How to do marketing in China?

Exploring to expand your business to China? This is your chance! 

China is in many sectors one of the most lucrative markets at the moment. With over 350 million middle-class consumers, an average GDP growth of 7% year-on-year and a powerful online ecosystem with more than 1 billion daily active users, which makes them the largest online community in the world. 

There is only one conflicting advice for companies who are looking to give it a chance in China; marketing strategies always needs to be tailored case by case. I recommend that you have depth conversation with multiple sources before making a decision. 

Who thought offline marketing is still a thing in China, forget it. Online is KING. The majority off all the marketing in the country is online, simply because of the exposure, reach, influence and ROI. 

You have to understand the Chinese platforms

Thinking about running Google Adwords or a Facebook campaign, don't even think about it. China has blocked most of the Western giants, which includes Google, Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp (partly), Youtube and Twitter. 

China has it’s own similarities, Weibo instead of Twitter, WeChat instead of Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram, Baidu instead of Google and Youku instead of Youtube. Every platform is unique, and needs it’s own approach. 

The average Chinese user is spends 2 hours browsing the web a day. You have to understand where users are searching for information, and ensure that you’re highly visible on these platforms, in front of your target demographic. The Chinese consumer does a lot of research, as products are often associated with fakery or lower quality. International brands stand out from a local competitor, in terms of quality and reputation, so this could be a benefit, if you do it right!

Quality is important

Being highly visible online by using the right keywords to creating a quality website which is preferably hosted in China, is key. Use the right set of characters depending on the location of your target group. 

Simply translating your western marketing campaign into Mandarin is often ineffective. Besides values and priorities, there are so many nuanced and localised ways to express information. I would recommend to always get copywriters who are located and specialised in the region you are targeting. 

WeChat is one of China’s most powerful platforms

If you order a taxi, buy a banana at a food stall or get your air-conditioning repaired, in most cases you will see that the Chinese open their WeChat. This platform currently has more than 900 million daily active users and is probably the most intelligent and integrated platform in world. 

WeChat is used for campaign communication, building and pushing content to your target audience and providing another touchpoint for consumers and prospects. 

For businesses, we recommend to set up an official account (personal or business), you can to this either third-part hosted or through a local business license. WeChat is a powerful branding tool and an official account ensures trust and quality. 

Besides an official account, you can also set-up your own WeChat Store, which allows you to sell directly up to 20 unique products. Surfing happens within the app and Chinese will unlikely search for your business website on mobile. 

In China it’s all about the numbers behind it. I’m publishing guides on how to do Baidu and WeChat right soon. 

Need help with your marketing in China? Do contact us, we’d love to help you out! 

Cheers,

Fabian Ouwehand

[email protected] / www.uplab.asia