Awareness - Stranger to Lead

In this stage, prospects are seeking to understand and frame a need or desire. Businesses should focus on multiple channels, such as search engines, information portals, company descriptions and vertical sites for specific industries. 

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to which platforms you will utilise in China – it depends on your business and your China strategy, however, they are likely to be entirely different to those you will access in the west. The Great Firewall blocks Google and Meta’s services, meaning YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Gmail don’t work. 

These restrictions on much of the internet’s service infrastructure means foreign websites load too slowly, or not at all, within China.

This is the situation Aarhus University found they faced when they decided it was time to build a digital presence in China – there main website wouldn’t load from within the country. We helped them build a new, fast-loading China website. 

The university was then able to monitor what channels were driving results and use the insights to step up recruitment efforts. 

They partnered with Sinorbis to run a two-week WeChat paid media campaign. The campaign led to a fourfold increase in WeChat account followers and contributed to a 35% increase in Chinese student applications when compared to 2019 – a standout figure when many universities are being challenged by COVID turmoil.

Chinese consumers are influenced heavily by social proof and online reputation among which ranking list is very powerful to attract the audience. Being well-ranked in channels most relevant to your industry is a powerful tool in building awareness. 

For example, in the retail industry, rankings can come from community sites such as Little Red Book, eCommerce sites such as Tmall and JD, and shopping guide sites. In travel industry, rankings by travel research sites (e.g. Mafengwo and Qyer) and online booking sites such as Ctrip are influential.

The best way to determine the most effective channels for your business is through testing and analysis of data. Once leads are attracted the next phase begins.

Consideration – Lead to Prospect

The consideration stage is when leads are committed to researching all the available options to fulfil their needs. Businesses still engage prospects through generic channels, now with a focus on developing more one-to-one approaches. The goal is to build relationships with these leads.

To help foster these relationships, an official website is ideal in addition to official WeChat marketing and Weibo presences as part of a Chinese social media marketing strategy. 

Local businesses wanting to create an online presence in China will find it more complex than simply translating their existing website. 

For example, one  of  our client，the University of Canberra (UC) created a bespoke website that was designed specifically with Chinese audiences in mind. UC was then able further optimise their results.

Companies may even find themselves needing to host multiple sites, both locally and in China, due to the varying nature of both Chinese search engines and user experiences. Once prospects are sufficiently engaged, it’s time for conversions.

Decision – Prospect to Customer

The third phase is when the prospect has decided on a product or service that will serve their needs. The objective is to convert them from prospect to customer. 

A powerful tactic to leverage at the decision stage are special offers, or digital events. They can set your business apart from competitors, and be the driving force behind prospect enticement.

A prime example of this is the University of Auckland, for whom we hosted a virtual Open Week fully integrated into the Chinese digital ecosystem. Following the success of this pilot project, the university has a complete SEO overall planned in order to take advantage of their current momentum.

Loyalty – Customer to Advocate

The final stage in the process is concerned with nurturing existing customers. The objective is to turn them into advocates. Business advocacy is paramount to business reach and growth especially in a market such as China that relies so heavily on digital proof. 

Direct channels are the most effective at nurturing such relationships. The focus during this buying stage is now even more so on one-to-one relationships through all online channels such as Weibo and WeChat.

Online reputation management is critical to success when marketing to China. Providing value after customers have made the purchase decisions enables businesses to build their advocacy base and improve their online standing.

From indifference to advocacy

Chinese and Western online eco-systems are completely different.Each local channel has a Chinese counterpart that can differ greatly in both form and function. 

For Google there is Baidu, Sogou or 360. For WhatsApp there is WeChat. And for Facebook there is WeChat, again. 

How and when to most effectively harness each is key to successfully marketing in China. Businesses must endeavour to leverage the differences in these online eco-systems rather than be hindered by them.