China Digital Marketing

China Digital Marketing

WeChat for Luxury Brands: 5 Things That You Should Know

ATC | WeChat for Luxury Brands - 5 Things You Should Know Featured Image 1.2

With over 1.2 billion active users, WeChat is the most effective platform for luxury brands to interact with Chinese consumers. 

Why do retailers choose to tap the China market? Why do they prefer WeChat? Here are 5 data-driven facts that may answer your questions.

1. China is winning half of the luxury world

According to Bain’s prediction in May 2020, when Covid-19 hit, the luxury industry faced struggles when countries around the world went into lockdown, forcing to shutdown tourism industries.

During the first quarter of 2020, an estimated drop of 25% was experienced, and was expected to slide further down during the second quarter of 2020.

It is also projected that an estimated contraction for the full year may reach between 20% to 35%.

China began to step up their recovery efforts, and wants Chinese consumers to actively take part, as they are seen to account for almost 50% of the market by the year 2025.

Online luxury purchases have escalated throughout this year and by 2025, online channels may perhaps represent up to 30% of the market.

WeChat for Luxury Brands - 5 Things You Should Know | D38

Image: Bain-Altagamma Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study, Spring 2020

WeChat for Luxury Brands - 5 Things You Should Know | D38

Image: Bain-Altagamma Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study, Spring 2020

2. Generation Y have been consistent buyers of luxury goods

Millennials, also known as Generation Y (or simply Gen Y, born between 1980 and 1995).

According to Bain’s report, they account for 35% of consumption in 2019 and by 2025, they could make up for 45% of the market.

Did you know? How many Gen Y users on WeChat

As of Q2 of 2020, according to the overall MAU of different social platforms in China, WeChat has the most MAUs between 25 and 40 years old.

WeChat for Luxury Brands - 5 Things You Should Know | D38

3. In the past five years, the average annual growth rate of WeChat advertising in the luxury goods industry exceeded 90%

In Q1 2020, Tencent’s report on “WeChat Ads Solution for Luxury Brands” revealed that the average annual growth rate of WeChat advertising in the luxury industry has exceeded 90% in the past five years.

Did you know? The most popular ad on WeChat is the WeChat Moments Ads.

Moments ads are the native ads displayed on users’ moments’ feed, with an additional “Ad” tag in the upper right corner.

The same report shows that in 2019, the brand’s favorite is the card format with video, which is 43.33% of the total amount of ads.

WeChat for Luxury Brands - 5 Things You Should Know | D38

Source: WeChat Ads Solution for Luxury Brands Q12020, Tencent

By using Moments Ads, merchants can promote their brands and increase consumer conversion rates by targeting people based on their interests and other traits.

At the same time, consumers believe in recommendations from influencers. By using Moments Ads to place advertisements into the user’s daily moments, allows users to resonate with the advertisements and is very conducive to monetizing traffic.

4. Mini Programs have become a standard for brands on social media marketing

By Q4 2019, more than 90% of the luxury brands present in China established their WeChat Mini Programs. Here, luxury brands realize in-depth communication with users and operations such as online purchase, loyalty program, brand service, and marketing engagement

WeChat for Luxury Brands - 5 Things You Should Know | D38

Source: WeChat Ads Solution for Luxury Brands Q12020, Tencent

What is Mini Program?

It is a program that is integrated into the WeChat app, giving brands expanded functions to engage users.

A Mini Program offers more interactive features than a brand’s official Facebook page.

Here, buyers can browse products, see campaigns, live chat feature with customer service representatives, easy way to purchase products with WeChat Pay, and many more.

5. WeChat Official Account (OA) Verification: First Step to WeChat Advertising

As stated in the 2019 Tencent report, 49% of luxury brands chose to link their official webpages straight to a third-party eCommerce for diversion while 40% chose to stick to the brands’ official accounts.

Hence, before the brand wants to be exposed in the market, it is very important and necessary to have a WeChat OA certified by WeChat.

Why is WeChat OA Verification important?

* It’s the first step of WeChat Advertising: Hotels should have a verified WeChat OA ready before applying for a WeChat Ads account.

* Authentic presence of a brand: After OA authentication, it strengthens the credibility of the WeChat account.

* Enjoy more advanced functions: WeChat Advertising, WeChat Pay, Voucher, and more advanced APIs.

Explore WeChat digital marketing opportunities in Asia

Are you ready to take a leap and win the Chinese-speaking market? WeChat may be the platform you’re looking for.

Digital 38 is an Official Sales Partner of WeChat Ads. With this, we can help you get started with WeChat digital marketing services such as:

  1. Official Account Setup & Verification
  2. Content & Page Management
  3. Mini Program Setup
  4. WeChat Pay Setup

Get in touch with our team today.

About Digital 38

Digital 38 is a 360° Digital Marketing Agency with a strong presence in Southeast Asia and Greater China. With experience in digital marketing since 2006, we have 100+ digital specialists that cater to our clients’ diverse digital needs. We aim to simplify digital marketing, eCommerce and social media marketing solutions for forward-looking companies across the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

Our services including end-to-end Ecommerce solutions, Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation, regional digital marketing on platforms like Tencent WeChat, Weibo and ByteDance TikTok, DouYin, TouTiao, LINE, and Naver, influencer marketing and Live Seller hosting for eCommerce sales.

#DigitalAgency #EcomAgency #WeChat #WeChatAdvertising #ATC #asiamarketingsimplified #ChinaDigitalMarketing

China Digital Marketing

Weibo Advertising: FansTong Ads allowed for Medical Entity Outside China

Weibo Advertising: FansTong Ads allowed for Medical Entity Outside China

If you’re a registered medical company outside China and ready to target the China market, here’s good news about Weibo advertising for you!

Weibo is now offering FansTong Ads for medical service providers overseas, which was previously disallowed.

This new offer helps medical institutions to market and maintain their international presence, especially among the Chinese market.

Weibo Advertising: What is Weibo FansTong Ads?

To reach out to 516 million active monthly users on Weibo, advertising such as FansTong Ads (粉丝通) is one way. FansTong Ads promote Weibo account and Weibo post.

Not only does it tap into your account’s followers, but it massively targets the entire Weibo community allowing you to reach out to more audiences.

Weibo Advertising FansTong Ads

Furthermore, FansTong Ads come in 3 types – Post Ads, Banner Ads and Lead Ads. It can be in the form of images, an article or a video. And it appears on the top or near the user’s feed as Weibo recommendation.

More importantly, it raises brand awareness by supporting external and internal landing pages, call-to-action buttons, app downloads, and WeChat QR code.

With the aid of digital media agency Digital 38, now’s your chance to explore business opportunity via China Social Media Marketing. Contact Digital 38 today to get started!

Digital 38 is the Official Sales Partner of WeChat, TikTok, 抖音(Douyin) & 头条(TouTiao).

About Digital 38

Digital 38 is a 360° Digital Marketing Agency with a strong presence in Southeast Asia and Greater China. With experience in digital marketing since 2006, we have 100+ digital specialists that cater to our clients’ diverse digital needs. We aim to simplify digital marketing, eCommerce and social media marketing solutions for forward-looking companies across the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

Our services including end-to-end Ecommerce solutions, Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation, regional digital marketing on platforms like Tencent WeChat, Weibo and ByteDance TikTok, DouYin, TouTiao, LINE, and Naver, influencer marketing and Live Seller hosting for eCommerce sales.

#DigitalAgency #EcomAgency #Weibo #FangsTongAds #ChinaDigitalMarketing #ATC #asiamarketingsimplified

China Digital Marketing

WeChat Official Account (OA) Verification: First Step To WeChat Advertising

ATCwechatfeaturedimage

WeChat is known as the super app in China. It combines the power of messaging, social media, e-commerce and mobile payment into one platform.

With 1.2 billion active users, WeChat is a perfect marketing platform for businesses outside China looking to tap into the Chinese market, and reach out more customers.

Let’s have a look on how ST Signature in Singapore explored the market through WeChat marketing.

ST Signature (ST共居旅店) Launches WeChat Page

WeChat Official Account (OA) Verification: First Step To WeChat Advertising

The first co-living hotel in Singapore with smart Chat-In™ technology, ST Signature promotes safer, faster and contactless check-in and check-out services. Now, they launched their WeChat Official Account to promote their hotels to more Chinese consumers.

With their WeChat Official Account, users can follow the brand for the latest hotel information, deals and promotions as well as Singapore travel guide.How Hotels Can Use WeChat for Marketing ​

Here are the 4 things you need to know about hotel WeChat marketing.

  • Set up WeChat Official Account (OA): Through WeChat content marketing or event promotions, hotel brands can increase WeChat organic reach and fan base.

Don’t know which WeChat Official Account suits you best? Contact us now to get started.

  • Apply for WeChat Ad Account: Exposure for your hotel brand, reach new users, and explore more potential consumers.
  • Set Up WeChat Mini Program A unique distribution channel in China for brands to increase their online direct sales, avoid the high commissions of China’s OTA platform (as we know, the commission of the Ctrip platform is up to 25%).
  • Apply for WeChat PaymentIn China, you might hang out without bringing cash, but not WeChat Pay. By setting up WeChat Pay for your hotel brands, it helps you reach consumers directly and secure fast payment.

Why is WeChat OA Verification important?

  • It’s the first step of WeChat Advertising: Hotels should have a verified WeChat OA ready before applying for WeChat Ads account.
  • Authentic presence of a brand: After OA authentication, it strengthens the credibility of OA.
  • Enjoy more advanced functions: WeChat Advertising, WeChat Pay, Voucher and more advanced APIs.

About Digital 38

Digital 38 is a 360° Digital Marketing Agency with a strong presence in Southeast Asia and Greater China. With experience in digital marketing since 2006, we have 100+ digital specialists that cater to our clients' diverse digital needs. We aim to simplify digital marketing, eCommerce and social media marketing solutions for forward-looking companies across the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

Our services including end-to-end Ecommerce solutions, Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation, regional digital marketing on platforms like Tencent WeChat, Weibo and ByteDance TikTok, DouYin, TouTiao, LINE, and Naver, influencer marketing and Live Seller hosting for eCommerce sales.

#DigitalAgency #EcomAgency #ChinaDigitalMarketing #ATC #asiamarketingsimplified #SEO #SEM #SearchEngineMarketing

China Digital Marketing

Thailand’s IGNITE Launches Verified Weibo Account

Thailand’s IGNITE Now Has Verified Weibo Account | Digital 38

Thailand’s IGNITE is now on Weibo.

IGNITE recently launched its official and verified Weibo account, opening another channel for customers to learn more about their latest events, promotions, and further expanding their presence online. 

What is IGNITE?  

IGNITE is the lifestyle and consumer brands arm of PKN Interholding Co., Ltd in Thailand. They are the licensing partner of several internationally popular franchises from Japan and the U.S. such as MARVEL, Despicable Me, and One Piece.  

IGNITE’s Weibo OA  

Thailand’s IGNITE Now Has Verified Weibo Account | Digital 38
Screenshots of IGNITE Weibo OA on desktop.

IGNITE recently activated and verified its Weibo official account (OA), China’s equivalent to Twitter, allowing them to penetrate and tap China markets, both in Thailand and abroad.

Thailand’s IGNITE Now Has Verified Weibo Account | Digital 38
Screenshots of IGNITE Weibo OA on mobile.

Followers of their official Weibo account will also get to know important updates and announcements, including sales and promotions, right at their fingertips. 

Introduce Your Business to China’s 1 Billion Tech-Savvy Users 

China’s population of 1.43 billion, as of 2020, rely heavily on digital devices for their day-to-day routines. A country with a tech-savvy majority is an opportunity brands and businesses must definitely not miss.  

Weibo, one of the most popular microblogging sites in China, is only one way of penetrating and capturing this market.  

Here at Digital 38, we are not only the official partner agency of Sina Weibo. We are also the sales and marketing partner of other equally popular online platforms in China including Tencent, ByteDance, Baidu, and MaFengWo.  

Give our China digital marketing team a call to learn more what other services we offer.  

About Digital 38

Digital 38 is a 360° Digital Marketing Agency with a strong presence in Southeast Asia and Greater China. With experience in digital marketing since 2006, we have 100+ digital specialists that cater to our clients' diverse digital needs. We aim to simplify digital marketing, eCommerce and social media marketing solutions for forward-looking companies across the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

Our services including end-to-end Ecommerce solutions, Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation, regional digital marketing on platforms like Tencent WeChat, Weibo and ByteDance TikTok, DouYin, TouTiao, LINE, and Naver, influencer marketing and Live Seller hosting for Ecommerce sales.

#DigitalAgency #EcomAgency #IGNITEThailand #Weibo #ChinaDigitalMarketing #ATC #asiamarketingsimplified #SEO #SEM #SearchEngineMarketing

China Digital Marketing

Top 3 Social Media Platforms for Foreign Real Estate in China

China Foreign Real Estate

China, a growing market is a labyrinth for businesses. In the age of social media, learn which platforms are best to promote foreign real estate in China.

A Quick Overview of the China Market

The Chinese market, a rapidly growing segment of global property buyers, is predicted to generate hundreds of billions of dollars in the near future.

China Real Estate Market
Photo source: juwai.com

Ads Regulations in China

Before jumpstarting your marketing for real estate in China, there are a few things to keep in mind such as national policies, laws, and regulations, including but not limited to:

  • Explicit or implied guarantees on the appreciation of value, return on investment, future effects, and earnings; capital preservation, risk-free returns, etc.
  • Advertisements must not indicate the project location based on the time required to reach there from a specified location.

  • Any form of advance payment, or disguised references to them, in violation of regulations (down payment stages, down payment installations, illegal down payments, etc.).

  • Any misleading promotion of transportation, commercial, cultural or educational facilities, or other municipal conditions that affect planning or construction.

  • Any superstitions such as geomantic omens or divination.

  • Using political events and news for commercial advertising.

  • Using “national,” “highest,” “best,” or similar superlative words.

  • Advertisements must be in Mandarin using standard Chinese characters. The Mandarin text must always be the primary text.

Now that you know what to look out for when promoting real estate in China, let’s see the best online platforms you could do just that.

1) TouTiao

First on the list of top 3 social media for real estate in China is TouTiao, a Chinese social news platform. It analyzes user data and customizes the news feed to show content that is relevant to its individual audience.

PROS. It is the biggest news app in China with a real estate channel. A huge chunk of its users are ages 25-50 years old, who have strong purchasing power. TouTiao also allows you to produce quality content like you would on a website. Websites are a challenge to acquire in China since you will need to file for ICP (Internet Content Provider) that is yet to be approved by the Chinese government. A platform like TouTiao saves you time and money.

CONS. Unfortunately, TouTiao official accounts for overseas entities are still not allowed. This poses as a roadblock in promoting properties outside of China.

Digital 38 is an official sales partner of TouTiao and provides services like Ad Account Setup and Media Buy to help get you started in the China market.

2) Weibo

Weibo is China’s second-largest social media platform. You can share media such as photos, videos, stories within a 140-character limit.

PROS. Weibo is the workhorse for branding as it is a widely used social media platform in China. It also offers customer service. Like TouTiao, you can produce website-like content and not anymore be required to apply for ICP.

CONS. None. This is the perfect platform for promoting your business.

For real estate businesses, Digital 38 offers Weibo official account setup & verification, account management, in-feed ads buying, and influencer marketing.

3) WeChat

WeChat is a messaging app developed by Tencent and launced in 2011. By the end of 2020, the app had gathered over 1.2 billion monthly active users. It is the fifth most-used social network in the world, along with other big names like Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger.

PROS. WeChat is a super app in China that includes WeChat Mini Program and WeChat Pay. It offers customer service which is a plus for businesses setting themselves up. Much like the first two platforms mentioned above, WeChat produces website-like content.

CONS. Ads for overseas properties are not allowed on WeChat. It is a closed community, unlike other platforms like Weibo where posts can be viewed/engaged even when not followed by users.

As an official sales partner of WeChat, we offer services like official account setup and verification, account management, ads buying*, and influencer marketing.

*WeChat ads are not allowed for foreign real estate

Do you have properties you want to introduce to China? Contact us to learn more about real estate marketing in the China market.

About Digital 38

Digital 38 is a 360° Digital Marketing Agency with a strong presence in Southeast Asia and Greater China. With experience in digital marketing since 2006, we have 100+ digital specialists that cater to our clients’ diverse digital needs. We aim to simplify digital marketing, eCommerce and social media marketing solutions for forward-looking companies across the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

Our services including end-to-end Ecommerce solutions, Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation, regional digital marketing on platforms like Tencent WeChat, Weibo and ByteDance TikTok, DouYin, TouTiao, LINE, and Naver, influencer marketing and Live Seller hosting for eCommerce sales.

#DigitalAgency #EcomAgency #ChinaDigitalMarketing #ATC #asiamarketingsimplified #SEO #SEM #SearchEngineMarketing

China Digital Marketing

Digital 38 Supports 1st Weibo ‘Spring Sprout’ Live Broadcast in Thailand

D38 Standard Size-3

In June, Weibo hosted their first-ever live broadcast with organisations in Thailand to promote ‘Spring Sprout’, the vaccination program that provides free COVID-19 vaccines to Chinese nationals in the country. 

 Through the joint efforts of Weibo and Digital 38, the overseas live event was successfully conducted with the participation of the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, experts from Sinovac Biotech, local hospitals, Chinese bloggers and media members based in Thailand.

Altogether, they ramped up efforts in enabling Chinese nationals in Thailand how, where, when, and why they should take the vaccines. 

Tapping Thailand Hospitals to Join Weibo Live for ‘Spring Sprout’ 

Weibo’s ‘Spring Sprout’ live poster and event post
Ad Slots for Spring Sprout Thailand’s Live event on Weibo

As its official partner agency, Digital 38 supported Weibo by engaging with and inviting reputable hospitals in Thailand, including Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai, Bangkok Hospital Pattaya, and Phyathai 2 Hospital, to join this virtual sharing session for ‘Spring Sprout, backed by our marketing team in Thailand. 

Screenshots of ‘Spring Sprout’ Vaccine Program’s Live Weibo event

To give the event and campaign’s objectives further boost, Weibo also launched both Weibo Hot Search and Weibo Focus Banner, encouraging people to join this Weibo Live event at the same time spreading the word about Spring Sprout’s presence in Thailand. 

During its launch, Weibo’s 1st Spring Sprout Live event is part of the top trending hashtags.

This Spring Sprout session on Weibo Live concluded with 205,000 live views, over 2,000 post engagements, and garnered approximately 13 million hashtag page views.  

Leveraging Weibo to Increase Your Exposure In China Market  

Are you “China-ready”? Why Weibo Marketing matters?

Weibo remains one of the most popular microblogging platforms in China whose population of 1.43 billion in 2020 makes it one of the world leaders in the digital ecosystem.  

Additionally, Weibo’s audience base is not only limited to those who are living in Mainland China, but also overseas Chinese nationals who constantly stay connected with the app.  

Ready to build up your Weibo presence?  Contact our China marketing team today to get started with Weibo marketing. 

We are Sina Weibo’s appointed official partner agency for Southeast AsiaWe assist businesses in Weibo verification, page management, Weibo advertising, and more. 

Learn more about how you can reach out to billions of consumers in China by scheduling an appointment with us. 

About Digital 38

Digital 38 is a South East Asia-focused digital group of agencies that provides integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions to grow your business in the digital space and generate ongoing monthly revenue. Our digital marketing and e-commerce services range from social media management, content marketing, digital advertising, website development, store management, logistics, CRM, customer loyalty programs, automated email marketing, SEO, marketing tools, product press-release (PR) to reputation management – helping international companies simplify e-commerce management across ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).

Our team consists of experts, designers, developers, content creators, and strategists working together to support brands looking for growth in the digital space. 

We also have a market-specific digital channels team focusing on providing support for LINE Thailand and Japan, Naver for Korea, and ZhaoVN for global Chinese readers for social news and updates.

Contact Us

#EcommerceAgency #D38 #DigitalMarketingAgency #Weibo