Since their launch in January 2017, WeChat’s mini-programs have enjoyed explosive growth. Luxury brands are able to create their own smaller “apps within the app”, enabling prospective consumers to peruse and purchase without leaving the main WeChat application.
According to a report released by Kukeduo, a third-party mini-program developer, there were approximately 600,000 mini-programs available online by the end of 2017. Each day, an average of 20,000 new mini-programs enter the market, competing for the attention of more than one billion daily active users on the WeChat app.
Chinese users have shown a growing interest in using mini-programs for a number of purposes including entertainment, news and retail. WeChat agency WalktheChat reported that time spent on WeChat mini-programs every day rose from 1.6 minutes to 9.8 minutes by the end of 2017. In addition, 87 percent of users spent more than 200 RMB a month via mini-programs.
For luxury brands selling to China, the mini-programs offer the potential to monetize on WeChat. Since the middle of last year, a slew of brands have released mini-programs to test out the potential of the new sales channel.
Curiosity China, a digital and tech marketing agency operating in China and France, released the report “Mini Program in the Luxury Industry – June 2018” last week. The report lists a number of successful mini-program launches by major luxury brands. Here are five golden rules of selling on mini-programs, summarized by Jing Daily: