Short Essay 2_WANG Andi (1155227236)

The Long Tail Monetization on Xiaohongshu: As Top Influencers Decline, KOCs Rise

The Long Tail theory posits that as our culture and economy evolve, the focus is shifting from a few "hits" at the head of the demand curve to an extensive number of niche markets in the tail. This theory provides a framework for analyzing Xiaohongshu's approach to balancing content quality and commercialization in a landscape marked by scarcity at the top and an abundance of long-tail creators.

1. Decentralized Community Ecosystem

(1) Decentralized Traffic Distribution

Xiaohongshu adopts a decentralized traffic distribution model, where exposure is not solely directed to top creators. Even new users with no followers can achieve notable visibility when their content is high-quality. This setup limits the influence of top-tier creators while fostering a rich environment for long-tail KOCs, thus forming a decentralized community ecosystem. Statistics indicate that, unlike platforms like WeChat Video, Kuaishou, Bilibili, and Douyin, where top influencers represent over 1%, Xiaohongshu’s top influencers account for less than 0.03%. Mid-tier and long-tail accounts comprise almost 99.97% of the platform. Notably, accounts with 10k to 100k followers represent 91.62% of Xiaohongshu’s user base.

 

2. Commercialization through “Planting the Seed” Marketing

(1) Platform and Creator End: Low Entry Barrier for Monetization

Xiaohongshu offers relatively low barriers to monetization compared to other platforms. Users with as few as 1,000 followers can receive paid collaborations through the platform’s official channels, attracting a diverse array of creators. Additionally, Xiaohongshu often provides incentives to new users by lowering thresholds even further, contributing to high numbers of active creators and strong engagement. As of February 2023, Xiaohongshu boasted over 20 million monthly active creators, with an average of over 3 million daily posts and nearly 300 million daily searches.

 

(2) User End: Take others' advice

Xiaohongshu's decentralized community structure fosters an effective long-tail monetization ecosystem, where influence stems not from “mainstream” or “top” creators but from genuine, niche recommendations. The habit of “Take others' advice” has become a hallmark behavior among Xiaohongshu users. In 2023, topics related to “Take others' advice” received over 900 million views, with searches up by 51 times year-over-year. This authentic, peer-driven recommendation culture is at the core of Xiaohongshu’s “if in doubt, ask Xiaohongshu” ethos, largely fueled by mid- and long-tail KOCs. Authentic KOC content on Xiaohongshu, driven by this massive tail of smaller influencers, has a 40% higher engagement than average corporate content, and the best KOC content outperforms corporate content by 7 to 8 times in conversion rates. According to Xiaohongshu’s CMO, “planting the seed” marketing has become the third primary marketing method, following brand and performance ads.

 

(3) Mature Brand Strategies

Brands are increasingly investing in the “planting the seed” model, which has evolved into a refined approach on Xiaohongshu. During the pre-launch phase of new products, brands initially collaborate with top influencers to build initial awareness, followed by extensive use of KOCs to drive word-of-mouth promotion. For brands with limited budgets, KOCs offer a more economical and scalable option, due to their higher availability. Moreover, campaigns of top influencers may not guarantee success, making the scalable, cost-effective KOC strategy a more reliable choice.

 

Conclusion

To maintain a healthy community atmosphere, Xiaohongshu has long prioritized community building over monetization, lagging behind later platforms like Douyin in commercialization. However, as Xiaohongshu’s CMO noted, “The past year has seen rapid progress in monetization operations on Xiaohongshu.” With its substantial user base and high engagement levels, Xiaohongshu's long-tail monetization model will require ongoing optimization to balance ecosystem health with a sustainable monetization trajectory. On the one hand, its decentralized approach creates a healthier monetization ecosystem. On the other, from a brand perspective, Xiaohongshu emphasizes patience in advertising and product promotion, favoring steady, organic growth over immediate viral impact.