Best practices and creative techniques to help you grow your community on WeChat.

1. TMG Webinars
Follower Acquisition on WeChat

2. Outline
I. Getting your account ready
II. Creating shareable content
III. Viral marketing techniques
IV. Promotion through paid channels
V. Offline promotions
VI. Examples

3. Presented by
Co Founder & Global Head of Client Strategy
TMG Worldwide
Jeff Fish is the Co-Founder and Global Head of Client Strategy at The Momentum Group. He
helps our customers launch successful China marketing campaigns leveraging WeChat. Jeff
has worked with a variety of organizations, from hospitality to financial services, and is a
frequent speaker on the implications of content marketing at global scale. He has a
seasoned background in social networking, content marketing, mobile strategy and
emerging technology.
Jeff Fish
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffreyfish
WeChat:

4. GET YOUR ACCOUNT READY
1 2 3
Determine
marketing goals
Create an
engaging microsite
Create 2-3 seed
posts

5. CREATE
SHAREABLE CONTENT
for

6. Create attractive
content
1
 The most popular form of
marketing is through Rich Text
Messages
 The following formats can be sent
out as a message broadcast: Audio,
Image, Video, Rich Text Message
Digest
 Message tone is typically casual
and uses a lot of images
 Striking visual or video content is
most effective

7. Offer WeChat
exclusives
 Offer promotions exclusive to
WeChat followers to increase your
follower base
 Promotions that extend beyond a
single user to family and friends
increase sharing
 Keep promotions fresh
 Example: Grand Hyatt, New York
offers a free suite upgrade to only
its WeChat followers
2

8. Follower polls &
surveys
 Learn more about your followers
through the polling feature
 Create more engaging content based
on actual user feedback
 Get feedback from your customers
 Send polls to all followers or just
specific groups like
women/men/specific location
3

9. VIRAL
MARKETING TECHNIQUES
for

10. Cross platform
promotion
1
 Promote your WeChat account on
Chinese social networking platforms
such as Weibo, Q Zone or Renren
 Weibo is complementary to WeChat.
Use it!
 Weibo for brand exposure and
WeChat for 1:1 brand engagement
 Promote the activity without a direct
QR code reference

11. Games &
contests
 Incentivize more people to follow
and share your brand by organizing
group games with prizes
 Mass viral sharing is the key
 Example: Coach launched its own
WeChat fashion promotion through
a red envelope game in which users
could send special offers to friends
and family.
2

12. Incentivize
sharing
 Encourage customers to share
content from your account in their
WeChat ‘MOMENTS’
 Create simple share and win contests
 Example: Offer a free meal or a
discount on the bill if they’ve shared
a photo of theirs enjoying their stay
at the hotel
3

13. Virtual loyalty
cards
4
 Offer virtual loyalty cards using
WeChat
 Owners of such loyalty cards can
have their QR code scanned at the
location for discounts or points
collection.

14. Leverage
partners/
franchises
5
 This works well for corporate brands
with franchises all over the world.
 Any brand under the corporate
umbrella can be promoted through
WeChat accounts of franchises in the
Mainland

15. QR code
promotions
6
 Add WeChat QR code everywhere
 Publish QR code prominently on your
website and other digital media
 Publish WeChat QR code on all
collateral targeting Chinese audience
 Publish WeChat ID and Account
Name on Weibo

16. PAID CHANNELS
for

17. Leveraging
KOLs
1
 Recruit KOLs to post positive content
about your brand helping you reach
thousands if not millions of potential
consumers
 Identifying the right KOLs
 Weibo KOL score
 Geographic Relevance
 Subject Matter Relevance
 Invite KOLs for product launches/a
free hotel stay for coverage in blog

18. WeChat
Advertising
2
 Banner Ads on WeChat
 One click to follow ads
 Picture driven
 Ads with coupons
 Promotional ads
 Advertising on WeChat Moments
 Target users according to their
location, interest, age, gender,
device and phone network.
 Better choice for well known
brands with visually attractive
products
 Minimal entry price: 200,000 RMB

19. OFFLINE PROMOTIONS
for

20. QR codes on
packaging
1
 Including the QR code on product
packaging, brochures and any other
printed collateral
 Example: The Met printed the
WeChat account’s QR code on the
maps it hands out to all visitors
 Incentivize scanning: Scanning a code
could offer a discount or a coupon
for this or other product.

21. Print campaigns
 Traditional newspapers, magazines
and other print collateral are great
options to place the QR code
 Combine the QR code placement
with an offer or discount to
encourage scanning
 QR codes are a very popular method
of marketing on large scale print
formats like posters and billboards
2

22. Offline events
3
 For hotels and destinations,
welcoming the Chinese guest has to
be an important part of their WeChat
strategy. Programs such as Welcome
Chinese which seamlessly integrate
the cultural experience for the
Chinese guest are an example.
 Hilton's Huanying is one such effort
implemented at most global
locations with a considerable number
of Chinese visitors.

23. EXAMPLES

24. Qixi Festival
Campaign1 Tiffany & Co, the world’s premier jewelers, developed a
highly effective campaign for Qixi Festival, the Chinese
Valentine’s Day. Through WeChat, followers had to
share affectionate pictures showing their “proof of
love” for a chance to win gifts.
Tiffany & Co.

25. Mid-Autumn
Festival
Campaign
Kate Spade took advantage of gamification via
WeChat and launched a flying-lantern game that
allowed followers to choose a lantern color, write
wishes and greetings on it, and send it off into the sky.
2
Kate Spade

26. Travel Season
Campaign
Players of the game have the chance of winning a free night
by correctly answering questions related to three stories
told in three different Chinese dialects (out of nine). Once
all stories are 'decoded', players can enter into a lucky draw
for the freebie. If players get stuck on one story, they can
enlist their friends to help by utilizing the 'Moments'
functionality of WeChat.
3
IHG

27. Shop and Stay
Campaign
The Venetian offers exclusive offers to all WeChat
Members. The QR code is displayed prominently on
the offer page to encourage scanning and following
the account.
4
The Venetian

28. Cool Cups
Social Contest
To enter the contest Starbucks asked users to follow the
Starbucks official account on WeChat and post a picture that
contains the following elements: 3 people and 3 Frappuccino.
Once done, they would have to fill in a simple contact form
and submit it to enter the contest.
5
Starbucks

29. Online2Offline
Promotion Shanghai Wine Bistrot chain Burdigala experimented with online
promotions to drive users in-store. In this campaign, followers
were required to share the official account name card with their
friends and if 5 of their friends followed the account, they would
get a free bottle of wine in one of Burdigala’s venues.
6
Burdigala

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