WeChat vs. Snapchat, which one do you prefer?
Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Snapchat, and almost every social network site have been banned by the Chinese government. As a result, there is at least one Chinese counterpart of each American social media platform. Some are exactly the twin brother of the American ones (they just copy every single feature); some are combinations of several different social media; some have innovative functions that American ones don't have. Let's get to know my favorite social networking sites and see if you like to try them too :)
This is definitely the most frequently used app on my Iphone. When I just arrived here in the States, I am surprised that Americans still text because Chinese young people may only text like one time a day. One text costs around two cents in China, but WeChat is free as long as you have enough data or Wi-Fi connection, which most people do.
I consider WeChat a combination of Facebook (including Facebook Messenger), Snapchat, and Whatsapp. At the very beginning, WeChat was supposed to be the Chinese Whatsapp with the main feature of sending voice and text messages. But now, WeChat is EVERYTHING.
WeChat Features
Just like Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger, we can send voice and text messages, pictures, videos, and even money on WeChat. People can also send a very short video showing their sights just like Snapchat does. Similar to Facebook status, WeChat Moments allow users to share words, pictures, sights, articles, and links to other websites.
Besides that, WeChat has a lot more fantastic features; for example, Shake. When two people shake their phones at the same time, WeChat will "match" those two and help them connect with each other. Since people can't add friends on WeChat unless they know their usernames, it is a fun way to meet new people. The Look Around feature has a similar purpose. People can find users in their vicinities (Now it looks like Tinder to me). Drift Bottle is also a way to communicate with strangers. You can record your voice or type what you want to say in a “drift bottle” and "throw" it into the "ocean." When other people are picking up drifted bottles, they may accidentally pick up yours, and if that person wants to reply to your message, you guys can start a conversation.
Even though people can send money on Facebook now, WeChat's Wallet brings the money transfer feature into a new level (now it seems to be the Chinese apple pay). Besides payments and transfers, people can also use WeChat to buy movie tickets, pay their bills, do group purchase, and even send lucky money. Lucky Money is a Chinese New Year tradition. Seniors in a family give children Lucky Money during Chinese New Year. But now this tradition goes beyond Chinese New Year. Nowadays, Chinese young people just like to send very few money to each other and say funny or strange things while sending the money. It has become a new way for young people to joke around.
--Microblog (Weibo)
Weibo starts as the Chinese equivalent of Twitter. It was once the most popular social media website in China, but it's now losing it to WeChat, at least among people I know. However, in my opinion, it is a better social media platform for businesses to do marketing since there are very few sponsored ads on WeChat. Also, people can categorize the accounts they follow, so sometimes they can choose to not view posts from business if they don't want to. However, on WeChat, you can't avoid posts from official business accounts.
Also, Weibo is a celebrity hub. There are many celebrity official accounts. Surprisingly, a lot of Western celebrities also use Weibo as a platform to connect with their fans; such as the tennis player Novack Djokovic and Katy Perry.
-- Others
Actually Facebook's twin brother is called Renren, and it was HUGE around four years ago. It was the trendiest thing in China at that time. If you didn't have a Renren account back in 2010, you are not cool. But now, when I go to Renren like once in a month, I can see posts from ten days ago on the first page. So we know how many people are using it right now. It is interesting that American people are still using Facebook as their major social website, but its Chinese counterpart is just not doing very well.
Snapchat, the new cool kid, hasn't found a Chinese brother yet. I just started to use Snapchat this year (Am I too old or too not cool?), and I LOVE the discover feature on Snapchat. I like to see how people in Jamaica are doing right now (and being jealous about the weather there), and I love to sneak peek at Victoria's Secret fashion show from the backstage. The truth is that I saw an ad about a Snapchat-style app on a Chinese website, but it is still unknown to most people. Oh btw, there are Chinese Tinders, but they never get popular at all. I guess WeChat's Shake and Look Around get the things done for users already.
At the very beginning, I thought Chinese social media platforms are just simply copying their American counterparts (some still do now). But since WeChat is so awesome, I would like to say that app/network developers actually know how to fit Chinese people's interests and localize and optimize those apps. As a result, some foreign businesses are using those social media to reach Chinese audience.
Do you like those Chinese social media sites I mentioned? Some of them actually seem to be pretty cool, right? If you tried them, let me know your feedbacks :)
--Xueer