A complete guide to using WeChat to reach millions of Chinese travelers

Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport. Photo credit: TEA / 123RF Stock Photo.

Since its creation in 2010, WeChat has evolved from a simple messaging app to become a daily tool for almost 900 million people. As one of the main communication channels to reach and engage with Chinese consumers and travelers, the app is now a complete eCRM and ecommerce platform in addition to its extensive social and payment capabilities.

The following is a summary of our report for marketers and decision makers who want to expand their business in the country and leverage the massive wave of Chinese tourism with the app in mind.

Insights on the Chinese digital travel market

The prospects of the Chinese digital travel market are bright. We found that inbound travel spending is projected to increase by 16 percent per year and is estimated to be worth US$615 billion in 2020. Similarly, China’s outbound tourism industry is expected to grow exponentially, and 2016 saw up to 109 million outbound Chinese travelers.

Why integrate cashless payments?

After Chinese travelers pay with WeChat Pay, they automatically follow the official account associated with the brand, which means the user can receive updates and promotion details right on their phones. This gives international brands the opportunity to track sales with digital content, reach out to Chinese consumers, and receive information about these Chinese travelers. This would help the brand appeal to their audience and have a better chance of sales overall.

A location-based service set up for overseas stores

To reach Chinese consumers abroad using the app, brands should integrate overseas store locations to improve the user experience. This would also allow them to leverage the offline presence of the brand and drive more traffic to the offline stores outside of China. Brands are also encouraged to share their current location so that the list of the closest stores and its detailed information will pop up, expanding the brand’s service reach.

Utilizing QR codes to enable offline recruitment of users from overseas stores

Including QR codes in overseas stores can make the customer feel they’re being catered to when they get to the store. This also helps brands raise more awareness outside of China.

WeChat payment set up at stores abroad

Mobile payment by Q2 2016 is valued at US$4.2 billion. Setting up WeChat payment in stores abroad is a great way for brands to create awareness for the business and is a convenient means to allow their customers to make quick, easy, and secure purchases on one fully integrated platform. This can increase the customer’s ease of purchasing abroad and gives them the incentive to do so.

Targeted communication toward outbound travelers

For brands to understand how to integrate their online and offline WeChat engagement activities to target their customers that travel abroad, they should work on identifying them first through store QR code recruitment channels or the location service function. Once data is aggregated, brands can build user segmentation and send specific messages to selected groups of users.

What luxury travelers look out for in travel agencies

In choosing travel agencies, we found that 60 percent of luxury travelers place great emphasis on customized service and well-planned itineraries. WeChat is also the most commonly used add-on function of cell phones, used by 58 percent of wealthy Chinese travelers.