So when you talk about social media advertising in China, it does not mean Facebook or Instagram advertising; it is about Weibo advertising.

Cyberspace laws and regulations in China are quite strict. Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Youtube, and Whatsapp are banned in China. It is hard to imagine a world without these platforms, but the Chinese are doing fantastic on their own. They do not need any of these platforms.

With more than 300 million monthly active users, Weibo is one of the most loved social media platforms in China. For western companies who want to reach Chinese netizens, Weibo advertising is one of the best gateways to the Chinese mainland. This platform allows companies to advertise their business in a most interactive way.

How does Weibo advertising work?

To understand this, first, you need to get a brief idea of how this platform works. As per definition, Weibo is a micro-blogging site, but for easy understanding, you can consider it as the Chinese equivalent of Facebook and Twitter. A user can post images, share videos, comment on posts, chat with others, and follow people to read their posts.

Now let’s have an insight into how Weibo advertising works.

Step 1: Account Registration

The first thing you need to do is register your account on Weibo. To do so, you have to login into Weibo’s official website and fill the required details. When you register as a business, you have to provide the business registration documents. Once these documents are verified, a blue icon of ‘V’ will appear on the account. You have to pay the registration fees for the advertising on Weibo.

Step 2: Account Setup

Next step is to customize your account. Fill the most important details of your business. Set up your profile by uploading business logo picture and cover picture, and fills information of the business.

Step 3: Start Advertising

Now you are all set to initiate your advertising campaign. Weibo is an open platform of advertising. It offers various advertising options to successfully reach out to your target audience. Developing a solid content strategy is vital for the success of the campaign. You can work with KOLs and use other advertising methods to effectively reach out to your targeted customers.

What are different ways to advertise on Weibo?

Weibo offers three different ways of advertising to engage with a targeted audience.

1. Weibo Search Engine Promotion
2. Display adverts
3. Fan tunnel and Fan Headlines

Weibo Search Engine Promotion

Like Facebook, Weibo also has an inbuilt search option. Weibo search engine promotion includes ranking your account high for the selected keywords.

As Weibo is micro blogging platform, people used its search function a lot. Hence, it gives you the opportunity to increase your followers. You can promote your account for the certain set of selected keywords and improve your brand awareness.

Display Adverts

Old but still effective. Display ads can be placed at the Weibo’s homepage, search page and at a side of the newsfeed. When a user clicks the ad, he is directed to the advertiser’s webpage.

Display ad can be optimized both for mobile and desktop. Cost of this form of Weibo advertising depends on the size, keyword association, and placement of ads.

Fan Tunnel and Fan Headlines

These can be compared to the Facebook sponsored ads. Fan tunnel is used to reach out to new customers. It allows you to place the specific post of your account on the top of the user’s newsfeed. Your post or account will be displayed at the top of the user’s newsfeed. Hence, it can give you instant, new followers. You can choose your targeted audience based on age, demographics, gender, region and device type.

Fan headlines work in the same way as fan tunnel work. The only difference is this time your content will be sponsored to the existing follower base. It encourages your existing followers to re-share the content.

So these are the three different options for Weibo advertising.

The Takeaway

Chinese netizens are more involved and responsive to social media. If you are planning to expand your business cross-border, then investing in Weibo advertising can certainly help you to make most of the opportunities in the Chinese Market.