Reborn in 08, a heretical cultivator starting a business

Chapter 206 The Future of Baidu and Tencent: A Battle Against Alibaba!
It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but it is difficult to go back from luxury to frugality.

Users who haven't experienced YouTuan.com's next-day or two-day delivery might think that Taobao's week-long delivery is normal.

However, users who have experienced YouTuan.com's next-day and two-day delivery services can no longer accept Taobao's one-week delivery.

This directly led to a significant loss of users for Taobao Mall and Taobao.com, with many loyal users switching to YouTuan.com and Vipshop.

This change is irreversible.

So much so that a joke has appeared online:
On the 27th day of the twelfth lunar month, Lao Zhang ordered an air conditioner from YouTuan.com. The delivery and installation were completed on the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month. On New Year's Eve, his family enjoyed their New Year's Eve dinner and watched the Spring Festival Gala in their hometown in the countryside, all while enjoying the air conditioning.

Old Li ordered an air conditioner from Taobao Mall on the 27th day of the twelfth lunar month, but it wouldn't be delivered until the 7th day of the first lunar month and installed until the 9th. On New Year's Eve, the whole family huddled together on the kang (a heated brick bed), wrapped in quilts, shivering.

This joke quickly went viral online and caused a huge uproar:
"Such a big difference? Vipshop delivers and installs in two days? Really?"

"It's definitely fake. How can there be logistics that delivers in two days? Impossible, absolutely impossible. Delivery within a week is the norm."

"That's right, Taobao Mall and JD.com both offer delivery within a week. During the Chinese New Year, ten days is normal. Installation workers don't work, so installation on the eighth day of the new year is also normal. As for Vipshop's two-day delivery and installation, don't even dream about it!"

"Don't even mention the Chinese New Year, it's the off-season and not busy, and it's impossible for the goods to be delivered and installed in two days. That's all a lie."

"Fake my foot! I ordered my air conditioner from Vipshop the day before yesterday, and a technician immediately contacted me to schedule an installation time. The delivery and installation were completed today."

"The same goes for the large refrigerator I bought for my parents. I placed the order the day before yesterday, and it was delivered to our door yesterday afternoon. After letting it sit overnight, we're already using it this morning. No matter how much New Year's goods we buy, it's not a problem."

"I can attest to this: Vipshop is incredibly fast! I'm that guy, Lao Li. I bought a Midea air conditioner from Taobao Mall on the 26th of the twelfth lunar month. When I asked customer service, they said it wouldn't arrive until the 6th or 7th of the first lunar month, and since all the workers would be on holiday for the New Year, I didn't know when the installation would be. I promptly canceled the order and reordered from Vipshop. The installer has already contacted me and we've arranged for delivery and installation to be done tomorrow, so it won't delay my use at all."

"Wow, I thought it was a joke, but it's actually true. Vipshop is amazing!"

"Of course it's true. Vipshop is the second largest shareholder of RRS and shares warehousing and logistics with RRS. It has central warehouses and regional warehouses in more than 50 cities across the country, and can deliver the goods the next day, with integrated delivery and installation. For other cities, the goods are shipped from nearby central warehouses or regional warehouses, and cross-city logistics takes only two days."

"Vipshop delivers large appliances quickly, SF Express delivers small items quickly, and there's also community group buying with next-day delivery, which is even more convenient."

"Compared to YouTuan.com, Taobao is too weak. We really have to wait until next year, sigh."

"I see, I've learned something. I'll cancel the order from Taobao Mall and place the order from Vipshop."

“I also canceled my Taobao Mall order and repurchased it from Vipshop. I’ve already received a call and they’ll come to install it tomorrow morning, so it won’t delay anything. Plus, it’s part of the rural appliance subsidy program, which saved me over 400 yuan.”

"Damn, why am I even waiting for Taobao Mall? I have to order from Vipshop."

"Vipshop is amazing, fast shipping, fast logistics, and guaranteed authenticity. As for Taobao Mall... well, let's just say it's not great."

"I've been a long-time Taobao user and I've given up. Vipshop is much better."

……

As public opinion grew, more and more Taobao users learned that Vipshop had fast logistics and genuine quality, and they abandoned Taobao Mall and switched entirely to Vipshop and YouTuan.com!

This has led to a continuous decrease in the number of orders on Taobao Mall, as well as a continuous decrease in daily active users.

Meanwhile, Vipshop and Utour's daily active users and transaction volume have been rising steadily.

Seeing this, Jack Ma's face turned ashen.

"Malicious intent!"

"Malicious intent!"

"Wang Junshan's actions are too outrageous. Arranging for people to create such jokes not only disgusts our Taobao Mall, but also hits the nail on the head!"

"If things continue like this, won't our Taobao Mall be in big trouble?"

"If everyone knew that Vipshop offers next-day and two-day delivery, and Taobao offers one-week delivery, then who would still buy things from Taobao Mall?"

"Damn it, this is so damn damn good!"

"To create such jokes, especially during the Lunar New Year, is malicious and despicable!"

Taobao Mall President Zhao Deyu said with a solemn expression: "This joke is indeed malicious, and it is aimed directly at our Taobao Mall's fatal weakness."

"Nonsense, why aren't you focusing on crisis management and controlling this public opinion?" Jack Ma was annoyed by his son's lack of ambition.

Zhao Deyu shook his head: "The public relations department is already doing it, but the effect is very limited."

“On other smaller platforms, we can spend money to delete posts and control public opinion.”

"But now the most widely circulated information is on Tencent News and Baidu Tieba!"

"They'd love for Alibaba to be embarrassed, they'd love for Taobao Mall to go under, they won't cooperate with us to delete posts and control public opinion. Money won't help!"

"!!!" Jack Ma's face turned ashen, but he had no choice but to nod.
"When a whale falls, all things come to life."

"If Taobao and Tmall go out of business, Baidu Youa and Paipai will have the opportunity to grow bigger and quickly erode the market share that Taobao has given up."

"In this situation, it would be good if Baidu and Tencent didn't add fuel to the fire and increase the coverage, let alone cooperate with us to delete the posts."

Zhao Deyu sighed: "Actually, they've already done that. Whether it's Tencent News or Baidu's trending topics, they've put this joke at the very top."

"Chairman, look!"

As he spoke, Zhao Deyu showed Jack Ma the laptop screen:

[Tencent News: Taobao Mall's 7-day and 10-day delivery services are completely outclassed by Vipshop's next-day and two-day delivery services.]

[Baidu Hot Search: Vipshop shopping won't interfere with New Year's Eve. Taobao shopping won't interfere with Lantern Festival.]

"Worthy!"

Jack Ma couldn't help but swear, his fingers trembling with anger:
"Damn it, this is so damn damn!"

"Look at this, is this what a human being says?"

"Especially Baidu's trending topics—that's what it means to not delay the Lantern Festival!"

"Not very harmful, but extremely insulting!"

"Those two guys are really kicking me when I'm down!"

"Future Tech, Baidu, and Tencent are teaming up to gang up on Alibaba!"

Zhao Deyu was also furious: "I seriously suspect that the reason this joke went viral so quickly across the internet was because of the manipulation of these two giants."

"Even these two jokes might not have been fabricated by Vipshop, but rather by Baidu and Tencent... to destroy Taobao and allow Paipai and Baidu Youa to grow bigger!"

Jack Ma's lips twitched, burning with rage: "Very likely, extremely likely."

"Taobao has a monopoly in the C2C field. If Taobao doesn't die, neither Baidu Youa nor Paipai can grow big."

"Now that they have the opportunity to severely damage both Taobao and Tmall, they will naturally not let it go."

"They ganged up on us and deserved to die!"

Zhao Deyu was also indignant: "But we are helpless in this matter. Let alone controlling public opinion, we can't even refute the rumors."

"Our logistics are slow. It already takes a week, and now with the Chinese New Year, it's even slower!"

"Don't even mention placing an order on the 26th or 27th of the twelfth lunar month; even if you place an order on the 22nd, it won't arrive before the New Year. And even if it does arrive, there's no one to install it."

"Besides those guys from Haier and Ririshun, who the hell doesn't get a holiday during the Chinese New Year?" "You can't be this greedy!"

Jack Ma's expression turned serious: "No wonder Wang Junshan didn't make many big moves before the new year; it turns out he used them all here."

"Before the Lunar New Year, we distributed all the appliances from Vipshop's self-operated warehouses to fifty RRS warehouses and more than twenty central and regional warehouses owned by Future Technology!"

"It not only covers all provinces across the country, but also seventy or eighty logistics hub cities, and can fully achieve next-day delivery within the city and two-day delivery within the province."

"Plus, with RRS's integrated delivery and installation service, its efficiency is unmatched!"

"Wang Junshan's intention is to use this move to make all consumers clearly see the difference in logistics timeliness between Taobao Mall and Vipshop, thereby decisively defeating Taobao Mall, and even Taobao!"

"And the special timing of the Spring Festival amplifies this impact even further, making our defeat even more devastating!"

"Yes, that's exactly why. Even though Taobao Mall doesn't close for the past two days, daily active users, orders, and revenue have all plummeted. Only the number of orders requesting refunds has been surging."

"As for profits, they have always been negative. Even our joint promotion with Midea has attracted no interest."

Jack Ma sighed deeply: "The most crucial issue is still the logistics gap. If this can't be resolved, Taobao Mall will struggle to rise, let alone catch up with Vipshop. Has there been any progress on the acquisition of warehousing and logistics facilities?"

Zhao Deyu sighed: "Although we have achieved some results, and the prices quoted by STO Express, YTO Express, ZTO Express, and Yunda Express have all decreased, they are still not low enough."

"Furthermore, the logistics companies involved have expressed concerns about the post-investment cooperation model. It will take some more time."

"Let's push it forward as soon as possible. If we can't solve the logistics problem, Taobao Mall and Taobao.com will never be a match for Vipshop and YouTuan.com."

Jack Ma said in a deep voice.

Zhao Deyu nodded: "Then I'll go there myself and talk to those old directors."

Jack Ma waved his hand: "The day after tomorrow is Lunar New Year's Eve. Let's push it forward after the New Year. Don't make us at Alibaba seem too impatient, or everyone will be thinking of asking for higher prices!"

"That's fine, but this year's New Year is really going to be tough!"

Zhao Deyu looked dejected, and Jack Ma was also extremely melancholy:
"We originally planned to team up with Midea to launch a washing machine promotion, crush Vipshop and Little Duck, and make Wang Junshan's New Year unbearable!"

"Unexpectedly, instead of defeating Vipshop, we were defeated by Vipshop!"

"Being involved with Wang Junshan will ruin our New Year celebrations!"

There's nowhere to reason with them.

"And Alibaba's stock price will also fall even more drastically."

"What a terrible New Year!"

Jack was utterly speechless.

When the global economic crisis broke out, Alibaba, which mainly focused on B2B trade, was rendered useless, and its stock price evaporated by 70%.

Now, it has been further impacted by Vipshop's aggressive tactics, and its stock price, which was already at 30%, has evaporated by another third.

It was truly a terrible sight.

"By the way, Chairman, what about the year-end bonus..." Zhao Deyu couldn't help but ask, "We're all on holiday tomorrow, and our year-end bonuses haven't been decided yet."

Normally, Alibaba's year-end bonus is paid out in early January. As a BTA giant, it directly pays out 4-6 months' salary.

However, this year, affected by the global financial crisis, its market value has plummeted by 70%.

Another blow from Vipshop, and now they have to prepare a large sum of money to invest in a courier giant...

As a result, Alibaba's year-end bonuses were delayed until the 27th day of the twelfth lunar month and were still not paid out.

"Yes, the year-end bonus... let's cut it in half. The situation is tough this year, everyone understands."

"Okay, Chairman."

Zhao Deyu was not surprised and quickly notified the finance department.

Even if it's cut in half, it's still much better than not issuing it at all!

This year is destined to leave Alibaba's senior management, middle management, and even grassroots employees feeling extremely melancholy.

Of course, many people are not worried about Taobao Mall being overtaken by Vipshop, but rather that the company is not doing well, the stock price is falling again and again, and the Alibaba shares they hold are becoming even less valuable!
Even year-end bonuses are being reduced by half!

So much so that many people feel that Alibaba is doomed!

After all, the economic crisis was enough to make Alibaba barely survive. Now, with Vipshop's logistics competition and its disruptive impact, Alibaba's core business has been shaken!

Many Alibaba employees are considering whether or not to find another job.

……

Wang Junshan, who was in Jeju, did not return to the capital.

The employees are on annual leave tomorrow, so there's no point in him rushing back.

Instead, they sent an internal letter to all employees:

[Thanks to the hard work of all employees, our various business units at Future Technology have achieved significant breakthroughs. Congratulations on achieving growth against the backdrop of the global financial crisis!]

However, given our relatively short history and the intense competition we face, we have had to implement a rotating leave policy for some employees. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the employees who worked overtime.

In addition to triple pay and 16 days of compensatory leave, Future Technology has also prepared a New Year's gift package for you, which has already been delivered to your family via Future Logistics and SF Express.

[Other employees also received a New Year's gift bag; please remember to collect it before leaving get off work. If it's inconvenient to carry and needs to be checked in, simply register your shipping address via WeChat, and the company will deliver it to your home.]

To avoid disrupting everyone's holiday plans, this year's annual meeting will be cancelled, but year-end bonuses will still be paid as usual.

[A year-end bonus of 2-6 months' salary will be awarded based on a comprehensive evaluation of performance and length of service. It will be deposited into your salary account within two days.]

Finally, I would like to thank all the employees again for their hard work. Happy New Year and may the Year of the Ox bring you great success!

……

Upon seeing this internal letter, all employees of the Future Technology Group were thrilled.

"That's great! I've only been with the company for six months and I already have a year-end bonus, and it's equivalent to two to six months' salary. The boss is very generous."

"I just checked, and I got three months' worth of year-end bonus. I've only been with the company for four months, and I don't even know what to say."

"What's even funnier is that I got two months' worth of bonuses in just one month of employment. I was almost embarrassed. Hahaha."

"I've been with the company for six months, and I received a year-end bonus equivalent to six months' salary. The best decision I ever made was joining Future Technology. I'm so grateful!"

"I just heard that Alibaba cut year-end bonuses in half, to only 1-3 months' salary, which is less than what we at Future Technology, who have only been with the company for a few months, receive."

"Baidu also takes 1-3 months, while Tencent takes a little longer, 2-5 months."

"Wow, Future Technology has become the IT company with the highest year-end bonuses?"

"There's nothing we can do. We're only able to compete because of our peers. The overall economic climate this year has been terrible. Only our Future Technology has bucked the trend and grown, while the others have suffered heavy losses."

(End of this chapter)