Do’s and Don’ts Marketing in China
30 Jun, 2016
01 Emphasize Brand Trustworthiness and Longevity
Consumers in China value brands that have a proven track record. Play up this aspect of your product.
02 Tweak Product for Local Appeal
Chinese consumers have different tastes and preferences. Slight adjustments to your offerings can have big payoffs.
03 Start Using Local Social Media
China has 650 million social media users, twice the population of the U.S. Effective marketing requires a strong presence on China’s native platforms, such as Wechat and Weibo.
04 Set Up Mobile Payment
Over 200 million people in China have linked their bank ATM cards with WeChat. Make sure your business can accommodate Chinese consumers’ mobile payment habits.
05 Use QR Codes
QR code scanning is a core feature of the Wechat app, which boasts 468 million users. Take advantage of this technology to increase the impact of your online to offline marketing.
01 Be Haphazard About Translation
Poor or incorrect translations can cast a negative light on your brand. Make sure your brand content is not only grammatically correct, but also culturally appropriate.
02 Overlook Local Holidays
Chinese ecommerce giant, Alibaba made $14.3 billion on Single’s day. Make sure to capitalize on seasonal sales opportunities.
03 Rely on Slow, Out of Country Hosting
A delay on website loading time of 1 second can cost businesses up to 10% of conversion. China’s “great firewall” can dramatically slow loading speeds for websites that aren’t hosted within it.
04 Treat China Like a Single Market
China has 23 provinces, with over 200 varieties of Chinese spoken. Consider regional differences in your marketing efforts.
05 Localize too Much
Western products enjoy a certain amount cachet due to being from a foreign brand. Overly localizing can diminish this advantage.