WeChat Stats 2021

Weixin, which means micro message in Mandarin, was the name given to WeChat when it first debuted in 2011. It began as a simple communication programme, essentially a Chinese equivalent to WhatsApp, as its name suggests. The platform was developed and owned by Tencent, a Chinese internet giant and one of the world’s most valuable firms.

WeChat began as a simple messaging network, but it has evolved into much more. WeChat has basically become the home screen for many Chinese smartphone users thanks to its mini programmes platform, which allows almost any operation to be accomplished from within the app.

That being said, if you want to extend your business into the Chinese market, you’ll need a strategy that centres mostly around WeChat marketing, with an emphasis on WeChat users.

Here are some interesting WeChat statistics to help you see how powerful this platform really is. After all, there’s nothing like hard evidence, right?

WeChat: Active Users
WeChat has a monthly active user base of about 1.225 billion people.

Since its release in January 2011, it has grown by leaps and bounds. It evolved to become an important aspect of people’s lives, allowing them to communicate with friends and family via text messages, voice conversations, and video calls.

The aggregate monthly active users of Weixin and WeChat reached 1.225 billion in December 2020, up 5% year on year. Every day, 45 billion messages are sent and received on WeChat.

WeChat: User Demographics
Almost 40% of WeChat users are between the ages of 25 and 35 years old. Females account for 42.8% of users, while males account for 57.2%.

25 % of WeChat users in China are between the ages of 25 and 30, while another 13.8 % are between the ages of 31 and 35. Users under the age of 24 make up the greatest age demographic (33.5 %).

This is closely followed by users over the age of 41, who account for 19.1% of the total. If your company caters to these demographics, WeChat marketing could be very helpful to you.

WeChat Pay & Mini Programs Stats
WeChat Pay is used by 87% of Chinese consumers to make online payments and WeChat Mini Programs are used by almost 400 million people every day.

WeChat Pay is the second most popular online payment service in China, trailing only Alipay. Men and women make up an equal number of users, and the majority of its consumers (34%) are between the ages of 25 and 34, with the second-largest sector (28%) being between the ages of 35 and 44.

More than 400 million people utilise Mini Programs on a regular basis, resulting in total sales (GMV) more than double in 2020.  In addition, the average number of Mini Programs utilised per user climbed by 25% year over year, and the average transaction value increased by 67%.

WeChat: Market Share
WeChat probably accounts for 10-15% of the social media market, with over 1 billion active users. WeChat, on the other hand, is arguably the most popular social site in China, accounting for 34% of the country’s total data traffic

No other app in the world has this level of dominance in such a big market. In comparison, Facebook accounts for only 14.1% of North American traffic. In China, WeChat accounts for more than double that.

WeChat: Revenue
WeChat made 108.2 billion RMB in sales in 2020. In 2019, they received 82.3 billion RMB, compared to 72.7 billion RMB in 2018.

The 2021 stats for WeChat’s revenue is yet to be released, but with their constant innovation, its revenue is expected to rise again. This year, the Chinese messenger’s mini-programs facilitated 1.6 trillion RMB in annual transactions. If the increase in revenue attributed to their mini-programs is any indicator, they’ve had a fantastic year.

The Future of WeChat
WeChat will certainly be successful in China and will continue to expand. WeChat’s penetration rate in Western countries is expected to rise as well outside of the country. COVID-19 has hindered WeChat’s growth because of travel restrictions that prevent Chinese tourists from visiting. However, once the pandemic has passed, WeChat, particularly WeChat Pay, is likely to make a more serious foray into foreign markets.

In fact, Europe has been identified as a crucial growth region. WeChat Pay had been popular among businesses that serve Chinese tourists prior to the outbreak. As a result, the number of merchants accepting WeChat Pay in Europe climbed by 3.5% in 2019. Around 11% of Chinese overseas tourism was spent in Europe.

Conclusion
The stats presented above is rather remarkable and demonstrate how strong WeChat has proven to be. So, if you haven’t already considered incorporating it into your entire marketing strategy, now is the time to do so.

If you require further support with setting up your account please contact our team. We use our knowledge and expertise to help businesses build meaningful partnerships and develop their network among Chinese customers. For additional information, please contact us by phone – Shanghai or Hong Kong

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Montagut in Collaboration With KRDS Invited Fans To Winter Wonderland

The Christmas Wonderland campaign was one of several campaign collaborations with Montagut on the Chinese market in the last 3 years thanks to a continuous retainer partnership. 

Christmas in Mainland China

Mainland China has not been very big on Christmas in the past. It is not a national holiday and it has nothing to do with religion. It’s more of a novelty day, similar to Valentine’s Day than a religious holiday.

Don’t be fooled by the past, though: Christmas is becoming a more important occasion in most Mainland companies’ marketing calendars, and standing out above all the festive fever is becoming increasingly difficult.

The objective of the Campaign

But Christmas wasn’t the sole reason that Montagut wanted to celebrate with their fans in China. The main objective was to engage the audience during the Christmas season in order to introduce the new FW 2020 collection and to attract a bigger target group of younger consumers. They wanted to premiere new collections, with the purpose of communicating the advent of new clothing and trends before the end of 2019.

KRDS’s Solution

An H5 WeChat game set in a French winter wonderland was our solution for tastefully presenting both the new collection and the holiday spirit. This game was in instant popularity with Montagut’s existing fans as well as almost 10,000 new fans thanks to its bespoke and dreamy graphics paired with a compelling tapping gaming mechanism.

 

This campaign was very fun and engaging. Beyond generating buzz and page views, KRDS was smart to find the right mechanism to attract a very high number of new fans” According to Candice Meyer, Montagut’s Head of Brand Image & Communications Asia.

Miriam Dabrowa, China Head of Strategy at KRDS Greater China, said: “With the new opportunities coming this year, and especially Montagut’s 140th Anniversary, we truly can’t wait to create new exciting content together”.

 

WeChat Campaign for Montagut – Post

 

 

WeChat Campaign for Montagut – Game Flow

 

WeChat Campaign for Montagut – Media Ads

 

Christmas Campaign for Montagut

Unusual Brand Collaborations In China

Whether your business is selling lipsticks, chicken wings, or museum tours, the topic of how to reach more new people – more customers – comes up in every marketing meeting, across every sector imaginable. So here’s a suggestion for you all – Why not tap into the audience of someone else? 

A collaboration with a competitor is obviously not going to work, but what about one with a brand that sells something completely different? 

To get noticed among China’s millennial consumers, businesses must take advantage of unusual collaborations. It may sound bizarre, but it has the potential to attract a new audience that was previously unaware of your existence. 

Here are a few examples of unusual brand collaborations in China

 

Perfect Diary – Cosmetics
Disney – Kids entertainment
Collaboration – Limited-edition line of amino acid-based facial cleaning products inspired

 

The C-beauty brand routinely leverages brand collaborations as part of its overall goal to appeal to China’s millennial and Gen Z audiences. In a recent collaboration with Disney, the company released a limited-edition line of amino acid-based facial cleansing products inspired by the Baymax character from the 2014 animated film “Big Hero 6”. Two of the makeup remover bottles are sealed with a Baymax head, while other goods include images of the character on the packaging, appealing to young buyers’ love of cuteness and blind-box style toys.

 

KFC – Fast food restaurant chain
Karl Lagerfeld’s – German fashion designer and photographer
Collaboration – Limited Edition Chicken Bags 

 

KFC China recently resorted to the luxury business to mark the company’s 80th anniversary. Karl Lagerfeld, the fashion mogul, was the chosen brand, and he created two limited-edition bags. The centre Karl Lagerfeld logo was replaced with Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Paris was replaced with Kentucky in the funny new rendition of the original Karl Lagerfeld design. The bags contain three red stripes, which are KFC’s signature colours.

Ikea – Furniture retail company
ROG – Gaming retail
Collaboration – Gaming Furniture and Accessories


Ikea presented an eagerly anticipated collaboration with the Asus Republic of Gamers (ROG) on a new collection of affordable gaming furniture and accessories, taking a “China-first” approach to product innovation. A sleek high-backed gaming chair, an adjustable table that can be used as a standing workstation, and a wall-mounted pegboard to keep gaming equipment organised are all part of the black-and-red collection.


Conclusion

Younger consumers, particularly Generation Z, are perceived as having a larger proclivity for purchasing from ‘collaboration’ collections than older consumers. According to Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Chinese Generation Z customers have the largest desire for cross-brand collaborations among this generation’s quest for newness from the brands they like.

These out-of-the-box collaborations demonstrate that the opportunities for co-branding in China are limitless. Why limit yourself to usual collaborations when you can have so much fun? Collaboration with other well-known brands across all industries may help businesses grow their audiences, increase sales, and establish a reputation as a creative and fun brand among Chinese customers.

While unique collaborations have a lot of promise for your company, getting started can be challenging. If you require further support, please contact our team. We apply our expertise and experience to assist firms in forming meaningful partnerships and developing a digital marketing strategy that better targets and connects with Chinese customers. For additional information, please contact us by phone or email.