Jenny participated in the production of several videos dedicated to introducing the history and culture of trendy collections. He will also find other players in the circle to introduce collections of different styles and brands.
"On the one hand, fans of the store come to buy things, and on the other hand, they come to see what we share." Jenny explained: "Trend collections need to be studied like jade jewelry, and many people will enjoy the communication process more. I Find other partners to operate together, so that people who follow our store can learn about different styles, and also expand their knowledge."
Today, Jenny’s store has 37,000 fans on Xianyu, with total sales reaching millions of yuan. With the support of the platform and the cooperation of the brand, it has also successfully held offline events many times. There are both fans of the store who come here because of its reputation, as well as new trendy players.
Talking about the store, Jenny said: "It's actually quite successful. This can be regarded as my 'phased achievement'. It's a very important part of life development."
Lively community
Even in a niche circle, the online platform is much more lively than the unattended corner of the flea market. When “similar souls” gather together, idle platforms become tightly connected and all-encompassing communities.
Professional second-hand sellers are often unpopular here - they are too shrewd, too familiar with the rules of reselling goods, and too distant. In contrast, young people are more willing to conduct idle transactions with ordinary people like them, because the information gap is smaller, so it is easier to establish trust on an equal basis.
Jiang Xiaoxue remembered that a few years ago, the school’s second-hand group was suddenly taken over by people outside the school, and people often posted various advertisements. After she quit the group, she built a "small second-hand market" by herself, became the group leader, and promptly eliminated members who posted advertisements. "The environment is more pure." She said that students not only trade idle items in the group, but also often form teams to fight for orders, or share various memberships.
In "idle communities" on various platforms, young people lively trade, exchange, share, and look for "collaborations", forming a unique social culture.
In the idle transactions of young people, promotion and bargaining are the art of the game: there is no gorgeous marketing routine in promotion, and there is no need to lower your posture when bargaining. Instead, it is full of shameless self-deprecating joy. Label unused accessories as "given to me by my ex", attach unused learning materials with the introduction "Learn not to sell them at a low price", and boldly leave a message to the seller "I am a student, give it to me" when bargaining... I love to play. Young people create their own "literature" in idle transactions. When buying things, they "accidentally" chat with sellers, and then share screenshots of their confrontations with "business geniuses" on social media.
In addition to the joy of haggling and battling wits, many people have also made real-life friends through online idle transactions.
"Benevolence and righteousness cannot be achieved until the transaction is completed." Jiang Xiaoxue said, it doesn't matter if the deal fails after bargaining for a long time. "Everyone sells things, and no one owes anyone anything, but when you meet someone with a good personality, you will be happy all day long." She still remembers that once she went to an idle group to buy books from a classmate from the same school. When they met, the classmate He also gave her another book and a few other small things, and later they became friends who occasionally contacted each other and helped each other.
Jenny also said with emotion that he founded the store because of his hobby, and it was precisely because of the store that he met more like-minded partners and developed his hobby.
"The starting point of technological design and the final social consequences are not linear." Dong Chenyu said, "Economic platforms also need the support of cultural circles. Youth culture breaks away from the existing settings of the platform and uses it creatively, which will form interesting circles and network habits. , which is also what the platform likes to see.”
In the community on the idle trading platform, young people have found a sense of belonging. They openly look directly at their own needs, make money and save money, show their individuality, and express their desire for real connections between people. In lively exchanges with peers, they can take off their disguises, release stress, and show their humorous and interesting souls.
After graduation, Jiang Xiaoxue still managed the second-hand group as the group leader. Jenny, who was studying abroad, and several partners also continued to run the store. Unknowingly, the online platform for idle trading has become a community that young people cannot leave. As a senior user of the idle trading platform left a message, "Not only can you find treasures, but you can also make friends. I feel that visiting idle trading is better than buying directly. New products are more pyrotechnics.”
(Economic Daily)