Social is key.

The Chinese consumer loves WeChat.

Therefore, the key to engaging with the Chinese consumer is understanding Wechat. But what exactly is WeChat? WeChat it is the most popular communication channel in China and used by over 700 million users daily. The application, created by Tencent, was originally used for instant messaging. However, due to the demand of the Chinese market, WeChat quickly developed into the digital version of a Swiss army knife. WeChat now, in addition to just instant messaging, offers functions for social media, e-commerce and even payment services.

It can be very challenging to attract the Chinese consumer to your e-commerce platform. Especially because of the fierce competition during the many different e-commerce events such as 11.11 (singles day), 12.12, Christmas or Chinese New Year. For this reason, it is important to utilize WeChat’s social functions. These social functions allow you to engage with your consumers on a daily basis. During these social moments, it is possible to encourage the consumer with your own promotion campaigns. You can set loyalty programs and offer different discounts for platinum, gold or silver members. Which in turn creates an extra incentive for your members to buy.

It is essential to use Wechat’s social functions in an effective manner in order to gain a large number of followers. For example, the brand Uniqlo organized a campaign in which consumers would take a picture in front of a green screen wearing Uniqlo clothing. When people received these pictures on WeChat they would show up as standing in different locations in the world wearing their Uniqlo outfits. These pictures were shared massively. Thanks to this campaign Uniqlo boosted its WeChat followers from 400.000 to 1.000.000. Resulting in 1.000.000 people that will read about Uniqlo daily and will potentially buy more products.

Are you curious to find out what possibilities WeChat offers for your brand? Our China experts’ in-depth knowledge will help your business to better understand WeChat. They will help determine which campaign will be most suitable for your consumer group. But also how to best engage with them through WeChat social.

Sign up now to get in touch with a specialist form our China data insights team. If desired, we can take a closer look at scenarios and perform an in-depth market research specific to the queries your business might have.