Today, it has around monthly active users , is one of the biggest social platforms in the world , and has branched out into other digital channels, such as QQ Music and QZone, which have built up a popular portfolio of QQ-based apps. Think of Mobile QQ as the one-stop app for all things entertainment, communication, and social networking in China.
But for who, exactly? The app is hugely popular with young people , and is one of the best platforms in China for reaching students and Gen Z. After all, both platforms are owned by Tencent and are used for online messaging.
Despite their similarities, though, WeChat and QQ appeal to very different users. Although Tencent has a whole host of channels to advertise on, Mobile QQ has many selling points worth considering:.
For international advertisers, this creates a rare opportunity to build customer loyalty in China right from the start. Want to target new college students in Tier 1 cities? No problem! Mobile QQ lets brands reach very specific segments of its users according to their location, age, gender, interests, and so much more. Made possible by a partnership between Tencent and JD.
This offers a great opportunity for advertisers to target and sell to QQ users in one, direct loop. Although many international businesses are waking up to WeChat, not nearly as many are aware of QQ and how it works as a marketing channel. Use this to your advantage, and you could quickly get ahead of your competition. Appearing on every third page of the QQ homepage , a brand promotion ad is a form of banner or pop-up advert that promotes a particular brand.
Similar to brand promotion ads, app ads appear on every seventh page of the QQ homepage , and link users directly to a download page to install the relevant application. These are hugely popular on QQ, as many brands look to target games to its young user base.
When watching video content on QQ, users will be presented with a pop-up ad promoting a new product or service. Fan groups are when QQ influencers or KOLs invite their fans to a large group chat, and promote products to them to make money. If a brand wanted to connect to a very specific niche, partnering up with a KOL fan group would be a great way of achieving that.
Brands could even create their own fan groups , depending on their popularity and visibility in China. Promotions like exclusive fan discounts could certainly drum up some interest. Don't know any Chinese characters? No problem. The app features a translation function. You can press the text message for about 2 seconds and select a language for translation help. One useful smartphone-related addition is the "shake" function.
With this, you can find other users nearby. In a Chinese city, you're likely to find dozens of people within just a few hundred meters. You may find a Chinese tourist or student in your area who is happy to make your acquaintance and to prepare you for your travels to come.
It's also very popular to pay via phone and QR code in China. Link your bank account details and you can make a "Quick Pay" without cash. As of November , foreigners can use foreign bank accounts to fund WeChat Wallet.
Previously a Chinese bank account was needed and those on a tourist visa had difficulty finding a branch that would let them open an account. To get a China bank account you would need to visit a bank on the mainland with your passport, documentation of residence which could be a receipt from the hotel you are staying in and a Chinese phone number, which you can get by purchasing a SIM card at the airport or at a China Unicom, China Mobile, or China Telecom shop.
Setting up the account could take between 45 minutes to a few hours. And once you got the account, you'd need to make sure you got a print out of how your name was entered as you would need this when setting up your WeChat Wallet.
WeChat Payment is taking over in China , and cash is almost obsolete as people use WeChat to pay for anything including restaurants, shops, bike shares, taxis, and street food.
WeChat pay can be used almost anywhere you pay for something, as long as you have your phone, a signal and money in your WeChat wallet or on your bank card, you are ready to scan and pay with ease.
When paying, you are usually asked to enter your 6-digit WeChat Payment passcode to complete the transaction. WeChat has also recently been verifying user ID for using the payment option. Entering the information, which includes uploading a picture of your passport or relevent ID you can take using your phone camera and a selfie, is completed in under two minutes, and you will be able to use the pay function again almost immediately.
I used a Bank of America credit card to verify the account and activate WeChat wallet. Then had Lissy send me a token amount of CNY to my new account, to make sure it was able to accept and pay out funds.
I then used Swapsy theswapsy. With money in the account I was able to purchase items like a local. It was very easy and convenient and we needed very little cash from ATMs, if at all. There are no fan groups, only friends. So you can share pictures or short videos on your Moments screen.
Your friends can comment, or give you a "like". With a healthy bank balance and a smartphone equipped with WeChat, there is almost no reason to carry cash in China any longer, and paying through WeChat usually attracts no additional fee!
Unlike, say, Facebook, where business users are almost always forced to pay to promote their pages or content in order for them to be seen by followers, WeChat allows businesses to open an official account and gain a following on the platform at zero cost. We need to understand why businesses are attracted to WeChat. Here are some of the reasons:. Given you've read this far, you might also be interested in Baidu Advertising in China and how you can effectively use WeChat to grow your business. WeChat provides not only great functionality for users but also allows businesses to tap into its large base of over one billion, which is why we see it as an essential component of setting up your company in China.
Remember that the primary language used in WeChat is Chinese and so you may need local assistance to manage your business account although you can publish content and pages in English if you like.
We practice what we preach! Please scan the QR code below using WeChat, and get in touch:. What do you think about WeChat? Is it a platform you'd want to set up along with your Chinese company? Please let us know if you have any comments or questions about WeChat or China company setup and we'll be happy to help, just leave them as a comment below!
Topics: China Business Updates. Hongda Business Consultant Ltd. Shenzhen: Unit , Shuguan Building, No. Follow us on wechat Scan the QR code below and follow our official account! Subscribe to the Blog. What Is WeChat? Number of monthly active WeChat users from 2nd quarter to 2nd quarter in millions Image credit: Statista How did this happen so quickly?
It would be tedious to go through them all, but let's take a quick look at some of them. It is clear that Tencent makes a lot of money via gaming. Tencent is the largest video games publisher in the world. It also owns the entire League of Legends studio, Riot Games.
And a share-swap in saw it take a 7. Tencent Pictures, its film and production arm, has been involved in a large number of Hollywood movies, including Terminator: Dark Fate , Wonder Woman and the upcoming Top Gun sequel, Top Gun: Maverick - scheduled for release in President Donald Trump says that the spread in the US of mobile apps developed and owned by Chinese firms "threaten the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States".
0コメント