Bilibili’s “618” Shopping Festival: A Growth Story Powered by Content and Innovation
Bilibili, the rapidly growing video-sharing platform, showcased robust performance during its 2025 “618” shopping festival, building on last year’s momentum. The platform’s advertising revenue from product sales surged 41% year-over-year. Notably, advertising revenue from the digital and home appliance categories saw a remarkable 111% increase.
This year’s “618” also witnessed increased engagement from content creators (UP hosts) and consumers. The number of UP hosts achieving over 10 million RMB in sales increased by 66% year-over-year, while the gross merchandise volume from premium products (priced above 1,000 RMB) jumped nearly 50%.
**”Open Loop” Strategy Fuels Growth**
Bilibili’s “Big Open Loop” strategy continues to deliver incremental business for e-commerce platforms and brand merchants. The “Spark Plan,” in partnership with Taobao Alliance, demonstrated significant results during “618.” Data indicates that Bilibili drove almost 60% of new customer traffic to various industry e-commerce platforms.
**Government Subsidies Boost Demand: Tech and Appliance Category Leads**
Government subsidy programs introduced in 2025 incentivized consumers to seek out deals, prompting a surge in interest for high-quality, cost-effective products. Bilibili, with its vast user base, is a pivotal platform for consumer decision-making. The platform’s UP hosts create compelling video content.
Searches related to government subsidies on Bilibili jumped 133% during the shopping festival. Topics like “subsidy guides” and “upgrade recommendations” attracted considerable attention.
Fueled by government support and popular UP host content, the digital and home appliance sector witnessed a near 50% increase in sales through Bilibili during “618.” Analyzing the effectiveness of its campaign, the computer category stood out. For example, four computer-focused UP hosts boosted sales of Lenovo products, generating over 70 million RMB in transactions. Lenovo achieved an impressive return on investment, with one individual video reaching over 100% conversion. Furthermore, Bilibili drove an impressive 40% of Lenovo’s new customer acquisitions during the festival.
Advertisers in these high-growth categories ramped up their spending. Advertising revenue in the digital and appliance category soared 111% during “618.” The home furnishing and interior design sector also saw robust gains, recording a 59% year-over-year increase in advertising revenue.
**Content Creators Drive Sales**
A growing number of UP hosts participated in the festival, showcasing their ability to influence consumer behavior and boost sales. The number of content creators selling products rose 34% year over year. Several UP hosts, including Mr. Mistake, Wilson, Master Lu, and others, reached over 50 million RMB in total sales during the shopping festival.
**AI Optimizes Advertising and “Open Loop” Capabilities**
Bilibili is implementing an “Open Loop” strategy with multiple e-commerce partners, including Tmall, JD.com, and Vipshop. The objective is to optimize data integration and create long-term sustainable sales and enhance brand recognition. In 2025, Bilibili upgraded the “Jinghuo” and “Spark” plans on the data side. It also launched the “Star Companion Plan” in association with Taobao. This plan provides financial incentives and additional data rights for marketing investments.
Bilibili invested in commercial development ahead of “618” with the rollout of the AI-powered “Insight Agent” that streamlines the marketing process. The Insight Agent leverages artificial intelligence to help businesses identify the right UP hosts for their campaigns. By plugging in the Insight Agent, Bilibili’s sales transactions increased fivefold, and the data analysis also increased threefold.
The platform’s increasingly strong “Open Loop” focus, along with better AI-driven commercialization, has made the platform a favorite destination for advertisers during the sales festival. The amount of advertising clients on the Bilibili platform increased almost 60% during this year’s “618.”
In the small appliance category, there was a notable surge in click-through rate on product links (14x) coupled with a substantial increase (330%) in the number of related advertisements from content creators on the platform. In the furniture segment, Bilibili is a crucial advertising spot for many industry brands. This past spring, the Autofull gaming chair primarily used only Bilibili advertising to contribute 50% of the model’s sales.
Bilibili’s improved business methods, the overall increase in commercial efficiency within the community, and the maturation of its trading mindset are set to play a key role in growing the reach and conversion rates of brands.
Original article, Author: Tobias. If you wish to reprint this article, please indicate the source:https://aicnbc.com/2931.html
