Young people wait in line day and night, just for that short 10-minute rush to buy the opportunity, this enthusiasm and persistence even made scalpers and fans stage a "hand-to-hand fight", just to compete for the favorite doll...... Recently, a pop-up event co-branded by CHIIKAWA and a premium product has sparked a rush to buy among young people. The event only took 10 hours to create a year's income for ordinary stores, and the per capita consumption was as high as 1,000 yuan.
Not only that, the traditional commercial entities in many places rely on the collective "resurrection" of the second yuan, and the second yuan-related formats of a shopping mall in Chengdu account for more than half, and a large number of young customers have poured in, driving the average monthly sales of the store to one million. This strong consumption undoubtedly proves the important position of ACG culture in the hearts of young people.
From this pan-two-dimensional consumption frenzy that originated from the two-dimensional and has a broader extension, it can be seen that the young people are pursuing their personal interests at the same time, they are also invisibly promoting the integration of culture and economy, opening up a new world of cultural consumption.
Through buying grain, cosplaying, and chasing ACG Internet celebrities, young people are trying to establish a link between ACG and ACG in their own unique way, and explore their own cultural space. Behind this enthusiasm is the new demand and new attitude of young people towards cultural consumption.
01 What is pan-two-dimensional?
Pan-ACG refers to the surrounding culture related to ACG culture, including comics, light novels, animation, film and television, games and other forms, and correspondingly, this kind of cultural audience is called pan-ACG users.
Unlike ACG consumption, which is more concentrated in the core anime fan group, pan-ACG culture covers a wider audience, including those who have a certain interest in anime culture but are not deeply involved. The development of the pan-ACG economy has also given rise to new business models, such as the rise of crowdfunding platforms, which allow consumers to directly participate in the production and distribution process of animation works, forming a new interactive relationship between consumers and creators.
At present, the pan-ACG economy is based on the Internet and mobile Internet platforms, cultivating star IPs through open co-creation, and building a symbiotic ecosystem of multi-content forms around these IPs. This is not only a vertical expansion in the field of animation, but also a manifestation of a pan-entertainment strategy.
In this ecosystem, anime authors, comic fans, pan-anime users, and industry partners can gather to jointly promote the popularity and development of ACG animation content. At the same time, with animation star IP as the core, the pan-two-dimensional economy and other content forms such as film and television, literature, and games promote each other, forming a mutually beneficial and win-win "pan-entertainment" ecology.
According to the latest data, the number of pan-ACG users in China has reached 490 million, and it is expected to grow to 520 million by 2026, accounting for more than 1/3 of the total population. In 2017, the number of core ACG users has reached about 80 million, of which more than 97% are post-90s and post-00s, who are loyal supporters and active disseminators of ACG culture.
"Pan-ACG products are more expressive and easier to capture the hearts of young people. In this process, it is natural that two-dimensional culture has become the mainstream culture of young people. The person in charge of the game of the two-dimensional distribution brand said. The two-dimensional cultural boom has brought about a climax of industrial growth. This kind of pan-two-dimensional economy, with animation, games, and light novels as the core, and diversified consumption such as clothing, trendy toys, and offline activities, is bursting out with unprecedented vitality and consumption potential, and has gradually become a social and cultural force that cannot be ignored.
02 Gen Z is redefining "mainstream"
In the past, it was considered a pan-two-dimensional business format in a niche circle, but now it has quietly grown into a huge blue ocean of 100 million users. This change not only reflects the consumption trend of young people, but also indicates a new trend in the cultural industry.
According to the "2023 Cross-border Co-branded Marketing Trend Report" released by SocialBeta, among the 4,428 brand marketing cases, cross-border co-branding cases accounted for nearly 15%, covering multiple industries from food and beverage, catering, clothing, beauty, home furnishing, automobile, finance and other industries. This shows that the two-dimensional culture is infiltrating into the three-dimensional world and becoming an important part of a trendy lifestyle. Coffee, outdoor, pets and other trendy lifestyle co-branded products are especially popular in the market, and the boundaries between two-dimensional and three-dimensional are becoming more and more blurred, and the interaction and integration between the two are becoming more and more frequent.
"The generation that grew up watching anime is starting to become the backbone of society, and their preferences will affect the general direction of brand marketing. Sociology expert Li Chenyu said. This deep integration of culture and market is leading a consumer revolution and providing new marketing ideas and business opportunities for brands.
In this process, ACG culture is not only a consumer product, but also a manifestation of cultural symbols and lifestyles. Young people express their individuality and values through the consumption of ACG products, and seek recognition and a sense of belonging with their peers. At the same time, ACG culture also provides an opportunity for brands to establish emotional connections with young consumers, and through cross-border cooperation and co-branded products, brands can better communicate with young people and meet their individual needs.
However, with the rapid development of the pan-quadratic economy, it has also brought some challenges and problems. How to continuously innovate content, improve user experience, and balance commercial value and cultural value has become an urgent problem for the industry to solve. At the same time, how to ensure that young people can consume healthily and rationally while pursuing two-dimensional culture is also an issue that society needs to pay attention to.
Addressing these challenges also requires a diversified approach. First of all, content creators and brands should have a deep understanding of the core values of ACG culture and the characteristics of fan groups, and innovate content and products based on this. Secondly, enterprises should strengthen the analysis and research of the pan-ACG market, grasp the market trend, and formulate a reasonable market strategy. In addition, all sectors of society should also work together to guide young people to establish a correct concept of consumption and avoid excessive consumption and blindly following trends.
The vigorous development of the pan-two-dimensional economy is not only an economic phenomenon, but also a manifestation of cultural pluralism and social openness. With the growth of Generation Z and the deepening of the two-dimensional culture, perhaps a more mature, diverse and inclusive era of cultural consumption will come sooner.
Written by Cai Yutong