Building trust and reputation amongst your customers is a very smart business objective, one way to achieve this in China is through Q&A marketing in China. Q&A Marketing has been growing steadily and has become a vital component of any marketing campaign in China.
What are the Mainstream Platforms in china?
The Q&A format is very popular in China, and as such, there are multiple platforms to choose from. Listed below are your top six.
1. Baidu Knows
Baidu is the Google of China, and Baidu Knows is one of the largest Q&A platforms. It works by pulling questions and answers from its search engine, and by encouraging user participation. To date, over 320 million questions have been answered; it is used by 380 million users. If you're doing digital marketing in China it is strongly advised that this is part of your portfolio.
2. 360 Wena
Created by 360 Search, 360 Wena is a collaborative knowledge-sharing community where users ask questions, and those with the right expertise come to answer. Answers are ranked, and the satisfied answer becomes indexed and wins the answerer points. This knowledge-sharing platform is a strong validation tool in China. What better than getting the community you are targeting with your marketing initiatives to 'vote' your answer as the best.
3. Sogou wenen
Created by Sogou, Sogou Wenen is very similar to Baidu Knows. Users ask and answer questions on a platform that encourages mutual aid. To date, 2.6 million questions have been answered.
4. Tianya Wenda
Another Q&A platform to utilize in China is the Tianya community subsidiary, a free Q&A site with a social twist. It focuses mostly on topics related to hobbies or convenience and enjoys 110,000 users and growing.
5. Sina iAsk
Created by Sina, Sina iAsk stands apart in the Q&A marketing mix due to its intelligent interactive search technology, which collects answers from all of Sina’s channels, which so far total more than 100 million.
6. Zhihu
Zhihu is the largest Chinese Q&A site that has become the go-to for Chinese users. Its demographic is typically educated, working professionals over the age of 25, who use the platform for its high-quality information and authority. If you're selling B2B services and/or products, this platform is definitely one worth adding to your social media marketing and repetitional growth.
How to Use These Q&A Sites to Promote Your Business
Answering questions to promote your brand takes time, but it can pay off massively. Chinese consumers are very fast-paced, and their brand loyalty is often much lower than their western counterparts, which is why it is critical to build up your reputation as the best. A great way to do this is to showcase your knowledge, expertise, and dedication to helping your customers.
Ask Questions to Your Demographic
Ask questions to engage with your demographic directly. You will be able to glean some truly insightful knowledge so you can further engage them, and in general, gain a more in-depth understanding of what they value and what they want.
Answer Questions to Enhance Engagement
Answer questions posted by users in a helpful, modest way. You can absolutely mention your products, service, or brand in an answer, but only if you do it in a way that is not overly promotional. Your goal needs to be to answer the question as efficiently and informatively as possible. When answering questions, try out a different variety of styles so that you can find the right voice and boost engagement.
Aim to Become the Best Answer
Becoming the Best Answer to a question means your answer becomes immortal. On some platforms like, you may also benefit from having your top answer marketed to the masses, like with Zhihu’s Bookstore, an online magazine that collects the best answers under each category. The online magazine is read by more than 43,000 users, highly rated, and growing.
Monitor, Report, and Adjust
As with any marketing campaign, you will want to monitor your results, report on findings, and adjust your strategy to maintain optimal result, and more importantly, the right engagement with your customers. Click to learn more about the different types of social media marketing in China.
Interested in learning more about marketing in China and how we can help you? Let's talk, as we'd love to learn more about your business, your brand, and your goals.