The Secret Weapon to Market any High End Shampoo Brands in China is this

The Chinese hair care market is booming these days. Hair care, with high product penetration in China, recorded stable value growth in 2018, mainly driven by upgraded consumption, as consumers traded up to high-end products, resulting in the higher growth momentum of premium hair care than mass products or the industry average.

It is not a secret that even though you are the best seller in Europe and make 10 million USD in sales turnover annually it doesn’t mean your brand will be as successful in China as it is in the US and Europe. The Chinese internet is a closed ecosystem with its own Twitter (Weibo), Google (Baidu), and YouTube (Youku). Spending millions on digital marketing out of Chinese doesn’t help them to engage Chinese consumers to need to start from scratch in China.

The secret is to Maximize the Power of KOL

One of the new trends of e-commerce in China is the appearance of the KOL (Key Opinion Leaders), who are a kind of bloggers in China or Chinese stars for collaboration. In fact, for any company that wants to increase its reputation among Chinese consumers, it is important to be sponsored by KOL and Chinese stars.

For some imported shampoo and hair care products, 2018 was a good start for expanding the Chinese market:

Kerastase 卡诗

L’Oreal, the world’s largest cosmetic company, entered the China market in 1997.  Since then, L’Oreal China has expanded and become one of the nation’s most loved and purchased luxury cosmetic brands, charting 17.3% of the market share in 2012. With the firm’s high-end brands such as Lancôme, YSL, and Shu Uemura, L’Oreal is making the most out of the world’s first country in luxury goods consumption.

Kerastase positions itself as a semi-professional hair care product, prices for shampoo start from 240 RMB (250 ml), and masks start from 420 RMB, which is much more expensive than popular import mass-market brands such as Head&Shoulders, Pantene, Rejoice, and others.

Even ten years ago Chinese consumers didn’t pay too much attention to shampoo and hair care products as they do now. This trend is especially growing amount young Chinese consumers born in ’ the 80-the ’90s, hair washing is becoming more than a daily routine, making people choose products by shampoo ingredients, effectiveness, type of skin, and other criteria. Brand Kerastase educates Chinese consumers and helps them to choose the right shampoo according to hair and skin type by integrating the form on the Chinese website.

Kerastase chose Taiwanese actress Janine Chang (張鈞甯), known as a famous actress in China. She has around 15 million users on Weibo, most of them are Kerastase’s target audience as girls between 15 and 30 years old to an ambassador of the Kerastase brand in China.

Aussie 袋鼠洗发水

Australian brands are becoming increasingly popular in China with a growing middle class of consumers seeking more ‘international’ products. The relatively close proximity of the two countries coupled with the fact they are in the same time zone aids this lucrative international trade. Chinese consumers love Australian brands for being safe and natural. Most Australian brands sold in China are food brands, but these trends are changing, and except for the food industry, the cosmetics market of Australian brands are growing as well. However, the name and slogan “Roo Your ‘Do!” make the brand looks Australian, but it is produced by an American company.

The Aussie brand rapidly entered the Chinese market a few years ago, for now, Chinese consumers may find its products in offline retail chains and online platforms such as JD.com, Suning, Tmall, and other e-commerce platforms.

Aussie uses all the opportunity to make the brand visible in China, they announced cooperation with Xukun Cai (蔡徐坤). Who became Aussie’s global spokesperson? As a well-known icon and talented singer in China, he perfectly embodies the spirit of Aussie – there’s more to life than hair but it’s a good place to start.

Davines 大卫尼斯

Italian brand Davines started to sell shampoo and hair care products in 2018 choosing the Tmall store and Little Red Book platforms as a marketplace. Interaction with users on Tmall helps the brand to keep a high rank and receive more positive comments from Chinese consumers.

Davines chose Mark Tuan (段宜恩), he is a South Korean entertainer who has become famous as a member of a popular band. A Taiwanese American, he is a singer, rapper, and dancer who is now known all over the world thanks to his role as a member alongside 6 others of the boy band GOT7.

WHAT IS THE SOLUTION FOR NEW HAIR CARE BRANDS?

Collaboration with Chinese KOL is key.

Why is it important?

A key opinion leader is an individual with a dedicated following on social media and significant influence on his or her followers. They have the ability to sway public opinion. By simply displaying a product or speaking about a service, they can convince their followers that it is reputable and worth paying for.

How to choose the right KOL?

A good agency knows which KOLs would best represent your brand and produce worthwhile results. At GMA, our team consists of both local and international experts in digital marketing. We are able to represent the client from an understanding perspective as well as negotiate the best deals through our local team.

Read also:

1. Shampoo in China: marketing strategies revealed
2. How KOL marketing works in China
3. Cosmetics in China: Top marketing strategies to succeed in the beauty market 

About GMA

GMA (Official website) is specialized in the Chinese market, more precisely in digital marketing in China. We have developed a lot of successful cases, using the latest digital tools and knowing your Chinese consumers well.

WHY DO YOU NEED TO CONTACT ME

1- I did not give you all the strategies. I will keep some for those who call me.

2- We have already good case studies in Shampoo and Hair Care brands in China (I can share them with you).

3- I am very specialized in Health Care Products in China.

4- Everybody needs good advice, and I give good advice for Free.