MSLGROUP China whitepaper: We Chat about WeChat

We Chat About WeChat
Authors: Yuki Yang, Mia Lü, Carmen Situ, Derek Dong, Enson Hu

About MSLGROUP

We are a Next Generation Agency that creates and celebrates big ideas and communications solutions in the digital age.
Boundless thinking, innovation driven by insights and an entrepreneurial spirit excite us. We are relentless truth-seekers
and collaborate widely to discover pearls of wisdom.

MSLGROUP is Publicis Groupe’s strategic communications and engagement agency and advisors in all aspects
of communication strategy: from consumer PR to financial communications, from public affairs to reputation
management and from crisis communications to experiential marketing and events, with more than 3,500 people
across close to 100 offices worldwide.

We deliver multi-channel creative programs for more than 25 of the world’s top 100 brands, as well as advise them on
critical business issues. The group offers strategic planning and counsel, insight-guided thinking and big, compelling
ideas – followed by thorough execution.

In 2013, The Holmes Report recognized MSLGROUP as the “Best Corporate Consultancy in the World” and “Asia
Pacific Consultancy of the Year”. In the same year, Campaign Asia named MSLGROUP PR Agency Network of the
Year for the second consecutive year (2012 and 2013).

MSLGROUP has the largest PR, social media and events teams in Greater China (12 offices and 800+ professionals)
and includes brands MSLGROUP, Genedigi Group, Luminous Experiential Marketing Communications, and King
Harvests. MSLGROUP China has remained the fastest-growing PR and social engagement consultancy in China since
1994. Our specialist full-service international firm counts 200+ staff in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu.
We were named “China Agency of the Year” twice in the last four years by The Holmes Report. MSLGROUP China
has also won accolades from the International PR Association, China PR Association, the International Business
Awards, and China’s New Media Festival.

Learn more about us at: www.mslgroup.cn | Sina Weibo: @mslgroup


Contents
1

Contents

2

Foreword

3

Should I try WeChat?

4 Reaching your target audience

4 Comparing WeChat to other communication channels

8 Does WeChat suit my company?

10 Every WeChat account is unique

10 So, are you ready to try WeChat?

12

What kind of WeChat to create?

13 The essence of a public account is a mobile mini-site

13 WeChat can greatly benefit companies

15 Positioning a WeChat account based on your unique selling points

17 A service account or a subscription account?

18

How to operate WeChat

19 Gaining subscribers of public accounts

19 Daily operation of public accounts

21 Managing comments on WeChat

22 It’s all in the details

23

Five Critical Considerations

1

Foreword

Since its launch on August 8, 2012, companies around
the world have intensely monitored the meteoric rise of
Tencent’s WeChat platform. The recent introduction of
WeChat 5.0 provides users with a richer, more diverse
experience including immediate access to e-coupons,
booking capabilities, live support, billing inquiries, and
points-of-interest navigation. Southern People Weekly, a
leading newspaper remarked, “[WeChat] delivers more
than what is hyped: this is WeChat’s attitude and is key
to whether or not it is successful.”

Based on our experience over the past nine months
helping clients to effectively develop WeChat strategies
and implement them, we have developed this white
paper to explain the construction and use of WeChat
with detailed, best-in-class examples. We also elaborate
on the approach and methodology to determine and
measure performance on WeChat. Readers will come
away with answers to three critical questions:

Despite the rapid acceptance of WeChat, many
companies have not come close to maximizing its
full potential. Following our thorough examination,
we believe that WeChat is more than a media and
marketing platform: it can also improve operational
efficiency and help companies reduce overhead costs.
Combined with its user-friendly interface and multifunctionality, WeChat can be a catalyst that creates value
for businesses.


What kind of WeChat should I create?

How can I best use WeChat?



3

Tencent’s Director of the WeChat Product, Zeng Ming,
shocked marketing circles when he bluntly stated in
an interview on June 5, 2013 that “WeChat is not a
marketing tool.” Marketers then shot back, “Well, if it’s
not a marketing tool then what is it pretending to be?”
The debate continues today but the “Father of WeChat”,
Tencent Senior VP Zhang Xiaolong, suggested early
on: “How you choose to use WeChat determines what
WeChat is for you.”

you are reaching your target audience with the right
message — one that places you favorably in their minds.
This likeability is the ultimate measurement your
communications program’s performance. The key to
effective communications is knowing how to reach your
target audience on a mass scale.
With this in mind, WeChat is a mobile-based mass
communications channel. Its scope dwarfs conservative
expectations:

In May 2013, WeChat users spent more than
440 million aggregated hours in one month,
a whopping increase of 250% compared with
August 2012 (Source: iResearch).

WeChat users exceeded the 600 million mark
in October 2013.

Comparing WeChat to other
communication channels
China has many communications channels: the social
media space counts microblogs Sina and Tencent Weibo,
Renren and now WeChat. There are also propriety apps
created by companies and traditional tools like SMS and
MMS. Each serves a different purpose and thus has its
own characteristics. Let’s focus on three channels: Sina
Weibo, WeChat and apps.

If we follow the comments of Tencent’s SVP, the use
of WeChat has endless possibilities. Yet, it also raises
questions about the role of marketing for companies.
So before we elaborate on WeChat, let’s first examine
how companies use social media as a marketing tool.

Reaching your target
audience
For public relations practitioners, marketing is
communicating: a process of delivering meaningful
information to your target audience. The channels and
methods may vary but what matters is whether or not

Weibo and WeChat: Complementary yet
unique
Since the emergence of WeChat, China has been abuzz
with the question: Will WeChat replace Weibo? Before
we answer this, let’s look at some figures. The following
chart compares the volume of monthly users amongst
the top five Chinese social media apps between August
2012 and May 2013 (per 10,000 users).


mUserTracker - Top 5 social media APPs by active
user hours per month (From 2012.08 to 2013.05)
NO.1 WeChat
NO.3 Renren
NO.5 Momo

NO.2 Sina Weibo
NO.4 Qzone

5

optimum channel to share personal updates within our
social circles. Yet the rise of WeChat did not invalidate
the use of Weibo; users still turn to it for the latest
information on trending topics. We believe that these
value differences actually complement each other well.
Let’s see how.
Interest-centric vs Relationship-centric

ten thousand hours

WeChat

Sina Weibo

Renren

Qzone

Momo

In iResearch’s 2013 Q2 Social Service and Mobile Device
Report, WeChat users spent more than 440 million
aggregated hours in May 2013, compared to 130 million
in August 2012. This nearly 250% increase placed
WeChat in the position of China’s top social media app
and knocked down former reigning app, Sina Weibo
(170 million aggregate hours). While these figures
demonstrate the rising popularity of WeChat, it also
shows that Weibo usage hasn’t declined either (+49.3%).
However, if we delve further into Weibo’s figures,
we’ll find a clearer story: according to the monitoring
service, Weibo Reach, Weibo usage has been on the
decline since early 2012 and current activity on Weibo is
averaging at 2011 levels.

Let’s quickly review of Weibo. When it was first
launched, the platform helped us to stay connected
with our friends in real-time: we shared jokes, our
friends followed other friends, and new friends followed
us. It supported our real-life social networks. Yet, once
celebrities began to set up accounts and companies
began to use Weibo as a promotion platform, Weibo’s
value began to shift — it then became an issues and
news information source. While users still relied on the
social media service, their need to stay connected with
their friends remained unfulfilled.
So when WeChat emerged with its closed, invitationonly structure, it filled this gap and slowly became the

When you look at your followers on Weibo, you might
notice that they are typically people in the same industry
as you or that you are all fans of the same celebrities. You
might also notice that you and your followers track the
same information sources. As mentioned earlier, Weibo
has become a primary method to view news, information
and trends.
WeChat, on the other hand, operates differently. WeChat
creates and protects relationships with only the people
you choose to include in your circle. More specifically,
if you have not added people to your network, then
you cannot see what other people are posting and vice
versa. For users, relationships with companies are built
individually, which implies that WeChat is more suitable
for companies to engage in substantive and direct
communication with its audiences. We should note
that unlike Weibo, where posts can be re-forwarded to
create a viral effect, this trending effect is very difficult to
replicate on WeChat.
Proactive Search vs Passive Liking
The strong focus on protecting relationships has
compelled WeChat to limit the number of messages
a company can send to its members to one a day on
WeChat 5.0. On Weibo, companies are permitted to send
an unlimited number of posts. Therefore, it would not
be realistic for companies to consider replacing Weibo
with WeChat as a primary means for disseminating
information.
Moreover, Weibo fans do not need to follow a company’s
official account to read posts: information is often reposted by influencers or followers so you just need to read

their Weibo. On WeChat, company information is limited to
users who have subscribed to the corporate account. Even
though subscribers may share this information within their
networks, compared to Weibo, these networks are limited
and not ideal for distributing information widely.
However, if companies can attract consumers to
subscribe to its corporate WeChat account, then there
is a tremendous opportunity to capture the hearts and
minds of its audience.
Content vs Service
We have established that Weibo is an interest-driven
social media platform where content is king (Read
MSLGROUP China’s earlier whitepaper, Creating a
Weibo that Supports Your Business).
WeChat presents a different story. If re-posting
information on WeChat were the same as Weibo, your
phone would be flooded with spam messages, which
you then would ignore and delete. Needless to say, you
would not even consider forwarding it to friends.
Now, let’s consider a different approach: you, the user,
want to get information on your own terms. You send
a product query to a company’s WeChat account and
automatically get details about its products, pricing,
and locations. This saves you valuable time from visiting
a store or searching the Internet to obtain the same
information. The information you want to know goes
directly to your mobile device. Thus, WeChat offers
a direct service, unlike Weibo, which offers catch-all
content.

deliveries. Last August, they recorded RMB 4,000 in
sales. This month they broke RMB 80,000 in sales.
“I don’t know what this ‘O2O’ model is but since
we’ve posted our story on Weibo six months ago, our
sales volume has grown tenfold,” said John.
With no intermediaries and nearly no overhead,
John deals directly with customers. There’s an
additional benefit for consumers, too: They get fresher
fruit and thus they’re getting a greater value.
Every night, John organizes the next day’s
orders.
“In the beginning, I was the only one working in
my fruit delivery business. But now I have so many
customers that I’ve had to hire someone to help
me make deliveries. I also have part time staff for
deliveries, too.”
John averages 19 orders a day but customers are
buying in bulk with orders averaging over RMB 100.
“Young families tend to order my fruit so we try
to focus on the most ideal fruits for them,” said John.
John thinks that as social media platforms and sales
merge together, his relationship with his clients will
become even closer and the problem of dealing with
after-sales service will become easier to handle.
This is one of many entrepreneurial stories where
WeChat has been used to attract customers, conduct
sales, and communicate with customers throughout the
entire sales process. Weibo helps build brand visibility
through information dissemination, but WeChat delivers
individual sales and customer service.

We should highlight that WeChat requires companies
to fully understand consumer behavior and purchasing
habits in order to correctly organize information
delivery. Here’s a story from Today Morning Express, a
leading regional newspaper from Zhejiang, that vividly
captures how two business partners pulled in RMB
80,000 a month in fruit sales though the effective use
of both Weibo and WeChat.
Twenty-something John (pseudonym) drives
around the city delivering fruit and his phone won’t
stop buzzing from WeChat messages. John opened
a fruit store half a year ago but it’s really only a small
storage room. He has no employees and he makes
deliveries himself. His partner is a fourth-year college
student named Joey (pseudonym).
Joey is responsible for graphic design and
copywriting and for posting information on Weibo.
John uses WeChat to collect orders and make

WeChat vs apps: Demand determines
platform
Apps were one of the first mobile digital sales channels
that major companies, especially consumer goods
companies, readily developed. Although apps can be
customized and designed in ways to accommodate
different service styles, the vast majority of corporate
apps push uninteresting information. Moreover, apps
are built on the mobile device, which also means that


location, personal information, and even the user’s
contact lists are accessible.
On WeChat, however, public accounts mainly follow
a standard WeChat interface and private information
is inaccessible. Also, there is limited personalization
on WeChat. Yet those limitations are miniscule
when compared to the massive reach that WeChat
provides. Interestingly, well-known angel investor Cai
Wensheng posted on his Weibo in April 2013: “WeChat
is so widespread that it makes 50% of apps totally
worthless.”
So is this really the case? Let’s take a deeper look.
Which is a better public platform?
Let’s examine the key differences between WeChat and
apps.
1. Development cost: Apps are bulky while WeChat is
snappy
Developing an app incurs significant development
costs. Typically, companies need to conduct consumer
surveys to understand need and behavior. Development
teams then analyze the results to determine and agree
upon the app’s functions and interface. Then, there is
also the need to consider how to develop apps for all
of the major mobile operating systems. It takes, on
average, three to six months to develop an app and the
costs can easily reach six figures and upwards.
WeChat’s built-in features and simple interface prevent
developers from designing complicated content thus
making public accounts on WeChat quite limited.
Unfortunately, this also means that all public accounts
look roughly the same with little ability to differentiate.
However, because WeChat is already available on all
major mobile operating systems, companies can ignore
the challenges of developing apps for different systems.

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This makes WeChat development costs much lower.
For example, a customized menu on a public WeChat
account is limited to 5-8 items (maximum of 15), which
would keep development costs under RMB 100,000.
We should be clear that this “light and snappy”
characteristic means that it cannot take on complex or
sophisticated features.
2. Advertising and promotion: Apps require heavy
spending while WeChat is economical
Once you have developed your app, you want to
promote it and get people to download it. Free apps are
downloaded by the millions in the massive app store
ecosystem. To gain awareness of your app you will have
to see that it gets onto the lists of top downloads or
promoted apps.
Advertising, media buy and even TV commercials
are used to increase downloads. These are all
costly activities with no guarantee that your app will
penetrate the thicket of the app store ecosystem. Some
companies have even turned to guerilla tactics to
promote their app on store lists, but these actions are
typically frowned upon by app store moderators who
then punish offenders by removing their apps from
store. For most companies, app download remains the
biggest headache in the whole promotion strategy.
In contrast, WeChat is more relaxed. With WeChat,
users can simply scan a company’s QR code in order
to subscribe. Additionally, there is an already existing
ecosystem with hundreds of millions of users who, as
previous data has suggested, spend increasingly more
time on the channel. If companies decide to launch a
corporate WeChat profile, then they can leverage the
massive user base, which inherently is shifting toward
using WeChat, to connect with more than just their
friends. The end result is that less money needs to be

spent promoting a WeChat account. WeChat incurs
greater savings when development and promotion costs
are taken into account.

to see how IKEA products would look in their homes
and helps with purchasing decisions. This function is
highly specific to apps and generally outside the realm
of possibility for WeChat.

3. Operation and maintenance: Apps are a complicated
ecosystem while WeChat is plug-and-play
Apps and software programs follow a similar process:
if there is a bug, the user needs to download an update
or download a completely new version. If the company
wants to add new features or functions, again, the user
has to download a completely new version. When there
is a new version of the mobile operating system, the
app also has to be updated. All these updates require
additional time and resources.
With WeChat, public accounts are synchronized
with Tencent’s servers so changes and updates are
fully linked and are immediately reflected on the
mobile device. From this perspective, operating and
maintaining a WeChat public account is much more
efficient.
Apps are better for targeted, in-depth services,
while WeChat is better for broader, simpler
services
The chart below sums up the relative strengths of apps
and WeChat.

DHL is another company that uses apps and WeChat
separately. For DHL, WeChat is used to target small
businesses and other niche segments that need basic
services like checking international shipping prices
and tracking orders. The DHL app offers high-volume,
long-term customers with detailed needs: pricing
information, tracking system, discounts, points-based
reward program and other tailored services. DHL’s app
provides its sales team with a crucial touchpoint to
engage and retain existing customers.
Based on our experience, WeChat’s simplicity and high
accessibility make it a convenient platform to provide
basic services to a wide range of consumers. Apps are
better suited for more demanding services such as
synchronizing accounts and providing better end user
experiences by offering more functionality.

Does WeChat suit my
company?

WeChat may seem better for almost everything
according to the comparison chart, but this isn’t
necessarily true. The inherent design of WeChat
is limited to basic functions and offers little room
to provide customers with more detailed service.
Apps provide more functions and more interactivity.
Let’s take, for example, IKEA’s use of apps. Its app
incorporates virtual reality technology so users can take
a photo of their space on their mobile device and ‘place’
an IKEA product into it. This function enables customers

Despite knowing that WeChat is increasingly being used
as a marketing platform and that WeChat has a user
base of 600 million (and growing), some companies still
remain hesitant about opening a public account. The
question we often hear from these companies is, “Yes,
but will WeChat suit my company?”
Zhang Xiaolong, SVP at Tencent, once said,“I hope
WeChat can be of service to people and help them to
thrive. If you have an idea, then WeChat can help you find
an audience. Even if it’s only an audience of one hundred,
at least that is a start. With a good idea, a person can start
building a brand and developing a client base.”


So if one business owner can use WeChat to find 100
customers, what about companies that have thousands
of customers? How can these companies ignore the
potential of 600 million customers? Companies with the
resources can benefit from WeChat and provide added
value to their customers. Before we take that step,
though, it is important to determine what that value is
and how to apply metrics to measure it.

Success on WeChat depends on clearly
defined objectives
For some businesses, success depends on how many
products are sold; so sales volume is a measurement of
success. For others, it’s not as straightforward. Those in
the service industry will find that WeChat could benefit
their consumers by providing some basic operations (e.g.
locations, hours, contact information, etc.). For those in
the consumer goods industry, WeChat may be used as a
means to promote brands. However, what matters most
is defining the purpose: knowing the objective will help a
company measure its success on the platform.
China Merchants Bank is an example of a company that
has succeeded in using WeChat to deliver a service for
its credit card holders. WeChat has become a convenient
channel for its clients to access account information,
track purchases, and even pay bills. Because China
Merchants Bank geared its WeChat profile toward
providing services (and doing them well), the response
from clients has been outstanding with 5 million active
registered users.
Again, WeChat is only a communications channel
that offers simplicity and efficiency. It is important to
consider all channels in your sales and marketing mix.
WeChat might not be ideal for your company if you
already engage your audience in more meaningful
ways.

Define appropriate metrics to evaluate
success
It would be easy to say that the total number of WeChat
subscribers you have would be an appropriate metric
to define success on the platform and that more
subscribers means more visibility and favorability.
However, aggregate numbers should not be the ultimate
goal; interaction and engagement rates are equally, if
not, more important. Tracking the click-through rates
of forwarded messages, as well as which menu service
options are often used, are also key metrics.
Let’s look at an example of “Mr. Rice Wine” in Xiamen

9

who earns RMB 50,000 a month selling on WeChat
(excerpt from “Selling Wine to 50,000 on WeChat:
Living Examples of Sales on WeChat” on huxiu.com):
Mr. Rice Wine uses a traditional recipe to brew a
local brand, Hakka House rice wine, in Liaopi Village in
Fujian Province. The Hakka House brand is well known
throughout the region and is priced at RMB 60/halfliter. For such a niche product, it is difficult to imagine
that Mr. Rice Wine has found such promising results
from opening a WeChat account.
Within six months of launching his product on
WeChat, Mr. Rice Wine has been able to track sales
data of all purchases. From the data, he found most
customers buy 2.5–5 liters each time, which nets him
RMB 300-600 per transaction. Knowing this, Mr.
Rice Wine makes sure that his promotional messages
are geared toward this high profit margin audience.
As of May 2013, Hakka House rice wine has generated
22,500 followers with sales revenues of roughly RMB
50,000 per month. This is a great example of how
WeChat has helped spur local business.
In the above example, sales growth is considered a
key performance indicator (KPI) of WeChat marketing.
However, for some companies, the objective for a
WeChat profile may lie in other areas and with different
audiences. In some cases, WeChat could be used as an
internal communications campaign, as a method to boost
employee interaction, or as means to drive traffic to other
platforms. In those cases, the KPIs would all be different:
employee satisfaction, open/share rates, and tracking
active users.
To be clear, WeChat does not have fixed features; it can
be used to provide a service, a channel for information
or even act as an entry point for Internet marketing. For
the same reasons, it would not be practical to fix KPIs.
Setting KPIs can only become clear once the objective
and audience have been defined. It is important to
consider the Internet habits and behavior of your
audience before positioning your WeChat strategy.

Use WeChat to enhance communications
value
For some companies, the development of a WeChat
account has not yielded the results that they had hoped.
In some of those cases, conflicting internal interests
may be an obstacle: which department should be in
charge of operating the WeChat account – marketing,
sales, human resources, communications, etc.? This
is clearly a sensitive issue, but it also highlights how
WeChat could be useful in so many ways to a company.

WeChat is not limited to message notifications, it
can also form an effective platform for CRM, online
sales and online recruitment. And with mass usage,
there is an opportunity to analyze big data. Thus
many departments could operate the platform;
however, only one department should be in charge
of it while coordinating with other departments.
Operating a WeChat account can be difficult without
strong internal communication. Here are some of our
recommendations:
1.

In the early stages of development, we
recommend the department in charge of
communications to lead construction of the
platform. For daily operation, the department
that manages information dissemination
should take the lead.

2. The WeChat platform involves numerous
departments and each should share the gains
as well as the pains together. The WeChat
platform will not gain substantial support
unless all the relevant departments are
stakeholders.
3. Do not embark on a WeChat program
until strong support is assured from other
departments. Without this, operating an
inactive or ineffective WeChat account will
add little value to the brand or the individual
departments. In fact it could potentially have
the opposite effect.
At DHL, the corporate communications department led
the development and operation of its WeChat account.
DHL Senior Communications Manager, Zhou Haiying, said
that the ability to create real value for every department in
the company was a precondition for success. She needed
to get all departments to realize that WeChat would help
them fulfill their roles better and that WeChat could,
should and would deliver all over positive results for the
company, its employees, and its customers.

value and positioning. A company’s success on WeChat
will depend on its ability to define its USP and provide its
customers with something that offers them value.
Let’s return to DHL as an example. As growing numbers
of Chinese youth pursue overseas studies, international
courier companies have honed their marketing to focus
on this segment. For many students, the journey to
overseas study begins when they send their application
materials to each school. It was clear to DHL that this
segment would also most likely be using WeChat.
These anxious college students naturally would want
to follow the delivery status of their applications and
would value the ability to check that status anytime and
anywhere. As a result, DHL made the tracking function
one of the core elements in its WeChat account. Of
course, tracking is not new; applications already exist
that allow a user to do this. However, the process for
doing this was much more complicated than the simple
process of subscribing on WeChat. More importantly,
DHL was able to take a first-mover advantage over its
industry competitors and build brand awareness among
this young and growing customer group.
In another example, Taikang Life Insurance has
developed its WeChat not to service customers, but to
aid its tens of thousands of agents. In its approach to
WeChat, Taikang Life Insurance has provided a valuable
internal communications platform for its agents who
are often on the road and receive little support from
the head office. Over 30,000 agents have signed up for
the WeChat account since its launch and the insurance
company has seen greater efficiency in its internal
communications as well as customer response.

Every WeChat account is
unique
The successful WeChat accounts for China Merchants Bank
and China Southern Airlines (featured later in this white
paper) should be considered as individual cases. It would
not be realistic or practical to imitate their strategies. Every
company and brand has its unique selling point (USP),

So, are you ready to try
WeChat?
Let’s review the principles:
1.

Define your target audience. This serves as


your reason for creating a WeChat account.
2. Distinguish the role WeChat plays from other
social media channels or marketing tactics.
3. Set clear objectives and KPI metrics.

smooth internal communication.
5. Find a way of operating WeChat that suits you.
Once you have addressed these points then you should
be ready to get started on WeChat. Next, we will focus
on how to establish and operate your WeChat presence.

4. Establish proper internal support and ensure

Additional Reading: The development of mobile Internet and its transformative effect on Internet applications
Internet behavior can be categorized into three needs:

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Need for information: based on interests or goals
Need for social interaction: maintaining an interpersonal network
Need for extended services: enjoying convenience

In the 1990s, search engines satisfied the need for information and traditional IM tools such as QQ satisfied the
need for social interaction, yet there were few high-level Internet services.
The rapid development of the Internet at the beginning of the 21st century introduced online retail and financial
services, which hastened the growth of Internet services. The development of the PC and mobile devices further
changed needs.
The launch of Xiaonei.com in 2005 marked the emergence of social network services (SNS) in China followed
by Kaixin.com. Weibo represented the latest service, which has grown exponentially demonstrated by massive
uptake on mobile devices. We believe SNS merges two needs: the need for information and the need for social
interaction, a development that has been termed “Internet crossover.” However, Weibo cannot replace services
offered by websites, which is becoming increasingly mature as they combine mobile Internet with applications.
The birth of WeChat marked the second Internet crossover, merging the needs of information, social interaction
and service under one platform. While WeChat is constrained by the nature of its platform and cannot match the
functionality of websites, it has satisfied the needs of Internet users in a new way.

What kind of WeChat to create?


Individuals can create a personal account on WeChat
simply by registering their mobile number. Tencent
allows WeChat accounts to be linked to QQ or other
products in the Tencent ecosystem. Companies are able
to create a public account.
In this section, we will describe how a public account works
and elaborate varied applications from customer service to
delivering information . We will also discuss the role WeChat
can play in communications through select case studies.

The essence of a public
account is a mobile mini-site
Before the popularization of mobile Internet,
consumers looking for information or services were
limited to certain websites or Internet tools on their
computers. Mobile Internet applications have changed
all that, making everything more convenient. At the
most basic level, companies can simply transfer these
functions and services from the traditional Internet.
There are two ways to make this transfer:
1.

Leveraging applications that already have a
sizeable and mature user base, such as Weibo
or WeChat.

2. Independently developing a proprietary
application designed for mobile devices.
While Weibo can also serve as a platform for some
service functions, its features have not been extensively
developed. Because of this, WeChat is the more mature
and therefore better option to transfer these basic
service functions onto the mobile Internet sphere.
A public account on WeChat is effectively a mini-site that
incorporates basic service functions. Many functions
that are found on a traditional website can be replicated
on WeChat, such as checking into a China Airlines flight
or tracking shipments on DHL or managing your China
Merchants Bank credit card bill.

The most powerful feature on WeChat is its open
API, which allows administrators to access their own
databases, sales systems, logistics systems, etc. WeChat
is like a fully fledged cityscape where all the electrical
and plumbing have been installed. Developers can come
in and build all kinds of unique and distinctive real estate
that assists people as they go about their daily lives.

13

WeChat can greatly benefit
companies
The following are some of the significant benefits that
WeChat can deliver:
1.

Enhanced brand preference – by further
improving user experience

2. Precise localization – find and maintain core
consumers
3. Reduction in cost of communication – making
communications more efficient
4. Sales promotions – introducing a potential
new channel for e-commerce
Once you have addressed these points then you should
be ready to get started on WeChat. Next, we will focus
on how to establish and operate your WeChat presence.

Enhanced brand preference – by further
improving user experience
Mobile phones can provide services to consumers at
any time, any place - with the speed of development
outpacing those in traditional services.
WeChat specifically requires consumers to follow
accounts that they are interested in. This means that
consumers proactively ask you for information, and,
more importantly, consumers can choose the specific
information they want. This helps brands avoid alienating
consumers as a result of sending irrelevant information.
Mu Zhaoxi, a visiting professor at Tsinghua University,
recently wrote in a column on eguan.cn (Analysis
International): “WeChat marketing is permissionbased. Users will not get any WeChat messages from
any brands without following their official accounts by
first scanning QR codes or entering account numbers.
Brand accounts can attract fewer but better followers
because these proactive users are ready for messages
and promotions from the companies they are following.
They are loyal consumers and targets.”

Moreover, due to the simplicity of the platform itself,
service functions on WeChat are also comparatively
simple. At the basic level, each customized menu can
only deliver one basic function, which means a customer’s
experience is also simplified. This, undoubtedly, promotes

an easier and better user experience.

Precise localization – find and maintain
core consumers
People have been bullish about WeChat’s potential
in social CRM since its birth. Undoubtedly, it has a
number of advantages over other social platforms such
as Weibo and Renren.com. First, WeChat accounts are
bound to a mobile phone number, which ensures the
authenticity of the user. It is therefore easier to gain
authentic and accurate user information, compared to
other platforms which have witnessed the emergence
of “zombie fans” and which makes the extraction of
useful analytical data more difficult. In addition, the
private one-on-one communications format on WeChat
lets companies know the specific needs and concerns of
certain consumers, and then give companies the ability
to customize their services for different users. For
these reasons WeChat public accounts offers greater
value than other platforms, particularly once they are
integrated with a company’s CRM systems.
Professor Mu Zhaoxi also stated, “WeChat is built on
the basis of trust among acquaintances. WeChat users
can build up a link with others and also subscribe to
information they need. Companies can promote their
products and conduct point-to-point marketing based on
users’ requirements. Companies can also use WeChat
to conduct market research, customer management,
sales payment processing, customer support, and new
customer mining, among other things.”

When it comes to maintaining an account and managing
potential consumers, companies can take advantage of
WeChat’s basic customized-reply function to provide
customers with specific consulting services. For example,
if users send their location to the Watsons’ account,
they would receive a reply, telling them the locations of
the closest stores and information about special offers.
Traditional CRM systems cannot realize this service
because customers would not make costly phone calls to
114 or customer service hotlines to simply find a store.

In terms of current customers, companies can do many
things if they connect their CRM systems with their
WeChat accounts. In this regard, WeChat can become
a gateway, enabling enterprises to communicate oneon-one with their customers instantly. It also provides
a more personalized and customized service, thus
improving customer satisfaction and ultimately
stimulating repeat purchases.

Take for example Ping An Insurance. Typically, if drivers

find themselves in a car accident, they have to report
the accident to the insurance company by calling the
customer service hotline. Then they would need to take
pictures on-site and wait for staff assistance to arrive.
But with Ping An Insurance and through their WeChat
service feature, they only need to take on-site pictures
and send them to the WeChat account with their
location. Then the work is complete! That is because
Ping An has already connected its CRM system with
WeChat so that their customer service representatives
can receive customer information immediately when
a customer contacts them. With the popularization
of WeChat, companies must adjust and update their
businesses in order to attract and retain customers.

In the traditional retail industry, local enterprises have
taken the lead and started to connect their CRM systems
with WeChat. In Hangzhou, two department stores have
opened WeChat accounts to allow customers to claim
gifts, inquire about special offers and obtain parking
information, etc. While some argue that the larger
objective is to convert online traffic into in-store traffic,
the real value here is that, with enough followers, a
retail store can begin to analyze customer behavior and
then begin to target services that drive both online and
offline consumption activity.

WeChat can categorize all kinds of users through
their IDs and can distinguish consumers’ different
habits. These steps help a company understand their
customer’s potential needs while also providing
information that is both relevant and engaging.

Reduction in cost of communication –
driving efficiencies
Using WeChat as a customer service platform can also
help reduce a company’s operating costs. For example,
if users subscribe to China Southern Airlines’ WeChat
account, they can use the service to check-in and select
seats. These actions save time and reduce the need
for staff assistance, not to mention reduce the cost of
printing boarding passes. In another example, when
users link their China Merchants Bank card to the
company’s WeChat account, the bank can send updated
expense alerts as well as provide users with the ability
to view statements. Again, these actions save the bank
the cost of texting, printing or posting bank statements.
If we assume that China Merchants Bank sends roughly
2.2 billion SMS messages a month (one cent per
message) to its customers with information regarding
recent transactions, the texting cost savings alone
would equal RMB 22 million! These same cost savings
can be applied to the logistics industry. In 2012, there


were 5.7 billion express packages shipped in China. If
the cost of sending status updates via SMS is RMB 0.5
for each package (from sending to delivering), a total of
RMB 2.85 billion could be saved!

In addition, companies can use WeChat to conduct market
research, which helps reduce manpower that historically
would have been needed to contact people. This research
is further strengthened by the first-hand, real-time
customer data, detailing their personalized services.
Liu Peng, Deputy General Manger of China Merchants
Bank credit card center, explained the value of WeChat
to his business, “Our center has 2 million WeChat
subscribers who are active credit card users, much more
active than the average cardholder. We process 800,000
queries on WeChat everyday compared to 4 million
queries amongst the 20 million cardholders. Although
WeChat users account for 10% of all cardholders, they
represent 20% of all credit card queries. Staffing costs at
call centers are the highest for banks. Any way to reduce
call center costs is worth exploring. Even if WeChat
provides a marginal benefit in the beginning, it can be
increased progressively. That is why we value WeChat.”

While it is clear that WeChat can offer customers
both a better user experience with more convenient
communication and also provide very tangible cost
savings for companies, WeChat cannot completely replace
traditional communications channels. If used effectively,
WeChat can become a powerful auxiliary tool to support
customer interaction (call centers, check-in desks, etc.)

15

as a mobile application, which combines search (Baidu)
with e-commerce (Tmall) and online payment (Alipay).
All users need to do is to follow the public account (no
need to download any applications), and then they
can complete the whole shopping process including
searching, selecting, placing an order and paying all within
the same account. More importantly, if WeChat public
accounts are connected with back-end sales systems,
when a consumer finishes shopping or even searches
for product information, the background systems can
continuously build a database about the user’s preferences
(i.e. shopping habits, preferred shopping times, items of
interest etc.) Companies then have the ability to provide
consumers with personalized services, encouraging
and stimulating further purchases. The success of such
campaigns can be easily measured, honed and refined
by analyzing the behavior and sales, and the return on
investment for WeChat can be easily realized.

There is, however, a sticking point. Mobile payments
have not yet gained wide acceptance due to consumer
fear over the risks and safety of payment mechanisms.
Conversion rates and actual sales for mobile businesses
remain far away from that of traditional PC-based online
businesses. Nor is mobile shopping likely to replace
traditional online shopping - browsing significant
numbers of goods on a small mobile phone screen
is not very user friendly. Therefore, companies with
smaller product lines or those that sell on convenience
are better-suited to WeChat.

Positioning a WeChat
account based on your unique
selling points
In this section we will discuss the role WeChat can play
in a company’s overall communication program.

Sales promotions - introducing a new
channel for e-commerce
WeChat’s online payment function was introduced with
the launch of WeChat 5.0. This function makes it easier
to manage transactions and now enables companies to
turn their WeChat marketing investment directly into a
sales channel.

So how can companies manage transactions through
public accounts? Well, consider a WeChat public account

Short-term interest vs. long-term needs
At MSLGROUP we have reached a number of
conclusions based upon our observations. Regardless
of the communications method, consumers form
their media consumption decisions and habits based
on certain needs or reasons. People usually look for
a channel, spend some time reading or using it, and,
if satisfied, may subscribe to it, and only then will it
become part of their fixed reading habits.
At the start of the ‘acquisition process’, if the reason or

need leading consumers to form their media consumption
habits is short-term focused, it is likely to be less stable.
While the conversion from the initial review to subscription
is very quick, the duration of the subscription may only
last 3-5 days (around significant sports events like the
Shanghai F1 race for example); If the interest is stable
and ongoing, the conversion may be slower, but the
subscription duration may be much longer (perhaps years
in the case of something focused on food or for patients
with chronic diseases looking for medical information).

So, when considering whether or not WeChat is right for
your company, the questions we always ask are, “What
is the core value of your offering? Are we addressing a
short-term interest or a long-term need for consumers?”
The main purpose of thinking this through is to help us
get some basic direction. Which is more suitable, for
companies: a subscription account or services account?
Furthermore, what role can WeChat play in your overall
communication program?

For short-term interests, WeChat can probably
be a gateway, which could lead followers to other
platforms or even directly to an offline purchase.
Here, WeChat is merely a transfer mechanism;

For long-term needs, WeChat can form a
platform to assemble members and thus
become an important tool for companies to
communicate with consumers. This presents
companies with opportunities to communicate
more intimately with consumers and strengthen
their brand relationships with members.

Case study: China Southern Airlines
Below is an article excerpt from Business Value
Magazine, China Southern: What is WeChat?
In an interview with Hu Chengjie, CIO of China
Southern, when China Southern began a major
transformation in 2009 from being “productoriented” to being “customer-oriented”, it analyzed
travel behavior and divided the journey into 12 steps:
making travel plans – selecting a class (economy,

business or first class); booking tickets; checking-in;
selecting cabin services; managing luggage services;
arriving at the hotel; checking in; leaving the hotel;
arriving at the airport; checking-in; personalized
interaction; and then finally moving on to the next
journey. The company improved and optimized
services at every step, building up a service network
accompanying passenger travel called the “All
behavior chain”.
“In our eyes, WeChat carries the mission of
communicating, but not marketing,” said Hu. China
Southern also hopes that its passengers feel that
“WeChat is always with them” during their travels. In
June 2013, a new version of China Southern Airlines’
WeChat account was released with more functions
such as the ability to book tickets, manage bookings
and view travel guides. China Southern wants to
sustain its advantage over its competition with its
customer-oriented communication and services,
differentiated products and personalized services.
WeChat will remain a “service-oriented” tool for
China Southern which treats service as a product and
a core competitive advantage. “Today, channels and
consumers are especially important and this actually
points to the special relationship involved. China
Southern has already taken advantage of WeChat
to simplify services and hopefully bring value to its
consumers,” said Hu.
This example demonstrates that the management
team at China Southern Airlines clearly knows what
differentiated services mean for the aviation industry.
More importantly, the airline conducted in-depth
research amongst its target audience before refining
their strategy and used WeChat as a tool to further
strengthen the company’s “service-oriented” approach.
Through integrating its resources and meeting the
needs of its WeChat users, China Southern’s reputation
as a user-friendly airline has been reflected in the
growing number of subscribers. The WeChat service has
now been positioned as an essential component within
the airline’s service chain.

17


A service account or a
subscription account?
With WeChat 5.0, many companies have asked which is
better: a service account or a subscription account. The
reality of subscription accounts is click-through rates
are much lower than non subscription ones. Likewise,
information published on service accounts is limited
to only a few times a month, which worries marketers.
From our point of view, this isn’t a significant problem.
Unlike Weibo, which is a channel for information
dissemination in an open social environment, WeChat
can be regarded as a key channel for passive marketing.

Finding quality consumers through spontaneous search
is better than recruiting followers through traditional
methods with the former reflecting the willingness
of the individual to make a potential purchase. The
only thing needed is to push our targeted information
through a service account or subscription account.
Now let’s review our preparation for constructing a
WeChat platform as mentioned before:

Clear goals: Push information that motivates
consumers to subscribe or request further
information; avoid harassment

Set correct expectations: The quality of
subscribers is far more important than
quantity.

There is no essential difference between a service
account and a subscription account for us, but attentions
should be still highly paid in the actual operation. The
following chart helps.
Service Account

Subscription
Account

Once a month

Daily

Customizable
menu

Yes, up to 15 items

No.

Supports page
pushing, including
external links.

Supports images
and text, does not
support external
links

Functionality

Programmable
responses

Auto-response
based on key word

Able to develop
applications, as
well as offers
full range of
WeChat services
such as location
information

Able to develop
applications, but
not completely
synched with
WeChat services

Frequency of
information

The difference between active marketing and passive
marketing is the way to connect with consumers. Active
marketing, in the conventional sense, mostly draws
support from a platform with a large user base for
promotions, while passive marketing features the critical
time when consumers would actively look for relevant
information after they show interest in a particular brand.
Traditional passive marketing is typically based on
search engines. Businesses strive to be visible at the
same time when a consumer is looking up information,
so search engine optimization (SEO) and buying key
words are important tactics. We should note that search
engines are not the only touchpoints – social media is
an increasingly important touchpoint for search.

There is no need to worry which is better. As the old
saying goes, “It doesn’t matter whether the cat is black
or white as long as it catches mice.” Find your selling
point and with persistent efforts will help you perfect
your WeChat strategy.


You’ve opened a WeChat account so how do you get
people to sign up? Let’s start with a case.

19

communications and marketing chain to drive sales and
grow the business.

Gaining subscribers of

Daily operation of public

public accounts

accounts

The most difficult part of operating a public account
on WeChat is signing up followers, especially enlisting
high-quality ones.
Mr. Rice Wine, as mentioned before, has spent
painstaking care on his 22,500 followers.
First, he gathered information about the top 30
kitchen and cabinet brands in Xiamen. Then, he and
his colleagues spent nearly half a year visiting select
stores to recruit followers.
People shopping for high-end kitchens and
cabinets might be young couples ready to get married
or those moving homes and with high disposable
incomes. The thing to remember is that it’s easier to
approach them in these stores, unlike in supermarkets
where noise and large numbers of people make it
harder to pitch.
In these stores, he would hand business cards
with QR codes inviting them to join his WeChat group.
Most were receptive to this approach as WeChat
groups are private.
It was customary for Mr. Rice Wine to post a
free bottle of wine to every person who signed up,
provided they divulged their addresses. Mr. Rice Wine
would follow up with telephone calls to each follower,
eventually winning their trust.
From this example, we can see that WeChat provides
a convenient communication channel to support
traditional in-store marketing tactics for individuals
and for brands. However, it’s important to remember
that WeChat is simply another marketing channel that
complements traditional channels that serve to acquire
new customers. This is a reason why those who run
public accounts may find little progress in growing the
number of followers.
We can also take note of QR codes on business cards:
it’s another touch point for consumers when combined
with advertising, public relations, product packaging,
point-of-sale, etc. that directly links online with offline
activities. Simply promoting WeChat QR codes though
traditional channels does not deliver any value. WeChat
is a tool that should be integrated into the entire

So now that you have a sizeable group of followers, how
do you manage the community? The answer depends
on the type of account, as each requires a different
approach and different managers.

Managing a subscription account
requires the aptitude of a psychologist
A subscription account generally provides members
with unique, high-quality, and regular content.
Regardless of the nature of the account, not all content
will suit all members, and we can expect a loss of
some members over time. The priority for the account
manager is to push information that builds loyalty while
minimizing member erosion. A secondary, but equally
important, priority is to push information that motivates
current members to recruit more members.
Each piece of information should have data that can be
analyzed. At the minimum, we should be able to know:

How many members engage with each piece
of information? (engagement rate)

How many people read the original text?
(penetration rate)

How many people share the information?
(forwarding rate)

How many members are lost (attrition rate)?
How many new members are there (acquisition
rate)? What is the net growth rate? (Member
conversation rate)

After a period of time, we need to know more about:

Which topics have a higher penetration rate?

What topics are easier to share?

Which topics are more likely to recruit new
members?

The person who manages a subscription account
acts like a consumer psychologist who knows the
preferences of existing members, can advise on which
products will be receptive, and will know how best to
communicate with group members.
Of course, not everyone managing a subscription
account can be a qualified psychologist. Thus, the
service account offers the convenience of disseminating
information over building emotional connections
demanded in a subscription account. When operating
a subscription account, it is important to address
customer demands in your content as much as possible.
For example, retail stores use subscription accounts
to distribute product offers and restaurants use
subscription accounts to offer delivery menus to keep
members interested and engaged.

Managing a service account demands
the skills of a product manager
Just like a product manager is responsible for providing
the best product or service, a service account focuses
on delivering an optimal user experience with the most
convenience.
The functionality and content of the service account
should satisfy several criteria:

Simple interface: The interface should fulfill
one, single function. Everything else is clutter.

User-friendly: Limit the number of options and
steps as much as possible.

Be responsive: Portability and instantaneous
responses are unique WeChat features so a
lengthy response will not suit.

The following diagram shows the basic steps to setting
up a service account.

There are several important items to highlight in the
process.
Determine the needs of the target audience and
functionality
After defining the target audience and communications
objections, it is important to determine the customer’s
needs and to determine how the service account will
fulfill those needs. Conducting quantitative consumer
research or possibly a discussion with frontline sales
staff can achieve this. For example, MSLGROUP
conducted a survey for WalMart’s specialty store,
Sam’s Club, and discovered that many shoppers often
ask about parking. The location and the nature of the
stores require customers to drive there. For those who
are interested in the store but haven’t yet become
members, GPS is an important tool. In terms of product
information, Sam’s Club customers are more interested
in promotions for specific items like cherries or durian
rather than regular merchandise discounts.
In the case with DHL, their couriers gathered great
insights about university students. Because they
interact directly with students, DHL couriers were able
to provide useful suggestions during the development
of the WeChat interface and functions. DHL’s
subsequent WeChat account garnered high praise from
the students. All of this was done without having to
spend a fortune on market research.
Create a detailed customer experience path
The customer experience path is a detailed flow of the
behavior and functions that trigger a corresponding
answer or response. This requires a considerable
amount of time in the development process in order
to save time later in the modification process. In the
case of DHL, when developing the function to track
shipments, MSLGROUP needed to consider the way in
which customers would enter the 10-digit number. The
program would provide a result if the information was
input correctly, and a response to re-enter information
if input incorrectly. Despite this simple function, it was
more complex than it seemed (as shown on the next
page). Of course, the more complex the function, the


more complex the customer experience path becomes
too.
To ensure a positive customer service experience,
you should avoid complex functions. If such a path is
inevitable, try to clarify this early on, otherwise, your
customers will ultimately find the experience wasted – a
result no one wants to see.

Collecting and analyzing data
While data points are all different, it is important to
measure and analyze data in a service account. We
should analyze:

Which functions are used most? (the most
practical function)

Which functions require a simple reply and
which demand more details? (how to present
features)

Which functions produce an error response?
(which functions are erroneous or difficult to
use)

By collecting and analyzing data on a service account,
adjustments can be made to improve the overall
customer experience. As long as the account satisfies
customer needs in the most efficient way, accumulating
users and building brand loyalty will only take a matter
of time.

Managing comments on
WeChat
Whether you’re managing a subscription account or
service account, after building a user base, you will be
faced with the issue of responding to comments from
members.

21

The limitations of human response
When beginning a WeChat account, it may be possible
for companies to address most comments individually.
However, as the user base grows, a human response is
no longer practical.
1.

Not all companies can take the approach
of online retailer Jingdong, which provides
a humorous answer to each question. A
public account can attract a large number of
unrelated customers. Although this gives a
brand greater visibility, it does not necessarily
contribute to business results.

2. Based on our experience, a dedicated
customer service representative can respond
to approximately 200-250 WeChat messages
per day, assuming that it does not require indepth communication. If a WeChat account has
an engagement rate of about 20%, it means
one representative is handling about 40004500 members. If the WeChat account has a
growing member base, then companies would
find the need to continuously hire staff just to
manage these conversations!

The limitations of automated response
Understanding the limitations for human response,
Tencent has designed automatic responses based on
key words. This means that a key word input into WeChat
triggers a programmed reply. While this solves some
problems, there are some disadvantages.
1.

The Chinese language is highly contextual and
there are many ways to ask the same question.
For example, the phrases “Are there any
discounts?” and “Are there any sales?” refer
to any promotions happening. Traditionally,
inputting the words “sale” and “discount”
would trigger only one response.

2. Certain phrases may trigger a completely
unrelated response. For example, when China
announced its Green Dam Internet security
program several years ago, it automatically
triggered the response “24 mouth switch”.
3. We typically create a Q&A database with key
words in these cases and update it frequently;
however, these updates can go on endlessly.
This is particularly true for companies in
consumer products or technology sectors

where teams will be continually adding to and
maintaining the database.

An intuitive, intelligent message
management system
As limitations exist with the current options for
managing messages on WeChat, MSLGROUP China is
actively pursuing better options by engaging a software
company to develop an intuitive, intelligent message
management system, which will be made available to
companies seeking to improve their customer service.
Key features to include:
1.

Gauge User Intent: In the case of DHL, users
are typically directed to a dialog box when
requesting a quotation for shipments. The
question is not based on a single key word. In
an intelligent system, we need to gauge the
intent. So when customers input two names,
they most likely want to know the delivery price
from one location to the next. So in WeChat,
we would program the response in a way that
delivers price/transit time based on the two
inputs.

2. Quizzing: After gauging user intention, we
allow the system to learn the correct answer
using different intentions instead of an endless
output of responses from the Q&A database.
As long as the system can determine the basic
intention in the dialogue with the customer, we
can help it complete the response. The system
then can apply this to a similar program or
adopt a conversation pattern thus saving time
and costs.
3. Smart Chatting: We know that automated
responses have limitations due to the script.
For example, when asked, “Who is China’s
president?” the system would respond “Xi
Jinping”. However, if we then asked, “Who
is his wife?” the system would be unable
to respond because the computer has not
identified who “he” is. However, we can
program the system in a way that provides
contextual analysis based on the history of
the conversation so that it can respond with
the correct answer. In this case, “Peng Liyuan”
is the correct answer.
Of course, managing the entire system requires human
input and is still under development; however, below is
a snapshot of the back-end for your reference.

To be clear, a computer can never replace a human
or deliver the same interaction as a customer service
representative. It can only help reduce the workload of
customer service staff. As we discussed before, WeChat
is a precise marketing tool but the nuance of messaging
still requires human intervention. The intention of
developing an intuitive, intelligent system is primarily
to assist companies in resolving the basic and low-value
work from those that require more time and care.

It's all in the details
Whether operating a service account or subscription
account, the key to success lies in the details.
Continuous collection and analysis of data from either
account will provide you with a better understanding
of your members and their demands so you can make
improvements on the entire experience. Currently,
China Merchants Bank and China Southern Airlines are
the best examples of operating service accounts that
provide continuous improvement while also increasing
their user base. Although China Southern irlines
only launched its WeChat account in January 2013, by
collecting user feedback and making improvements
in April and June, it has now accumulated 500,000
members on its WeChat group.
Companies who can focus on the customer experience
through detailed delivery will win the market.


23

Five Critical Considerations
1.

Understand how social media platforms fit into your marketing mix. WeChat and other social media
platforms have key differences. Understand what they are and how they can play a role in your marketing
program.

2. Plan with the end in mind. Determine your key communications objectives with WeChat and design
performance indicators with measurable targets. In the case of internal communications, engage the
relevant stakeholders and ensure you have adequate support to benefit target groups.
3. Generate content that is relevant, meaningful and useful. A WeChat account is only as strong as the content.
Make full use of resources to recruit new members.
4. Measure, assess and refine. Continuously re-evaluate your account and make improvements as needed.
5. Focus on the user experience. The intense focus on user experience sets WeChat apart from other social
media platforms, therefore companies need to abide by honing in on the details.

Last words
The emergence of mobile marketing has injected some excitement for marketers as they balance multiple channels
that mix online and offline worlds. Specifically for WeChat, it offers companies a viable touchpoint for consumers
who can bypass traditional online commerce.
This whitepaper is the result of the experience we have gleaned developing and implementing WeChat programs
for clients over the last nine months. Our views may not be comprehensive and may not apply to every industry.
However, we hope this adequately captures a cross-section of views from diverse industries to provide you with a
strong foundation to pursue a WeChat program.

MSLGROUP China Whitepaper
December 2013
Copyright@MSLGROUP China

For more information, contact:

DEREK DONG
YUKI YANG
Sina Weibo @ MSLGROUP China

E. Derek.dong@mslgroup.com

T. +86-10-8573 0688

E. Yuki.yang@mslgroup.com

T. +86-20-8767 3479

MSLGROUP China whitepaper: We Chat about WeChat

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