Social marketing in China
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In my last column, I discussed the need for business to understand, educate and connect with Chinese consumers. Social marketing is a key part of this, and Thai firms need to get to grips with indigenous social networks and messaging platforms in order to
Thai companies may have learned how to build business by using Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp and Line. The problem is these popular platforms are not available behind the so-called Great Firewall of China. This has led to the development of a number of home-grown alternatives. China’s key social media and messaging platforms, with their corresponding penetration rates (measured as the percentage of Internet users who have used them recently) are: WeChat (24 per cent), QZone (21 per cent), Sina Weibo (16 per cent), Baidu Tieba (14 per cent) and TenCent Weibo (12 per cent).
To these can be added QQ, a messaging application with more than 850 million monthly active users and the second-largest social network in the world, after Facebook. But while QQ is especially popular with rural communities in China, WeChat currently offers far greater functionality and is preferred by many.
Baidu Tieba comprises groups that have developed around key search-based interests on Baidu, the country’s largest search engine – all of which demonstrates the importance of content in connecting your brands with relevant interest groups.
Niche platforms may also be relevant – such as Meilishuo, which focuses on women’s fashion and has 150 million registered users, and Qyer, an e-tourism website with 10 million users and 5 million app downloads. Video is also becoming increasingly popular for promoting brands.
Social research
Chinese consumers rely heavily on social media as a source of research on products and brands, with 23 per cent saying social media is the first place they look for this, compared with just 8 per cent in the US.
A significant 75 per cent post product reviews and ratings at least once a month, almost four times the figure for the US.
Businesses must therefore think about how to connect with potential customers at this crucial research stage, and have a strategy for dealing with issues raised in consumer reviews.
Going mobile
As with Thailand, mobile plays a vital role in digital China, where there are 1.31 billion mobile connections and 653 million active social media users in China – more than Europe and the US combined.
Despite the opportunity for mobile technology to reach all of China’s inhabitants, there’s still a significant urban bias. As of last September, WeChat was used by 93 per cent of people in tier-1 cities, dropping to 28 per cent in tier-5. Less than one-third of rural inhabitants are online, so businesses trying to penetrate that market need to broaden their efforts beyond just social marketing.
As with many things, the devil is in the detail when it comes to social marketing in China. It is difficult for newcomers to the market to stand out among the billions of social media posts; however, the better a business understands its target audience, the better its chance of success.
