China Herald: Whatsapp

Matthew Brennan

Tencent's WeChat has become the largest national platform in China. But despite its one billion monthly active users, the platform is only starting to grow and monetize its base, for example by using its mini-WeChats, says WeChat expert Matthew Brennan to the South China Morning Post.

The South China Morning Post:

“[WeChat’s user numbers] haven’t hit the ceiling yet but I think they will at some point,” said Matthew Brennan, managing director of independent WeChat consultancy China Channel. “But they still have a lot of room to grow in advertising, and now with mini programs.”

Mini programs refer to applications typically smaller than 10 megabytes that can run instantly on the main app’s interface. They offer speed of access to users because a program does not have to be downloaded from an app store, they can run from within the app. This innovation allows platforms to host multiple services, turning them into super-apps, delivering greater convenience to consumers in the world’s largest smartphone market...

WhatsApp, WeChat’s biggest overseas rival today, was available to the Chinese market at that time [it was later banned by China in 2017 ahead of a major Communist Party congress] but missed its opportunity without any localisation or promotion in the market, China Channel’s Brennan recalls.

By the second quarter of 2018, the number of WeChat mini programs reached one million and mini program users surpassed 600 million in June this year.

“The mini program initiative is opening many doors for Tencent,” said China Channel’s Brennan. “Monetisation due to adverts and payments … and by allowing [Tencent] to incubate and accelerate a variety of businesses within the ecosystem – e-commerce in particular.”

More in the South China Morning Post.

Matthew Brennan is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' request form.

Are you looking for more experts on the China take of its digital transformation? Do check out this list.

William Bao Bean

The walled gardens of Whatsapp, Facebook and Google have lost great opportunities, and now they have to face Chinese competition as Tencent and others prepare expand into the next four billion users, outside China, told Shanghai-based innovation expert William Bao Bean last week at the Next16 conference in Hamburg. (from verbatim blogging).

Next16:

Tencent had 519 product groups - essentially independent companies. It got a bad reputation for killing startups. Tencent does Not have the innovators dilemma. They are constantly killing their own businesses. WeChat is one example. They killed the competition, and then they killed QQMobile, which was part of Tencent. They're growing 52% year on year - and aren't out of China yet.

WhatsApp had a huge opportunity - and they sold out. They could have done stickers - but they didn't. Silly. Stickers are agreat way to communicate- efficinet and fun. So, Facebook stuck them in a corner, and built Messages instead.

We live in a Messaging world. You can buy a car or a coke, you can crowdfund or transact. Facebook started Open, but chose a media model and closed themselves. WeChat has stayed open and become a platform - mainly for social commerce. And it's something not present in the west, but which is taking the rest of the world by storm. Content is king and data is queen. You make money by showing people stuff and getting them to buy it. Your friends sell you things, not advertisers. They've built a social commerce funnel. You enter fans with great content - about 10% will engage with that daily. About 5% of them will hit the store, and then 3% will buy something. 0.45% monthly conversion every month - without you paying out to get that conversion. Advertising is dead. This is the end of Google.

The last four billion. South East Asia. South America. Africa. They're the next market. And the want the mobile-centric, mobile-only market approach, that is counter-intuitive to us who come from desktops. The walled garden markets of the west? Dead. Think of Google Play and Google Wallet. You need a bank accounts it doesn't work in emerging markets, so you can't make money there. The top companies in emerging markets are Chinese players you've never heard of. They're winning the last four billion. This is a war for future growth. And it's a pay-to-play market.

Everyone looks up to Zuckerberg, because he launched a great product from his dorm. But he's made it impossible to create another Zuckerberg - because he's created an ecosystem where you need money to get in. When people are taking VC money - and spending most of it on Google and Facebook ads, then VC is broken.

More at Next16.

William Bao Bean is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers´request form.

Are you looking for more innovation experts at the China Speakers Bureau? Do check out this list.

Earlier this year we discussed with William Bao Bean how mobile payments are going to hurt traditional banks and credit card companies