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May 2017: China outbound travel and digital trends
By Dragon Trail Interactive: Chinese outbound tourism, digital marketing and travel marketing platforms.
May 2017: China outbound travel and digital trends
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- 2. Who are ourclients?
- 3. Roy Graff –Managing Director EMEA, London Roy became interested in China on his first backpacking trip way back in 1992, leading him to dedicate 4 years to Mandarin studies and pursue a career focused on China. His first travel gig was in Taiwan, working part time in a national tourism office in destination promotion. In 2002 he was sent to China to lead the FIT business development on behalf of GTA (Gullivers Travel Associates), spending 3 years pioneering B2B and B2C online outbound hotel and services booking in the Chinese travel sector. After returning to the UK in 2005, Roy continued to feed his passion for China and travel as a consultant and market entry specialist, working with leading brands in travel hospitality, eCommerce, transportation, tour operation and destination marketing. Since 2012, he has been focused on digital marketing and distribution as an effective and speedy solution to reach China’s travellers. • Roy wrote the book 'China, the Future of Travel’ and is an experienced consultant, strategic advisor and speaker on Chinese culture, marketing, distribution and business etiquette About Roy Graff Based in London, Roy heads Dragon Trail’s Europe, Middle-East and Africa business, offering full service digital marketing aimed at a Chinese audience.
- 4. Chinese Outbound Market2016 For the first *me last year, more Chinese travelled to the Rest of the World than to Greater China (Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan). +11.7% -5.2% Greater China 66.7 ml Rest of the World 70.1 ml
- 5. Most Popular 2016Destinations 35.441 16.963 7.789 6.975 5.513 3.088 2.612 2.458 2.229 1.833 1.702 1.175 Top 12 DesEnaEons for Chinese Outbound Travelers in 2016 Visitors in millions -8.2% -0.4% + 16.5% +39.5% +28.7% -11.7% +14.8% +38.2% +55.2% -29.6% +23.1% -5.6% (Jingdaily, 2017, data from individual NTOs)
- 6. Reasons for Selectinga Destination (HSBC, August 2016) 0 214 133 247 247 184 25 13 52 3 0 285 285 143 92 42 118 87 63 217 140 127 91 128 171 129 112 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 Nature/Hikes Tasty Food Good shopping experience Short *me flight/Limited *me difference Price/ Cheap curency Historic sites/Cultural artefacts Concerts/Entertainment Ease of Visa Others Series1 Series2 Series3 What are the top 3 reasons in choosing your next desEnaEon abroad? 1st 2nd 3rd
- 7. Many Chinese travelers (78%) s*ll welcome and value support from friends, rela*ves and travel service providers. 36% Joint planning with external support 24% Rely on myself with some external support 22% Rely solely on myself 12% Rely on external support with some inputs from me 6% Rely solely on external support (Sabre, Evolving Chinese Traveller Study, 2017) Chinese Outbound Planning Resource
- 8. (Sabre, Evolving Chinese Traveller Study, 2017) Type of InformationAsked of Suppliers Travel Agency Airlines Hotels/ AccommodaEon Services 64% More informa*on on local culture and history on des*na*on 56% More informa*on on famous local abrac*ons & places to visit 52% More relevant and personalised travel informa*on 55% Flight and travel details that can be easily accessed from airports and local des*na*ons 37% On demand access to customer services and informa*on 35% Streamlined booking services , e.g. one stop portal 44% Personalised services 43% On demand access to customer services and informa*on 43% More opportuni*es for a cultural exchange i.e. cultural immersion through accommoda*on
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- 10. Chinese Millennials 56% 11% 26% 6% Post-90s ( Market Research Report on Chinese Outbound Tourist (City) Consump*on 2014, WTCF ) Travelers Age DistribuEon Chinese Millennials account for nearly 60% of all outbound travelers and 93% consider traveling an important part of their iden*ty. • 69% use the internet mostly for social media purposes • 60% prefers online sources to offline ones • They grew up travelling and spend a big percentage of their income on it 47 42 47 42 55 43 34 38 71 47 52 12 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 Travelling Purchasing a home Purchasing a car Paying off debt USA UK China In the next 5 years, which 2 o3 of the following are the most important to you? (Airbnb, 2016)
- 11. Percentage of millennials surveyed who agree with the following statements: Chinese Millennials (Airbnb, 2016) 82% 85% 84% 81% 81% 81% 93% 94% 89% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95% The best way to really learn about a place is to live like the locals do I am always looking for a unique travel experience I am always looking for an adventure USA UK China Authen*c and unique experiences are key.
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- 13. China & theInternet (Kantar, 2016)
- 14. China & theInternet Social media are ubiquitous 90% internet users have at least one social media account (2014 CNNIC) Half of China is now online 731 mill internet users, 53.1% of China’s popula*on (Dec 2016 CNNIC) Mobile is key 695 million smart phone users, 95.1% of all internet users (Dec 2016 CNNIC)
- 15. Chinese people also spend 6.5 hours per day on their mobile phones, as opposed the global average of 5 hours. Mobile payments reached $2.4 trillion USD in 2016. China & theInternet - The Importance of Mobile Internet use across different pla`orms Mobile Payments – 50% growth in 2015
- 16. China & theInternet - The Importance of Mobile Mobile Commerce in China is Growing Faster Than in the US (BCG, 2017)
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- 18. Key Channels for Travel Brands Based on most valued sources of informaEon for Chinese travelers (World Tourism Ci*es Federa*on, 2015) Key Sources ofInformation for Chinese Travelers 60.40% 45.10% 36.68% 31.35% 30.51% 25.35% 23.84% 0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00% 70.00% Open the official Chinese websites Open the official Chinese microblog/ WeChat Develop Chinese mobile client side (app) Use travel websites Conduct promo*onal ac*vi*es Use portal sites Use websites of travel agencies
- 19. Digital for SharingTrip Experiences (2016 China's Online Outbound Travel Report – iResearch) 62.90% 45.60% 39.30% 36.50% 32.90% 10.70% QQ/WeChat Weibo Travel Sites Travel Review/Guide Sites Community/Forum Rarely Share Preferred Pla`orms to Share Travel Experiences
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- 22. Power of WeChat– More Contacts & Stickiness WeChat is the most used app in China. In 2016 one third of WeChat users spent more than 4 hours on the platorm. The number of contacts per user has also increased. 6.50% 13.90% 22.40% 20.90% 14.40% 16.30% 3.40% 7.50% 14.20% 21% 18.10% 33.90% 0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% < 10 min 10-30 min 30 min-1 hr 1-2 hours 2-4 hours > 4 hours 2015 2016 Number of hours spent on WeChat per day (China Tech Insights, 2017) Number of WeChat contacts 2014-2016 2014 2015 2016 1-50 51-100 101-200 > 200 50% 40% 30% 20% 0%
- 23. Why WeChat forMarketing? Why should brands have a WeChat account? • All Chinese travelers have a WeChat account on their phones • WeChat account can be linked to useful services that will improve the users’ experience before, during and awer their trip • Posts are instantly sharable and gain more read than EDM • Easy to promote through a branded QR Code Flight services (flight *metable, buy *ckets) Other services (luggage, insurance, transit informa*on) Contact us Scoot Airline WeChat Posts QR Code
- 24. WeChat Brand Accounts& Challenges 12+ mill official individual and brand accounts 700,000 daily posts 80% of users follow official accounts (data as of October 2015) 75.50% 47.80% 47.60% 38.30% 26.30% 4.20% It's harder to acquire traffic and PV growth Follower engagement is low Content is all similar Stagnant follower growth PV growth is lower than follower growth I haven't met any of these difficul*es What obstacles do content providers face in their daily operaEons? (China Tech Insights, 2017)
- 25. WeChat Strategy WeChat can assist brands achieve several goals: 1. Brand Awareness 2. Fans Engagement 3. Customer Service 4. Trade Communica*ons Brands can leverage WeChat’s different func*onali*es based on the brand’s strategy and the consumer journey phase. Menu Strategy Reply System Content Marke*ng Wi-Fi Connec*on Offline to Online Interac*ve Map Photo Sharing Promo*on LBS Services Booking System Pre-Visit Pre-Visit & On Site On Site WeChat FuncEons Payment & Sales
- 26. How to Standout on WeChat? Low cost strategies 1. Good Content & Campaigns These are two low-cost strategies to capture consumers’ aben*on amongst all the noise. 2. Foot Traffic QR code – convert your customers!
- 27. How to Standout on WeChat? Higher cost solutions WeChat AdverEsing Mobile video and gaming KOL Engagement Mobile games and videos can create more buzz than typical content. Adver*sing and KOLs can significantly broaden exposure in targeted market segments.
- 28. Power of WeChat– More WeChat Payments (China Tech Insights, 2017) How much money do you spend monthly on WeChat Pay? (WeChat Pay Users only) In what situaEons do you usually use WeChat Pay? (WeChat Pay users only) 2015 2016 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% < RMB 500 RMB 500 -1000 RMB 1000-5000 > RMB 5000 0% 30% 20% 10%
- 29. Customer Service –Payment Offline WeChat Payment now has over 900 million registered users. It can be easily used in shopping centers, abrac*ons and hotels for on site purchases. Skybus at Melbourne Airport now offers WeChat Pay for cross-border payments.
- 30. Customer Service –Online Payment 1. Users click a prominent naviga*on menu bubon to book *ckets 2. Users enter the 微官 to select and book flights. The user does not leave the WeChat environment at all = fast, reliable service. 3. Payment is completed with WeChat Payment with a few easy clicks.
- 31. WeChat mini-programs launched in January 2017 Customer service –WeChat Mini Program Huazhu: select, book and pay for rooms • Cloud-based: no installa*on on phone • No app store distribu*on: search on WeChat or find on brand account • Fast, smooth UX • Flexibility: support bookings and other kinds of services normally found on a mobile app • O2O: empower offline to online transac*ons and interac*ons with the QR code • Applica*ons for tourism: bookings; concierge services; check in services and much more Spring Airlines: discount Mcket bookings
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- 34. New Digital MediaPlatforms – An Overview iQiyi Miao Pai Youku Leshi Internet InformaEon & Technology Tencent TV 90% of internet users consume content through videos. Mei Pai Video MarkeEng Pla`orms Feekr Klook24 HOURS Travel Media Accounts & Apps Zhihu Zaker Jike Qdaily Jinri TouEao News Reading Apps iWeekly Quora Style Site Photo Apps Nice As of June 2016 324.8 million internet users accessed live streaming, 45% of ne*zens. Live Streaming Apps Douyu Yingke Yizhibo YY.com According to the CNNIC, reading or watching the news is one of the most popular mobile ac*vi*es in China.
- 35. Video Marketing Strategy- Mobile is Key Video marke*ng is key in China, as 90% of internet users consume content through videos. Top 10 Mobile Video Apps in China by MAUs in March 2016 435.02 433.71 313.75 109.4 99.86 95.27 78.69 62.21 52.43 34.58 48 58 65 65 22 -4 93 14 18 6 -50 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 MAUs (million) Gorwth Rate YoY % (Questmobile, April 2017)
- 36. I am anActor Campaign - Destination Canada Des*na*on Canada leverages the popularity of video content among Chinese consumers to launch a short video contest on community video platorm Meipai. Campaign landing page Short video mocking fake road accidents in China Contestants shoot short videos on various topics and 40 selected candidates will go through an audi*on process with a director. The winner will go to Canada to shoot a short video. The campaign has been promoted through Today Headlines, Weibo, WeChat, Meipai and has its own dedicated landing page.
- 37. Additional Social Media- Zhihu Daily AcEve Users (DAU): 13 million Time Spent per Day by Each User: Over 33 minutes Monthly page views: 5 billion AccumulaEve QuesEons: 10 million AccumulaEve Answers: 34 million hbps://www.zhihu.com/org-intro Founded in 2011, Zhihu (知乎) is a Chinese ques*on-and-answer website where ques*ons are created, answered, edited and organized by the community of its users. It is similar to Western Quora. In the travel industry Ctrip Cruises, Airbnb and Disney China all have ac*vated their profiles and have started pos*ng ar*cles and interact with their followers. Organiza=on name verified N. followers N. topics followed N. visits to this page follow account N. ar=cles N. ques=ons answered N. ques=ons asked N. likes N. thank you ar=cles
- 38. Canada’s Today Headlines profile：hbp://tou*ao.com/m5869388818/ Additional Social Media- Today’s Headlines Views: 6,695 Link hbp://tou*ao.com/i6247632799612797441/ Canadian InvenEons – Today Headlines ArEcle Views ArEcle Exposure Retweets & Bookmarks Comments 1,730,728 17,594,245 11,333 977 Canadian InvenEons – WeChat Today Headlines (今日头条） is a news reading app, with 125 million Monthly Ac*ve Users, who spend more than 60 minutes on the platorm each day. Dragon Trail publishes ar*cles which abract a large following and comments.
- 39. Self Media -Short Videos & Pictures Er Geng WeChat posts Pear video produces original videos and publishes other self- media content. Pear Video’s original video on Golden Globe Awards Nice is a picture sharing platorm, similar to Instagram. Users can tag themselves & brands Geng (二更) is a self media specialized in short videos.
- 40. Travel Media &Apps Feekr WeChat posts Feekr publishes travel guides and content on niche des*na*ons. Klook WeChat posts Klook is an in des*na*on ac*vity provider focused on Asia and introducing niche ac*vi*es. 24 HOURS WeChat posts 24HOURS is a travel- oriented lifestyle media focused on niche des*na*ons and ac*vi*es
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- 42. WeChat as Email- Implications for B2B Marketing According to the China Internet Network Informa*on Center, in 2016 email usage rate dropped by 36.7% in China and for 90% of users WeChat is a major work communica*on tool. “Actually WeChat is Email. It’s a short fast email, but because it’s so fast you don’t think it’s email.” Pony Ma- CEO & Co-Founder of Tencent, WeChat’s parent company Why use WeChat for B2B MarkeEng? • Most travel professionals use WeChat for work • Content is instantly sharable and more read than EDM • WeChat accounts also act like a mini trade-website making it easy for travel agents to find out more • Create instantaneous communica*on and feedback loops
- 43. B2B Solutions -Products Event Management Promo*ng and managing trade events in China China Travel Academy Training & cer*fica*on for Chinese travel agents Webinars Live updates from a distance Product Catalogue Showcasing products to Chinese travel agents All Linked to a B2B WeChat Account The trade outreach & communica*on tool to promote the latest ac*vi*es and share updates
- 44. A B2B brand WeChat account acts as a trade portal. In addi*on to providing overall informa*on about the des*na*on, it can link to online courses, products catalogues and news. Des=na=on Canada WeChat Menu ID: CanadaTravelTrade WeChat Menu Items • Latest ar=cles • DC’s partners • Events & Fes=vals • DC Roadshows • MICE • Product Catalogue • Cool Canada • Best Tour Operators • Des=na=on Training • Visa • Self Driving • Flights • FAQ • Contact Details Trade Portal - B2B WeChat Menu WeChat B2B news
- 45. E-learning for ChineseTravel Agents China Travel Academy (CTA) is a mobile-first training and cerEficaEon pla`orm on WeChat that allows travel businesses to beber educate the Chinese travel trade community and support them to sell more effec*vely to Chinese customers. Course Structure: Study>Test>Reward>CerEfy Sweden, Israel, Canada, Los Angeles, Germany Magic CiEes and Greece tourism boards on average: • Reached +2,000 travel trade users per course • Cer*fied 1,000 travel agents as experts • 150,000 to 1,000,000 page views Agent Training - Online Training Courses Visit Sweden’s CTA course teaches travel agents about unique Swedeish experiences including heritage village i*neraries and Swedish craw designers.
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