A Guide to WeChat Marketing

When there are 846 million people using one forum for connecting, entertainment, socializing, information, news, and buying; it makes that one forum the most fertile marketing grounds.

Businesses all over China know this, and are tapping into the opportunities provided to them by WeChat. Foreign investors and businesses looking to expand to China can similarly strike big with the promising consumer base in China—by using WeChat as their go-to marketing option.

From WeChat to WeCash

Growing by 64 percent each year, there are around 570 million people logging in to the popular messaging app to fraternize and exchange information.

Some of this information, naturally, tends to be related to buying and products. Since such a large amount of time is spent on the app, the average WeChat user is very likely to avail the app for making purchases.

WeChat’s accessibility, visibility, and popularity make it a sitting duck for marketeers and businessmen who know when to strike when the iron’s hot. They’re looking for potential customers and consumers on WeChat are ever on the lookout for products, hotels, vacation locations, eateries, etc. It’s a match made in marketing heaven.

Using WeChat for Marketing

While WeChat began as a messaging app, it has grown into a goliath that allows its users to do almost anything they’d want to: from dropping a text to a friend to booking a plane ticket, ordering food and investing money.

WeChat is so much more than an app: it’s become a lifestyle. It’s something people rely on when it comes to decisions related to buying things, purchasing tickets: in short, WeChat is where people turn to when they’re feeling like spending money. It’s easy, it’s quick, and it’s credible.

WeChat understands this and allows businesses the leverage to reach out to potential customers. Here’s how a business in China—or a business looking to invest in China—can use WeChat to their best advantage:

1. Create an Account

WeChat allows businesses to create accounts—and there are different kinds of accounts—which appear in the chats of users (like pages on Facebook feeds which you have subscribed to). If yours is a subscription account, you can send messages to potential customers. If it’s a service account you can send 4 messages a month. In order to create an account, you need a Chinese Business License and a Chinese national ID.

2. Start Sales

If you’re willing to spend a generous amount of money, you can go straight ahead and use the WeChat specific functions (such as payments and logins) to get to business. All you’ll need to do is create a WeChat website to begin. Otherwise you can simply use WeChat to attract customers and build viewership.

WeChat allows you to create “shops” and will let you off cheap. Of course, limited customization becomes part of the package.

3. Content is Always King

For businesses in China, time is money. Wasting consumers’ time with useless information means an opportunity wasted, so your content needs to be as useful as it is interesting. You’re selling a product and need to advertise its pros more than you need to engage potential customers in a blog-like easy-going rendition.

4. Use Videos

Video marketing has become big, especially since videos take up less time than something that needs to be read. They’re an easy and a fast fix, and will do you wonders.

5. Be Clever About Your Messages

With only one message a day to be sent out, you have to be nifty with the timing. Sending out a message at peak hours might mean big business for big businesses, but for startups, it’s the wee hours when fewer firms are posting that becomes their best bet. It brings you automatically up in terms of visibility.

Finding the Right Service Provider

For many foreign businesses, it is best to enlist the services of a Chinese ecommerce company. This will help you jumpstart your businesses and understand the nitty gritty of engaging with local audience on a grass roots level.

Dial +86-13-7616-98467 to get in touch with professionals at Limpid Translations today.