The story has been told from the perspective of a 27-year old Chinese and his activities through the day. This is a result of my personal experience and research while working in China. Goes without saying that it's just a glimpse of world's biggest and most exciting digital market.
2. My name is 张伟 Zhang Wei.
I’m 27 years old.
I’m Chinese.
1. http://www.chinawhisper.com/top-50-most-common-chinese-names/
2. CNNIC, 2016 – 30% of the users are between 20-29 years
Welcome to my world.
3. In China, internet = mobile internet
https://www.techinasia.com/china-731-million-internet-users-end-2016
iResearch, 2017 China 3rd party mobile payment report
Total Population
1.4 billion
Internet Users
731 million
Mobile Internet Users
695 million
53% internet penetration.
95% mobile internet penetration
Time spent on mobile devices has
grown exponentially
5. However, WeChat is the
centre of my universe
30% of the total time spent
Mary Meeker's 2017 Internet Trends
Chat
Make Payment
Mobile Top-upCharity
Utilities
City Services
Transfer
Taxi
Wealth
Red Packet
Tickets Book
Group Buy
Movie Tickets
Dating
Social
Other Apps
Search
Games
News
Shopping
6. One app for everything I need
United Kingdom
AppAnnie
8. A way of adding contacts,
listening to music or
accessing web version
For you…
Adding friends Unlock BikePay MoneyInvite to Group
e-Loyalty card Follow Brands Authenticate purchase
A way of life – our connection with the world
For me…
9. QR codes make mobile payments so easy
that everyone uses it now to pay or receive
You Don't Need A Wallet In
China, Just Your Smartphone
China Is on Track to Fully
Phase Out Cash
11. iResearch
Through mobile payments, I can buy
things, whenever I need
5.8
%
14.5%
55.5%
33.8%
68.2%
72.8% 73.8%
94.2% 85.5%
44.5%
66.2%
31.8%
27.2% 26.2%
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016e 2017e 2018e
Mobile Transaction PCTransaction
2012-2018 PC VS Mobile Commerce Value Share
E-Commerce transactions are expected to reach
RMB 5.6 trillion (19% growth) and 500 million
users. Most of it is going to come from mobile.
The Chinese e-commerce portals have all the deals on
homepage. This is in contrast with western design
sensibilities and user preferences.
Amazon UK homepage Tmall homepage JD homepage
12. IPSOS Research, Payment & Clearing Association of China
Easy to use
No needfor
cashor card
More
promotions
High security
Moreavailable
stores
Others
2016 2015
Reasons for Use Mobile Payment
So easy that I don’t need to carry cash
40% of the Chinese regularly carry cash less than RMB 100
Distinct usage for WeChat (P2P Transfer)
and for everything else, Alipay.
13. QR code is now inspiring
the sharing economy
§ In 2016, China's sharing economy transactions
were worth more than $500 billion.
§ Expected to grow to 10% of Chinese GDP by 2020
§ 600 million people were involved
14. What’s mine, is also yours!
1. Mobike Whitepaper 2017
2. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/18/from-bikes-to-basketballs-chinas-fast-growing-sharing-economy.html
Ofo and Mobike have taken the bike sharing by
storm. They have flooded the big cities.
70% users are between 20-40 years
1/3 users cycle for leisure and exercise
High usage among office goers and
connections to bus and subway
Men <32 are largest user demographic
Some
unique
sharing
items
Xianshui napping pods for
RMB 10/hr in SH & BJ
The bikes you’d have seen in Manchester
have 50 million rides per day in china
Basketball renting in
Zhejiang for RMB 1/hr
EvCard charges RMB 15/half
hr usage + RMB 1k deposit
Ankebox and Laidian offer
battery packs for RMB 0.5
15. News is still a big genre among
people of all age groups.
There’s also very little overlap
among the News Apps.
凤凰新闻APP月度活跃用户中同时使用其他APP的用户占比
The limited overlap with other News App
Toutiao Tencent NetEase Sohu 1Dian
People of my generation
get the news on the go
16. Weibo is still a
place for
breaking news
Weibo MAU up 28% to 361
million. DAU were 159 million.
It is making a resurgence.
BBC, China Internet Watch, Weibo User Development Whitepaper, 2016
Real-time
Opinion-
driven
Social Personalized
Latest feed appears
in the front
Critiques and remarks
on hot topic
Recommend related
accounts
Show KOL’s content
in priority
Real-time news & updates
Hot topic #高考#
Search “nutritionist”
Show content
per user’s
interests
13.2%
30.1%
38.7%
11.7%
6.3%
Under 18 18-22 23-30 31-40 41 &
above
Age Distribution of Active Weibo User
77.80%
15.70%
6.50%
College or
Higher
Middle School Primary School
Education Level of Weibo User
17. http://www.woshipm.com/operate/609834.html
However for my regular reading, I don’t want
an information dump, I want personalized news
China's $11 Billion News
Aggregator Jinri Toutiao Is No Fake
Chinese startup Toutiao raising
funds at over $20 billion valuation
China's $11B app that wants to
organize the world's information
Introducing the hottest app of the year!
Total Users
700 million
Daily Active Users
78 million
Annual growth
84%
Daily Usage
76 mins
45% are between 24-30 years
18. http://blog.csdn.net/u014114990/article/details/48165781
Powerful AI recommends the relevant
news for me for the day
Tech.
Entertain
Beijing
Shanghai
Beijing
Shanghai
Age > 30
Age < 30
Age > 30
Age < 30
Content A: 3
votes
Content B: 1
votes
Content C: 1
votes
Toutiao incidentally doesn’t have an editorial staff. It syndicates its news from different
portals and serves the content based on user preferences, demographics and behaviour
User segmentation based on their original
preference & demographic information
(from users’ linked social network)
It also recognizes in-app behavior
such as view history, like, saved,
repost, comment, network
Final step is based on votes from users
with similar user preferences
19. https://www.ft.com/content/2de5b336-4a89-11e7-a3f4-c742b9791d43
http://www.parklu.com/abcs-chinese-kols-key-opinion-leaders/
I also follow
celebrities for
updates and
latest trends
“More than any other country,
[KOLs] have taken the lead to be a
true media vehicle. Much like you
would use a TV campaign or other
promotion, most marketers in China
have a KOL strategy.”
- Greg Paull, principal of R3
1. WeChat KOLs ( Key Opinion Leaders)
2. Weibo KOLs
3. Live streaming KOLs
4. Niche KOLs
Small but devoted fan following. They usually gain
influence via their professional insights or
knowledge in a specific field.
WeChat KOLs talk about almost everything from
beauty to work to parenting through verified official
accounts. It is more personal and private.
Weibo spreads information faster than WeChat because
of its open platform design and inexpensive advertising.
KOLs usually have higher following here.
These platforms are in the midst of a gold rush from an
influx of female consumers, digital divas, internet
celebrities, and Chinese KOLs (key opinion leaders).
Gogoboi
7.3mn followers
Papi Jiang
44mn followers
Rebecca
100+k views/post
Sus十四十四
563,760 followers
Mr. Bags
3mn followers
XiaoZhi
3.3mn followers
White
8mn followers
20. 35.30%
9.90% 9.30%
3.90% 3.50%
1.50%
Video Game Music Smart DevicePhotograph Sport
Entertainment Preference of The Post 90s
Talking Data 2016 Mobile Internet Report
After a long day,
videos are my
favorite way to
unwind
21. TV Drama
+ Online Broadcast
Online Spin-Off
& Partner Shows
Made for Online
Quality Drama Series
TV Show Movedto
Online Only
Niche Lifestyle & Factual
Online Shows
Youth Online Variety
& TalkShows
I like watching
online video shows
Tencent video has benefitted from the
reach of WeChat. Whereas, iQiyi is
extremely popular among women.
Local content is fueling the demand for online
video. However, western shows like ‘House of
Cards’ are also popular on website like Sohu.
22. In 2016 there were 153mn users on short video platforms,
expected to grow to 242mn by the end of 2017 (58%
growth). Big players include Kuaishou, Meipai and Miaopai.
https://baijia.baidu.com/s?old_id=835448; 中国移动短视频市场专题分析2017,易观
Sometimes a funny video on Miaopai
is all it takes to take the stress off
Popular content categories:
1. Food and Cuisines;
2. Tourism;
3. Sports;
4. Cartoons;
5. Militaries affairs;
6. Beauty/Make up;
7. News/Info;
8. Funny/Comedy
Young audience dominate the short
video platforms. However 25-30 is
the 2nd biggest user group
23. I sometimes watch
the live-streaming
stars. It’s unexpected,
entertaining, and you
can get instant
feedback.
Kantar Social Media Impact Report 2017
Rating for video/livestreaming app/sites from different age groups
24. Live-streaming
can be diverse,
unlike what
most people
like to believe.
In 2017 the total live-
streaming market will reach
$5 billion – almost half of the
mobile gaming market.
However, govt. regulations
will contain the explosive
growth it has seen so far.
PGCUGC
Low interactive
Live concert
Talk show live
Live+Gaming
Sports live
25. Mobile games are more fun when
played with friends
SCMP.com, Analysis International, 2016
0.5
1.1
2.1
2.7
3.0
148.9%
87.5%
28.6% 11.1%
0%
20%
200%
180%
160%
140%
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
0
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
2014 2015 2016F 2017F 2018F
2014-18 GamingLive Streaming AudiencePopulation
Audience Population(1000 Mn) Growth%
70 million people are playing Honour of Kings daily in China. It’s so
addictive that Tencent had to impose daily time limit of one hour for
players under the age of 12 after state owned Newspaper called it
“poison” and a “drug” that is harming teenagers
Multi-player role play game
Historical Chinese characters
Players can earn new and unique abilities
Designed for mobile – smaller maps, short
session times and simpler controls
Local leaderboard competition
26. But I’m not all work and no play kind
of person. I love outdoor activities.
27. I love
measuring
my progress
and sharing
it with my
friends
http://knowledge.ckgsb.edu.cn/2017/01/09/culture/new-trends-fitness-in-china/
http://technode.com/2017/03/03/xiaomi-fitbit-wearables-number-one/, All Tech Asia
Fitness Industry
$5.8 Billion
Growing at
11.8%
Fitness is right now the hottest
trend in China right now, with
even govt. playing its part.
Xiaomi is world #2
in wearables. Soon
will become #1
Top fitness apps in China
KEEP
Gym training tutorials
app which has been
downloaded 80
million times. Avg.
age 25.
Qiji
Means cycling diary in
Chinese, Records
cycling routes and
other data such as
heart rate, mileage etc.
Joyrun
Running community for
those in search of running
pals, groups and record
their runs. 130 mn users
across 60 cities
Mararun
Marathons have become
super popular in China.
This app provides info on
marathons across the
world.
28. 2013 Internet User Weight Report, Flurry 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/money-wealth/article/1990975/chinas-younger-generation-hit-gym-search-sculpted-bodies
http://knowledge.ckgsb.edu.cn/2017/01/09/culture/new-trends-fitness-in-china/
Wake up and check
the quality of sleep
on a health app
Commute private
car/taxi/subway/bus.
Listen to music, read news
or playing mobile games.
Take a shared bike to
my office from the
subway/bus station.
Browse news during breaks.
Come across some stories on
WeChat. Play honour of kings
if I’m feeling bored.
Evening exercise the
gym using a gym
instruction app or go
for a run with my
friendsGet the deals on
Online shopping for
clothes, food items
Watch videos or live-
streaming, or play games
before going to bed
* Daily mobile and tablet usage trend is international and not China specific
My typical day looks like this…