Brands: maneuvering between streamers and influencers – Ashley Dudarenok

 

Ashley Dudarenok

While brands are rightfully intrigued by the power of streamers in e-commerce, they cannot replace traditional influencers, says branding expert Ashley Dudarenok in Campaign Asia. “While there was a time when brands favoured streamers over traditional influencers, as they thought streamers can sell, these days they know better,” says Ashley Dudarenok,

Campaign Asia:

While livestreaming may have transformed online shopping in China (according to research firm eMarketer, it generated sales of US$480 billion in China last year that are likely to jump 30% this year) experts say that in reality, collaborating with live streamers is a bit hit and miss.

“While there was a time when brands favoured streamers over traditional influencers, as they thought streamers can sell, these days they know better,” says Ashley Dudarenok, founder of ChoZan 超赞 and Alarice. “No matter how big, small, professional the external livestreamer is, they rarely deliver a positive ROI. Anchors are expensive. They work great for awareness, first time purchase, campaigns—after which it’s up to a brand to leverage and stretch the afterglow.”…

“Competition for eyeballs is fierce, it’s increasingly challenging to stand out,” says Dudarenok. “This leads to constant pressure to come up with attention-grabbing stunts or strategies, which rarely aligns with genuine and authentic content creation.” In one such stunt, a young male Chinese live streamer recently died after he was seen drinking excessive amounts of alcohol on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok. The streamer who went by the username of ‘Brother Three Thousand’ was reported to have drank at least seven bottles of baijiu spirits during a live stream, and was found dead 12 hours after his broadcast, Chinese media reported. His death, which was widely discussed on China’s internet, has led to calls for stricter rules for the country’s expanding livestreaming sector.

“Regulation is another concern,” adds Dudarenok. “Without clear guidelines and regulations, it’s often the Wild West with unsafe products and services, patchy after-sales services, and more. As the live commerce landscape evolves and matures, influencers, brands, MCNs, agencies are working together to shape what ‘good looks like’ for the next 10 years.”…

While livestreaming superhosts like Austin Li and Viya remain popular in China, brands are increasingly building up their own live stream channels instead of paying individual live streamers 40% to 50% of the revenue. “Brands prefers KOEs = key opinions employees to run the shows eight hours a day vs external anchors,” says Dudarenok. “Plus virtual hosts can also be a great way to complement the real human anchor at peak times, and fully substitute them during slow hours.”

More in Campaign Asia.

Ashley Dudarenok is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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

Please foll

Using virtual KOLs in China – Arnold Ma

 

Arnold Ma

As the internet becomes a dominant sales channel in China, virtual key opinion leaders (KOLs) are becoming key for brands, says marketing expert Arnold Ma to the Jing Daily. As patriotism becomes an issue for global brands in China, they have to be careful in picking those virtual KOLs, adds Ma.

Jing Daily:

Using virtual KOLs has been an emerging marketing experiment for brands in China, said Arnold Ma, founder & CEO of the Chinese digital agency Qumin. “Ling, Luo Tianyi, KFC’s Colonel Sanders, Tmall’s Aimee, PokaPoka, and L’Oréal’s Mr. Ou are all famous to Chinese Gen Zers,” he explained. “And although virtual Chinese KOLs have yet to reach their peak, brands could get on board because this industry has huge potential.”…

Young Chinese consumer trust exists when the appetite for fashion and beauty meets fervent patriotism. To earn that, brands must have the conscience to cultivate practical political wisdom to avoid controversy. “Brands can either have a clear standpoint that supports China or avoid talking about politics on social media,” warned Qumin’s founder Arnold Ma. “Once Western brands get involved in political controversy, KOLs and celebrities will 100-percent stop work with the brands because they need to save their reputation in the Chinese market, and they are patriotic and socially progressive.”

More at the Jing Daily.

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 branding experts at the China Speakers Bureau? Do check out this list.

Marching on in China: influencer marketing - Ashley Dudarenok

Ashley Dudarenok

Influencers are key for marketing, says China marketeer Ashley Dudarenok. Platforms might change when time moves on, influencers are here to stay, she adds in Forbes. " In 2019 you can’t market in China without investing 20-70% of your marketing budget into influencers," she says.


Forbes:

Ashley Galina Dudarenok, author and China marketing expert explains, "Influencer marketing is such a focal point of brand strategy because it's a lot more powerful than many other methods." She continues, fresh from the stage at the Palais de Festival speaking about culture, technology and advertising at Cannes Lions, "In China, we say that Chinese KOLs (key opinion leaders) are the only influencers globally that actually sell.  No matter whether you are a big or a small brand, in 2019 you can’t market in China without investing 20-70% of your marketing budget into influencers." 

Dudarenok points out that the bridge such KOLs serve for cultural connection is invaluable.  She adds, "According to PWC’s report, 29% of Chinese consumers, as compared to 13% globally, actually use social media to see what brands or products KOLs and celebrities are endorsing now, so it's a phenomenon that just continues to balloon." ... 

Indeed, Dudarenok predicts, "Platforms will change, influencers will stay. There will also be more and more self-brands launched by KOLs. In fact, big global brands, by cooperating with KOLs, are actually in the process of creating their own future competitors ."

More in Forbes.

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

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

How China's KOLs differ from those in the US, Europe - Ashley Dudarenok

Ashley Dudarenok

Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) in China differ very much from their colleagues in Europe and the US, says China marketing veteran Ashley Dudarenok, author of Digital China: Working with Bloggers, Influencers and KOLs to Vultlab. Western companies certainly need a China-strategy to enter this very different market, Ashley argues.

Vultlab:

Nicole: So would you say then that KOLs are just as inherently important to the world of marketing in China as it is in the West? And if so, would you say they influence more or less than our image of a social media influencer? 

Ashley: I’d say that they’re more important in China and have more influence. In the West, people have a different relationship with companies and traditional advertising and fewer trust issues in terms of that kind of advertising. Companies and ads have been regulated for decades. In China, there have been issues of trust in companies and their products from piracy to toxic ingredients. Traditional ads don’t have the power they once did and the market is flooded with them. Influencers, on the other hand, who have a good reputation and close relationship with their fans and followers, are trusted. 

Nicole: With this in mind, do you think if Western companies want to extend their marketing into China, should companies, startups, and businesses shift their approach to being more of a KOL themselves or could they use the strategies of a social media influencer? Why would maintaining the mentality of Western e-marketing be effective or not? 

Ashley: A typical Western approach wouldn’t be effective, as the market is just so different culturally, economically, content-wise and platform-wise. Western companies should definitely craft China-specific strategies, like giving more content and format freedom to key opinion leaders, being bold with new platforms like Douyin and so on. KOL marketing in China is even more important in your total marketing mix. And as Chinese influencers sell, they are also much more expensive and much more picky with the products, content and angles they promote. 

Nicole: So you do think Western influencers have a lot to learn from China as far as being effective e-marketers and vice versa? 

Ashley: Yes, both can and do learn from each other. Western influencers can learn from the way Chinese KOLs build their own brands and online retail channels all online, without using reality TV, risque content, controversy and without using other channels, while maintaining a loyal following. They can learn from the way they jump on hot topics and always maintain a positive tone. The level of content creativity in China is also high. There are so many KOLs in China and the competition is fierce, so they need to innovate even more. While Chinese bloggers can learn to use Western channels even more. Few, apart from Papi Jiang, have really given it a go. They can also learn from Korean pop stars who use Western social media well and are building larger and larger audiences outside of Asia.

More in Vultlab.

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

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

Cyber celebrities redefine marketing - Ashley Dudarenok

Ashley Dudarenok

Self-made cyber celebrities take over positions of established Key Opinion Leaders (KOL's) and redefine marketing, says vlogger and China-veteran Ashley Dudarenok, co-author of Digital China: Working with Bloggers, Influencers and KOLs, to the China Daily. Brands are discovering the new trend.

China Daily:

Brands are starting to reap more success from working with self-made bloggers, converting their own fan numbers into influence with brands. 

For instance, counting on her over 3 million followers on Weibo and 4.5 million fans on WeChat, Fan Yimin, who is better known by her online avatar Becky Li, helped sell 100 Mini Cooper Countryman cars within five minutes via her WeChat post last year. 

She is a role model to a generation of digital natives who have established viable careers as social media "influencers", and found fame and fortune solely by posting blogs and sharing their preferences online. 

The power of word of mouth is one important reason for blogger success from the cultural perspective, according to Ashley Galina Dudarenok, founder of social media agency Alarice and a veteran social media expert. 

"Chinese customers have very deep trust in key opinion leaders (or KOLs) and this psychological bond can be partially explained by the pseudo-intimacy created by social media," she said. "Social media make you feel like influencers are friends as you know who they are in real life, thanks to the details of their daily lives shared through Weibo, WeChat and live streaming apps."

More at the China Daily.

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

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

Working with Bloggers, Influencers and KOLs - Ashley Dudarenok

Ashley Dudarenok

Marketing guru Ashley Dudarenok co-authored with Lauren Hallanan her latest book, Digital China: Working with Bloggers, Influencers and KOLs, a hands-on introduction into the tricky e-commerce market in China for foreign companies, for one week available at Amazon for only US$0.99.

From Amazon:

Want to know more about influencer marketing in the world’s largest and fastest growing online market? This is the second book in our series guiding you through China’s digital space. China is one of the most attractive markets in the world and collaborating with bloggers, KOLs and influencers is essential if you want to find a place in the consumer’s heart. Don’t know where to start? This book will help newcomers and experienced marketers alike gain insight and take action. You’ll learn about:

• The Most Influential KOL Platforms and How They Work

• How to Find and Select the Right Influencer for You

• The Ins and Outs of Effective KOL Campaigns

• KOLs in action: Revealing Case Studies

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

Are you looking for more experts on e-commerce at the China Speakers Bureau? Do check out this list.