Introduction
If you’re here, you’re probably a business owner or someone in marketing. In order to understand how to leverage WeChat for your business, you must know a few things about WeChat and how it works. This is especially informative since LinkedIn has removed its social component in its China’s version. This article will explain it all in an efficient and smooth way.
Let’s start with the first thing you would do – set up a WeChat account. Learn more about B2B lead generation strategies for WeChat.
Creating a WeChat Account for Business
To create a WeChat business account, you need to follow a fairly extra number of steps than you would for a general account. Here’s a step-by-step process of how to go about it.
- Visit the WeChat official accounts platform.
- Click Register.
- Choose the type of account. There are 2 types – service and subscription account. Learn the difference about them before making the decision.
- Complete the basic info form and wait for verification.
- Select your company’s region.
- Fill out the Entity Information Form with details of your registered company.
- Create your WeChat account profile.
- Apply for verification along with a completed Verification Letter, Trademark Registration and other essential documents.
It might be a slightly complex process but it’ll definitely get your business into the China markets.
Next comes learning about Wechat.
WeChat for Business
Before you start digging around the app to formulate a strategy, you need to know what resources you have in hand once you’re done creating a WeChat business account. You need to understand how things work before you can make them work for you.
Broadly, there are 4 ways for businesses to use WeChat to their advantage:
WeChat Store
If your business has a product, the main and probably only way of directly selling it on the app is through the WeChat store. Similar to Instagram, WeChat doesn’t allow links to external platforms. So, the WeChat store has a lot of potential to boost your sales in Mainland China.
WeChat Mini Programs
With mini-programs, brands have been able to execute unique strategies that have proven to be quite successful. Mini programs offer almost everything from special promotions, games, recreated 3rd party apps and much more. It acts as a pseudo-API platform enabling multiple apps to run on the chat platform without ever closing it.
WeChat Advertising
WeChat does offer a range of ad styles on its platform. There are still some that it doesn’t allow (like splash ads) since they are too intrusive and interruptive of user experience.
WeChat Influencer Marketing
On WeChat, they are known as KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders). KOLs are the best way to push brands and their products into the public minds. KOLs hold a lot of influence on their followers and they are the easiest way to build trust amongst your target market.
Strategies to Help Market Your Brand On WeChat
Most businesses have a marketing team that can formulate a customized strategy for your brand to flourish on WeChat. But certain small scale companies can’t afford marketing resources. We have jotted down a few relevant marketing strategies that could help you and your brand make a mark in the WeChat ecosystem.
Use HTML5 Campaigns
HTML5 is a markup language that most current websites and animations are based on.
In layman’s terms, it can help you create interactive experiences that increase engagement on any platform that supports the language.
WeChat is HTML5 friendly, which means that it supports creatives and pages that are made with HTML5, including but not limited to interactive creatives and animations. You can customize every aspect of your campaign down to the crux of it.
The only limitation here is that you may need a dedicated full stack developer to execute such a feat. HTML5 is a computer language and you need a professional who is well-versed in it in order to create a custom campaign on the platform.
Produce a Video Campaign
Video engagement has only risen up in the last decade. People watch video content to solve problems, for knowledge, for entertainment and to stay updated with everything new.
Video campaigns hold a lot of engagement potential which you can tap for your brand.
Advertise with QR Codes
QR codes can be shared with your audience for basically anything. People can find your account and join groups using QR codes. By strategically placing relevant QR codes in campaigns and creatives, you can leverage this technology to your advantage.
Also, not a lot of small businesses use them, so they possess an uncharted potential that can be beneficial if used correctly.
Promote with Branded Mini-Games
Branded games are a fun and interactive way of engaging your customers. Mini-games provide higher engagement numbers than static designs. Also, people love playing them, especially if the game revolves around their favorite brand or product.
