How to use WeChat? Diving into WeChat Marketing

WeChat is one of the most widely used social platforms around the world. In our previous article, “What is WeChat,” we discussed various marketing opportunities for businesses to engage with users. But how do you actually use WeChat to promote your brand? This guide provides tips and insights to help marketers get started with promoting on WeChat with ideas on signing up, and more besides.

Get Started on WeChat

To get started with advertising on WeChat, the first step is to create your account.

1. Register: Head over to WeChat’s Official Account Registration platform to sign up.

2. Choose Region and Account Type: Make sure to choose the correct region and account type. It’s important to note that at the moment, entities that are registered outside of China are only eligible to apply for a Service Account.

3. Fill in Basic Information: Fill in all the required fields including account name, email address, and admin information. You also need to set a personal WeChat ID as the admin, who will need to scan a QR code to log in. You don’t have to provide account information like an introduction or logo right away, as you can always update them later on.

4. Complete Registration: Once you have completed the registration, proceed with the WeChat certification process to activate your account. None of the features will be available without certification, and the account could be subject to automatic cancellation after 30 days.

Differences between WeChat’s Service and Subscription Accounts

As we mentioned above, entities external to China are only eligible to apply for a Service Account. So what does this mean?

WeChat offers four types of official accounts: Subscription Account, Service Account, Mini Programs, and WeCom (or WeChat Work).

It’s easy to distinguish the latter two: Mini Programs are “sub-applications” within the WeChat ecosystem, and WeCom is a business communication and office collaboration tool.

However, only the former two, Subscription Account and Service Account, have the capability to publish and disseminate posts online. While almost all official account users would apply for these two, there seems to be some confusion surrounding their differences. Let’s take a closer look.

WeChat Subscription Account

• Purpose: Provides users with information and updates for businesses and individuals.

• Application Eligibility: Individuals and organizations can apply.

• Messaging Limit: One message per day, up to 8 pieces of content per message.

• Support Message type: Text + image, videos, audio, plain images

• Message Display: Messages show up in the subscriber’s “Subscription” folder, users need to click the folder to view.

• Payment Functionality: Only media services can enable WeChat Pay.

• Advanced Features: Limited API access compared to Service Accounts.

WeChat Service Account

• Purpose: Offers services to users and manages customer relationships, suitable for businesses and organizations with development capabilities.

• Application Eligibility: Only organizations can apply.

• Messaging Limit: Up to four messages per month, up to eight pieces of content per message.

• Support Message type: Text + image, videos, audios, plain images, live stream

• Message Display: Messages appear in the subscriber’s chat list with real-time notifications.

• Payment Functionality: All service accounts can enable WeChat Pay.

• Advanced Features: Customer management, custom menus, WeChat Pay support, e-commerce integration, and access to all advanced WeChat APIs.

Certification Process

The certification process is straightforward, but you need to make sure you have all the necessary documents and materials. This includes:

1. A scanned copy of your Company Registration Certificate or Business License.

2. A scanned copy of both sides of the contact person’s ID card.

3. An application letter.

4. The contact person’s phone bill, a statement of the office telephone or bank statement.

5. Other supporting materials, like a Trademark Registration Certificate if you plan to use a trademark name.

6. A $99 certification fee.

The certification process will require you to fill out detailed information about your company and a contact person. Afterward, you can upload all the required certification materials, pay the certification fee, and wait for WeChat to review your application.

Please make sure to keep an eye out for phone calls and emails from the reviewer. It usually takes about three business days to complete the certification. If you have all your materials ready and organized, your certification should go through smoothly on the first attempt. However, if additional documents are needed, the reviewer will reach out to you.

Once your account is certified, you can begin using it to promote your business, and WeChat users will be able to search for and interact with your official account.

Master Your Potential on WeChat with Nativex

Are you still learning about how to use WeChat? If you want to use WeChat for campaigns, get in touch with Nativex. As a global ad agency for Tencent Marketing Solutions (the first of its kind), we know exactly how to make WeChat work for our customers. If you want to learn about how to set up accounts for promotion, check out our latest guides, including how to use Bilibili.

For more insight into China’s social media app marketing, take a look at our latest posts on the topic, including Bilibili marketing, Shopee marketing, Naver marketing, Xiaohongshu marketing, Kuaishou marketing, and Douyin marketing. Keep your eye on our marketing in APAC blog for more.