Facebook, X, YouTube, Instagram. These social media platforms are part of everyday life for many people living in Australia and around the world. But what about Weibo, Tencent Qzone and Ren Ren, do they ring a bell? If not, let us introduce you to the social media platforms, used by millions of Chinese speakers worldwide.
You may wonder, what’s the appeal of using Chinese specific platforms when the mainstream sites are available in language?
For varying political reasons, Chinese citizens are blocked from accessing western social media sites, such as X, Facebook, and YouTube. Despite being free of those restrictions in Australia, many Chinese-speaking Australians still choose to communicate and consume information via Chinese social media sites.
Chinese consumers generally follow the same decision-making process as anyone else around the world; so social media outreach and marketing to them is reassuringly similar with just a few extra steps to take into consideration.
- The platform. Make sure to ideatify what platforms your Chinese audiences use.
- The language. Engage with your audience in their language! Language barriers is one of the reasons why Chinese native speakers tend to continue using their habitual social media platforms when living overseas.
- The format. It’s common among Chinese-speaking consumers to use images and poems to share information.
For successful digital engagement of Chinese-speaking audiences, using culturally relevant techniques is paramount. To ensure your social media campaign is conveyed in a culturally sensitive and effective way, it’s recommended to seek assistance of someone who has an insight into and connection with the community and understands their communication needs.
