Ashley Galina Dudarenok - Unlocking the Worlds Largest E-Market: A Guide to Selling on Chinese Social Media

UNLOCKING THE WORLD'S LARGEST E-MARKET

A GUIDE TO SELLING ON CHINESE SOCIAL MEDIA

Rave Reviews

Ashley is the go-to guru for Chinese social media. This book distills a lot of her expertise and should be kept on your desk.

-- Jeffrey Towson, Managing Partner, Towson Capital

Ashley Galina Dudarenok has written a clear, analytical guide to digital marketing on Chinese social media. Merely projecting Western e-marketing onto the Chinese markets and platforms is unlikely to work; Dudarenok explains in readable detail why not and what to do about it.

-- Peter Gordon, Editor of Asian Review of Books

Ashley's book provides a view of the current situation, some really good insights into what's coming down the line and some very practical tips and steps. It's a must-read for any marketer and business owner who is planning to enter China, or is operating in the China market already.

--Martin Newman, Executive Chairman of Practicology

In this fresh-eyed, easy to understand book, Ms. Dudarenok deftly explains the intersection of e-commerce, technology and social media as the key drivers of The New Retail in China and the ways in which Chinese e-commerce and technology companies are influencing and changing global technology.

-- Michael Zakkour, VP Tompkins International, China/APAC & Global E-commerce Practices, author of Chinas Super Consumers

With the convergence of consumerism, social media and mobile payments in China, the time is right for this book. Dudarenok gives both nuanced insights and practical recommendations for companies seeking success in penetrating this complex market.

-- Fredda McDonald, Managing Director of World 50 Inc.

This step-by-step guide quickly takes you from a 10,000-foot view to on the ground tactics, providing a roadmap for navigating Chinas complexity and ensuring the ability to capitalize on this bourgeoning market.

-- R. Danielle Bailey, Head of APAC Research at L2 Inc.

Ashley's book, the most exhaustive piece of work done about WeChat to date, is essential for marketers and innovators or anyone who wants to be a true WeChat expert.

-- Thomas Meyer, Co-founder of Mobile Now Group

China means 1.4 billion potential customers. Every fourth person is in the middle class and it will probably be every second person very soon. You cantoverlook China anymore.

-- Jan Smejkal, China & APAC Community Director at Startup Grind

Ashley does a remarkable job at giving a comprehensive and insightful picture of the modern Chinese digital landscape. Whether you're just discovering the Chinese Internet or want to deepen your understanding, Ashley's work is a must-read.

-- Thomas Graziani, Co-founder of WalktheChat

Ashley has done an excellent job of boiling down the extremely complex world of Chinese marketing, giving readers a concise overview without any of the fluff! The book provides a ton of useful information both at a macro and micro level.

-- Lauren Hallanan, Host of the China Influencer Marketing Podcast

Ashley brings you all you need to know about Chinese social media. It's a comprehensive book giving you a complete and practical overview of the market so you can start marketing in China as soon as possible.

-- Shlomo Freund, Founder of Free Financial Self and AppInChina

To all those crazy marketers
who decided to take their brand to China.
This book is for you.

PART I

What Every Marketer Needs to Know about China

CHAPTER 1

Why You Need to Be in the China Market

W ith more than 1.3 billion people, China still tops the board with the worlds largest population. It also has the worlds largest e-commerce economy, which was worth 7.57 trillion RMB (1.18 trillion USD) in 2017.

Its a huge market full of potential but its not straightforward. Before stepping into this unique market, there are five things you must know in advance.

China is not a single market

In this book, the China market is used as shorthand for speed and clarity but the truth is China is not one market. Different groups and regions have different needs and experience different trends. Its actually a collection of 34 distinct markets, which correspond to Chinas administrative divisions.

Think about it. Youd never sell to someone in Iceland the same way youd sell to someone in Italy. And youd never sell to someone in rural Arkansas the way youd sell to someone in Los Angeles. Theyre different. The same principle applies in China and thats what makes it a much more complicated market than people realize. There are no one-size-fits-all situations or solutions when one talks about China.

In this book, broad trends and market forces are outlined. Most apply to 1st and 2nd tier cities and the middle class throughout the country but you must do research for your industry, your product, the region you are entering and so on before entering the market.

There are 2 uniting forces

Mandarin

Mandarin, also known as Putonghua, is the national language which was adopted nationwide in 1932. Its pronunciation is based on the Beijing dialect and its written using simplified Chinese characters. Whether youre in Urumqi, Harbin or Guangzhou, people speak Mandarin in addition to any local dialect.

Social Media Mania

Every day, Chinese people log in to their social media accounts to receive the latest news, connect with friends and family and contact brands and vendors to make enquiries, complaints and purchases.

They also browse on a variety of online sales channels, including Taobao, Tmall and JD.com to find the latest products and sales campaigns. Convenient mobile payment apps, like Alipay and WeChat Pay, and express delivery services facilitate their online purchases.

Nearly everyone in China is not just on social media but active on it. In the early days of social media, it was very attractive to people because it was one of the few places you could talk to people in different parts of China and the world anonymously. It was a hotline to the latest news that was hard to find elsewhere. Over time, it became an accepted part of daily life.

In the West, when social media began to take hold, users could connect with friends using Facebook, search for information and news using Google and then go to a big box store like Walmart or log onto Amazon to buy things easily and cheaply.

In China, several steps in the Western path were skipped or shortened. Platforms like QQ, WeChat and Weibo retained users by making their services more efficient and expansive which made the average persons life easier. Sites and apps included as many functions as possible and offered increasingly personalized features to keep users within their platform. For mobile users, features were designed to keep their phone memory and data usage low.

They also catered specifically to local culture and customs. Features like red packets (red envelopes with money in them) for Chinese New Year and as quick gifts or payments to friends took off. The voice message feature is also widely used so people can avoid the extra time it takes to type complicated Chinese characters. Platforms are constantly testing new features that can improve the experience of Chinese users. Its made life a lot easier for people and fits in perfectly with the rise of the mobile internet.

The market is oversupplied

Since the economic reforms of the late 1970s, international brands have been trying to sell their products to Chinese consumers. Together with local brands, they offer a wide array of products for consumers to choose from.

This broad selection of outstanding products has made Chinese consumers increasingly picky. Its also created a rather fragmented market and has produced fierce competition between brands making it hard for newcomers. This means brands that have not already entered the market need to do thorough research into the status for their industry and product category to see if the market could really be profitable before taking the next step.