Livestreaming on WeChat: Everything You Need to Know

Welcome back to our WeChat Marketing series, where we explore the many functions and features that make WeChat a powerful tool for businesses, from setting up an Official Account to leveraging WeChat’s diverse marketing tools. Today we dive into one of the most effective ways to engage with your audience—livestreaming.

Livestreaming has become an increasingly popular medium in China, allowing businesses to interact directly with their audiences in real-time. In this article, we’ll walk you through the livestreaming options available on WeChat and how businesses can utilize this feature to expand their reach and boost conversions.

Why Livestreaming?

As a powerful content format, livestreaming has become an indispensable part of the digital marketing toolkit in China. It’s widely used across e-commerce, entertainment, and influencer marketing to connect with viewers in an engaging, real-time manner. On WeChat, livestreaming is especially effective as the app has a massive user base and supports seamless integration with e-commerce functions, allowing users to directly purchase products while watching live broadcasts. Read more about livestreaming in China in general and different types of livestreaming options on WeChat here.

From our last article, we know that WeChat has two options for livestreaming, tailored to different types of needs and audience. 

1. Mini Program Livestreaming
Introduced by Tencent in 2020, Mini Program Livestreaming is exclusively available to enterprises. This feature allows businesses to livestream directly within their Mini Programs—essentially apps within WeChat that don’t require separate downloads. One of the standout features is the ability to link the livestream directly to your brand’s online shopping channels. Viewers can click through to product pages on your WeChat Mini Program shop or third-party e-commerce platforms like JD or Taobao, making it seamless for users to browse and purchase products in real time.

2. Tencent Live Streaming via Official Accounts
Tencent’s live streaming platform is another option that caters to both businesses and individuals. Users watch the livestream through the Tencent Live Mini Program (看点直播), which supports both audio and video broadcasts. From the brand’s perspective, you can link the livestream to your WeChat e-commerce Mini Program, allowing viewers to seamlessly shop during the stream.

The setup and management of these live broadcasts are done through the Tencent Live App (腾讯直播APP), available on both Android and iOS. This native mobile app allows admins to manage and monitor livestreams effectively. If you’re interested in using this Tencent’s WeChat’s livestreaming features, here’s a step-by-step guide to help you get started:

1. Download the Tencent Live Streaming App
   The first step is downloading the Tencent Live native mobile app, Tencent Live App (腾讯直播APP), available on both Android and iOS platforms.
2. Register Your Account
   You can register as either a business or an individual, and registration is free. To get the most out of the platform, business accounts should undergo verification (costing 599 RMB per year). Once verified, your account will display a blue “V” label, signaling to users that your account is legitimate.
3. Link to Your WeChat Official Account (OA)
   After verification, your livestreaming account can be linked to your WeChat Official Account, allowing you to create livestream channels that integrate directly with your existing audience.
4. Key Features
   • Mini Program Integration: Generate a Mini Program code to embed in articles or share in WeChat group chats.
   • E-commerce Integration: Link your livestream to a Mini Program eCommerce shop, facilitating live shopping.
   • Admin Tools: Set specific viewers as admins for monitoring purposes.
   • Gamification: Engage viewers with interactive features like lucky draws, red packets (hongbao), and coupons.

Conclusion

With livestreaming becoming a cornerstone of digital marketing in China, WeChat’s livestreaming features offer a powerful way to connect with your audience and drive conversions. Whether you’re looking to boost e-commerce sales, interact with followers, or simply increase brand awareness, livestreaming on WeChat offers a flexible and highly effective solution. By utilizing either Mini Program Livestreaming or the Tencent Live Streaming platform, your business can harness the full potential of livestreaming in China’s competitive market.

If you’re looking for a partner to help you expand your business in China using Douyin and more, Cerberus Marketing is here to assist! We can customize your brand image and marketing plan to seamlessly integrate into the Chinese market. From market research and strategy development to social media management and influencer partnerships (WeChat marketing services, Little Red Book marketing, Douyin marketing), we provide end-to-end solutions to ensure your brand makes a lasting impact in China. Partner with Cerberus Marketing today and let us help you unlock the full potential of the Chinese market!

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