WeChat was developed by Tencent and released in 2011 as an app. WeChat has transformed the way the Chinese consumers and business owners find information, communicate, and do transactions. The WeChat adoption numbers skyrocket among Chinese tourists too, which is a good sign for hoteliers who want to put their business in front of this constantly growing segment of travelers. Also, keep in mind that Chinese users spent more than 90 minutes a day on the platform this year, statistics unmatched by any other social media app in the world today. With 963 million users, WeChat lures destinations and businesses all over the world.
Travel websites and blogs are the most important trip-planning resources for Chinese travelers, followed by social media sites and apps like Weibo and WeChat (source: China Luxury Advisors and Fung Business Intelligence Centre via Skift).
Top reasons to have a WeChat presence
Research also shows that young Chinese travelers prefer to use social media to plan their trips, while those aged over 40 still look at travel websites, travel blogs, travel agents, and tour guides.
WeChat is also big when it comes to spending habits. WeChat Pay is an important component of WeChat, basically a digital wallet that allows users to make mobile payments. Or cashless payments, which is a big trend in China and it seems like it will gain worldwide adopters sooner than later. New Zealand is already embracing WeChat, especially within the tourism and service sectors, where the platform offers a trusted and convenient payment method for Chinese visitors. The country is adopting WeChat to better communicate with Chinese travelers who are otherwise frustrated by language and digital barriers. It is also important to mention that, besides standard messaging features like texting, video conferencing, games, and photo and video sharing, WeChat includes ill payments, ride services, hotel booking, online food ordering, shopping, and more.
Fact: the majority of Chinese users do not follow mainstream media nor on English social media networks such as Facebook or Instagram.
Several city tourism entities from Europe and the Middle East have already hopped abroad WeChat withing a special initiative called the CityExperience Mini Program.
- CityExperience boasts digital maps and guides with compelling information about the history and culture of the cities as well as shops and restaurants. Audio guides are available too.
- CityExperience is also a great tool for travel planning, as it features suggested itineraries, visit durations for each attraction, addresses, and phone contact numbers.
Access to WeChat as a business can be cumbersome if you do not know how China does business. There are already online resources to help you, but it is better to employ a company with ties on Mainland China to set up and manage your account. This is one of the services Plateno can offer you. Plateno already has the world’s biggest loyalty platform in the industry, with four million WeChat followers, growing at a rate of a million a month. Consumers can log into the APP and Wechat of Jin Jiang and Plateno with unified accounts to make orders and payment, as well as to check with their member benefits. New members could also enjoy special benefits from both Jin Jiang and Plateno.
f Jin Jiang and Plateno Group integrating their member databases creates a loyalty program with 100 million plus members.
Delivering guests through our powerful distribution system
Central reservation system booking channels:
- Booking website
- Tablet application
- Touch mobile application
- WeChat, Weibo Sina, QQ
- Customer service hotline (CMS) (through the use of WeChat)
An article by Tomasz Janczak. Janczak is the E-Commerce & Distribution Director for Plateno Group Europe, the daughter company of the Chinese hotel group, which manages more than 3700 hotels under 16 brands globally. Tomasz is also heading up the launch of a new project for Plateno corporate, that will open up the unlimited Chinese travel market to European hoteliers. Originally published on The Connect Guest by Plateno.