Top 10 China Marketing Trends in 2025

2025 China marketing is a monster playground for fast movers and culture hackers. You want in? You play to win with data, content, community, and speed. Here’s the top 10 marketing trends in China right now — short, sharp, by Olivier VEROT

1. Douyin = Conversion Machine

Douyin (China’s TikTok) is no longer just entertainment — it’s full-stack commerce. Brands now launch exclusively on Douyin.

• In-app stores, influencer collabs, and instant checkout.
• Short-form + live + promo = 🔥 sales.

2. Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) = Trust Engine

Think of it as Instagram meets Reddit meets Amazon reviews.

• UGC is king. If you’re not on here, you’re not credible.
• Community-led content drives product discovery.

3. KOLs & KOCs Are Your Sales Team

Key Opinion Leaders (big names) + Key Opinion Consumers (real users) = unstoppable combo.

• Micro-KOLs dominate niche categories.
• It’s not about follower count — it’s about conversion power.

4. Livestreaming = Shopping Channel 2.0

Live commerce is a $700B+ industry in China. It’s massive.

• Think QVC on steroids.
• Fast offers, scarcity, real-time comments = urgency-driven buying.

5. WeChat Ecosystem = Brand Infrastructure

WeChat is not just a messenger. It’s a business stack.

• Mini programs = fast mobile shops.
• Customer service, CRM, social — all integrated.

6. AI Avatars & Virtual Influencers

China is leading in virtual humans — fully AI-generated influencers pushing products 24/7.

• Lower cost, fully controllable, trend-worthy.
• Brands like L’Oréal are already deploying them.

7. Hyper-Personalization via Big Data

Chinese consumers expect personalized offers and real-time service.

• A/B test everything.
• AI + data = segmented campaigns that convert harder.

8. Cultural Localization > Translation

Literal translation is dead. Local memes, slang, holidays, and values must be baked into your brand voice.

• Collaborate with local creatives.
• Celebrate China’s internet culture, not your own.

9. Sustainability & Wellness Appeal

Gen Z is caring deeply about values.

• Eco-packaging, cruelty-free, mental health, social good — they want real receipts.
• But no greenwashing — Chinese netizens will roast fake claims fast.

10. Social Commerce Everywhere

Every app is now a mall. From Bilibili to Zhihu, if there’s an audience, there’s a path to checkout.

• Seamless product links in comments, videos, and DMs.
• Think beyond Tmall & JD — social touchpoints sell.

Marketing in China : a twenty year evolution

Since 1996, China has evolved dramatically in every sector by retaining her famous cultural dimensions.

The former China

Twenty years ago, the Chinese marketing area was different than today. First of all media prices were cheap. The communications industry was not over-regulated and censored by the Chinese government. At that time, it was almost impossible to set up a business without a local joint venture partner. Moreover, most of the advertisements were adapted from overseas and Chinese marketing was not really developed.

A growing middle class

The Chinese were focused on making fast cash as Deng Xiaoping, ex-leader of the Communist Party of China, proclaimed that « To get rich is glorious ».

Since then, we observed an emergence of the Chinese middle-class counting now almost 250 million persons.

The Chinese are considered the world’s biggest consumers, from luxury cars to mobile phones. They are particularly attracted by the foreign brands with retailers more and more implanted in mainland China; such as Zara, H&M, and Uniqlo, or even more luxurious brands like Louis Vuitton and Chanel.

The importance of digital

With the development of digital, the Chinese marketing area has seen a lot of transformations. With more than 600 million internet users and 300 million WeChat subscribers, e-commerce is now expanding.

It is now prominent for agencies to be involved in the digital communication industry. Exchanges on Chinese internet platforms like Weibo or Baidu show the critical importance to be active on social media.

More on: Why you should be active on Chinese social media? Because the Chinese are connected!

The changes in the communication industry

Media costs have exploded since twenty years ago, due to excessive demand and maybe a monopolistic market of media sales. It is difficult for new and little companies to afford those prices. 

Furthermore, advertising was not seen as a real responsible career by the locals, it leads to many young talented Chinese who abandon the industry.

Whereas the Chinese are now in competition with « Western » agencies. Not even a few local advertising agencies are real competitors to the western’s ones; even though they are more than 100.000 local agencies.

What about the local market ?

However, China’s advertising market is seen as the second larger in the world after the U.S.A. The local potential is resting on Chinese agencies, but the advertising market is not as large as the numbers show. Even though the ad spends are above 140 billion $, those numbers are inflated by the discounts and the agency fees.

China’s advertising market is not as developed as the Western one. It can explain the prevalence of foreign agencies and brands well implanted in China.

The advertising market is now fundamentally based on digital, it’s the reason why every company that would like to promote themselves should be active in cyberspace.