If you plan to expand in China, you should get yourself familiar with Chinese social media. It is a very dynamic market where the competition reaches very high levels. For many years, it seemed like Chinese platforms were mimicking their Western counterparts but it is not true anymore. They are very innovative and we see now more and more Western competitors copying ideas from them. If you want to expand in China, where should you start?
First of all, the main Western messengers for business include WhatsApp and LinkedIn whereas in China, WeChat is definitely the king. Its interface, design and some other features are quite similar to WhatsApp. For instance, both apps have a green logos with similar images. However, when you download WeChat and use it even for 10 minutes, you will realise how sophisticated the app is right now. Apart from basic functions like chatting and creating group chats, it also has a build in Moments feature which is like a Facebook feed but only available to your friends. Additionally, you can create channels and publish videos that other users of the app can view. If you are a company, you can create an official WeChat account with bots that allow you to get new clients and finalise your deals. Would they need to use a debit card to pay for your service? Not anymore. They can directly pay with WeChat Pay, a built-in e-commerce feature which allows you to transfer money, pay online and even order your groceries. Is that it? Well, what if I told you that you can also translate texts directly, get an immediate transcript of a voice message, donate your money, order Didi (Chinese equivalent of Uber) and much more. So definitely download WeChat now and explore all its features on your own.
After downloading WeChat and meeting your first clients, you would probably like to get more exposure for your business. How would you do in the West? Probably you would create an Instagram and LinkedIn accounts and then take it from there. Well, in China it is a bit more complicated. The market is very dynamic, 10 years ago Weibo was very popular, 5 years ago Douyin (Chinese TikTok) took off and controlled major junk of the market whereas now we are witnessing the rise of Kuaishou. What should you choose then? Well, here it gets tricky. No matter what kind of industry you specialise in, Wechat is a must. However, it is not essential to register on all other platforms. Yes, you can do it to secure the brand name of your company but you might consider to specialise in a few of those platforms. You would have to choose from BiliBili, Douyin, Kuaishou, Youku, QQ, XiaoHongShu, JinriToutiao and many more. However, this would require advice of a professional consultant to prepare a long-term business plan.
Where could you get more help regarding Chinese social media? Join OKE Club today and get the access to entrepreneurs who could help you on your journey in the Chinese market.
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