In China,
WeChat is uncontested in its dominance over online traffic. The app is readily used to read news, order food, hail cabs, pay their bills and of course chat. But the app seems to be ambitious and kill all other apps in the state.
All in One StrategyWith a little over 889 million monthly active users in China alone and little traction abroad; (a market dominated by WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger); the Chinese messaging app is turning its attention towards a vast and untapped source of traffic in its home market: offline services – anything like withdrawing money from ATM or travel guidance etc. WeChat firm also has its plans for the European market and they’re trying to embed themselves into our lives in such a way that they can’t leave WeChat for any purpose.
Becoming the Sole Lifeline At present the app is more like an “operating system for your life in China.” The offline-to-online factor isn’t new to WeChat by any means.
Its mobile payment system allows users to pay via QR code at both five-star restaurants and hole-in-the-wall noodle shops, as does Alipay, WeChat Pay’s main competitor. The app even has iBeacon capabilities, which lets physical shops entice passersby with discounts and other engagement tricks – though that never really took off, probably because it requires Bluetooth.
But mini programs are different. Besides being lightweight, they’re designed to be strictly context-driven – they should only appear if a situation requires it. If not, it remains invisible to users. However, the mini programs are still in their infancy, launched in January, WeChat’s latest feature still needs a lot of work and time for adoption.
BW Reporters
Soumya is a young writer and journalist, with bachelors in Multimedia and Mass Communication. She is an alumini of the Asian College of Journalism, and finds politics and sustainability intriguing beats to work with.
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