What does China Brand Day mean for your brand?
What is China Brand Day?
China Brand Day is an annual holiday on 10 May to recognize, promote and celebrate Chinese brands. 2018 is the 40th year anniversary of China opening up economically, which marks an important milestone for Chinese brands. Companies are paying more attention to brand development and focusing more on long-term brand loyalty.
“Chinese Brands Day isn't really an event or a festival. It's more of a message to companies that the government wants Chinese companies to focus on branding”, said Jay Milliken, senior partner and head of Asia at brand and marketing consultancy Prophet (Adage).
Increased International Brand Awareness = Increased Economic Power
For 2017, the total value of the list of BrandZ Top 100 Chinese Brands hit record levels, growing 6% to reach $557.1 billion in brand value (RetailinAsia). At the same time, Chinese brands still face an uphill struggle in global markets because international consumers "are generally less aware of, and less likely to consider purchasing, a Chinese brand than a local or globally recognized one". However, the report added, brand recognition varies significantly from country to country (ChinaDaily).
There is tremendous opportunity for Chinese companies to start building their brand image, both for Chinese consumer and for a global audience. Internationally well-known brands are a symbol of a country’s economic power and competitiveness.
What happens on China Brand Day?
Every year, Chinese consumers vote for their favorite Chinese brands at Xinhua.net and ChianNationalBrand.org.cn. China Council for Brand Development announces the top 100 Chinese brands on May 10.
Read about the 2017 China Brand Day.
This year, Shanghai is hosting the International Forum on Brand Development and the Exposition on China Indigenous Brand. The two exhibitions promote the development of Chinese brands with a special focus on Shanghai services, manufacturing, shopping, culture and tech.
(Image Source: Xinhuanet.com)
(Image Source: Xinhuanet.com)
What does China Brand Day mean for international brands?
At Oval Branding, we recommend International brands to conduct adequate market research prior to entering into the Chinese market and work with reputation firms on branding & marketing, legal, HR, accounting etc. because the Chinese ecosystem is more complex. And the best ways for brand building for international brands to promote via Wechat and be present on the right distributor channels. B2C brands could consider partnering with prominent Chinese e-commerce and tap into their promotions, such as Tmall’s Super Brand Day and Taobao’s China Brand Day Sale.
Learn more about our Branding in China services for international companies.
For example, in 2018, Renault is leveraging its Sports Formula One Team’s partnership with Tmall to benefit from a Super Brand Day programme on Sunday 15 April, race day for the Chinese Grand Prix (GreatReporter). In 2016, Fitbit is working with Alibaba Tmall’s Super Brand Day promotion as a critical tool for reaching Chinese consumers (Alizia).
What does China Brand Day mean for Chinese brands?
For Chinese businesses looking into expanding outside China, we recommend focusing on improving their online reputation as a first step to reaching a global audience. This includes tasks such as establishing brand positioning, creating an English website, creating English marketing material, being present on the right social media platforms and engaging the press and influencers.
About Oval Branding
Oval Branding is a branding consultancy that provides brand management, digital marketing and online reputation management services for corporate and personal branding clients in the UK, USA, Canada and China. The company specialized in cross-border branding for companies trying to launch their brands in China or Chinese companies trying to launch their brands into the Western market. The team has a wide range of experience in venture capital, private equity, property development, luxury consumer goods, import/export and technology start-ups. There is also a dedicated team in China that has an in-depth understanding of China’s marketing environment.
Contact us today to discuss how we can help promote your brand.
