Why Traditional Growth Tactics Fail: Lessons from Three Years of Community E‑Commerce Subsidies

From 2020 to 2022, the internet witnessed the largest subsidy wars in its history, especially within community e‑commerce where major players invested heavily, surpassing traditional subsidies like group‑buy, ride‑hailing, and shared bikes.

The author participated in these battles, leading product‑research teams that contributed to company financing and rapid growth, while also observing many startups fall behind, highlighting the challenges of competing with giants and the stifling effect of capital on business innovation.

These three years reshaped the author's understanding of healthy growth, moving beyond pure internet thinking.

01 Traffic‑Is‑King Myth

Many internet veterans believed that traffic alone drives growth, using the formula GMV = Daily Active Users × Conversion Rate × Average Order Value, focusing on daily active users (traffic) as the key metric during the traffic‑rich era.

As population growth slows and internet penetration rises, this traffic advantage peaks, leading to rising acquisition costs and a zero‑sum competition where both merchants and platforms suffer.

Relying on traffic subsidies creates a trap: merchants become dependent on paid traffic, and platforms prioritize high‑paying advertisers, harming both user experience and merchant sustainability.

02 Promotion Equals Marketing

The author previously equated marketing with promotions, building tools like discount coupons, lotteries, and intelligent benefit distribution.

While such tactics boost short‑term GMV, they remain one‑off transactions that engage only the user's left brain (rational decision‑making) without building lasting brand loyalty or trust.

Effective marketing should create, communicate, and deliver value, developing differentiated product strengths and strong brand perception rather than merely offering discounts.

03 The Digital Success‑Metric Trap

Focusing on a single metric (e.g., SLA, code commits, UV, PV, or GMV) leads to misguided strategies, such as inflating UV through aggressive traffic buying without ensuring user retention.

Similarly, splitting content to inflate page views or offering discounts to boost GMV may look successful superficially but fail to deliver sustainable growth.

Moreover, unclear goal decomposition causes teams to meet individual KPIs while the overall company target remains unmet, as seen in platform channel misalignments where each channel pursues the same audience with identical tactics.

To avoid these traps, managers must avoid over‑granular early‑stage operations, focus on a clear north‑star metric, and balance detailed execution with broader strategic objectives.

Ultimately, sustainable growth requires understanding why users choose you, delivering unique value, and maintaining a long‑term perspective despite competitive pressures.