Social media is an influential way of launching and developing your brand in China. The Chinese are heavy social media consumers as they spend an average of 25 hours a week on Social media. China has close to 900 million internet users, and 90% of them have a social media account, in contrast to the United States, where less than 70% of internet users have a social media account.
To increase your company’s presence in China, you have to have an active social media presence. Let’s look at the most powerful social networks in China.
WeChat
WeChat is the most popular social network in China. The platform includes voice messages, text messages, games, video, mobile payments, and e-commerce. If you want to engage directly with your customers, it is recommended you use WeChat.
WeChat allows businesses to focus on ads based on age, region, and gender to reach more potential buyers. This platform provides brands with access to unique offers and special content. Via this strategy, companies improve their reputation and increase customer loyalty. When planning your marketing strategy, you should consider the following:
WeChat Content
WeChat is absolutely distinct from the Western social media platforms. For you to reach many Chinese buyers, you have to modify your message to their needs. Chinese buyers look for relevant, authentic, and rich content. Therefore, your WeChat content marketing has to be effective consistently.
Creative Posts
You can make a post on WeChat, just like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. This feature enables you to share all your products or services to your followers. This is an efficient way of increasing your online presence and interacting with more buyers as they are interested in creative and innovative posts. You can publish a picture with text, video, text, and audio.
Advertising
The most common way of advertising on WeChat is using WeChat Moments. WeChat Ads is the most productive way to increase interaction in China on the nation’s most popular social network.
Sina Weibo
This is another popular Chinese social network that is similar to Twitter. Just like Twitter, it allows its users to only post 140 characters, including links, pictures, and videos. Sina Weibo has over 500 million users and is ideal for brands to participate in conversations, promote themselves, and get customer feedback. You have to focus your energy on making shareable and relevant content.
This platform is a necessity if you want to participate in the Chinese online marketing. Sina Weibo has the following types of advertising:
- Weibo Search Engine – This is Weibo’s search bar that has the hot search list.
- Banner Ads – This is a backlink that leads users to your home page when they click it.
- Fan Tunnel – This is a Weibo advertising feature that will help you reach a much larger audience.
- Fan Headline - This is a popular advertising feature on Weibo that enables you to promote your content or account.
E-Commerce Platforms
Internet shopping in China is big as there are more than 500 million online shoppers. Tmall, owned by Alibaba, is China’s biggest e-commerce platform. This is normally where foreign companies begin selling in China. Companies don’t have to hold stock or be a legal entity in China.
Social media marketing in China is different from the West. Therefore, if you want to market your brand in China, you should work with a reliable China Marketing Agency to increase your visibility.