THE FEMALE INTERNET USERS GUIDE
DEMOGRAPHICS
Population: With improvements in Chinese women’s consumption power, this rapid rise of the “she economy” has resulted in a market of about 10 trillion yuan. In 2020, there were an estimated 689 million women in China.
There are 547 million women in China who are active internet users and their numbers are growing by 1.7% year-on-year, which is slightly higher than the growth rate for men. The growth rate for female internet users over 36 is even higher at 2.7 percent.
Education and employment: 56% of Chinese women have higher education and their labour force participation rate stands at 69%, which is far higher than the international average. However, there’s still a big gap between women’s and men’s average annual income.
Online consumption power: The growing power of women’s online consumption continues to drive the ‘she economy’. The percentage of women spending more than 1,000 yuan per month increased 1.2 percent in 2022. The majority of women shopping online have moderate consumption levels. 40.4% spent between 1,000 and 1,999 yuan per month.
Internet user growth in lower tier cities and among older women: More women aged 36 and older and more women in lower tier cities are buying online. The penetration rate of women in lower tier markets on big e-commerce platforms is 68.3% and for women over 36, it’s 64.1%. In terms of online banking, the penetration rate of female users in lower tier markets is 53.1%.
CONSUMPTION PREFERENCES
Online purchase channel preferences: Online shopping for women has accelerated due to the pandemic and big e-commerce platforms are still the main shopping channels for women. The penetration rate for female users on Taobao’s mobile app is the highest at 74.8%. The penetration rate for Pinduoduo stands at 55.8% and JD’s presentation rate is 30.5%.
Women use Alibaba’s second hand platform Idle Fish (闲鱼) a lot and, in 2021, live stream sales also became more popular among female users. The proportion of women watching live streams on e-commerce platforms rose 3.3 percent year on year.
Online consumption preferences: Female web users value price, lifestyle quality and taste. More than half of women who shop online pay attention to the quality, brand and price of consumer goods. The number of female online consumers who are brand-focused rose 4.8% compared to last year.
As women get older, their consumption preferences shift from pleasing themselves to family needs. Women aged 24 and younger pay more attention to fast moving consumer goods such as cosmetics and snacks, while women aged 25-35 are the age group with the most mothers so they have significant preferences for maternity, parenting and infant care products. Women who are 36 and older have strong preferences for home care products and accessories.
Consumption information channel preferences: There are more and more online channels and e-commerce possibilities. With this kind of crowded market, recommendations and live e-commerce with KOLs and influencers as hosts have become more popular for women.
Women aged 25-35 are more likely to watch short videos, with their average watch time exceeding 50 hours per month. Women aged 24 and younger spend more time on social networks and watching online video than any other age group. WeChat and Weibo are the most popular social media platforms. 85.9% of women have a Wechat account and 56.2% have a Weibo account. Xiaohongshu, a product recommendation platform for women, had the highest TGI of 161 despite only having an active penetration rate of 15.5%.[2]
Consumption preferences of the silver-haired generation: Older women are more pragmatic and focus on prices and brands while men focus on product design, material, quality and the consumer experience. 55% of senior men care about fashion and quality. Meanwhile, 56.6% of older women pay more attention to brands and 57.4% pay more attention to prices.
Online purchasing channel preferences: The active penetration rate for seniors on e-commerce platforms is 67.2% in May 2020, which is close to the level of internet users in general. Older users also engage in social e-commerce. The top 5 online shopping apps for older monthly active users are Taobao, Pinduoduo, Taote, JD and Vipshop.
POPULAR CATEGORIES FOR FEMALE INTERNET USERS
According to a CBNData report from early 2021, these are the most popular product categories for women.
Daily items:
Makeup: lipstick, foundation, concealer, lip gloss, eyeshadow, eyeliner, primer, air cushion, honey powder, lip balm
Skin care: Facial masks, essences, cleansers, sunscreen, skin sprays, eye cream, face cream, eye masks, makeup remover
Personal care: toothpaste, shampoo, shower gel, shampoo and conditioner sets
Food:
Low-fat snacks, meal-replacement shakes, diet drinks
Probiotics
Nostalgic snacks: Maltesers, Choco pie, Latiao
Alcoholic beverages: wine, fruit wine, cocktail
Home:
Furniture: sofas, beds, tables
Smart home appliances, cleaning products and equipment, kitchen items.
WHY DO YOU NEED CHINESE MARKETING RESEARCH AND STRATEGY?
It’s never easy to enter a new market, especially when it requires understanding the sentiment of a new group of consumers and their communication channels. By working with our agency, we offer you the following benefits:
- Helps you understand China female internet users
- Helps you understand your competitors targeting China’s female population
- Helps you to determine the positioning of your products and plan digital marketing and ecommerce strategies
- Helps you align your offerings more accurately with the expectations of Chinese customers
WHAT ARE PEOPLE SAYING
OUR RESEARCH AND STRATEGY METHODOLOGY
Our China marketing research and strategy team gives you a detailed framework that will allow you to start and grow your business in mainland China. Our methodology mix is tailored for each project. In order to identify target consumers and understand their demands and develop marketing strategy for your product in China, Alarice team will develop tailor-made proposal for your project and discuss each phase methodology with your team to guarantee results. You can find more information about or methodology approaches here.
MARKET RESEARCH
- Online Market Research
- Industry performance research
- Market sizing
- Competitors Benchmarking
- Mystery Shopping
- Case Study
BRAND AUDIT
- Brand SMM Audit
- E-commerce Audit
- SWOT Analysis
- Perceived USPs
- Value Perceived
CONSUMER RESEARCH
- Online Survey
- Consumer Panel
- Focus Groups
- In-depth interviews
- Offline intercepts
- Semantics ( usage differentiation )
- Social listening
- Ethnographic research
- Sentiment Analysis
- Sensory Analysis
- Consumer Journey Tracking
STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT
- Brand Positioning review
- Brand pricing strategy review
- Market channels strategy
- Content strategy
- SMM strategy
- KOL/Influencer strategy
- Roadmap timeline budget
- Seasonal events / campaigns
- Conversion funnel strategy
YOUR CHINA MARKETING TEAM
We have an unmatched ecosystem of services to help clients worldwide build their brand in China from 0 and enhance performance for those already in the market:
- Chinese Social Media Account Set Up. Chinese social media account set up and verification are steps which seem easy to handle. However, for newcomers, it can be a challenging process, especially when interfaces are only in Chinese or the English version is very different. Our team will help you with the list of documents needed, account options and the rest of the verification process. We also do account migration, account mergers, integration and more.
- Digital Brand Audit. We can do a full spectrum analysis of your digital marketing matrix and point out what’s effective, what’s hitting the mark, what’s missing and what needs urgent attention.
- Chinese Social Media Marketing. With our understanding of China’s unique social media landscape, we’ll help to select the most suitable platforms for your services and products and turn them into effective marketing channels with creative content. Apart from China’s top social networks, WeChat and Weibo, we also work with niche Chinese social media platforms suitable for different industries.
- KOL Marketing and Campaigns. Working with bloggers in China is very different from in most Western countries. In order to succeed in China, key opinion leader (KOL) marketing is not an option, it’s a necessity.
- Chinese Brand and Product Naming. Choosing the right brand name for the China market is one of the most sensitive aspects of an entrance strategy. We help with China brand name and slogan development.
- Digital Online PR . We help with China PR strategy to get attention from users and visibility in the market.
As each project is unique, we also organize free consultations to discuss your projects and suggest solutions. Contact us and we’ll help you turn your business goals into real outcomes
FAQ
Females are more likely asking for product recommendations and connecting with others on social media. In order to market your products and services to female internet users , social media marketing is necessary.
We not only provide execution, ongoing advisory, campaigns, and supplementary services of social media marketing on mainstream platforms (Wechat, Weibo, Douyin, RED), but also on some industry-focused niche platforms(Keep, Mafengwo). You can contact us directly if you want to know more.
For relevant brands, this is an opportunity market that cannot be missed. If you want to enter the Chinese elderly market from scratch, we provide local branding services, including brand and product naming, logo design,product guidelines and more.
The number of active Internet users among women reached 547 million, up slightly from a year earlier at 1.7 %, while more women aged 36 and older started using the Internet, up 2.7% year on year. Chinese female users are also very keen on social media. To directly reach female internet users in China, social media marketing is the best way for your brand.
We offer brand social media services such as account registration and custom, content strategy, content creation, creative writing, graphic design, video adaptation), the online community (create, interaction and extension) and daily social monitoring and crisis management, we can also be long-term to provide monthly reports, assessment and more.
“Sinking” refers to a broader and deeper market coverage that can penetrate into third-tier cities and the development space below. With nearly 70% of China’s population, third-tier cities and below have huge potential.The penetration rate of women in lower tier markets on big e-commerce platforms is 68.3%.
Female Internet users from Sinking Market are a new opportunity for brands, and if you don’t know the best way to take this digital marketing opportunity, Our research and strategic services can boost your chances of business success in both sinking marketing and female internet users. We can help you find the most suitable marketing communication methods to reach them through customer research and interviews, as well as planning your budget and analyzing your competitors and more.