Getting WeChat 

Go to your Apple or Android app store and download WeChat. Next, follow the setup and installation instructions. You can sign up via a mobile phone number or Facebook. If you choose registration via mobile phone number, enter your name, phone number, and a password. 

Agree to the terms of service and click on sign up. Now, follow the security process to verify your user profile including a verification code to your mobile phone number. Finally, contact a user who already has WeChat for 1 month or more (you don’t have to be friends with them) and ask them to scan the QR code on your phone to finalize the setup process.

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WeChat Features and Functions

Let’s take a look at the main features and how to use them for your business to communicate with your suppliers and partners by using an individual account.

First, open the WeChat app to get started!

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Main Menu (Bottom)

Chats

On the chat page, you will notice that there are not only private conversations with people you know. There are also brands with service and subscription accounts as well as Group Chats. 

If you are not yet fluent in Chinese, you may be happy to read that the Chat section has a built-in translation service from Chinese to English. This allows you to communicate more easily with native Chinese speakers, who often can read English, but prefer to reply in Chinese. The quality of this built-in translation feature is rather good.

Contacts

This menu option is self-explaining – you can find all your contacts here and further options. Besides, you can add tags to your contacts, which can be helpful to keep your contacts organized and allow you to search for certain keywords that you previously added, e.g. the location of the supplier or specialized products.

Options in Contacts

• New Friends
• Group Chats
  • These group chats have a moderator to avoid spam/misbehavior and are typically very topic-specific. Group Chats can equally function as internal work chats for businesses or to communicate more informally. 
• Tags
• Official Accounts
  • Service accounts typically contain promotional articles and posts. In the menu of those official accounts users often find further links to the brand sites, stores, and so on. Besides, WeChat users can send direct messages to these business accounts. 
  • Subscription accounts are located in the special subscriptions folder. They contain articles and posts from brands. Compared to service accounts, subscription accounts can publish more articles and have a wider reach (e.g. suitable for magazines). Tip: Keep in mind that as an international business you can only open a WeChat service account, but not a subscription account. That’s not an issue as a service account is more suitable for brand promotion with its specific functions.
• Contact List
  • Sorted A-Z, Chinese sorted in Pinyin

Discover

The discover section has the following features:

• Moments
  • Similar to the Facebook/Instagram timeline, including sharing of discounts and special promotions among users. They blend in with the page to appear just like regular user-generated posts. Moments are typically pictures with text, which other users can like and comment on.
  • You can view Moments here, and create your own Moments in the Me > My Posts section.
• Channels (Little Videos)
  • Similar look and feel to Douyin/TikTok with short videos on relevant topics for each specific user. View the channels of your friends. 
  • If you’re outside of China, you can’t create your own channel (only available on Weixin).
  • Scan
    • QR codes and built-in OCR reader (optical character recognition)
  • Shake
    • Randomly connect with others who are using the Shake function
  • Search
    • Search for messages, news, accounts, and more
  • Nearby
    • Find people who are close to you, often used by the WeChat community for online dating and making new friends
  • Mini-Programs
    • Options: Mini-Programs Nearby, Popular, My Orders, My Mini Programs, Recently Used.
    • Mini-Programs are often related to special promotions, discounts, and other deals, but a mini-app can also be an e-shop. 
    • The main advantage of these mini-apps compared to a regular app is that it loads very quickly and is easy to install as you don’t have to leave WeChat – both main drivers in the Chinese online world. 
    • Besides, due to the immense popularity of WeChat, even large brands may have additional products and deals on WeChat that they don’t have on their official website or app. The purchase process is super quick and easy as well, making it highly popular among Chinese consumers.

Me

Here, all account information and settings can be found. 

• My profile: Profile photo, name, WeChat ID, My QR Code (popular feature to connect with other WeChat users and business partners), More 
• WeChat Pay: For Chinese residents only
• Favorites
• My Posts: Create your own posts and view old ones
• Sticker Gallery: WeChat stickers are not only fun but also a great marketing tool
• Settings: Here’s an interesting feature. Go to General > WeChat Tools > Broadcast Messages. This allows you to send a message to all your contacts or selected contacts at once. 

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Top Menu

China’s second most popular search engine Sogou is integrated here to search outside the WeChat ecosystem.

You can also search for a keyword and see the WeChat index (not the search volume) to give you an idea of the relevance and trends if you’re creating promotional content for your target audience.

You will also find the top search topics here.

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Top Right Menu (+)

Click on the + to expand the menu.

• Start a New Chat: send standard text messages, take and send photos (album, camera), make phone calls (video call, voice call), send your location, Red Packet, transfer, send voice messages (voice input)
• Add Contacts: Invite friends, Friend Radar, Join Private Group, Scan QR Code (to add friends), Mobile Contacts, Official Accounts, WeChat Work Contacts
• Scan: payment option for you to scan a QR code at the cash register
• Money: payment option for cashier to scan your QR code

If new contacts send you a friend request, you will receive a notification on your phone. Activate the friends radar to find new contacts around you more easily.