Meituan’s O2O Growth Strategy and Organizational Management

On November 25, 2014, Meituan CEO Wang Xing became the youngest cover figure of *China Entrepreneur* magazine. The extensive article details Meituan’s development, including the story behind Maoyan Movie, Wang’s insights on the O2O market, and more.

This text is the second half of the article.

“Heaven and Earth as One”

Meituan’s Shanghai office is modest but uniform: simple desks, battle maps, constantly updated sales performance charts, and photos of the week’s strongest and weakest teams. A banner reading “Shanghai ‘New Fourth Army’” hangs on the wall, creating a battlefield atmosphere.

According to Shanghai regional manager Yin Zhihua, Meituan’s market share in Shanghai has risen from under 20% to rival Dianping’s 80% share, indicating a rapid reversal.

In just over a year, Shanghai’s revenue doubled from about 60 million RMB to over 100 million RMB, driven by aggressive grassroots tactics.

The team adopted a “rural encircling city” approach, first conquering suburban districts such as Songjiang and Minhang, then leveraging those gains to challenge Dianping’s urban stronghold.

Sales staff like Lu Yongjie describe the morale boost from overtaking competitors in remote areas, emphasizing the company’s willingness to endure hardship.

A notable success story recounts a Beijing salesperson who, during the peak “thousand‑team battle,” secured a 20 million RMB deal and purchased several apartments, illustrating Meituan’s strong internal incentives.

Meituan’s partnership with the hot‑pot chain “Xiao Hui Ge” generated record‑breaking sales—over 1.05 million units per day for three days—demonstrating the power of targeted group‑buy promotions.

The “rural encircling city” strategy has yielded market shares exceeding 95% in many second‑ and third‑tier cities, a key factor in Meituan’s rapid expansion.

COO Gan Jiabei, who joined in 2011, built a disciplined ground‑sales force of about 10,000 people nationwide, establishing strict promotion criteria and a “high‑pressure line” policy enforced by an internal disciplinary committee.

Meituan’s extensive IT systems—ranging from a navigation‑style competitor‑tracking tool to the location‑based “MOMA” system—support the sales force like an “air force,” ensuring efficient operations across finance, CRM, and logistics.

Wang Xing monitors daily metrics such as mobile usage share, activity growth, and user interest categories, treating data as a strategic “brain” for the company.

Looking ahead, Wang warns of emerging, unknown competitors and envisions a future where users access services via a unified voice interface, prompting Meituan to invest in innovative ideas like PP Car Rental.

To stay competitive, Meituan continues to enhance its data collection, analysis capabilities, and open‑source initiatives such as “Meituan Cloud,” while acknowledging that building a complete ecosystem—including payment and logistics—remains a critical challenge.