China Digital
WeChat 5.2 New Features
Mobile app giant and instant messaging platform WeChat has rolled out its 5.2 update for both the Chinese version and its international counterpart. The new update adds depth to the overall user experience which is what many observers were looking out for. The most notable addition for both domestic and international versions of WeChat, users can now bind their LinkedIn profiles to their WeChat account. This addition now opens the door for recruitment and self promotion through WeChat. It also marks a strong first-step for LinkedIn’s career in China, which officially began earlier this month when it hired Derek Shen, CEO of China’s group-buying site Nuomi, to act as president for China. WeChat is currently going through a second wave of international promotion, verified accounts for certain celebrities including Matthew McConaughey and Paul Scheer have surfaced in recent weeks. However, WeChat has yet to gain popularity internationally the way it has in China, where it’s become a social network, blogging platform, RSS feed, and marketing tool. It will be interesting to see whether this changes in the near future.
Source: Tech in Asia
China Digital
Public Account Optimization
Wechat social marketing value has developed quickly in the past six months and an increasing number of enterprises are putting an emphasis on the China based instant messaging app. Quite a lot of third-party developers have also transferred their focus from Weibo to Wechat, catering to the growing demands for Wechat public account management. According to the China Internet Network Information Centre the five major ways of searching for a Wechat public account are: keyword, QR code scanning, friend recommendation, friend circle sharing and Weibo enterprise account. Wechat users tend to search actively rather than passively, to avoid information noise. Users can struggle to find their intended account when searching using keywords on WeChat. One issue is that the extension of the keyword is too wide, too many search results can make it difficult to pin down the desired account. The other is that the keyword is too exact to have any search results. Therefore how a Wechat public account is named should be tactical.First, avoid using uncommon words and find short, memorable words to be the account name. Second, try to make the account rank top in the automatic search and optimize your keyword match types. The Wechat public platform only provides a search box for public accounts, giving the initiative totally to Wechat users. Content marketing therefore becomes crucial because it is easy to lose trust from Wechat subscribers if all you have is an intriguing or misleading title. Around 30% of Wechat users will enter Weibo enterprise account names into the Wechat public account search box. One advice for active Weibo enterprise accounts which plan to register Wechat public accounts is to be consistent in your account name.
Source: China Internet Watch