How Cartier won China on social media – Arnold Ma

 

Arnold Ma

Luxury brand Cartier has been able to win over also the younger generations consumers in China by smart use of the country’s social media. Marketing expert Arnold Ma explains in the Jing Daily how Cartier paved its way to success.

Arnold Ma:

Cartier is an old hand in the Chinese market, having launched there in 1992. However, it has only recently embraced social media — and, more importantly, third-generation social media — in the country. This strategy can be seen in its Make Your Own Path campaign, which was released late last year to promote the brand’s new PASHA DE Cartier watches.

While luxury brands almost always try to give off an heir of exclusivity, Cartier invited everyone on Douyin to participate in its user-generated content campaign. The premise was simple: show off your dance moves in a video, apply Cartier’s special filter to it, and post it under the campaign hashtag. This simple-yet-effective campaign brought in 1.1 billion views and inspired thousands of users to boogie! Cartier even upped the ante by launching a livestreamed clubbing event by partnering with a hip-hop dance crew and the famous trap artist DJ Anti-General at a Shanghai club.

The fun, refreshing campaign smartly tapped into China’s creative consumers, club-going youth, livestream lovers, and social media content creators. Cartier also invited celebrities to participate in the campaign. As a result, the platform’s algorithm boosted the campaign widely on user feeds and generated considerable organic support.

Luxury brands: come down from your pedestal

As demonstrated by Cartier, luxury brands have to be more experimental in China to resonate with younger audiences. Brands that are creative and innovative on third-generation platforms will be rewarded by Chinese consumers via both engagement and sales. As such, now is the right time for luxury brands to be more democratic and embrace China’s newest era of social media.

Arnold Ma is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your (online) meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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