Download The Rules of Social Media Marketing in China

The Rules of
Social Media Marketing
in China
Contents
1
China – A Social Media Country
2
Three Characteristics of the Chinese Market
3
Fragmented Social Media Landscape
4
Success Factors for Social Media Marketing in China
5
About Aperto
6
Sources & Imprint
2
China – A Social Media Country
The internet in China is exploding, fast transforming the country into a ravenous digital
consumer society. As social media becomes an increasingly crucial marketing tool, so
western companies must understand the key success factors to assert their own position.
Of the roughly 618 million internet users in China, at
least 91% have a social media account and spend an
average of 46 minutes on social networks, daily. This
rapid development and the profusion of cheap smartphones have enabled millions of Chinese consumers
to use innovative social, localized and mobile
(SoLoMo) services — often months before comparable services are available with western brands. As a result, there is a growing culture of product awareness
and exchange of brand experiences and preferences.
This Chinese boom takes on increasing importance
for western companies within the country, as it is
deemed by many as one of the most important future
markets. Whether for car manufacturers such as
Volkswagen and BMW, or smaller machine production
companies, the significance of the Chinese market is
escalating — and with it, the need for a strong social
network presence.
This Chinese boom takes on increasing importance
for western companies within the country.
3
Three Characteristics of
the Chinese Market
Apart from the vast reach and intense usage, there are three primary aspects of
social media in China that make it an essential part of every marketing plan:
1 The Decision to Purchase is
More Socially Influenced
For Chinese consumers, personal reviews and recommendations have a 28% higher influence over the
decision to purchase than for American consumers.
And these recommendations are increasingly found
on social media which, despite censorship, is a more
trusted source than other, even more heavily censored, media outlets.
3 User Engagement
The Chinese are highly active internet users, creating
and sharing more content than their western peers.
The internet in China is for the most part a ‘participatory internet’ which, especially in a state-controlled
media landscape, offers a new outlet for exchanging
opinions and self-expression. Which, in turn, makes
the much-hyped ‘brand engagement’ — the interaction with a brand’s image, values and products — much
easier to achieve.
2 Brands Are Welcomed
Chinese users are particularly receptive to offers and
interaction with brands. Users of SinaWeibo — an
enhanced, Twitter-like platform with a user base of
roughly 560 million — typically track the profiles of up
to eight brands. Within the digital sphere, brands are
seen as welcome points of contact, especially if they
offer entertaining and relevant content.
4
Fragmented Social Media Landscape
But even if the use of social media as a marketing
tool becomes a vital success factor, many western
companies still struggle to manage their social media
presence in China. One reason for this is the fragmented digital media landscape, where the multitude of
service providers, niche user groups and profiles prove overwhelming. Consequently, none of the global
internet companies are able to get a firm foothold in
the Chinese market. As the nationally controlled
internet’s ‘Great Firewall’ prevents access to
Facebook, Youtube and Twitter, so it has ensured the
ascent of national services such as SinaWeibo, Qzone,
Renren, Kaixin and WeChat.
Most of these networks are clones, adapting western
business models to the Chinese market: Renren and
Kaixin mimic Facebook; YouKu takes after Youtube;
SinaWeibo and Tencent Weibo are advanced versions of Twitter, and WeChat the advanced version of
WhatsApp. Interestingly, the fundamental interaction
models and marketing mechanisms of China’s social
media are practically identical to those of western
brands. Relevant content, reward systems and gamification elements in China are all comparable — and
equally popular — making a complete overhaul of the
planning and social media marketing policy unnecessary.
A complete overhaul of the planning and social
media marketing policy is unnecessary.
5
Success Factors for
Social Media Marketing in China
Marketers should take into account several key points when
it comes to social media marketing in China:
The Goal Determines the Choice of Media
Clear objectives for a social media marketing project
vastly increase the likelihood of success, particularly
in a market whose breakneck development causes
regular and unforeseen changes of course. Every
marketing activity within social media should pursue
very distinct and quantifiable goals that will ultimately
define the best approach.
The chosen social media marketing strategy must
then be implemented within the relevant social media
channels. As each of the bigger social networks has
its own characteristics, in terms of audience and user
profile, the content and interactions must be designated accordingly. The micro-blog network, SinaWeibo,
for example, provides an ideal stage for brands to
present themselves on and run campaigns. Other networks, such as the messaging service WeChat — that
has evolved from a WhatsApp clone to a full-blown,
multi-service social network — lend themselves to
newer mobile services and customer retention measures. Even the geographic coverage of the various
social networks has to be considered.
Every marketing activity within social media should
pursue very distinct and quantifiable goals that
will ultimately define the best approach.
6
Using KOLs to Guarantee Reach
Endorsement deals play a big role in China’s social
media with so-called Key Opinion Leaders (KOL) —
celebrities and prominent internet personalities —
emerging as the equivalent of small media outlets
with a wide reach. Chinese actor, Chen Kun, for
example has a following of over 70 million SinaWeibo
users. The involvement and assured visibility of KOLs
has proven essential, particularly in the seeding phase
of social media campaigns.
The selection of the right KOL, however, should not
be made purely on an exposure or cost-per-impression basis. The deciding factor is ultimately the fit of
a brand to the figure’s following, in terms of gender,
age, income and location. The political stance of the
KOL is also a point of consideration, especially as
many KOLs came to prominence through their willingness to address controversial topics and, to some
degree, defy the communist party.
whether or not a brand wants to position itself as part
of the ‘new generation’ or in line with a more conformist representative.
Beware of the Zombies
China’s social media is riddled with fake profiles
and bought user activity, with an estimated 50% of
individual networks being made up of ‘zombie accounts’ used to artificially inflate audience numbers.
Not only does this put companies’ claimed reach into
perspective, it also underlines the importance of discerning real users from fake users. In order to obtain
more qualitative data, it’s imperative to scrutinize all
monitorings and evaluations — especially those from
service providers — and to establish a multi-tiered KPI
system that tracks the outcome of user behavior in
relation to the output numbers. Without the knowledge of the broader context, a superficially successful
campaign may prove itself to be nothing more than a
Potemkin village without any added brand value.
The desirability of an association with a more rebellious image differs from case to case, depending on
B2C Casestudy: The Volkswagen People’s Car Project
Volkswagen initiated the People’s Car Project — so
far the company’s largest digital marketing project —
to establish the broader impact of innovation within
the digital sphere, while also gaining insights into the
automobile preferences of potential clients. Users,
together with Volkswagen, were invited to develop
their own ideas for a car of the future. A digital hub,
integrally connected to social media, formed the core
of an almost two year campaign that provided multiple digital tools with which one could create and share
one’s own submissions. While the tools were fun to
use, and reinforced Volkswagen’s image as an innovative brand, the company was able to find out what
future car features Chinese customers would value.
7
Digital since 1995
We are Aperto. A progressive communications agency that offers the right services for the digital age.
As fusionsts, we combine strategy, technology and
creativity to put the Wow into the How for brands and
organizations alike. We offer diverse talents with a
common passion for excellence, and a unique culture
in which ideas and innovation thrive.
We believe in creating a better digital world, and love
doing it together with our clients. We are working
from five locations spread across three continents.
From Berlin to Beijing to Ho Chi Minh City to Dubai to
Basel. With a team of 400 passionate fusionists, we’re
at the forefront of the digital era and determined to
stay there.
Looking for Challenges
We are driven by projects that both inspire and
challenge us. So if you’re looking for an agency to
collaborate and grow with, you’ve found the right
partner. Focusing on three primary areas—
strategy, creation and technology—to deliver a
holistic solution, we provide the right service for
the digital era.
Aperto AG
In der Pianofabrik
Chausseestraße 5
10115 Berlin
+49 30 28 39 21 - 505
[email protected]
8
Sources & Imprint
Sources
•CNNIC
•McKinsey
•WSJ
Copyright
An Aperto AG Whitepaper
Text: Jan Pilhar
www.aperto.com
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