Christmas in China 2022
This December hasn’t been the most Christmassy of times in China; on the back protests, loosening the Covid Zero reins, followed by the inevitable spread of Covid. But behind the infections, there remains a core crew of people on social media who are spreading the Christmas spirit in China.
We used our Brand Health Tracker to monitor social media activity around Christmas in China. In the first 12 days of December, there was very much a positive cheer, with 30-times more positive posts than negative.
What Christmas themes Chinese are talking about on social media?
Over the first 12 days of Christmas, there were 407 Christmas-related posts on Douyin and Weibo. It’s a small number by Chinese standards, but the posts were well received, with almost 700,000 likes and comments.
Engagement certainly spiked on Douyin and Weibo as Christmas approached, but on WeChat, Christmas-related searches were relatively stable across the 12 days.
The most popular topics were related to the Christmas hand dance. Content about the festive spirit came a close second, although it had the highest engagement. Other topics included cakes, strawberries, chocolate and jelly; dances, trees, presents and Christmas photos.
A Brand Health Tracker screenshot of Christmas-related themes on Chinese social media
The two cities that got mentioned the most were Shanghai and Xiamen, although Zhejiang Province was the most interested in Christmas, followed by Guangdong and Jiangsu, with Jiangsu having the most positive sentiment of the three.
The most popular Christmas posts
Chinese love videos, and Christmas-themed ones are no exception. 61.3% of Christmas-related searches on WeChat were for videos in Channels.
The top-50 most engaged Christmas-related social posts were all on Douyin, with a 10-second video of a young lady in a Christmas outfit doing a little dance to Jingle Bells with her hands being the most engaged, clocking 25,000 interactions. A 1:20 video on how to draw Christmas trees for cards came in at a close second with 22,000 interactions, but with 60% higher engagement.
The 10-second Christmas dance is the most popular Christmas post on social
How to draw a Christmas tree on Douyin
A missed opportunity for western brands?
Over the years, western brands in China have jumped on positive associations with Christmas and their origins. Done well, it can be quite authentic and connect consumers emotionally with a brand, and can even play into the interest of giving presents over the Yuletide.
Yet this year, just 10 of the 407 Christmas posts were from official brand accounts on Douyin and Weibo. Grassroots KOLs made 19 posts, but had lower engagement than the 34 posts from top KOLs. It was the everyday users who accounted for 85% of Christmas posts, which were also the most engaged, with 4-times higher engagement rates than even the top KOLs, illustrating the opportunities for user generated content.
There have been some distractions keeping Christmas a little less Christmassy in China this year, but the spirit remains. Merry Christmas!
Learn more about tracking sentiment and engagement about your brand and related terms on Chinese social media with China Skinny’s Brand Health Tracker.
