3a: Capitalising on China’s digital culture explosion
Speakers:
• Sam Fleming – Co-founder and CEO, CIC, China
• Andrew Disbury – Director of Admissions, University of St Andrews, UK
• Nick Jones – Director of Interactive Services, Central Office of
Information, UK
• Professor Weihe Zhong – Vice-President of Academic and External
Affairs, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, China
Chair:
Dr James Bellini – Futurologist and broadcaster, UK
Capitalizing on China’s Digital Cultural
Explosion
Presented by: Sam Flemming,
CEO & Founder, CIC
Date:
December 4, 2008
Introduction to
Chinese Internet Word of Mouth
CHINA INTERNET NUMBERS DOMINATE THE WORLD
- Chinese Internet population is equivalent to the 4th largest country
in the world.
220 Million
253 Million
Average time spent online per
week1,2
7 Hrs
14 Hrs
Average time Internet users
spend watching TV per week3,4
31 hours
9 hours
73%
19%
Number of Internet users1,2
Internet Penetration1,2
Data Source: 1)The 22nd Statistical Survey Report on the Internet Development in China by CNNIC, July 2008. 2) Nielsen Netraitings, July 2008.
3) “Whichever Screen, People Are Watching”, The New York Times, July 2008. 4) China Academy of Social Sciences
THE IWOM LANDSCAPE 2008
Inspired by Brian Solis and JESS3
Blogs
BBS
SNS
Diary:
“Content
Driven by Me”
Community:
“Content
driven by
Topics”
Network:
“Content
Driven
Relationships”
CHINA AHEAD OF THE GAME: China has a more
developed social internet than the West
New Business Models in Online Communities, Plus Eight Star Ltd, March 2008
“The fact is China has surpassed the West in some
web2.0 application fields: such as IM, online
community development and cross-platform service,
etc.”2
Boston Consulting Group, “China’s Digital Generation,” 2008
NET CULTURE
•
顶 - support
•
FT(晕倒) - faint
•
PMP (拍马屁) - kissing
ass
•
Ford Focus: 小福,, 福福,
FKS, FCS
•
做人不能太CNN don’t
be deceptive
•
俯卧撑 - It’s none of
my business.
•
打酱油 – It’s none of
my business
Little Fatty
NETIZEN INSPIRED MARKETING
NET LANGUAGE: NBA fans have their own
Athlete and Team Nick Names
Nick
Name
大姚
明王
Big Yao
Ming with
mustache
King Ming
四克拉
Four carats
影帝
Movie king
点球皮
Piero for penalty
goal
斑马王子
Prince of zebra
绿衫军
The green shirt
army
The
grasshoppers
胡子明
Yao Ming
Luis Scola
Alessandro
Del Piero
Boston
Celtics
Interpretation
蚱蜢
What Does IWOM mean to you?
CHINA FOCUS: IWOM impacts opinion and purchase
behavior
• CHINESE NETIZENS LOOK TO BBS FOR PURCHASING ADVICE
→ more than 80% users use BBS to search for information of the
product they plan to buy and 62% users ask other BBS users for
opinions before make purchases.1
• IWOM INFLUENCES PURCHASE DECISIONS
→User-generated content (consumer reviews/rating sites,
forum/discussion boards, blogs, etc.) influences 58% of all
purchase decisions in China, compared with 19% in the US. 2
• INTERNET IS KEY TO STAY INFORMED ABOUT PRODUCTS
→91% of respondents listed the Internet as the preferred medium
to stay informed post-purchase 3
1
The Phenomenon of Chinese BBS by IResearch Consulting Group, November, 2007
2
Netpop / Nations: China and the U.S. in a Web 2.0 World by Netpop, November, 2007
3
Consumers and Marketers’ Media Interaction Survey Report, I-merge/Sinomonitor September, 2007
IWOM TOPS SEARCH RESULTS: Search results of “Overseas
Study in UK” from Google
•40% come from BBS
•15% come from BLOG
Industry
Portal
BBS
BBS
Industry
Portal
Industry
Portal
Source:
http://www.google.cn/search?hl=zh-CN&lr=lang_zh-CN%7Clang_zhTW&newwindow=1&q=%E8%8B%B1%E5%9B%BD%E7%95%99%E5%AD%A6&start=70&sa=N
Confidential
13
BBS IS MAINSTREAM: President Hu Jin Tao listens to
IWOM...why shouldn't you?
“I always try to spare some time for the
internet.”
“Through the web I also want to know
what netizens are thinking about and what
their opinions are. I hope to get some
suggestions and advice proposed by our
netizens to the government and the Party.”
On June 20th, President Hu visited
the bbs of People Daily and chat with
netizens.
“The web is an important channel for us to
understand the concerns of the public and
assemble the wisdom of the public.”
WHAT IS A BBS?: Chinese consumers actively share experiences
online
British University Rank 2008
announced by TIMES
My experience sharing on
overseas study in UK
FORUM LIST
http://bbs.tigtag.com/index2.asp
http://www.taisha.org/bbs/
http://lkcn.net/bbs/
http://bbs.gter.net/bbs/index.php
http://cache.tianya.cn/publicforum/articleslist/
0/outseachina.shtml
http://bbs.earthedu.com/
TOP TIER CLIENTS AND PARTNERS: In 3 years of
history, CIC has developed strategic relationships with
the best
Clients
Top
Chinese
Portal
Leading
Computer
Processor
Brand
Leading
Mobile
Phone Brand
Agencies
• Leading international PR firms
• Leading international advertising firms
• Leading digital marketing firms
In September and October, U.K. generated most buzz while U.S.
attracted most netizens’ participation
Buzz Volume and Poster Number of Overseas Countries in September and October
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
U.K.
Austrilia
U.S.
Canada
New
Zealand
Post
Germany
Poster
Total buzz volume of country in September and October: 38,448 posts
Total poster number of country in September and October: 15,058 posters
Japan
France
Korea
LIVING ABROAD: Students show pictures of their life living in UK
HOT TOPICS AMONG CHINESE STUDENTS ONLINE: Students
decide where to study
Sample Conversation Topic: Q/A on the application to Bristol in 2009
Is Bristol a financially developed
city? What type of job opportunities
will I have when I graduate?
How do I fill in the application and
financial aide forms? Do I fill out a
special form if I want to pay tuition
in installments?
Hi, Can I ask, how is Bristol’s finance department? Is there any hope for me to
get accepted? What do I have to do to get accepted?
HOT TOPICS AMONG CHINESE STUDENTS ONLINE: Students
decide where to study
Sample Conversation Topic: Undergraduate Q&A for Oxford applications
Do you know much
about the
program/major that I
applied to at Oxford?
My GPA is 82%, can I still
apply to Oxford?
I also have 3 years work
experience.
I want to apply for the 09 fall MFE program at Oxford. I’ve been looking forward to
applying to this program for a long time. What should I prepare now?
HOT TOPICS AMONG CHINESE STUDENTS ONLINE: Students
discuss and seek advice on obtaining visas to UK
Sample Conversation Topic: Guidance and advice on how to obtain visas to the UK
Application advice
What materials do I need to prepare when applying for UK visa? What is
the longest length of time I can get a work permit for?
How long do I have to wait to get the results of my visa applications?
Financial advice
Do I need to provide my savings account records to get approval for the
visa? Most of my money is tied up in stock. I have a small amount in
fixed deposits, but all are in the form of deposit receipts,
Emergency advice
I lost my visa while studying in the UK, what should I do?
HOT TOPICS AMONG CHINESE STUDENTS ONLINE: Students
share economic concerns
Sample Conversation Topic: Discussion on airline tickets
I am really nervous right now. My visa hasn’t been approved and my ticket is
non refundable. What a headache! Do you have any good advice?
Can I buy round trip tickets around Christmas time?
Can I change my flight date after I get my visa?
HOT TOPICS AMONG CHINESE STUDENTS ONLINE: Students
share economic concerns
Sample Conversation Topic: Decrease in the exchange rate between RMB and
British pound sterling
How will I manage financially during this tough time?
It’s too bad I have to send some of my money back home at the end of each
month, with the current economic situation.
I remember back in July, the
currency exchange rate was
at 13RMB/pound. Now it’s at
11. It fell too quickly. Does
anyone know when the
exchange rate will go up
again?
WHAT THE RESEARCH COVERS
• Key concerns on studying in UK and
competitive countries
• Hot issues about UK and competitive countries
• Identify key communities/forums
• Identify opinion leaders
HOW TO USE THIS RESEARCH
• Media intelligence
• Marketing intelligence
• Market research
READ MORE ON OUR COMPANY BLOGS:
CIC Company Blog:
www.seeisee.com (Chinese)
CEO Blog:
www.seeisee.com/sam (English)
READ MORE IN OUR FREE WHITEPAPERS
AND IWOM WATCH REVIEWS
FOR MORE INSIGHTS SEE
OUR BLOGs
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CEO Blog (English)
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www.seeisee.com/sam (English)
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CONTACT US:
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