Many of the Chinese social networks have a similar version in the West, one of the most apparent cases being the Chinese version of TikTok, Doyin, which we will discuss in detail in this article.
Chinese social networks have become one of the most important marketing tools in the Asian country. Being present in them is essential for any brand or company that wants to enter the Chinese market effectively, so knowing them is highly relevant.
Chinese social networks have become one of the most essential marketing tools in the Asian country, Douyin the Chinese version of TikTok, has become one of the most relevant.
1. What is Douyin? The Chinese version of TikTok
The Chinese version of TikTok, called Douyin, is a Chinese social network that has become one of the most important and widely used platforms in recent years. It was created in 2016 by the large company called ByteDance, the same developer of TikTok, the mainland Chinese counterpart was called Douyin.
The Chinese version of TikTok is one of the most used social networks by the youth of the great Asian country. It already has more than 800 million users active monthly, with 56% of the total being men and the remaining 44% being women, according to the Oberlo report.
On the other hand, from the application itself they have stated, thanks to various demographic studies, that 41% of active users are between 16 and 24 years old, which underlines the high relevance of Generation Z for the Chinese version of TikTok.
The Chinese version of TikTok Douyin already has more than 800 million monthly active users, with 41% of the total being people between 16 and 24 years old.
How do you use the Chinese TikTok?
The main function of the Chinese TikTok is to share and create short videos, in addition to being able to broadcast live. On the other hand, the Chinese version of TikTok has a multitude of Additional functions:
- Social-commerce: By using the social network itself, the Chinese version of TikTok allows you to buy and sell products and services online.
- The application allows setting up an online store for the mainland Chinese market.
- It allows the use of thousands of songs, sounds, filters, and effects in videos and live broadcasts.
The primary function of the Chinese version of TikTok is to create and share short videos and broadcast live, in addition to creating an online store for selling and buying products and services online
2. Differences between the Chinese version of TikTok and the Western one
Referring to the interface, the Chinese version of TikTok is similar to the Western one, with the style and logo being exactly the same. Still, although the idea and design are practically the same, the content is the aspect in which they differ the most.
One of the main differences between Douyin and TikTok is that the first gives the possibility of having native stores, such as Taobao, being one of the most popular ways to earn income today. Furthermore, on Chinese TikTok you can use the collaboration with influencers to establish a new brand or business in the Chinese market.
Unlike TikTok, the chinese version of TikTok allows users to find videos of influencers through facial recognition, also trying to become the leading entertainment platform, becoming the Chinese version of Netflix.
On the other hand, the algorithms of both applications also have significant differences. While on TikTok small accounts go viral more frequently, in the Chinese version of TikTok, accounts with a well-established presence have more weight.
The main distinction lies in the limitations that the Chinese government imposes on the implementation of Douyin in the territory. In this sense, Citizen Lab researchers compared the two applications and discovered that TikTok does not apply the same political censorship as its Chinese version.
While the accounts of TikTok offer a wide variety of content categories, from dances or viral challenges to tutorials and vlogs, without restrictions, as long as they comply with the community rules, the Chinese version of TikTok prefers the disseminating educational content.
3. Why is it important to be present in Douyin?
As we mentioned at the beginning, Being present on Chinese social networks is of great importance for brands interested in penetrating the Chinese market, and Douyin is no exception.
Being present on the Chinese version of TikTok allows organizations to promote its products and services to consumers, also generating engagement in a very interactive way. On the other hand, having an influential presence in the Chinese version of TikTok can help you get ahead of the competition in one of the most profitable markets in the world.
Being present in Douyin allows organizations to promote their products and services to consumers, giving your business an advantage over competitors.
The main advantage of Chinese TikTok is the ease of content going viral. Through a good marketing strategy, you can reach a large number of people with only good planning and editing of content.
The Chinese version of TikTok offers powerful business promotion features, including various ad formats, hashtag challenges, influencer collaborations, mini-programs, live streaming, analytics and more. These features enable brands to increase visibility, engage with audiences, drive sales and optimise their marketing strategies.
Restaurants and hotels use the application to conduct virtual tours, talk about the hotel, run various promotions and, of course, make sales using a Chinese short video platform. Another of the most successful sectors for this app in China is the luxury sector.
Let’s look at some particularly relevant data to understand the importance of the Chinese version of TikTok for businesses:
- Market penetration: of the 4.8 billion people on the internet, 20.83% make use of the video-sharing service offered by ByteDance.
- User growth rate: between January 2018 and July 2020, the global user base of the Chinese TikTok increased by 1,157%; within the same time period, the US saw a user growth rate of 787.86%. With 611 million downloads to date, India has contributed more than any other country to the rise of the Chinese TikTok.
- Engagement: Chinese version of TikTok is the most engaged social media app, with an average session duration of 10.85 minutes, twice as long as Pinterest, which ranks number 2 with 5.06 minutes. In 2019, time spent on the Chinese version of TikTok reached a whopping 68 billion hours.
- Official data shows that in the first half of 2023, 66% of the top 100 search words on the chinese TikTok were dedicated to brands; names such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Cartier and Bulgari experienced a surge in popularity.
- The platform has seen a rise in the quantity of users purchasing luxury items, as seen by Douyin’s luxury GMV, which climbed by 254% year over year in 2023.
- As stated in the 2023 TikTok Luxury Industry White Paper, which was co-published by Deloitte China, Ocean Engine, Douyin E-commerce in China, and Trend Insight, the popular short video app has now turned into a marketplace for more than 70% of luxury consumers in China.
- In the upcoming years, the platform anticipates that its most affluent luxury buyers will raise their annual spending by 7%, from RMB 600,000 (£66,470) to RMB 643,000 (£71,234). In contrast, moderate and light luxury buyers, who are more cost-conscious, are anticipated to decrease their annual consumption of luxury goods by 5%, to RMB 112,000 (£12,497), and 15%, to RMB 16,000 (£1,772), respectively.
You can achieve this presence in two ways, the first being the most effective:
Presence through influencers
The most effective way to have a presence on the Chinese version of TikTok is to collaborate with Chinese influencers. Brands will use these influencers on social networks to promote their products, giving the impression that it’s being done in an organic form.
The most effective way to have a presence in Douyin is to collaborate with Chinese influencers
In addition to disseminating highly persuasive messages designed by your organization, the main objective of collaborating with influencers is to promote indirectly. In this sense, the best option is to collaborate with InfluChina, a marketing agency dedicated to promoting foreign brands in China through strategic collaborations with influencers.
Presence through official account
Through a brand’s official account on Chinese TikTok, users can be redirected directly to the brand platform or website to see the products and services offered. The main objective of having a presence and promoting through an official account is to indirectly show your store content, videos, products, and history to users.
Through the official account of a brand in Douyin, customers can go directly to the brand's platform or website
Furthermore, if the content is created correctly and tailored to the needs of your target audience, the content can go viral. This will increase the connection with your audience and increase the company’s presence on social networks, which will mean a significant increase in the income of the brand in the long term.
4. Conclusions
As we have seen, knowing Douyin the Chinese version of TikTok in depth is of great importance for any foreign brand that intends to enter the Chinese market effectively, since social networks are the best marketing strategy within this market.
If you want to get into the Chinese version of TikTok, you can contact InfluChina, a marketing agency dedicated to promoting foreign brands in China through strategic collaborations with influencers.
If you are interested in getting into the Chinese version of TikTok, you can contact InfluChina, a marketing agency dedicated to promoting foreign brands in China through strategic collaborations with influencers.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Douyin the Chinese version of TikTok
What is the name of Chinese TikTok?
The Chinese version of TikTok is called Douyin, and it’s one of the most important social networks in Mainland China..
What is Douyin?
Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, is one of the most important Chinese social networks and already has more than 800 million monthly active users
What are the differences between Chinese and Western TikTok?
The interface and logo of the Chinese version of TikTok and the Western one are the same, but the type of content, restrictions, and viralization of content differ in both applications.