Social media in China is huge. Around 25% of the worlds social media is Chinese. Just one country produces all that traffic. Social media is a massive marketing tool, as we all know. Brand enhancement and promotion can be effectively managed through social platforms around the world.
Things are no different in China. Reviews and product information are easily found and sent forwards to other potential users, just the same as it is through Facebook, Pin interest or Twitter.
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The online world is a big deal to over 75% of the Chinese population, that means Search Engine Optimisation, or SEO, is hugely important. Online purchases and trade is massive, and increasing at a vast rate. Many parts of China are only able to purchase particular goods through the Internet, and Baidu, supported by the various large social media platforms, allows companies to reach these consumers and sell their products and services effectively. Here is a rundown of the top social media sites in China:
1. Tencent. This was built on the QQ messaging service and has a multitude of different platforms so is kind of like a social media hub. It has a social networking arm called Pengyou. It has over 750 million registered users throughout all its platforms, and was designed to be accessible even on old 2g telephone handsets. This is why it has so many registered users, it can be used by a large part of the Internet accessing population.
2. Sina Weibo. This is like a mix of both Twitter and Facebook. It is huge and a very powerful marketing tool to promote yourself and your brand into the Chinese consumer market place. It is the top social platform for social discourse and a prime driver for consumer activity. It has around 350 – 400 million registered users. The Sina Weibo platform allows video and images to be shared with its users.
3. Renren. This platform is very similar to Facebook. Students make up a large part of this companies social media demographic. It has around 150 million registered users. There are 30+ million active users a month.
4.Douban. This particular social media platform is targeted towards the more intellectual Chinese demographic. It deals mainly with music, book or film reviews and chat. It is one of the only platforms where you can access about 80% of its site regardless of whether you are a member or not. It currently has around 60 million registered users.
5. Wechat. This is a mobile voice and text chat application, with social features that include Friend Discovery. A photo sharing and location based service, (LBS) have been recently added to increase its status within the social media market place. It has over 100 million users.
The numbers above show you exactly how big a deal Chinese social media is, and how important it is in creating a brand for companies which is important to their SEO. Anyone looking to build up a brand and business within China will need to make sure that they promote themselves appropriately on the correct platforms for the clientele they are targeting. A strong social presence in China will definitely help your business to grow and attract growing numbers of consumers to your brand and product or service, just as it would in any other country.
The difference in China is that online consumerism is rapidly growing, and expanding at a rate that it will soon become “bad business” not to be trading within its economy, whether you are based within China itself, or trading from your office in another country you need to make sure you market a site into China sooner rather than later. Make sure you use an SEO agency that has experience of marketing websites into the Chinese online social media and search engine platforms.
Dan Vassiliou is CEO of www.seomidlands.net , and his agencies are experienced in moving companies into the Chinese market place, through effective online marketing and SEO strategies there. You can also contact him by clicking through here