IWOM Watch 2nd Half Year Review 2009

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY IWOM WATCH CIC‟s IWOM Watch Half Year Review covers some of the most notable topics from our IWOM Watch trend reports from July to December 2009. First, in New Wave of Online Entertainment we highlight how new forms of entertainment are becoming popular among Chinese netizens. For example, netizens are now initiating „quick‟ offline events online, rapidly sharing their CIC’s IWOM Watch is favorite links using Zhuan Tie, spreading and popularizing online memes and a regular Internet many more examples. Word of Mouth Guide and trend watch Second, in Spotlight on Social Media, we give examples that show as China‟s providing a social media continues to develop and plays an indispensable role in Chinese qualitative overview netizens lives, netizens can now do almost anything online via social media. of Web 2.0 buzz in Finally, in the last section titled the The Power of Social can Cut Two Ways, China we show how brands need to be more reactive to the events happening around and about them online, both so that they can create a professional image online and so that, if the need comes about, they know how to react to possible PR crisis's. For more on these above topics, please continue reading and for previous IWOM Watch Half Year Review please go here here. If you‟d like more information about CIC‟s products and services, please click here or contact us directly. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

IWOM WATCH HOT BUZZ NEW WAVE OF ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT  Netizens’ spoofing represents a shared loneliness? “Jia Junpeng, your mother is calling you home for dinner” We don’t celebrate Qixi, we celebrate loneliness  Netizens enjoy sharing info among their social networks Cross posting is becoming the new fashion on SNS sites  Netizens initiate fast-paced life online Shan Wan: a new way of recreation among office workers  Netizens are keen on pursuing “Grass-roots Beauty” “Grass-roots Beauty” fever leads the resurgence of net stars  Netizens create new words to express their belief 烎 (Yin) opened fire to start a new era of slang  Netizens are nostalgic for days gone by NONOPANDA spurred latest youth creativity IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

IN CULTURE IWOM WATCH SPOTLIGHT ON SOCIAL MEDIA  Environmental issues make netizens re-examine COP15 in Copenhagen inspires low-carbon life  “Student Violence” breaks out online Netizens gather offline for justice in the "Nan Hu Student Violence" Incident  Icon shows strong sense of belonging "I love Shanghai" becomes popular among Shanghai netizens  A new type of review platform emerges online Here comes the video review era  The Internet is THE Community Renren.com announces “Renren connectivity strategic alliance”  Video sharing sites explore a new way to connect with brands Youku joins hands with CMCC, broadcast live music concert wireless IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

NEW MARCOM IWOM WATCH THE POWER OF SOCIAL CAN CUT TWO WAYS An online community can be:  A platform that brands can use to entice fans and connect with them KFC launched their “Drink Joyfully” campaign on major Chinese SNS  A platform on which brands should beware of negative messages “Miss XXX forever! XXX filed for bankruptcy protection”  A platform where brands can gather consumer insight regarding new products Windows7, “the best operating system ever” is on the market  A platform for brands to be proactive and prevent crisis HighLander comes up against “Ramp Gate"  A platform brands may leverage to build their own communities Telecom operators opened online app store  A platform for brands to explore new marketing strategies TV series “Dwelling Narrowness” ignited hot online discussions and BBS creativity IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

PART ONE IWOM WATCH NEW WAVE OF ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT In a continuously changing Internet, over the past 6 months CIC has observed how various new ways of online entertainment have started to become popular among Chinese netizens. In this next section we show how that Chinese netizens display intense creativity and passion by forging new net slang, DIY‟ing headshots, pursuing what they like, and initiating offline events with netizens whom they‟ve never even met. Also sometimes their spirits do wane and they create terms to express a certain sadness and publish their desire to connect with others. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

“Jia Junpeng, your mother is calling you home for dinner” Jia Junpeng Series IDs on Baidu Tieba 贾君鹏妈妈贾君鹏爸爸 Jia‟s mother 贾君鹏爷爷 Jia‟s father Jia‟s grandpa 贾君鹏姐姐贾君鹏贾君鹏同学 Jia‟s sister Jia‟s classmate Jia Junpeng 贾君鹏女友贾君鹏奶奶 Jia‟s girlfriend Jia‟s grandma On 16th July, an anonymous poster by a group of netizens (Link: 1, 2). on a famous multiplayer online Whether true or not, there is no role-playing game (MMORPG) doubt that the Jia Junpeng DIY Music Video forum wrote a post titled “Jia incident can be classified as Junpeng, your mother is calling another case of Network Kuso you home for dinner”. Besides the [Egao or 恶搞 , which means words “RT” [ 如题 , which simply spoofing] and shows that the means “as the title suggests”], no Internet is a media of impact and other words were written in the connection. post, yet by the end of July this simple post has generated more Though there might be many than ten million page views and different angles of view on this hundreds of thousands of replies. incident, no doubt that Jia Shortly afterwards conversations Junpeng incident is a legend on about the post, DIY pictures, music, Internet. We know that netizens videos all emerged about this post are a group based on a certain generating even more buzz. belief or spirit. Once this belief or spirit is broken down, it may Recently some discussions arouse such nonsensical topic like appeared claiming that the Jia this incident which originated in Junpeng incident has been WOW (World of Warcraft) having purposefully contrived and spread been offline for a long time. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 7

We don’t celebrate Qixi, we celebrate loneliness August 26th is the Qixi Festival originating from another popular Qixi has become Chinese Valentine’s Day (七夕节, Double Seven Day) in net language Jia Junpeng(贾君 China, which is July 7th 鹏), became a widely discussed according to the Chinese lunar topic online around the festival. calendar. The purpose of this Many single netizens shared holiday was originally to different phrases and even celebrate the annual reunion of poetry to express their feelings lovers, the Shepherd and the Girl by spoofing the word Weaver, two characters from a “loneliness.” These spoofs traditional Chinese story. received much interest and support from other single In recent years, thanks to brands netizens. Some brands also and consumer culture, the leveraged “loneliness” and festival has became a big day for netizens‟ passion to promote lovers in China, referred to now themselves. For example, as the Chinese Valentine„s Day. Tencent leveraged loneliness to Online game leveraged “loneliness” to promote Netizens in particular celebrate promote its WOW community, this festival in many different which received positive ways. What is interesting this 【七夕不寂寞】腾 feedback from netizens. year is that loneliness (寂寞), 讯魔兽活动之祝福聚欢乐/ 【 Be not lonely on Qixi】 Singles used “loneliness” to show their feelings Tencent WOW blessing Sample Quote: campaign. (Link) 实在太正确了，一个人的7夕过的就是寂寞啊。/ So true, being single on Reply: 328 Qixi can only feel lonely. (Link) PV: 6,620 或许是的，七夕不只和爱情有关，更合寂寞有关 / Maybe you’re right, Qixi is not only related to love, but also related to loneliness. (Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 8

Cross posting is becoming the new fashion on SNS sites Zhuan Tie (转帖 cross posting) is not new to online communities. Usually, people create or find interesting information or articles and share them with others by posting the information in other relevant BBS forums and blogs. But now, this habit has been integrated into SNS online culture as well. For example, kaixin001.com users can share information with other users in just 2 clicks and 2 seconds. The content of the posts includes personal or news- worthy info and can be in text, photo or video format. The site also encourages users to add a voting pool to facilitate consumer insight. The origin of the info passed around usually comes from hot BBS (as Tianya, KDS) or video sharing sites (Tudou, Youku). One netizen cross posted first within BBS and then shared it with all his target group of friends in SNS, helping the post to spread rapidly. Now Zhuan Tie is one of the most popular functions within kaixin001.com. A hot post could be transferred over a hundred thousand times and viewed millions of times within a second. Four classic Tiffany rings, which one do you prefer? The “cross posting” phenomenon suggests a new marketing trend “SNS virus marketing.” As most of the Kaixin users are white collar workers, who are also the main target group for many brands, this could be a key marketing tactic for many brands. The channel could be considered for teaser information and media releases to test consumers reaction or feedback Accumulated posts: 116,162 towards cool new products or campaigns. The voting function will be useful Accumulated visits: 504,434 as well. Meanwhile, brands should pay attention to the negative Zhuan Tie as due to it‟s viral effects it may damage the brand image within a matter of Total 132,873 comments hours. After gathering product/campaign feedback, brands can integrate these findings into broader marketing strategies. Link IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 9

Shan Wan: a new way of recreation among office workers Sample Quotes E-communities about Shan Wan 我们的首次活动定在9月6日，活动详情闪友一同商定，可以是吃饭、KTV、或者富有创意的你会有更好的选择！QQ群号：66834964联系电话13914404042彭小姐 / Our first activity is on September 6th and us Shan You will figure out together details such as meals, KTV or other creative choices. QQ group: 66834964 Mobile phone: 13914404042 (Link) 我很感兴趣，lz定好了行程安排可以豆邮我一下吗，谢谢~ / I am very interested in this event. When lz has made the arrangement, please e-mail me. Thanks. (Link) Shan Wan (闪玩, quick fun/play), is a new term for offline events organized by netizens online. Shan Wan (闪玩, quick fun/play) is a term created by netizens describing to quick “flash” events that take place within one-day time and gather anybody interested in a particular activity, for instance, board games, outings, sports and KTV. This type of event is popular among white collar workers and often the participants are all strangers. Shan You (闪友, flash friend), refers to netizens who are fans of Shan Wan. The term is used to call on others who have the same interest by posting his/her offline activity plan on related e-communities. As a result, various e-communities have become hot spots for Shan You to initiate activities and share experiences. As Shan Wan is a good way for white collar workers to relieve pressure and broaden their social network, it‟s becoming more and more popular among this demographic. Netizens are increasingly expressing interest in joining Shan Wan activities, such as traveling, sports and KTV. Meanwhile, the Internet is serving as a platform for netizens to find quick friends and participants for off-line activities. Brands can consider borrowing ideas from this popular net culture, by sponsoring popular Shan Wan events or running their own Shan Wan campaigns. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 10

“Grass-roots Beauty” fever leads the resurgence of net stars Netizens like to find “Grass-roots Beauties” In early August, a Tibetan beauty (Fig.1) was discovered and given the online name „Pot Zhuang Fairy (锅庄仙子)‟ (Pot Zhuang referring to folk dance of the 1 2 Zang minority). Pictures of this „Pure and pretty country girl‟ immediately became very popular online, with netizens thinking she looked even prettier than Tian Xian Mei Mei. After becoming popular on a variety of online communities, the local government invited her in September to become the spokesperson of her hometown cabbage. Hence the name „Cabbage Princess (白菜公主)‟. From this Cabbage Princess Shanghai bus beauty point on, „bus beauties‟ from Shanghai (Fig.2), Chengdu (Fig.3) and Yangzhou (2009) (2009) (Fig.4) have kept emerging on different online communities. Netizens are keen on finding these civilian beauties because they feel their character seems to be 3 4 more real and closer to their own lives. Grass-roots Chinese net stars are not a new trend, but with Tian Xian Mei Mei, the Backdorm Boys and many other net stars now being sponsored by corporations (See related post on our English blog here), what brands now need to consider is exactly why netizens are crazy about these types of stars. Chengdu bus beauty Yangzhou bus beauty (2009) (2006) Previous Chinese net stars picked up by companies (See more here) Sample Quotes 还是扬州的清纯点 / Yangzhou bus mm looks a bit more innocent . (Link) 扬州的公交妹妹好象不做了吧最近去江都没看到过她 / It seems that Yangzhou bus mm has quit her job, I haven’t seen her at Jiang Du lately. (Link) 支持你`` 我们祟拜对工作认真负责的你` 你代表了我们这些平凡的人民 / We support Tian Xian Mei Mei Backdorm Boys you! We admire your hard work and dedication, you represents us ordinary people. (2006) (2006) (Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 11

烎 (Yin) opened fire to start a new era of slang Sample Quotes “烎你就像碾死一只蚂蚁！”/ “To yin(烎) you is so easy!” (Link) “男人，重要的不是帅，是烎！” / “Good looks in a man are not the most important, but Yin (烎) is! ”(Link) In 2009, during Lenovo‟s International Electronic Sports Tournament (IEST) qualifying competition, there emerged a new team who called themselves “Yin” ( 烎), a Chinese character made up of “开” (Kai) and “火” (Huo), means to open fire. The team then proceeded to challenge „ehome‟, the double-champion of WCG (World Cyber Games) and EOG (E-sports Open Game), the two global electronic game contests which have teams of young people involved in competitions. Despite the outcome, „Defense of the Ancients‟ (魔兽争霸) fans (a popular online Chinese game) thought that this game was a classic and thus started to use the character “Yin” (烎) to describe those who are eager to fight, show passion and have high spirits. After Jiong (囧) became massive online, Li Ning launched their Jiong (囧) shoes which proceeded to quickly sell out. The next character we think that is going to break into mainstream culture is Yin (烎). Already a hot girl writes Yin (烎) on her shoulder when cheering for a game, an online sect called Yin (烎) now exists and smart sellers have already started to sell Yin (烎) clothing on Taobao with more Yin (烎) products expected. Brands should consider leveraging and taking advantage of the emerging net culture, both for brand awareness and sales. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 12

NONOPANDA spurred latest youth creativity Cartoon videos Dedicated Website Offline accessories NONOPANDA, a cute cartoon image created by Lin Wuzhi (a Nourished by China‟s ever growing Internet and easy to use creative Shanghai-based amateur animator and cartoon designer) is software, starting with Tuzki back in 2007 the popularity of net starting to become quite popular online. cartoons has only continued to rise. (CIC‟s Youth Report focused specifically on this trend.) Following the tradition of collecting and recreating classic Chinese Youth (especially 80‟s) cartoons that netizens watched in their However unlike previous images, NONOPANDA stepped up and childhood, the „NONOPANDA‟ cartoon series is starting to become outshined other cartoons after the author integrated nostalgic very popular. In addition, NONOPANDA accessories were rolled emotions into his creations, which then proceeded to ignite numerous out for sales purposes by the author and received good feedback discussions among the 80‟s generation, a generation easily bored by netizens (see here). with so many choices at their disposal. While rapidly growing in Sample Quotes popularity online, NONOPANDA offline accessories were also quickly rolled out by the author, which may mean that there is an opportunity 好东西又像回到了小时候（只有几分钟再长点就好了）狂顶 / The cartoon for brands to get involved. is awesome! It’s like being a kid all over again! (if it were a few minutes longer, it would be just right!.) (Link) Considering „Entertainment‟ has long been a key way to connect 很好很强大怀念起小时候看动画的情景期待下集 / Great! It really takes me bored youth with fun-seeking activities, by combining those fading back to my childhood days. Looking forward to the next episode. (Link) childhood memories/experience into a new format, a comical panda may be a creative way to connect with the youth of today. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 13

PART TWO IWOM WATCH SPOTLIGHT ON SOCIAL MEDIA In early 2008, CIC came up with the notion „The Internet is THE Community‟, where the Internet isn‟t a platform for netizens to get together and chat on, but rather a community that allows netizens to read news online, watch movies online, make online purchases, make friends online, work online, etc. As such, in this section of the Watch we show how the Chinese Internet continues to develop in new ways and highlight a few notable developments that have caught our eye. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

COP15 in Copenhagen inspires low-carbon life With the opening of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen on Dec.7th 2009, environmental protection received special attention from the public. A new hit greeting “Have you been „low-carbon‟ today?” became more and more popular among the citizens. Meanwhile, Low Carbon proponents have emerged. Netizens composed the low-carbon related articles to “shai (晒)” their own low-carbon practice (here and here). One is able to use the “Carbon Emission Calculator” on the Internet with the objective of achieving low carbon emission. Low-carbon life has become popular in China due to increasing concern towards environmental protection. Not only have netizens generated buzz, but they have also contributed ideas and suggestions. And they are willing to share their own low-carbon life on Internet. Brands can implement the “low carbon” concept for their products to create interest. They can also ride on this trend to Carbon Emission Calculator implement marketing activities relating to environment protection to create brand awareness and interest. Sample Quotes 低碳生活，对于我们普通人来说，是一种态度，而不是能力，我们应该积极提倡并去实践低碳生活，注意节电、节油、节气，从点滴做起。/ As ordinary folks, low carbon life should be an attitude rather than an ability. We should act on and practice low carbon life actively . Let’s practice “low carbon” in our lives from areas such as saving electricity, oil and energy. (Link) 个人觉得，那些在我身边来来回回的车，利用率真的很低。建议几家人“拼车”，减少出行成本。拼车，并不在于钱多钱少，更多的是一种生活方式的选择。/ Personally speaking, the use of cars around us is very low. I would suggest that people share a car to reduce transportation cost. “Sharing car” is not saving more money, it is more importantly a life style.(Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 15

Netizens gather offline for justice in the “Nan Hu Student Violence” Incident Violent Video of Video by kettling mobile Sister phone Xiong (Oct. 23) (Oct. 26) Caution, Sister Xiong （熊姐） Link Link On Oct 23rd a video about „Shanghai student violence‟ ignited netizens Sample Quotes (Link) passion on KDS (a famous Shanghai based online forum) and then 这种事应该以后让他的孩子门看看，看他老妈是怎样做人 proceeded to go viral across the Chinese Internet. Netizens who were 的。。。。。。。。。。 / Such thing should make their children to incensed by this girl‟s brutal attack upon another student started a see how their mom behavior in the past. human flesh search to help them reveal her identity. Once it was discovered that the girl was Sister Xiong (熊姐) from‟ Nan Hu Second 兄弟门我们应该组织一个专门管这些事的帮会哪里有这样的事我们就 Vocational School‟, on Oct 26th after organizing themselves on KDS, 去管 / Dude, we should initiate a specific organization to take charge netizens then went to her school to find Sister Xiong and her teacher to of such kind of violent thing. ensure she apologized to the victim. The „kettling‟ incident (where a 同是90后的！！为什么差距就这么大呢！！我只想说！熊姐``呵呵不 person is surrounded in a circle and not allowed to leave) that occurred 要以为和几个小憋三就拽~``无聊！ / We are all 90 generation, why we at the school was estimated to have involved two hundred people and have such a big gap! I just want to say, Sister Xiong, you are so proceeded to attract the attention of the mainstream media. boring! IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 16

"I love Shanghai" becomes popular among Shanghai netizens Recently, Xiao Jun, a host of a Shanghai local music radio program, used sarcastic words “团一团 (roll up)，圆润的离开(leave at round)” (an euphemistical wording to ask someone get out) in response to a migrant‟s complaint about the Shanghainese dialect. It resulted in an immediate support for local culture among Shanghai netizens. (Link) As a result, the icon of "I love Shanghai" became popular online. Netizens in Shanghai took it as image pictures and individual signatures to profess their love for Shanghai. (Link) Shanghai netizens changed their profile pictures using different “I Love Shanghai” icons on online communities, Instant Messaging Tools and SNS websites. The creativity of netizens was clearly evident. There is talk in the West of “local” social media. It is clear that such a phenomenon already exists in China and offers an opportunity for brands to connect to netizens much more close to home. For example, a DIY logo competition may be good way to interact with them. These activities can ensure the success of campaigns and product and also gain approval of netizens. Sample Quotes (Link) I love Shanghai 桌面哈嗲/ The wallpaper of I love shanghai is so pretty. Re:有为女生设计的伐啦？粉色的好看 / Are there any wallpapers designed for girls? The pink one is beautiful. Re:很有才阿，设计的不错 / So talented, design is not bad IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 17

Here comes the video review era Compared to text review oriented It might be a new trend in social sites like dianping.com, there media community that video review emerged a new trend on 92dp.com of would be more and more popular, product review via video made by and brand may engaged this trend netizens themselves. This kind of into their online campaigns, to get review is so vivid that netizens can more valued feedback of multiple got a clear vision on the product angles from netizens, and to instead of imagining its appearance, enhance brand exposure/reputation instant effect, using tips, etc. at the same time as well. Netizens give very warm welcome to these video reviews, especially if the demonstrator in the video is attractive. Sample video Since the examining standards set comment of certain on 92dp.com is very strict, the quality product of the video comments are ensured, and more comprehensive information of the product was given to other Netizens’ feedback netizens, through both the visual and aural aspects in an impactive way. Sample review page Reply: 115 Quote: The girl is beautiful. It’s a good product of Sample Quotes Clinique. What a cute microphone. 讲的很好，很喜欢你的声音哦/ You give a good introduction, I like your voice (Link) 有过程有演示，good！/ There are not only process but also demo, that’s good! (Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 18

Renren.com announces “Renren connectivity strategic alliance” Log in page in Mafengwo.com Allied websites examples Link With over 100 million registered users Renren.com is the largest This agreement represents the innovation and evolution of the internet, SNS in China. On Oct 27th, they announced that they were especially SNS websites. With there being closer connections between building strategic partnerships with many popular vertical popular vertical websites, it‟s now easier than ever before for netizens to websites such as Tudou, Wiki, Dianping, MaFengWo, Xcar and quickly share and disseminate IWOM, thus increasing the Internet‟s yesky. As such now once logged in to RenRen.com, netizens “virus disseminating” effect. Therefore as SNS and vertical sites can access other social communities without having to become more open the power of the IWOM will only continue to play a continuously sign in. This means that now as well as using more important role in reshaping the relationship between brands and RenRen.com to connect with friends, netizens can also use it to consumers. share interesting information or activities they participated in from other websites. This partnership as well as bringing more In addition to brands now being able to launch campaigns on these value and richness to netizens social networking experience, larger platforms that have the ability to reach more netizens, companies also helps to promote Renren.com and allied websites. should also now more than ever before closely monitor IWOM channels to avoid negative crisis's quickly spreading out of control. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 19

Youku joins hands with CMCC, broadcast live music concert wireless China Mobile hosted the 2009 Wireless Music Award Ceremony on the 20th of December in Beijing. This award show recognized the most popular songs used as ringtone. This was a grass-roots driven, pure online live video broadcast and full interaction between netizens and sponsor. Youku was appointed as the only live video broadcast site, allowing netizens to watch the award ceremony online live online. It was a new record with 6,510,000 online viewers after following on the Nokia Interactive Concert in April this year (see here). (See here for more details) The Wireless Music Award Ceremony online live show was a big success, due Link to star appeal. The ceremony brought together many stars, for instance, Jay, Wilber Pan, Jolin, who each have millions of fans. Message Board In addition, the integration of grass-roots‟ engagement and proper platform should also be included. With the interactive function provided by Youku, They are doing popular netizens were able to take the opportunity to cheer for and vote for the stars carpet ceremony, are they like, which resulted in higher levels of participation and interest. (See left) you watching? Such a platform creates opportunities for brands to use such video sharing sites to initiate online campaigns, since there is no doubt that it is a prevalent online See! The votes for our trend. SHE are so solid. Sample Quotes 我是上网在线看的，十分精彩，没的说! / I watched the ceremony online, it’s splendid! (Link) Chun Chun is the best! I will support you 期盼越来越好。越来越精彩 / Looking forward to next ceremony and hopefully it forever! will be more exciting (Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 20

PART THREE IWOM WATCH THE POWER OF SOCIAL CAN CUT TWO WAYS Brands have pretty much come to realize the importance of social media and as such have started to reach out to online communities in an effort to connect with their consumers. What they haven‟t realized is exactly how they should communicate in these communities and more importantly how these communities are shaped, how these communities work, netizens talk about, why they choose one platform over another, etc. So while social media is a valuable environment, brands still need to learn how to effectively utilize it. In the next section, we show good and bad examples of brands taking part in the social space. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

KFC launched their “Drink Joyfully” campaign on major Chinese SNS KFC has recently launched a summer drinks campaign on some mainstream Chinese SNS‟s called “Xi Le Wu Qiong”. From June 15th, when a customer buys a Summer Drink they will also receive a campaign card, with the code on each card activating an individual game account. The campaigns participants win points in two ways, either by inviting friends to join or by then stealing away their friends‟ drinks. Those participants who accumulate the most points will then be awarded a variety of prizes once the campaign has finished. Due to netizens starting to use SNS‟s more and more and because of the close relationships that can be found on this space, brands and companies are now starting to use them more frequently as a platform to promote their campaigns and products. In this example, KFC ran their campaign over a number of the most popular social networks in China, encouraging netizens to also add their online friends in order to win points. By doing this not only does KFC acquire more participants and exposure to this branded drink game, but they also create a great platform that can be used to promote future KFC products and brands. Sample Quotes 出KFC吸乐无穷当天就加了这个组件，但是当时没人玩，就荒废了，没想到现在很多人都好多级了啊，我又落伍了？ / I installed the game on the first launch day, but there was not so many players then. Now the players has graded up a lot. Am I out? (Link) 酷乐值说明不了什么，多吸好友的饮料，便会升级，我开了20个小号，一天就能升级。 / Ku Le Zhi can’t do this, one need to sneak friends’ drinks to upgrade. I’ve opened 20 accounts, and upgraded in one day! (Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 22

“Miss XXX forever! XXX filed for bankruptcy protection” Online conversations about bankruptcy of some Against the backdrop of the global economic downturn, netizens initiated famous companies to play a tricky game with brands. In early September, one post titled "Miss AMD forever! AMD filed for bankruptcy protection" appeared on KDS, a Page Views Subject Replies hot Shanghai forum. Shortly after this, similar slogans involving companies such as Nokia, Toyota, Microsoft, Coca Cola have also started to appear. At the beginning, a few netizens semi-believed these posts but now netizens just realize they are jokes. From the “Chunxi Rd Knife Guy” to "The collapsed building in Shanghai", from "Jia Junpeng" to "Loneliness gate", netizens' vivid creativity can be expressed in many forms. While spoofing culture or kuso (恶搞) has been popular for quite a while it‟s still uncommon for these memes to attack brands for no reason. While memes can raise a brands exposure, brand managers must track them to ensure what is being said doesn‟t harm their image. Coca Cola’s announcement to counter the rumor IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 23

Windows7, “the best operating system ever” is on the market Sample Quotes 现在为止哪里有Windows 7系统下载？我找很久了/ Where can I download Windows 7? I’ve been searching for long. (Link) 比较得出windows7的一些功能比较好用，然后其实windows7就是vista升级版。跟vista差别不是特别大。家里用的话，高级版好像没什么用。/ I can feel that the new functions of windows7 operate better and windows7 is actually the upgrade edition of vista. Home edition is enough at home. (Link) Windows7, hailed as the most important operation system enabled the low-keyed IT specialists to show what they are skilled at. on the history of Microsoft, was reported to have performed The activity received several thousand participations from the target well since it‟s official launch on October 23. Discussions on group. It‟s suggested that besides for the general public communities, different aspects sprang up rapidly amongst netizens. some niche communities are also to be regarded. The former creates awareness while the latter do the participations. From the conversations of where to download to the compatibility with many other software. Besides, the unofficial testing posts by netizens themselves attract wide attention online. Furthermore, Microsoft successfully targeted its professional users by launching campaigns on specific IT websites of 51CTO (Link). The game required to upload your Win7 operation videos to compete, which IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 24

HighLander comes up against “Ramp Gate" Only HighLander 2.7 could not climb this slope Mr. Xia, the owner of a Toyota HighLander 2.7 in Wenzhou discovered that he could not drive up a 30-degrees slope and that other cars including the tiny Chery QQ could easily scale. He then checked with car distributor 4S for explanation, but did not get reasonable answers. After the issue was exposed by local TV media, the video quickly found its way online and spread widely to mainstream communities such as Xcar (Link), which of course led to a big stir with over 200,000 posts in December. Netizens even organized large-scale field tests to verify. It is rumored that the company tried to control this situation by blocking traditional media and that sparked anger within the community, leading to spoofing of the brand. The community is the media. We have seen in the case of Highland “Fail-to-Climb Gate”, although the brand tried to block traditional media, netizens were still able to Many netizens express their opinions on various online communities. The action of blocking organized field traditional media and keeping silence did not go down well with netizens. It led to tests increased negative attitudes towards the brand and the issue became a sticky situation. In fact, such issues for brands are not new. We saw Polo having issues in 2006 and we wrote about Crisis 2.0 in 2007. Many thoughts were actually generated by netizens on what the brand should do in Netizens made “egao” of this issue such situations. There were expectations that the company could pay attention to suggestions and be more proactive. Prompt reactions from officials about the issue would be welcomed by netizens. To avoid a crisis, companies should examine reactions online and take appropriate actions. Don‟t laugh at me, I just cannot climb Sample Quotes: the slope only 丰田解决问题的方法让我们相当的失望，不但没有通过积极的对话来解决车主的问题，而是一味的采取“危机公关”. / I was disappointed with Toyota, as it just took crisis PR action to deal with this issue, instead of active communication with car owners.(Link) 希望你们正视车的问题，妥善解决，至少有改进的想法和意图，并能化做行动。我们只要你 Evoked over 200,000 posts about this issue 轻轻的一句问候，一个解释./ We wish that you could face the problem of car and solve it appropriately. What we only want is your explanation.(Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 25

Telecom operators opened online app store China Mobile and China Telecom, the two biggest telecommunication groups in China, launched their own online app stores. These stores allow netizens to download applications to their cell-phones and digital products, and also allow external mobile application developers to upload and sell their own online applications. Telecom operators leverage such communities not only to integrate product chains and commercialize the application services, but also to add web 2.0 functions such as downloading cell-phone related games and sharing unique picture/music/flash made on one‟s own with others and voting for the best creativity to address the consumer need for social media type functions. Meanwhile, the telecom companies can also monitor consumer feedback to the service and applications by providing a trustworthy community atmosphere that encourages consumer comments. Sample Quotes 移动开始向3G互联时代发展了！希望MM可以给3G带来不同的体验！/ It seems China Mobile started to enter 3G market. Hope mobile market can provide different mobile experiences. (Link) 中国人习惯了免费。/ Chinese have been accustomed to the free Popularity by the user's comments and social networks services. (Link) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 26

TV series “Dwelling Narrowness” ignited hot online discussion and BBS creativity During writing After the TV play was process, had an published, more interactive netizens were communication attracted with netizens Cang Sang： Liu Liu: 我不知道为什么这部小说要取名为“房事”。打火机作为纵你说的,也是我在考虑的问题.你说的打火机,我觉得很好,我火的罪证，至少得是在火烧现场发现----在起火源处，上面保决定改成另一种写法,等写完了你再指正. / What you said 留了指纹，而且应该是执法人员收集的。/ I don’t know why is what I am thinking about. And about the scene you this novel is named as “House Thing.” And there is a scene said, I will revise according to your advise. I’m glad that about criminal investigation is unreasonable. (Link) you could review again after my revision. (Link) Recetnly, a TV series “Dwelling Narrowness” was recently Actually, netizens not only generated a mass of buzz volume to this drama, aired on Shanghai Dragon channel, which triggered online but also contributed ideas and suggestions to the writer “Liu Liu.” During the discussion. The story was about two sisters choosing different writing process, writer shared her creation on BBS, and then received ways to get started in a big city. The elder sister tried her best netizens‟ great suggestions from many angles like law, logic and story, etc. to work hard for a house, while the younger sister broke up With these netizens‟ detailed vivid city life stories, Liu Liu‟s work won more with boyfriend and became a corrupt official‟s mistress. and more netizens‟ resonation. The three hot topics “home mortgage slave,” “mistress” and The writer took this kind of creation as an online interactive writing. As “corrupt officials” were shown in this TV play, which also keeping a close interactive communication with netizens, Liu Liu‟s novel won resonated powerfully among many Chinese netizens. Many more netizens‟ welcome. If brand could consider adding more interactive netizens shared their comments online. Link communication with netizens at the beginning of campaign/products‟ design, it could enrich campaign/product and gain more netizens‟ resonation. IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 27

ABOUT IWOM watch: monthly guide to Internet Word of Mouth MAKING SENSE OF THE INTERNET COMMUNITY* Listen听 Know识 Participate融 Topic E-Culture Communication Listen to the Know the culture Participate in the buzz, and find and context of conversation. out what’s hot THE internet online. community. * CIC-LKP Model, Defined by Daisy Zhang, 2007 Feb. For more on this definition, see our blogs here (EN) and here (CN) IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009 28

OUR BLOGS: www.seeisee.com (Chinese) www.seeisee.com/sam (English) OUR WEBSITE: www.ciccorporate.com OUR SERVICE PLATFORM: www.iwommaster.com CONTACT US: info@cicdata.com This document is for private commercial use only. Distribution to third parties and/or publication in whole or in part is strictly prohibited without expressed written consent of CIC. 本文件是针对CIC客户的相关品牌和企业的商业文件。未经CIC的书面许可，本文件或文件中的任何内容不得转交给第三方，同时也不得发表本文件或文件中的任何内容。 IWOM WATCH ISSUE 07-12/2009

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