China: Market overview

China:
Market overview
August 2021

obaninternational.com
2
Oban International:
Chinese market overview
Who is this presentation for?
International marketers looking for an
informative yet digestible overview of the
Chinese market.
What does this presentation contain?
Information on China’s population, languages,
culture and digital marketing landscape.

China’s population,
languages and workforce

4
First things first…
China is…
ENORMOUS

5
China’s population + a few facts
1.4 billion
51%
Male
49%
Female
#2
China’s railway lines
are so extensive
they could loop
around the Earth
twice
#1
One in every five
people in the world
is Chinese
#4
China only has one
official time zone
#3
Half of the world’s
cement is used in
China each year

6
China has the largest population in the world
Rank Country Population
1 China 1,397,897,720
2 India 1,339,330,514
3 United States 334,998,398
4 Indonesia 275,122,131
5 Pakistan 238,181,034
6 Nigeria 219,463,862
7 Brazil 213,445,417
8 Bangladesh 164,098,818
9 Russia 142,320,790
10 Mexico 130,207,371
11 Japan 124,687,293
12 Ethiopia 110,871,031
13 Philippines 110,818,325
14 Egypt 106,437,241
15 Congo, 105,044,646
16 Vietnam 102,789,598
17 Iran 85,888,910
18 Turkey 82,482,383
19 Germany 79,903,481
20 Thailand 69,480,520
21 France 68,084,217
22 United Kingdom 66,052,076
A UN report in
2019 suggested
India will overtake
China by 2027

China has an ageing population
• One child policy was changed to 2,
and recently 3, although population is
resisting
• Mean age for mums at first birth is
30 years
• Average life expectancy is 77 years -
11th highest in the world

Major languages in China
71.5
8.5
5
4.8
4.1
3.7
2.4
% of population
Mandarin Wu Yue Xiang Min Hakka Gan

9
China has a workforce of 775 million people
Estimated to increase to
778 million in 2021
(improved unemployment rates
after turbulent few years)

10
Record number of companies
on the Fortune Global 500 list
• Fortune Global 500 ranks the world’s largest corporations by total annual revenues
• In 2020, the number of Chinese enterprises on the list surpassed the US for the
first time ever
Rank List Rank Name
Revenue
(US$ Million)
Industry
1 2 Sinopec Group 407,009 Petroleum
2 3
State Grid Corporation of
China
383,906 Electric utility
3 4 China National Petroleum 379,130 Petroleum
4 18
China State Construction
Engineering
205,839 Construction
5 21 Ping An Insurance 184,280 Insurance

12
What are the Chinese like?
(According to Hofstede’s Theory of Cultural Dimensions)

Indulgence – Score 24 (Low) UK 69
• China is a restrained society. Societies
with a low score in this dimension have a
tendency to cynicism and pessimism
• Restrained societies do not put much
emphasis on leisure time
• People with this orientation have the
perception that their actions are restrained
by social norms and feel that indulging
themselves is somewhat wrong
Indulgence
“The extent to which
people try to control their
desires and impulses,
based on the way they
were raised.”

Long Term Orientation – Score 87 (high) UK 51
• China is seen as a very pragmatic
culture
• They show an ability to adapt traditions
easily to changed conditions, a strong
propensity to save and invest, and
perseverance in achieving results
Long Term
Orientation
This dimension describes how
every society has to maintain
some links with its own past while
dealing with the challenges of the
present and future.

How could you tailor advertising
based on character?
Messaging
• Use ad & landing
page copy that
reflects the
Hofstede
dimensions to
improve appeal
Imagery
• Leverage imagery
that plays to
cultural preferences
• Avoid imagery that
is not culturally
appropriate
Promotions
• Knowledge of
cultural preferences
can also help to
tailor promotions &
entice users to take
action more quickly

Conveying durability of products
or services would likely be more
appealing (in general) to Chinese
consumers than just short term
benefits.
PRODUCT / SERVICE
DURABILITY
We may see Chinese businesses
recover quite quickly from the
COVID-19 pandemic due to long
term mindset (e.g. reserving more
cashflow)
SPEED OF ECONOMIC
RECOVERY
Example: How could Long Term Orientation
benefit Chinese consumers & businesses?

China’s digital
marketing landscape

China has the second largest economy in the world
Source: The World Bank Dec 2020
China has improved
its position from 9th
(in 1978) to 2nd in
2016.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
% Share of the global economy

19
China is the largest value market for digital payments

20
The number of online shoppers keeps on rising YoY

21
Singles day: Total gross merchandise revenue
Also known as Double 11 (because it
happens on 11th November), Singles Day
drove unprecedented sales volumes in 2020:
860 Billion
Chinese Yuan
(approx. £95 billion!)
(Prime Day approx.
£7.4 billion)

22
China’s top e-commerce platforms
2020 Singles Day Revenue
498 billion Yuan
2020 Singles Day Revenue
272 billion Yuan

23
China’s top social & video platforms
The Facebook
of China
The YouTube
of China
The Twitter
of China

24
WeChat vs Facebook: Key differences
VS
Services
Usage & registration
Design
Marketing
User base
Phone no. + official accounts Email or phone number
Centralised point
for all services
Difference applications
(e.g. FB & messenger)
Clean & orderly
Rather congested
1B monthly active users 2.2B monthly active users
Substantial ad space
Less ad space

25
For search, China is dominated by Baidu
Source Statcounter 2020 based on page views
Baidu sees
around
1.5 billion
searches per
day

26
You must have Chinese content for Baidu
Baidu handles non-local text very poorly…
you need either simplified or traditional Chinese content

27
Things to know before entering
China’s e-commerce market…
Tough
competition
Not for
small
players
Small
margins

28
Why might things go wrong when entering China?
Lack of or low
quality localisation
High levels
of expense
Products
not adapted to
Chinese market

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China before & after Covid-19
Source: Westwin

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Oban International can help you expand internationally
• Oban International can help you navigate different
markets around the world using our network of Local
In-Market Experts (LIMEs). To find out how, please get
in touch.
• Connect with Oban International on social media by
clicking on the icons below:
About Oban International
Oban International is the leading digital marketing
agency for international growth.
By identifying our clients' biggest opportunities for global
expansion - and ensuring they avoid costly mistakes - we
help ambitious brands hit tough global targets.
Since 2002, we have worked with a wide variety of
businesses to develop market strategies, optimise
performance in existing markets and launch into new
ones.
Our core team of digital experts, based in our Brighton
UK HQ, work with insights from our unique network of
LIMEs (Local In-Market Experts). Together, they plan and
deliver powerful digital strategies and campaigns in any
market on the planet.

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