A"rac&ng  Chinese  Guests  Using  Social  Media  October  ,  2013      

The Promise of Chinese Tourists •  It’s  no  secret  that  China’s  economy  con&nues  to  expand,  at  more  than  7%  a  year  even  as  the  global  economy  wobbles  due  to  a  number  of  market  condi&ons.  

•  This  con&nued  growth  will  add  to  the  hundreds  of  millions  of  preexis&ng  middle  class  consumers  also  boos&ng  their  levels  of  disposable  income.  

•  Chinese  tourists  on  average  spend  approximately  $1000  USD  more  than  overseas  tourists  on  foreign  trips  

•  Data  compiled  by  the  United  Na&ons  World  Tourism  Origina&on  showed  that;  –  83  million  Chinese  ci&zens  travelled  abroad  in  2012  and  by  2015,  this  figure  will  top  100  million.  ›  A  1000%  increase  from  2000.  

–  Chinese  tourists  spent  $102billion  USD  in  2012,  more  than  any  other  country.    

   

Sources: McKinsey - Mapping China’s Middle Class. June 2013. United Nations World Tourism Organisation, April 2013. U.S. Bureau of Industry, Travel and Tourism

Chinese visitors can bring your property a valuable source of new bookings and opportunity.

Where Chinese Tourists Visit

Source: Daodao, Wall Street Journal

The 10 most popular destinations (summer, 2013)

1.  Hong Kong 2.  Phuket 3.  Taiwan 4.  Bangkok 5.  Paris 6.  Dubai 7.  Macau 8.  Seoul 9.  Singapore 10.  Bali

When Targeting Chinese Travelers: Think Digital •  Rising  incomes  and  the  prolifera&on  of  smart-­‐everything  has  helped  to  make  China  a  wired  society.  

•  There  are  currently  over  591  million  internet  users  in  China,  according  to  the  China  Internet  Network  Informa&on  Center  (CNNIC,  June  2013).  

•  That  means  there  are  43  &mes  more  internet  users  in  China  as  there  are  people  living  in  Australia.  91%  of  those  Chinese  ne&zens  visit  social  media  sites,  and  66%  of  those  social  media  users  follow  brands.  

•  Increasingly,  the  way  to  reach  Chinese  consumers  of  any  product—be  it  hotels,  computers  or  luxury  purchases—is  through  digital  marke&ng  in  general,  and  social  media  in  par&cular.  

The Chinese Social Media Landscape    Whether  communica&ng  ideas  to  friends,  consumers  or  internet  at  large,  social  media  enables  individuals  to  make  their  voices  heard  across  the  internet,  across  wireless  networks  and,  increasingly,  across  the  world.  

Brands  and  companies  are  increasingly  using  social  media  to  become  a  source  of  trusted  and  highly  prized  informa&on  for  consumers.  

In  China,  the  importance  of  social  media  is  amplified  due  to  consumer  mistrust  of  tradi&onal  adver&sing,  the  rapid  prolifera&on  of  internet-­‐enable  devices  and  a  booming  middle  class  who  will  increasingly  shape  product  offerings  for  decades  with  their  preferences  and  habits.  

Social Media is, at its core, a means of communication.

The Chinese social media landscape is unique and substantially different than its Western counterpart.

Social Media is Now Mainstream Marketing

•  Social  Media  is  no  longer  the  preserve  of  Silicon  Valley  CEOs  or  uber-­‐hip  20-­‐somethings.  

•  Mul&na&onal  hotel  groups,  independent  hotels,  guesthouses  and  motels  are  increasingly  turning  to  social  media  to  be"er  communicate  their  values,  ideas  and  content  to  consumers.  

•   “Consumers”  no  longer  just  refers  to  people  or  groups  looking  to  purchase  something.    In  the  world  of  social  media,    “consumers”  include  everyone  from  retail  shoppers  and  interna&onal  travelers  that  simply  want  personal  recommenda&ons  about  where  to  stay.    

Why Western Hoteliers Should Embrace Chinese Social Media

•  As  more  Chinese  tourists  travel  abroad,  the  market  will  become  more  fragmented.  Certain  socio-­‐economic  groups  will  favor  certain  des&na&ons  and  hotel  types.  Younger,  white  collar  workers  will  favor  trips  to  South  East  Asia.  Social  media  will  allow  you  to  target  messages  on  specific  demographics.      

•  “This  new  genera&on  of  Chinese  outbound  travelers  is  making  their  own  decisions  about  where  to  go,  where  to  stay  and  what  to  do  by  doing  their  own  research  online,  going  beyond  the  old  stereotype  of  big  buses  of  group  tourists.’’  Lily  Cheng,  Managing  Director  of  TripAdvisor,  China    

Social media will allow properties to directly talk to Chinese looking for information and recommendations about where to stay. Also, Chinese are very apt about sharing negative experiences about their stay and hotels need to monitor and respond as appropriate.  

Why Should Hoteliers Invest in Chinese Social Media?

Chinese visitors are likely to

continue following and engaging with

a hotels’ social media accounts once they have

been on vacation.

Crea&ng  awareness  is  cri&cal,  especially  in  China.  This  is  cri&cal  in  lesser  known  ci&es  and  for  more  niche  

property  op&ons  such  as  B&B  or  

Guesthouses.  

Pos&ng,  sharing  and  referring  interes&ng  and  engaging  content  will  help  to  build  your  follower  base.    Be  sure  to  encourage  “Liking,”  “Sharing”  and  “Repos&ng.”  

With  a  solid  follower  and  fan  base,  it  

becomes  possible  to  inform,  recruit  and  network  via  social  media.    FAQs  and  Q&As  can  also  be  posted  for  use  by  

followers.  

Source:  China  Internet  Network  Informa&on  Center  (CNNIC),  June  2013.  

Chinese Netizens spend 20.5 hours/week online and trust online peer recommendations.

Selecting the Right Platforms

•  The  Chinese  social  media  space  is  complex  and  can  be  difficult  to  navigate  without  the  help  of  a  professional  agency.  

•  Chinese  social  media  plaoorms  are  best  used  in  conjunc&on  with  each  other,  as  each  major  plaoorm  serves  a  different  purpose  and  can  be  used  to  connect  with  consumers  in  a  different  manner.    

A Look at Chinese Social Media Platforms Plaoorms   Type   Poten&al  Op&ons   Users  

    Micro-­‐blogging  

Branded  pages  

Over  500  million  Features  such  as  Wei  Ac&vi&es  and  Wei  Magazine  

Page  layout  can  be  changed  to  match  campaign  

    Instant  Messaging  

Branded  pages  

Over  300  million  Customer  service  possibili&es  Keyword  setup  and  auto  response  Daily  news/ar&cles  sent  QR  Code  

   

SNS  

Branded  pages  

Over  170  million  Page  layout  can  be  changed  to  match  campaign  

Lucky  draws/giveaways  Prac&cal  marke&ng  

    Video  Sharing  

Branded  pages  

Over  150  million  Videos  will  be  featured  in  relevant  channels  

Ad  availability  throughout  Available  entry  into  branded  zone  

    E-­‐Commerce  

Branded  pages  User  base:  Childless  women  browsing  from  work  and  school  who  have  incomes  over  $30,000  

Offer  verified  products  and  reviews  

Gain  valuable  guest  experience  informa&on  

    Visual  Based  

Branded  pages  

User  base:  Childless  women  browsing  from  work  and  school  who  have  incomes  over  $30,000  

Shows  “related  brands”  

Social  Media  Integra&on  to  share  products  online  

Shows  products  that  are  available  to  buy      

WeiXin (WeChat): A One-to-One with 300,000,000 Users •  Gain  access  to  the  rapidly  increasing  

market  of  300  million  users.  

•  Content  can  be  pushed  to  fans  in  one-­‐to-­‐one  messaging  serng  

•  Stored  informa&on  can  be  easily  accessed  via  keyword  search  

•  Keyword  setup  and  auto  response  

•  Daily  news/ar&cles  sent  to  subscribers  

•  QR  Code(s)  can  direct  users  to  landing  pages,  minisites  and  other  social  media  plaoorms;  QR  codes  placed  elsewhere  can  also  drive  users  to  WeChat  accounts.  

Landing Pages and Localized Sites

Pos&ng  content  to  Weibo  is  an  

effec&ve  way  to  engage  with  

tourists,  but  may  not  be  enough  to  a"ract  travelers  on  its  own.  

A  custom  designed  and  built  Chinese  language  landing  

page  or  minisite  can  be  a  very  effec&ve  means  of  connec&ng  with  travelers  about  overseas  travel.  

A  Chinese-­‐language  site  hosted  on  a  Chinese  

domain  will  be  easily  

accessible  in  terms  of  both  linguis&c  

understanding  and  internet  best  prac&ces.  

Chinese-­‐language  

websites  can  be  op&mized  for  search  and  social  media  marke&ng  on  Baidu  (China’s  most  popular  search  engine)  on  Chinese  social  media  plaoorms  

respec&vely.  

Going Mobile: The Rise of Smart-Everything in China •  According  to  CNNIC  (June  2013),  China  had  460  million  mobile  web  users  as  of  July  2013.  

•  70%  of  new  internet  users  in  China  access  the  internet  via  mobile  device.  

•  China  has  over  300  million  3G  users,  meaning  that  roughly  300  smart  devices  across  the  country  are  perpetually  connected  to  the  world  wide  web.  

•  Given  the  overwhelming  rates  of  mobile  internet  usage,  any  digital  marke&ng  strategy  must  make  use  of  mobile  plaoorms  with  content  and  messaging  op&mized  for  mobile  use.  

Conclusions •  The  choices  available  to  Chinese  tourists  are  ever  growing,  as  is  the  informa&on  available  to  them.    

•  Given  the  online  habits  and  preferences  of  the  Chinese  tourists,  using  social  media  and  targeted  online  campaigns  represent  the  most  effec&ve  means  this  massive  and  growing  target  audience.    Conveying  what  quali&es  your  hotel  has  and  what  you  are  able  to  offer  tourists  will  be  key.  Remember  that  tourists  have  thousands  of  places  they  could  visit  so  you  have  to  stand  out  against  a  great  deal  of  compe&&on.    

•  If  you  would  like  to  know  more  about  leveraging  social  media  to  recruit  Chinese  travelers,  or  have  any  ques&ons,  please  do  not  hesitate  to  get  in  contact  with  us.  We  have  years  of  experience  in  this  field  as  well  as  talented,  mul&cultural  and  mul&lingual  staff.  

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