Are numbers just numbers? Well, not really. Everyone has their own favorite number, it could be a birthday date, your wedding day, a number that brought you luck in the past, wherever the reason may be, one thing is certain is that they are not just simple numbers for us.
Chinese people also do the same, but a step above, in the sense that sometimes they communicate not only with words but also with numbers!
The Chinese language has a very unique grammatical structure, where each word is constructed as an isolated block of meaning and more characters together are just like the pieces of a puzzle. If you think about it, numbers are quite similar in this regard, all of them have a meaning which is the quantity they indicate, but they can be separated and combined to create different numbers.
What if some numbers sound similar to real words? Bam, then you have a match made in heaven. You can literally write a sentence in Mandarin using just numbers.
For example, try reading aloud 520 in Mandarin, what does it sound like? Well, 520 is homophonic to “I love you” in Chinese! In fact, the 20th of May (520) is pronounced （wǔ èr líng）which sound very similar to 我爱你（wǒ ài nǐ）I love you, that is why the 20th (and 21st) have been labeled as the Internet Valentine’s Day（网络情人节）.
Ok, we get the part about Valentine’s Day, but why “internet”? Unlike International Valentine’s Day (February 14th) and Chinese Valentine’s Day (七夕) which are primarily for “real” lovers who are in a confirmed love relationship or even married, 520 is more about expressing your love to your crush, what in Mandarin is called 表白（confess one’s love）.
And since it may be too difficult for many to say “I love you” face-to-face, some people decide to use Chinese social media （like WeChat, Weibo, QQ…） to confess their feelings by typing messages with 520 or 521, maybe even attaching a gift ! Here comes the business side of this special day. And as an old Chinese saying goes: “only when there is demand there can be business”.
Companies such as florists, chocolate brands, travel agencies, jewelry, cosmetics & fashion brand have used this online phenomenon and turned it into an efficient marketing strategy to engage with Chinese consumers. At the same time, with the popularity of e-commerce, many people choose to buy their Valentine’s Day gift online to express their feelings and hope for the best.
520 is not the only way to communicate in Mandarin, you can also take note of another expression 5201314! 520 means love, whereas 1314 represents 一生一世 yīshēng yīshì (for a lifetime). So, if you say 5201314, you are saying “I love you for a lifetime”.
Are you searching for #news, #tips, and #trends from #China? Then, check this out!
#Shanghai#Fashion Week’s FW 2021 edition, titled “Bloom the Spring”, kicked off on April 6th. During the 8-day program, 100-plus #physical runway shows took the stage at four different venues across the city. But, they didn’t forget about the ever-growing role played by #livecommerce: through “Shanghai Fashion and Lifestyle Carnival” brands could sell directly to #consumers through daily live stream shows.
Several #international#brands joined the event, but the real spotlight was on #Chinese#brands, local emerging talents, and #sustainability. More than 40% of the featured brands adopted environmentally friendly practices.
A few days ago, #Tmall launched a new 3D shopping solution dedicated to home-furnishing brands called 天猫家装城 (tianmao jiazhuang cheng), one of the latest new #retail innovations rolled out by the platform.
#Tmallglobal continues its impressive growth worldwide and keeps welcoming celebrity-owned brands like the one launched by Billie Eilish.
✔️ Last week, Douyin launched a new function: the flagship stores. The primary focus of the platform is to get more #fashion#brands on board!
#Ecommerce#livestreaming has experienced massive growth from late 2019 and became one of the most profitable #sales strategies. Many of you may be wondering: how long will this trend last? Are Chinese consumers more likely to move on to the next big trend?
Not really! Few figures to picture the actual potential of this channel:
On #TaobaoLive, for example, consumers can follow a brand or live streamers’ account to earn points which can be exchanged for coupons or special offers on #taobao and #tmall.
Another way to make the live shopping experience more fun is with AR. On #wechat, viewers while watching a beauty brand live stream can click an icon to enter a beauty mirror mini-program and virtually try on the products showcased during the stream.
An alternative practice is to hold product #giveaways to incentivize viewers to show up right when the broadcast starts and stay through the end.
Do Chinese people celebrate just one #Valentine’s Day?
The answer, as many of you already know, is not really! In fact, in China, there are six different occasions to celebrate lovers. Now, we are getting closer to another one: guess what it is?
…One little hint: today we’re talking about #白色情人节.
In Asian countries, 14th March, known as #White Valentine’s Day (or White Day), is an occasion for women to gift their male others.
There are several versions of the #holiday’s origin, which was firstly in Japan, in 1977 precisely, but they all more or less focus on creating a #festival to encourage consumption in the name of love.
At the very beginning, the festival has spread to South Korea and Taiwan. Then, it gained a foothold in mainland #China.
From that moment, loads of #brands have caught the opportunity that this gifting holiday offers, just as they did with Chinese Valentine’s Day Qixi.
This year, how did brands hit on a strategy to get more consumers?
Keep following us and don’t forget to visit our website (link in comment) to discover more about our services and launch your digital marketing campaign in China!
Before we dive into the marketing campaigns now live across various channels and platforms, it’s important to understand the context of International Women’s Day in China!
International Women’s Day has been recognized in China since 1949. But the day’s significance has moved away from female empowerment for the country’s e-commerce retailers over recent years – who brand the day as ‘Queen’s Day’ or ‘Goddess Day’. Check this carousel to understand more
Goddess Day 女王节 or Queen’s Day?
Every year, China celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, but it has devolved into a prime time for online sales campaigns and advertising rather than a moment to celebrate the achievements of women.
In fact, 妇女节 (fùnǚjié) has become one of the most attractive national shopping holidays, also known as Goddess Day 女王节 or Queens Day
A pleasant excuse to 买买买 (buy)!
How eCommerce platforms react to this online shopping event?
Every major e-commerce platform and brand holds sales promotions to commemorate the occasion.
Why is it so important? Women’s Day kicks off the post-ChineseNew Year season and acts as a good barometer for consumer spending
Interesting to watch how Chinese marketplaces are supporting international brands in reaching Chinese consumers’ attention. Digital red envelopes and live streaming format are a not-to-be-missed opportunity, one of the most popular forms of social commerce and consumer-facing digital innovations.
Most of them put a strong effort into exclusive membership plans to build platform loyalty and give their members even more benefits. It is the case of @Secoo, which offers the opportunity to receive a cashback of 300 yuan after total spending of 2000yuan
Secoo Membership exclusive activities & Live-streaming sessions with promo coupon
Eager shopping consumers have also the chance to join thousands of live streaming sessions hosted all around the globe and purchase their most wanted items.
It all started with pre-sale activities! On the Tmall pre-sale activities were officially rolled out on March 2nd
Since 2011, WeChat has revolutionized the way Chinese people communicate and use digital devices. We want to celebrate a decade of WeChat influence with this EGGsistinsight, which dives into the growth strategy that led to its milestones and aspirational achievements.
Let’s check how this APP grew to be one of the most popular social media globally, scaling from 0 to more than over 1 billion users in just ten years!
2010
And the story goes…
It all started with an email Allen Zhang张小龙 sent to Tencent CEO, Pony Ma 马化腾…
January 2011
A Social-tech Goliath is born!
On January 21st, 2011, Weixin 微信 was officially launched in China as a simple messaging and photo-sharing app. Can you guess how many engineers were involved in this “bold” project? Just seven! A few months after launch, it became an instant hit, and in the short span of 433 days, it reached over 100 million registered users!
A couple of months later, some features debuted online like optimized video clips sharing and the famous and highly discussed “shake” a.k.a. “find nearby”.
Just shake your smartphone and discover new friends around you can chat with!
April 2012:
A new feature at the center stage: Moments
From that “moment”, users could share their experiences, memories through messages, photos, and videos.
Tencent WeChat goes global
It is the exact time when the team realizes the importance of expanding their business internationally. By changing the name from Weixin to WeChat, this intention was quite explicit: now the APP is available in English, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Portuguese languages.
July 2012:
Tencent opens up WeChat to brands accounts
In the same year, Wechat Official Account was launched. It was also a unique occasion for international businesses to leap on board and interact with a massive audience.
How could brands encourage new potential consumers to follow them? By scanning QR codes, of course.
After only 6 months, a 200 million registered user target was achieved. Its communication capabilities were enhanced by video and audio call features.
August 2013:
Welcome to a new era of digital payment!
In August, WeChat Pay finally debuted online: the mobile payments feature was launched, which turn WeChat into one of the biggest cashless payment apps!
At the end of the year, WeChat promoted the app worldwide with a big campaign with TV ads and out-of-home billboards, involving star system celebrities such as the famous football player Messi.
January 2014:
Digital Hongbaos gamble
Alongside payment features, WeChat developers thought of a simple, yet effective way to rethink one of the oldest Chinese traditions: digital hongbao (red envelopes) straight on your smartphone! The first try skyrocketed: more than half a billion RMB worth of red envelopes were sent out.
May 2014:
Another big move for the Chinese tech giant: WeChat store
Another feature is about to rollout: it’s time for WeChat storesto shine. From May 2014, any brand account can open its built-in shop.
January 2015
A new promotional form to compete for users attention
That year started with the launch of ads inside the Moments section: brands can now build promotions!
In March, WeChat reached the half a billion users milestone.
Fun fact: over 400 million people are using Mini programs daily by 2020. What is even more exceptional is that the annual transaction via mini-programs exceed US$ 240 billion
2016
Overseas, let’s scan and pay!
WeChat pay goes global: now Chinese tourists can scan QR codes and pay just as in their home country when traveling overseas.
January 2017
Did you say mini-programs?
Mini programs launched, this sophisticated and innovative feature transformed WeChat as OS per se. In just a few months, thousands of brands started building their mini-program. 2017 is also important because WeChat launched its search engine.
2018
Can’t get enough of WeChat!
WeChat continues to improve, establish records and get over one billion monthly active users on the platform.
2019
The Super APP empowered moments with its new Instagram-like stories feature.
January 2020
Let’s make…a video with WeChat Channel
WeChat broadens its horizons with a new feature labeled “Channel”, where users can explore media accounts, videos from brands, stars, and celebrities.
Last but not least: WeChat made its search engine more powerful than ever by the acquisition of Sougou, and reached over 1.17 billion.
January 2021:
Mission accomplished
The Super APP gets more social vibes with the new Live Streaming feature. Will it be the start of a new era for the “chatting” app?
Here’s the last fun fact: since 2011, WeChat splash screen, called Blue Marble, is a photo of the planet earth shot during the Seventies, showing the African continent. This has never changed until 2017. Now, the Chinese version of the app shows the eastern Asian continent picture, taken by a Chinese satellite.
Nowadays, WeChat plays a fundamental role in Chinese people’s daily life.
Advertising
Store
Payments
Cross-border eCommerce
Search
KOL marketing
Customer service
Moments
Those are just some of the main functionalities offered by the app.
So, what’s your take?
You can’t miss the unique opportunity to connect with over one billion potential customers, build more interactive and personalized shopping experiences, that is eventually what Chinese consumers are eager for!
With EGGsist, you can start turning your brand into a WeChat superstar by building your unique identity on the app and get in touch with thousands of potential customers.
Plus, you can push content directly through programmatic ads on the sections built-in WeChat, or sell within your store. Possibilities are endless!
Vuoi conoscere tutte le funzionalità drive to store della Super App?
Acquista ora il corso In-store China Digital Training, dedicato allo staff del retail per massimizzare il fatturato dell’audience cinese nei punti vendita in Italia ed Europa.
Location: face2face in store
Durata: 2 ore
A chi è rivolto: Retailer, store Manager, Sales Staff, Trainers e Digital Marketing Manager
Prezzo: 500 euro + IVA (30% OFF per booking entro il 15.10.2019)
Alipay - Digital Retail Training
Are you an European retailer? Does your point of sales accept Alipay already?
Are you aware of all this Super App’s drive to store marketing solutions?
“Alipay In-store China Digital Training course” dedicated to retail staff interested in maximizing the in-store revenues and attract the Chinese audience in Europe and Italy.
Location: face2face in store
Durata: 2 hours
Dedicated to: Retailer, Store Manager, Sales Staff, Trainers, and Digital Marketing Manager
Price: 500 euro + VAT (30% OFF for booking by 15.10.2019)
