Learn about the changing ways Chinese students interact and international study options. Learn how to evaluate traditional and emerging social media channels in China and avoid common pitfalls that hamper successful recruitment in this country.

1. Patrick Colabucci Director, Global Studies and International Programs
UCLA Extension
Maggie Li Digital Marketing Associate
International Education Advantage, LLC
Ophelia Lee Director
Maxway Education
Market Intelligence
China: Do WeChat?
7th Annual Conference
December 2-5, 2015 Hollywood, FL

2. China: Not a simple place
Academic Year 2004 – 05 2014 – 15 % change
Chinese students
in the US
62,000 304,000 400%
Indian students in
the US
76,000 132,000 56%

3. Just how big is China?
How do you decide which cities to market/recruit in?
How do schools’ recruiters know which of these cities have an interest in education?
Country Number of cities with 1,000,000 people
U.S 10
Japan 11
Brazil 17
India 40
China 160

4. Just how big is China?
Country Number of Internet Users
U.S 280 million
Japan 109 million
Brazil 107 million
India 240 million
China 640 million
How do US universities get their content in front of the right people out of
this 640,000,000?

5. Where do Chinese student come from?
7792
8001
8124
8167
9316
12406
15985
29145
49946
Shenzhen
Wuhan
Chengdu
Guangzhou
Nanjing
Hongkong
Taipei
Shanghai
Beijing
Number of Students Study in the U.S.

6. Perspective
• Facts
• Anecdotal evidence
• Stories in the news
• Surveys or focus groups from students on campus
• Open Doors data
• ICEF/WES/INTEAD reports

7. Deliberate Relationship
• When you make a conscious decision to do something, instead
of merely allowing a decision or event to take place, things
tend to go a better.
• With the complexity, competitiveness, challenges, and
importance of the Chinese market, US schools need to be
deliberate in partnering with quality agencies to recruit in
China, especially with a tool like WeChat.

8. intead.com
Agenda
1. A little bit about me – the international
student experience
2. Insights in recruiting in China
3. Research data
4. Tips in Chinese culture
5. Chinese social media

9. intead.com
My story…Yunxiang Li

10. intead.com
I’m From Suzhou
Population 6.5M
10X Boston’s Population
A “Small” Chinese City
Jiangsu Province
Suzhou GDP = US $190B
(Ref: Beijing GDP = US $500B)

11. intead.com
Valuable Secondary Cities
Less competition from
highly ranked institutions

12. intead.com
Educationally Powerful Provinces
Similar to high performing
US school districts

13. intead.com
Major
Ranking
Admission Criterion
Academic Environment
Safety
2015 White Book of China’s Study Abroad
from XDF.CN
Students
Parents
25 cities
3700 valid surveys
Chinese Survey: Factors Influencing Students’ &
Parents’ Decisions In Choosing Schools
Decision Influencers

14. intead.com
Top 4 Majors Chinese Students Plan to Study Abroad
6%
10%
18%
35%
Computer Science
Science
Engineering
Business
Percentage of Students
2015 White Book of China’s Study Abroad from XDF.CN

15. intead.com
Chinese Students Gather Information From…
2015 White Book of China’s Study Abroad from XDF.CN
21%
29%
33%
40%
40%
61%
Professor
University Webiste
Family and Friends
Study Aboard Conference
hosted by Chinese agencies
Domestic Website
Agency
Percentage of Students

16. intead.com
Hidden Data Gems: Chinese Real Estate Purchases in the US
WSJ November 28, 2015
Chinese nationals
are buying US
residential real
estate. They are
buying property for
themselves and to
provide housing
for their children in
the US.

17. intead.com
Chinese Students Studying Abroad
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
‐
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
300,000
350,000
400,000
450,000
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
% of Students
# of Students
Number of Students Studying Abroad Number of Returned Students
% Returned Students % Growth in # Studying Abroad
Source: 2014 China Statistical Yearbook, http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjsj/ndsj/2014/indexeh.htm
More Chinese
students are
returning to China
after studying
abroad. an
opportunity to build
an alumni network
and use student
testimonials to
your advantage.

18. intead.com
Chinese Cultural Tips
Avoid using American sports, green hats and white decorations in your promotions.

19. intead.com
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google are
all blocked in China. If these are part of your
website and promotion plan, they won’t
work to attract Chinese students.
Digital Marketing Plans

20. intead.com
Social Media in China
From Chairman Media

21. intead.com
WeChat
Like a combination of Instant Messenger, Facebook
and Instagram

22. intead.com
WeChat Promotions ‐ UWM

23. intead.com
As You Plan, Consider These Tips
• For Lesser Known Schools, recruitment works better
in second‐ and third‐tier cities in China.
• Ex. More challenging travel produces better results
• Target students and their parents with different messages
to catch their attention.
• Ex. Safety (Parents) vs. Admissions Criteria (Students)
• Consider engaging your regional Chinese population
• Ex. Advertise on Chinese media here in the US to extend your brand
• Engage Chinese students (in the US and in China) on
Chinese social media
• Ex. WeChat vs. Facebook

24. intead.com
Industry Insights
Mobile App
For more information, please contact
Ben Waxman, COO & co-founder: bwaxman@intead.com
e-Books
For more information, please contact
Ben Waxman, CEO & co-founder: bwaxman@intead.com
Many Resources on Intead.com

25. MAXWAY Education
Leading Education Consulting Company in Hong Kong
“

26. About Us
MAXWAY Education

27. About Maxway
Based in Hong Kong
Serve Great China
1Location
Over 10 years Professional
Consulting Service
2 History
HKACE ISO 9001 AIRCTop 10
Customer Service
Excellence Award
in Hong Kong
ISO9001 Quality
Management by
International
Standard
Organization
Maxway
Education
Accredited by
AIRC

28. China Market
Dramatic market growth and
huge demand for high-quality
education

29. 2015 US Open Doors Report
CHINA
31%
INDI
A
14%
CANADA
3%
MEXICO
2%
BRAZIL
2%
SAUDIA ARABIA
6%
SOUTH KOREA
6%
TAIWAN
2%VIETNAM
2%
JAPAN
2%
31% of International Students come from China
(304,040 Chinese students in 2014/15)
Source: 2015 US Open Doors Data by IEE

30. 2006-15 Chinese Students Growth Graphic
China ends One Child Policy and
allows two in Oct. 2015
Source: 2015 US Open Doors Data by IEE

31. 2010-15 Chinese Students for UG/PG
UG Students
PG Students
Source: 2015 US Open Doors Data by IEE

32. Oversea Study Destination
27%U.S. is
the First Choice
for Chinese Students
Source: 2015 China Students Study Abroad Preference Survey

33. Students Application Percentage
32%Apply for Senior
HS Schools
23%+10%Apply for College
Bachelor Degree
Source: 2015 China Students Study Abroad Preference Survey

34. The Role of Agency
85%Would like to
apply for schools
via Agency
Source: 2015 China Students Study Abroad Preference Survey

35. Internet Marketing
Social Media-Wechat acts as the most
popular and efficient channel for
Market Expansion in China

36. Internet Penetration
Mobile Netizen
Wechat User
668 Million
Netizen
594 Million
549 Million

37. 260M Netizens
Reach over 260M Target Audiences
Premium Resources
Targeted Coverage
40岁以上
13%
24岁以下
11%
24-40岁
76%
女
33%
男
68%

38. Complete Ecosystem
Premium Resources
Targeted Coverage
Social
News
Female

39. Ad Formats
Premium Resources
Targeted Coverage
Native Ad Unit
Tencent,
and other
Apps

40. Ad Formats
Premium Resources
Targeted Coverage

41. Wechat Data
62.7%
Connection
Have over 50
wechat friends
55.2%
Frequency
Open wechat app
more than 10
times daily
73.4%
Broadcasting
Followup wechat
company
accounts
86.2%
Young Group
Are under the age
of 36

42. Wechat Impact on Education News
30.61%
via Social Media-Wechat
28.18%
Via Education Webpage
26.36%
Via Seminars/Expos
25.15%
Via Agency

43. Maxway Wechat Platform

44. Maxway Wechat Platform
Account Name
Account Briefing
Hotline
Archives
Customer Service
Account Profile
Wechat Post
Menu
Keyboard
Account Profile Interface

45. Maxway Wechat Function
Platform
$
Broadcast
Customer
Service
Events

46. 1-1.Broadcasting-School Promotion

47. 1-2.Broadcasting-School Website
Directing

48. 1-3.Broadcasting-School Profile
Download

49. 2.Customer Service

50. 3.Events Promotion & Registration

51. Wechat Data Analysis and Collection

52. Maxway Wechat Platform
Sample Text.
Information
Broadcasting
Websites
Service
Materials
Download
Customer
Service
Events
Organization
Follow-up
Service
Assist
Schools
Reach
Millions of
Students &
Parents

53. Contact Us
留学咨询网 Study Abroad
Tel ：400-6262990（Mainland China）
852-2110 3342（Hong Kong）
Web：www.MyFindSchools.net
Mail ：olee@maxway-edu.net
51留学网(liuxue_51)

54. Ophelia Lee
MAXWAY Education
THANK YOU