Guide To Sell Furnitures in China

Furnitures in China is a huge Industry.

Today, the furniture market in China is considered as the world’s largest exporter and manufacturer of furniture products. In 2016, the turnover was more than 35 billion of dollars and the market is expected to increase more and more for the next 5 years.

The Furniture Market in China is highly competitive with more than 60 000 brands.

But, China is changing and now, China is not only an exporter and producer but more and more a consumer market. The increase of the wealth and the opening of the country to the western countries change everything. Consumers are now really attentive to their interior, the decoration and furnitures in China. Chinese consumers like buy online and be delivered and of course, they like foreign brands.

SEGMENTATION OF THE FURNITURE MARKET

Because brands are so numerous on the furniture market in China, supply is very diversified. Products can be divided in 2 different parts :

• Residential furnitures wich include furnitures of house like table and chairs, bed, sofa… It’s mainly for a B2C target.
• Non Residential Furnitures wich are more for a B2B target like offices, restaurants, hospitals, hostel and more others.

THE CHINESE CONSUMER

If you have to understand one thing in China is that the concept of face is really important. Everything is about how you look, how you are for the others. And because the « face » influence their life, it’s also influence their consumption behaviors.

Their housing are an image of them, that’s why they will do everything they can to have the best interior.

International furniture brands are very popular in China because they are reputated to be better in quality and chinese consumers are very concerned about quality because the chinese market is crowded of couterfeits.

The chinese consumer is very particular. Whatever the amount of his purchase, he will always try to find informations about the brand to be sure of the quality and the reliability of his purchase.

However, the new consumer generations are very differents and want new aesthetics. The chinese style is a bit dead and they prefer a new and modern western style. And also, buy internation products to show your wealth.

THREE MAIN GROUPS OF TARGETS

“The Avid Consumers”:

• A rich group of consumers with high incomes
• No concern for prices
• Interest for Western Style, Classical Chinese style or avant-garde furniture.

 “Luxury Consumers”:

• High interest for brands
• Furniture which can reflect their taste and style
• Seek for trends in markets, aesthetics, lifestyle.

“Average Consumers”:

• Represents the largest categories of consumers
• Search for best quality / price
• Purchase of proximity

CONSUMPTION TRENDS OF THE CHINESE FURNITURE MARKET

Kids furniture market

• Kids are treat as emperors in China, parents will buy everything to make them happy.
• Increase of family income: The desire of parents to improve the living conditions of their children. 72% of Chinese parents purchase furniture for their kids.

Eco-Friendly trend

• Chinese consumers are more and more concerned about environmental products. They understand that their country is very polluated and they want to change that. That’s why they are very sensitive for environmentally friendly products. They are ready to invest and pay a higher price for this category of furniture.
• The eco-friendly products are supported by the Chinese government, which has a strong interest in the country’s environmental issues.

Soft Decoration: the New Style

• Characterized by the decorative attributes that can be found in homes (curtains, lighting, ornaments, frames and paintings).
• This favors the development of furniture and personalized services.
• Target group of consumers seeking refinement, change and distinction.
• Home made and DIY furniture are becoming more popular among Chinese consumers.

Offices and Hotels also want Western Furnitures

• Western style aesthetic with spacious and open areas.
• A willingness to offer comfortable working place by purchasing premium furniture.
• The need to change for hotels their furniture and decorations every five years (demand of furniture replacement is about 13 billion RMB in 2017).

FIRST STEP : UNDERSTAND HOW THE DISTRIBUTION WORKS IN CHINA

Usually, when chinese consumers buy furnitures, they go to furniture shops or supermarkets.

For the imported products, they are mainly sale in specialized shops or premium shopping malls.

But, the e-commerce is increasing and gain in awareness because e-commerce provide to consumers, new shopping experiences.

The e-commerce in China is quickly growing and offers many opportunities for foreign brands.

The key : be creative, you have to create a universe where the consumer can project himself.

In China, everything goes quickly, you need to be very fast to be the first one.

You also have the M-commerce, really popular on the furniture market. The M-commerce create new opportunities for consumers. It’s the perfect balance between distribution supply online and offline. Chinese consumers know how to do a lot of reseachs online before buying someting. The online part allows them to find information.

The online chinese furniture market should be a vector of stimulation in the close future. The number of online shoppers in China contribute to this increasing.

HOW TO PROMOTE YOUR FURNITURE BRAND IN CHINA?

You have a lot of different ways to improve your furniture brand in China, but I will give you the main key to develop your brand image and awereness to target the chinese consumers and increase your sales.

SEO ON CHINESE SEARCH ENGINES

In China, the number one of the search engines is not Google but Baidu with more than 80% of market share. Baidu became THE search engine you need to include in your SEO strategy if you want to succeed on the Chinese market.

The SEO on Baidu is mandatory is you want to build a long-term strategy. 75% of the researchs are doing on Baidu. You have to be visible on Baidu.

How can you do that ? Key words are the key, but they have to be in mandarin because your consumers will always try to find information using mandarin key words.

In addition, your website need to be hosted in china : « .cn » if you want to be ranked on Baidu.

An other factor in China, all your contents have to be responsive design because chinese users are very connected and surf a lot on their smartphones. Thats’s why now, it’s a ranking criteria for search engines in China.

CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE FOR FOREIGN BRANDS

The best way to sale online in China is to sale your products on a cross-border e-commerce platform. These platforms are dedicated to foreign brands. That’s why, when chinese consumers are looking for a products, they consult this kind of platforms.

The main advantage for you is that you don’t need anymore to have an intermediary to sale your products. You can do it directly by yourself.

E-REPUTATION : A PURCHASE CRITERIA IN CHINA

In China, it’s mandatory to invest in a e-reputation strategy.

In China, reputation is everything. Many brands never sale because they didn’t have enough awareness for chinese people. Due to all the scandals, chinese consumers need to be reassured. They no longer trust brands wich doesn’t have a good awareness on internet.

In addition, chinese consumers buy by recommandation of their peers.

Be present online, on the social media, forums, publish contents and encourage consumers to make positive comments about your brand will help you to develop your awareness and improve your brand image.

BE PRESENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA

In China, it’s mandatory to have an Official Account on Social media. The two most popular social media platforms are WeChat and Weibo.

WECHAT

WeChat is the most popular social media with more than 70 million daily users. It’s the perfect place to communicate with your consumers and publish contents. You also have to know that WeChat provides to brands a e-commerce part. You can build your own e-shop and sale directly on the platform.

In China, chinese consumers are used to shared their purchase on their WeChat profil. It’s the good way to improve your awareness and gain recommandations.

WEIBO

Weibo is the second social media platform the most used. It’s a microblogging platform where consumers are used to express theirself. It’s really convinient to communicate with your consumers and potential consumers.

You only have to create your Weibo Official Account wich allow you to develop a strong and smart communication stratey to target a lot of consumers.

KOL – KEY OPINION LEADERS

KOLs are really powerful in China. They are simply users who drive traffic on their pages with good and interesting contents. Chinese consumers love following KOLs on social media and they listen their advices.

You can employ a KOL in you communication strategy. He will be the image of your brand and can help your to develop your image toward chinese consumers.

It’s an effective way to develop your awareness and brand image in China, because chinese consumers trust more KOLs than brands.

SEO EXPERTS

Our focus is to promote your business with your target closely in mind. After all my explanations, you understand that the key to sell online is to have a good image and to be reputable. We’ll use digital tools including: Baidu SEO and SEM, E-PR, Media Buying (DSP) & Community Management. Then, we’ll manage the campaign and assure its optimization & success.

We are experienced on Baidu:

• High knowledges of the Baidu’s functions.
• A ROI-focused agency.
• We are effective.
• We worked with more than 300 western brands.

LEAD GENERATION PROFESSIONALS

We are professionals of the lead generation. To be effective in your lead generation, you need first to develop a good e-reputation. Invest in online advertising and create quality content will help you developing your e-reputation. Finally, measure results to improve your performances.

We are lead generation experienced and we apply it to our agency. We get an average of 350 leads per month (March 2018) by applying the method we offer to companies that use our services.

EXPERTS IN DIGITAL SOLUTIONS

• Website Creation, Development & Auditing.
• Baidu Search Engine Optimization.
• Social Media Marketing (WeChat & Weibo).
• Reputation Management & Community Development.
• Public Relations & Exposure in Chinese E-Media.
• Analytics, monthly reports & analysis from our team of experts.

A ROI-FOCUSED AGENCY

We are a ROI-focused agency. The solution is to attract and also re-target the most qualified traffic in order to increase conversion rates.

A FRENCH AND CHINESE TEAM

We are French and Chinese team, here to help you developing your business in China.

We understand the Chinese professionals: their needs and habits.

We also understand the foreign brands’ difficulties when they tried to enter the Chinese market.

Each member of the team is specialized in a field. They have experience and they are effective.

AND IN BONUS

We are a friendly team, we offer the coffee if you book a meeting with our consultants to discuss about your project in China.

And trust me… our coffee is really good 🙂

ETHNICRAFT

Ethnicraft produces simple, authentic and functional furnitures with contemporary design and respect for the environment and society.

CHALLENGES

• Leads Generation.
• Keywords referenced on Baidu.
• Management of e-reputation.

OUR MISSIONS

• SEO.
• Advertising.
• Press Relations and E-Reputation.

RESULTS

• 12+ Leads per month.
• Keywords «Hight-end tourism» referenced in the top 1.
• High visibility online.

The furniture market in China is a huge and developing market. Chinese consumers have become consumers that must be taken in account. Their purchasing power is growing and does not seem to show signs of weakness.

Many opportunities are available on the market, many companies have made a lot of money, but 50% of them have also failed and you have to be aware of that.

Working with specialists of the Chinese market is the key to success.