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The Battle of the Super Apps: WeChat vs WhatsApp in the Digital Marketing Arena

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Today is the era of digitalization. Nowadays, people prefer to attach their lives to social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Hence, manufacturers and producers use social media tremendously in this digital era to reach customers with their products and services. Thus, social media marketing has become famous for businesses to promote their products or services, engage with their customers, and build brand awareness. The present study focuses on reviewing the mediating role played by several social media platforms to gain the interest of consumers. This paper also aims to analyze the necessity of social media marketing compared to other forms of marketing communication and promotion.This paper helps the reader decide whether to depend on social media only for marketing purposes or whether there can be a choice of another means.Without analyzing the pros andcons, relying heavily on social media platforms for marketing is not always a good idea. The author employed a qualitative and descriptive method for constructing the paper. This paper will review the literature regarding social media marketing compared to other means, try to recommend, and shed light on selecting the right marketing platform by different marketers. The study's main findings demonstrate that measures should be taken to enhance responsible use and limit some of its harmful effects. Furthermore, in providing insights into whether social media marketing is a necessity or a choice, the author suggests that productive utilization should be the main priority for all, whether social media or other platforms.
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E-Commerce tools have become a human need everywhere and important not only to customers but to industry players. The intention to use E-Commerce tools among practitioners, especially in the Malaysian retail sector is not comprehensive as there are still many businesses choosing to use expensive traditional marketing. The research applies academic models and frameworks to the real life situation to develop a value proposition in the practical world by considering 11Street as the company under study and comparing it with Lazada as a leading competitor in the market. The objectives include identification of customers' perception of a value for E-Commerce Businesses, followed by critical evaluation of existing value proposition of 11Street with Lazada to identify gap and finally to propose a new value proposition for 11street. This paper first identifies customer perceived value of E-Commerce followed by critical review of existing value proposition of 11Street and then comparing and contrasting with the leading player Lazada. By the end of this research, a new consumer value proposition proposal for 11Street proposed for consideration in matching with the Malaysian consumers' value criteria.
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As a result of digital technology revolution and massive growth of smart phone usage, over 66% of world's population (4.92 billion) is using mobile phones and over half of them are using social media. Mobile social networking (MSN) becomes one of the key communication tool, new trend, necessity and lifestyle. With information transparency, consumer value changes quickly, whilst rapid adaptation of similar offerings in the market place, it is essential for suppliers to keep pace with consumer value changes those directly affect the consumer satisfaction and loyalty. The research applies academic models and frameworks to the real life situation to develop a value proposition in the practical world by considering WeChat (1 billion active users) as the company under study and comparing it with WhatsApp (1.5 billion active users) as the leading competitor in the market. The objectives include identification of customers' perception of a value for mobile social networking (MSN) services, followed by critical evaluation of existing value proposition of WeChat with Whatsapp to identify gap and finally to propose a new value proposition for WeChat. This paper first identifies customer perceived value (CPV) of mobile social networking (MSN) apps using Overby and Lee's model (2004) followed by critical review of existing value proposition of WeChat and then comparing and contrasting with the leading player WhatsApp. Frameworks developed by Piercy (2009), Anderson J. et al. (2006) are employed for the same. Finally, the case develops new value proposition for WeChat by using Osterwalder et al 2014 and other frameworks. By the end of this research, a new consumer value proposition (CVP) proposal for WeChat is proposed for consideration in matching with the globally evaluated consumers' value criteria.
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In this study, the under-examined area of privacy perception and protection on Chinese social media is investigated. The prevalence of digital technology shapes the social, political and cultural aspects of the lives of urban young adults. The influential Chinese social media platform WeChat is taken as a case study, and the ease of connection, communication and transaction combined with issues of commercialisation and surveillance are discussed in the framework of the privacy paradox. Protective behaviour and tactics are examined through different perceptions of privacy in the digital age. The findings of this study suggest that users possess certain amount of freedoms on WeChat. However, users’ individual privacy attitudes and behaviour in practice suggest they have a declined sense of their own freedom and right to privacy. A privacy paradox exists when users, while holding a high level of concerns, in reality do little to further the protection of their personal information on WeChat. We argue that once a user has ingrained part of their social engagement within the WeChat system, the incentive for them to remain a part of the system outweighs their requirement to secure their privacy online as their decision-making is largely based on a simple cost-benefit analysis. The power and social capital yielded via WeChat is too valuable to give up as WeChat is widely used not only for private conversations, but also for study or work-related purposes. It further blurs the boundaries between the public, the professional and the private, which is a rather unique case compared with other social media around the world. Available at: https://rdcu.be/5VvN (full access).
Development of effective strategies in using WeChat in marketing
  • O S Ling
  • J L P Wah
Ling, O. S., & Wah, J. L. P. (2019). Development of effective strategies in using WeChat in marketing. Journal of Engineering and Health Sciences, 3(1), 1-16.
WeChat: the new key to Social Media Marketing in East Asia
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Romano, S. (2020). WeChat: the new key to Social Media Marketing in East Asia.
From Weixin to WeChat: Analysing the Expansion Strategies of a Chinese Social Media Platform
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Zhang, Y. (2023). From Weixin to WeChat: Analysing the Expansion Strategies of a Chinese Social Media Platform. In Digital Platforms and the Global South (pp. 109-127). Routledge.