Unlike other social media platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn where launching company pages is easy, setting up an official WeChat account requires lodging a formal application through the app’s parent, Tencent. Nevertheless, with the increasing popularity of China’s super app, WeChat marketing has become an essential part of any brand’s digital strategy, and for good reason.
WeChat, which is used by over a billion users worldwide, allows brands to create official accounts that act as channels for publishing content, running ads and promoting in existing groups. Brands can also use a variety of marketing tools to help boost their visibility including Moments Ads, Official Account Ads and WeChat Mini Programs.
The type of content you publish on your WeChat channel should vary according to your brand’s needs and objectives. The more information you provide, the more likely it is that you will attract followers and potential customers. For example, consider creating a series of blogs that give detailed tips for a particular product or service. These posts are a great way to drive engagement and build trust with your audience.
Video content is another increasingly popular option that can be used to enhance your WeChat presence. In fact, a video post receives 88% more likes and shares than a photo post. To produce high-quality and engaging WeChat videos, you can either hire a professional video production agency in Singapore or do it yourself using the WeChat platform’s in-house editing software.
Once you have a solid content strategy in place, the next step is to identify what kind of advertising and promotions will work best for your business. This can be done by conducting market research to determine what your competitors are doing and when they’re doing it. Performing psychographic analyses of your target audience is also an effective way to narrow down the scope of your campaigns.
Depending on your marketing goals, you may need a WeChat CRM (customer relationship management) system to keep track of your followers and their interactions with your brand. Alternatively, you can simply rely on WeChat Index which is a basic tool that monitors the popularity of designated keywords in WeChat (similar to Google Trends).
WeChat mini programs are small apps within the WeChat environment that fulfil many of the functions of standalone apps. These are becoming increasingly popular among Chinese consumers and are a cost-effective way for businesses to extend their reach online. For example, international fast food giant McDonald’s utilised WeChat’s audio function to allow people to record themselves singing the ‘Big Mac Rap’, which instantly went viral and attracted thousands of new fans.