The Chinese social media platform WeChat is not only a great communication tool for businesses but also enables them to increase their reach and sales in a unique way. However, as with all new channels there are certain marketing strategies that need to be in place. In this article we are going to look at some best practices that will help your brand succeed with WeChat Marketing.
The first thing you need to do is to set up your official account. This is a must for any business operating in China. After that you need to decide what you want your WeChat account to do – is it going to be a simple content hub or are you going to use it as a CRM and engage with your customers?
One way to do this is through creative campaigns. These can be in the form of games, quizzes or competitions and should always have an element of reward to them. This is a must for any WeChat marketing strategy because it will draw people to your account and keep them coming back. Coach, for example, ran a campaign to celebrate Mother’s Day and rewarded those who participated by giving them a chance to be featured on the Coach homepage and win a Coach wristlet.
Another way to attract followers and keep them engaged is by launching campaigns related to the Qixi Festival. This is an important holiday for the Chinese and is celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month. It is almost equivalent to Valentine’s Day in the west. Louis Vuitton created a mini-program that allowed users to interact with their friends in a fun and creative way. The users could take a selfie with their loved ones and share it on the WeChat timeline with a message.
To get more engagement from your audience you need to pump out high quality content. This is the only way that you will see a return on your investment. Posting good quality video is a great way to achieve this. It is also worth experimenting with guest editors and infographics to find what works for your brand.
Finally, a great way to grow your audience is by creating or joining groups that are relevant to your industry. This will allow you to engage with like-minded individuals and build a community. You can also entice people to join your group by offering them discounts, promotions or free WiFi access. For example, the discount chain store EMart in Korea put a QR code on their physical products and in-store installations that when scanned brought people to their WeChat account and increased both sales and followers.
Another method to attract audiences is through paid advertising. This can be done by using KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders) or through the WeChat Ad Network. The latter works by bidding on the ads that are placed next to popular accounts, targeting specific audience. However, this can be expensive and does not necessarily provide a return on investment.