Common marketing models and misconceptions in outdoor brands

       Why were brands like Little Sheep, Haidilao, and CNH found able to rise amid the dominance of fast-food giants like McDonald's and KFC? Why does the Han Han phenomenon remain evergreen? Why does everyone want to buy THE NORTH FACE? Why did MobiGarden become the most popular booth at ISPO BEIJING 2012?

Management and marketing are the two driving forces behind business development. Management hones internal strength, while marketing builds external appeal. Only by excelling in both can a company showcase its full advantage. Although China’s outdoor industry has made significant progress, compared to other sectors, there remains a considerable gap in management and marketing capabilities—especially in brand marketing.

What are the goals and essence of marketing? Simply put, the goal of marketing is to make people know you, recognize you, like you, and spread the word about you. The essence of marketing is “creating momentum.”

To achieve strong marketing goals, companies must put in a lot of effort: first, they need precise positioning; second, they should be adept at creating momentum, generating attention-grabbing seeds that spark discussion and widespread sharing.

Marketing work specifically needs to address four fundamental questions: Who to speak to? How to say it? What to say? When to say it? Answering these four questions well naturally leads to successful marketing outcomes.

Below, we analyze common marketing models in the outdoor industry, as well as the major marketing misconceptions, hoping to offer substantial insights for the greater development of the outdoor sector.

The Chinese public’s initial perception of outdoor activities was this: outdoor sports mean climbing high mountains, scaling cliffs, trekking across glaciers, and crossing deserts—activities of high difficulty; outdoor gear is necessarily functional and expensive, only affordable to a select few. Mindset determines behavior. Guided by such thinking, many outdoor businesses like to position their brands as premium, going to great lengths to package themselves as foreign brands, crafting elaborate and captivating brand stories, hiring famous mountaineers as endorsers, sponsoring renowned professional teams... In reality, outdoor gear is by no means a luxury—it’s only slightly above everyday consumer needs. Positioning outdoor equipment as luxury goods makes it impossible for the entire outdoor industry to grow strong and large. Take a look at the market: truly successful outdoor brands like THE NORTH FACE, COLUMBIA, Toread, KAILAS, KINGCAMP, and MobiGarden do not boast about being top-tier brands or deliberately distancing themselves from the general public. On the other hand, those brands that constantly try to create a high-end image seldom see significant growth.

Therefore, the marketing strategy of “blooming inside the wall but finding few to appreciate” is one of the most detrimental to outdoor companies aiming to grow big and strong. It directly limits your closeness to the general public and thus fails to attract mass consumer choice.

Currently, nearly all outdoor brands choose to sponsor certain events, teams, or celebrities, though with varying emphases. OZARK sponsors the National Mountaineering Team and the Tibet Mountaineering School, Toread sponsors the Chinese Antarctic Expedition Team and Wang Shi, KAILAS sponsors climbing teams and Zhong Qixin, FRASPENS sponsors the Xiamen University Mountaineering Team, Red Match Outdoor sponsors the China Agricultural University Mountaineering Team, KOLUMB supports environmental causes, THE NORTH FACE sponsors various events, Tianlun Tian sponsors triathlon and the Tsinghua University Mountaineering Team... Sponsoring activities, events, and celebrities is a unique marketing model for outdoor and sports brands and can indeed yield good communication results. However, we also suggest: outdoor companies must not only know how to sponsor, but also how to leverage sponsorship to create momentum. Some outdoor businesses sponsor just for the sake of it, remaining passive in marketing, resulting in heavy investment of manpower, material resources, and funds, yet unsatisfactory outcomes. In terms of sponsorship and momentum creation, outdoor brands should learn more from sports brands.

There is a unique phenomenon in the outdoor industry: many corporate marketing collaborations are conducted through barter rather than cash transactions. Perhaps because the outdoor industry is still in its early stages of development, with limited corporate revenues and investments. But barter partnerships come with major drawbacks. If partners cannot convert goods into cash, they won’t provide truly effective, substantive support for the brand—for a simple reason: the use of products is limited, whereas the use of money is unlimited. Money is needed by organizations and individuals alike, and money can directly boost the motivation of those involved. Therefore, for a company to grow strong and ensure good marketing outcomes, in addition to goods, real monetary investment is also necessary. To date, there hasn’t been any major brand in any industry that has grown solely through barter.

Why have brands like Red Bull, Huiyuan, Wahaha, and Wong Lo Kat thrived under the dominance of Coca-Cola and Pepsi? Why were Little Sheep, Haidilao, and CNH able to rise amid the stronghold of fast-food giants like McDonald's and KFC? Why does Apple stand out among IT giants like IBM, HP, and Dell? Why has Semir Fashion surpassed traditional clothing giants?... Because they all have a precise and unique positioning system, becoming the first in their field through innovation and deeply rooted in the minds of their target audiences.

Currently, the outdoor industry suffers from severe homogenized competition. Whether in concepts, brand slogans, product design, or marketing strategies, everything is strikingly similar. Everyone talks broadly about the outdoor lifestyle, everyone wants to sell the three main items—clothing, shoes, and backpacks—everyone sponsors professional teams and events, everyone hires professionals as endorsers, everyone opens Weibo accounts for marketing... The differences between them are minimal, making it hard for consumers to form unique impressions, let alone loyalty.

The most basic and important task in corporate marketing is to find the right positioning: positioning your brand image, your target audience, your unique advantages, and your marketing approach. With vague positioning, it’s difficult for a company to establish a deep impression in the minds of its target audience, and thus long-term advantages cannot be secured.

At present, there are hundreds or even thousands of brands across various categories in the outdoor industry. It’s very difficult for any single brand to lead in all areas. The best marketing strategy is to achieve localized leadership through precise positioning, then gradually expand the scope of advantage.

Why is Zhou Libo always in the spotlight? Why does the Han Han phenomenon remain evergreen? Why do some people’s Weibo posts get so many likes and reposts? Why is Golden Partner still selling well?

Every company hopes to continuously gain the attention of society, media, and users, and is willing to spend considerable financial and material resources—but the results are often poor. Some companies try many methods without success, eventually becoming discouraged and at a loss when it comes to marketing.

Why does this happen? Only good seeds can bear good fruit, but many companies don’t know how to create good seeds for dissemination. Although we’ve entered the fragmented era and social media plays an increasingly important role, the marketing mindset of many outdoor companies remains stuck in the past, with rigid and monotonous approaches: releasing news to spread positive updates, using ad placements for promotion, sponsoring professional teams to go hiking together, hiring endorsers for publicity stunts... These methods fail to generate attention, interaction, discussion, or dissemination. Good marketing should consistently produce good seeds. The criteria for good seeds are that they can attract attention, spark discussion, and lead to sharing. Therefore, marketers need to constantly pay attention to social trends and public opinion, predicting and skillfully combining elements to create unique seeds that can either ride existing momentum or create their own.

Why won’t distributors carry my brand? Why don’t many people participate in our themed activities? Why doesn’t our celebrity endorsement attract attention? Why are so many of our strengths unknown to others? Why do consumers choose to spend more on average-quality products instead of buying my cost-effective ones?... Because you haven’t spread many of your “good seeds,” failing to create a unique advantage.

As the saying goes: three parts doing, seven parts creating momentum—momentum brings benefits. The market is like a martial arts world, where everyone wants to be a major sect. For a company to achieve great development, it must be skilled not only in management but also in creating momentum. It must continuously produce good seeds for dissemination and also effectively spread them, attracting widespread interaction, discussion, and sharing to build momentum.

Is PR just about getting the media to publish articles? Is advertising all about throwing money around? Is social media marketing simply asking people to repost?

Marketing work specifically addresses four fundamental questions: Who to talk to? How to say it? What to say? When to say it?

The trinity of “PR + Advertising + Events” — if a company can effectively integrate these, it will surely drive significant growth.

PR is about others talking, advertising is about speaking for yourself, and events create interaction. PR plays a huge role — it’s not just about getting the media to publish articles. PR can generate hot topics, conduct event marketing, and guide public opinion. Advertising isn’t about burning cash; it’s a statement, an announcement, a powerful momentum-builder. Advertising can boost consumer attention, strengthen influence across the industry chain, and support brand recruitment. Events foster interaction, create buzz, generate topics that attract attention and spread. That’s why we find: leading brands in every industry always organically integrate “PR + Advertising + Events,” maintaining their strong influence in the industry chain and consumer market.

Execution is about planting good seeds, while creating momentum helps those seeds take root, grow, and bear fruit. Good seeds are the foundation, but knowing how to create momentum is key to success — both are indispensable.

The reason Wanglaoji succeeded was that it planted good seeds and created strong momentum. First, Jiaduobao’s one-hundred-million-yuan donation to earthquake-stricken Wenchuan shocked the whole society, attracting attention and speculation. Then, through social media, it sparked a reverse marketing trend called “Boycott Wanglaoji,” which ultimately gave Wanglaoji both fame and reputation, making it the first herbal tea brand to be served at state banquets, and also creating the good seed of being “China’s No. 1 beverage can”...

Why have KAILAS and MobiGarden continued to grow bigger and bigger? Why did Mosen fade from ambitious beginnings to silence? The former started with local leadership and then expanded its advantage, while the latter rushed for overall dominance, causing chain breaks and serious setbacks.

In this unique era where both products and brands are excessively abundant, and information and media are exploding, it’s extremely difficult for latecomers to achieve overall dominance over competitors in a short time. But achieving local leadership and then expanding that advantage is still very hopeful — and there are many such cases. For example, Vancl surpassing Youngor, Apple overtaking traditional IT companies, ZARA and KAPPA’s success in the fashion market, Red Bull, Wanglaoji, and Huiyuan’s achievements in the beverage market...

Every company wants to establish its own advantage in fierce market competition. How can this be achieved? Can it be done through capital operations or massive advertising campaigns? The answer is no, because times have changed, and marketing strategies must evolve.

The 1980s were the era of product marketing, the 1990s were the era of brand image marketing, and the 21st century has entered the era of targeted marketing. In this unique time of product and brand overabundance, and explosive information and media, for brands to achieve excellence in increasingly fierce market competition, they should quickly establish their unique position through precise targeted marketing. Therefore, the first step is solid preparation: define the target user group, define services and products, define the model, then effectively integrate “Advertising + PR + Events” to make the brand visible everywhere and continuously spark attention and discussion.

There are two ways to create marketing momentum: self-generated momentum and riding existing momentum. Self-generated momentum is great, but it requires substantial human and financial investment, so companies typically execute only one or two large-scale events per marketing year to build momentum. Riding existing momentum is lower-cost — businesses don’t need to start the fire from scratch, but rather guide the blaze in a direction favorable to them when it’s already burning strong.

In today’s world where social media is increasingly vital, new hot topics and events emerge daily. If companies routinely pay attention to social trends, excel at drawing comparisons and distinctions, and are skilled at imaginative associations, they can skillfully ride existing momentum.

Cross-industry efforts brought Steve Jobs and Apple to the top of the world, made Song Zuying and Jay Chou’s performances seamless, made Li Yundi and Wang Leehom’s shows electrifying, and continually reveal new opportunities for development.

Innovation is the evergreen driving force for sustainable growth, and cross-industry is the wellspring of innovation. The outdoor leisure and tourism industries also have many highly successful marketing cases: Nongfu Spring and Qiandao Lake launched a large-scale water-themed exploration event, the Guniang beauty pageant in Tongli Water Town spurred the “beauty economy,” The North Face went “Road to the North” in a sports crossover, Columbia ventured into fashion, and Gore-Tex’s Outdoor Dreams fulfilled tourism crossovers... Through cross-industry collaboration, originally single events gained many new highlights and talking points, shifting from niche attention to mass appeal, fully achieving multi-dimensional effects of widespread discussion and multi-point dissemination.

To become a cross-industry marketing expert, you must constantly track trends, follow social hotspots, be good at drawing comparisons and distinctions, and skilled at imaginative associations. The outdoor industry is broadly connected and can fully integrate with tourism, leisure, sports, automotive, and fashion sectors to expand its audience.

Undoubtedly, the trinity of “Advertising + PR + Events” has become the most crucial marketing combination strategy for businesses. Events play a significant role: they bring rich content and materials, continuously produce good seeds, and advertising and PR spread and amplify those seeds. That’s why car brands always plan various events to promote new launches. IT companies launching new tech products also attract attention through uniquely innovative events. KFC promotes breakfast comprehensively, and Pizza Hut uses menu changes to build momentum for conveying new brand philosophies...

Looking at developed Western countries, their marketing strategies differ significantly: European nations excel in luxury goods, while the U.S. excels in fashion products. European countries prefer high-end positioning, while the U.S. aims for rapid mass-market adoption. Europeans are relatively conservative, while Americans love to create hype... These two strategies vary greatly and offer valuable lessons for China’s outdoor business operators. We recommend: Chinese enterprises should learn more from the American marketing model, because outdoor gear shouldn’t be positioned as luxury items, and Chinese brands are relatively young, unable to compare with established European ones.