Discussing the challenges faced in the development of architectural coatings.

The building materials market has found that there are currently as many as 10 marketing channels in the paint market, yet almost all have some loopholes and certain risks. Due to the considerable benefits brought to paint companies by celebrity endorsements, many paint companies are eager to have celebrities endorse their products. However, this reflects a misunderstanding of brand building; whether it can truly enhance brand effectiveness is a big question mark.

Many companies believe that the image of a celebrity is equivalent to the brand image of the product. They think that as long as they choose the method of celebrity endorsement, the brand image of the company will improve, and at the same time, the sales of the product will also increase.

Little do they know, this concept is the biggest misunderstanding companies have about brand building. Companies naively believe that celebrity endorsements can really bring a sensational effect to the brand, but in fact, there is no necessary causal relationship between celebrity endorsements, brand image, and product sales.

Although the controversies caused by celebrity endorsements are ongoing, the presence of celebrities next to paint products is still very eye-catching. It is hard to say that celebrity endorsement is synonymous with "hype"; after all, good products do need appropriate promotion, and celebrity endorsements should enhance product sales and publicity.

Of course, when paint companies choose celebrity endorsements, they should also position themselves correctly. Just because a company chooses a celebrity endorsement does not mean they should raise the product price accordingly. The celebrity endorsement of a company’s brand should not override the product price; the value of celebrity endorsement lies in brand promotion and construction, so do not lose sight of the bigger picture.

Currently, there are as many as 10 marketing channels in the paint market, but almost all have certain loopholes and risks. As the market gradually develops and situations continue to change, how to innovate channels has become a pressing issue.

Data shows that China's total annual paint production has gradually increased from 1.81 million tons ten years ago to over 9 million tons, with an annual growth rate climbing year by year, making it the world's largest paint producer. With such rapid growth, paint companies are facing a development bottleneck: there are many channels, but it is difficult to make them "worry-free".

Including building materials supermarkets, direct sales stores, decoration companies, online group buying, engineering channels, etc., there are currently as many as 10 marketing channels in the paint market. While the number is large, it is very difficult for paint companies to control them. "Mr. Guo, the marketing manager of a certain group company in Guangdong, expressed his frustrations at the forum.

He gave an example: entering the building materials supermarket channel requires a large amount of entrance fees, promotional fees, advertising fees, etc., which leads to the necessity of raising prices. Once prices go up, the company's competitiveness in pricing is lost, and business will definitely be affected. Therefore, innovating marketing models has become an urgent matter for the paint industry.

Due to the impact of new policies in the real estate market, the building materials and home furnishing industry has been dragged down, and the performance growth of related companies has also slowed. Affected by the 'freeze' in the real estate market, the performance growth expectations of paint companies may be adjusted from 70% to between 40% and 50%.

According to the latest statistics from relevant departments, the sales output value of China's building materials industry from January to June was 1,569.959 billion yuan, an increase of 32.52% year-on-year; the shipment value was 76.958 billion yuan, an increase of 22.07% year-on-year; the production and sales rate was 97.05%, an increase of 0.37% year-on-year. From the above data, it can be seen that China's building materials industry still maintains a high growth rate, but considering the lagging effect of historical statistical data and the continuous introduction of real estate control policies since 2011, industry insiders remain generally worried about the industry's prospects.

More and more people are getting in touch with the internet. Due to a series of advantages that the internet offers, many companies have also entered the internet field. Online investment and agency have been increasingly favored by many companies and agents, gradually becoming the mainstream model for investment and agency.

Online investment in paint is particularly favored by online platforms, which is likely related to the relative stability of investment and agency in the paint industry. Since major paint portal websites launched sections for paint investment and agency, they have been favored by paint companies and agents. Quite a number of paint companies and merchants have shifted their focus on paint investment and agency to the internet, making online platforms exceptionally lively.

The emergence of this trend is inseparable from the inherent advantages of online platforms. Some summarize the advantages of online investment and agency into four points: first, low investment cost and high returns. Second, fast speed and high efficiency. Information consultation and communication can be completed within minutes online through email. Third, communication is simple and convenient, with strong interactivity.

During visits to major paint markets, I found that the promotional methods of merchants were quite lackluster. Apart from common activities like buy-give, points, double deposits, and discounts for reaching a certain amount, most markets did not have many distinctive promotional policies. In the context where price wars are gradually losing effectiveness, competition between markets and merchants will shift more towards distinctive content and personalized services. Competition among enterprises will evolve into competition over service levels, corporate culture, and other soft conditions.

People have a lot of pressure in their work and life, and they need to relax on weekends. Most people who shop for decoration hope that visiting paint markets can be linked with shopping, leisure, and entertainment. When a paint market forms a business circle with surrounding service facilities, consumers can relax, shop, and entertain nearby after visiting the market, which undoubtedly has a huge appeal to consumers.