Key findings from the study:

• OVERALL: 79% Fortune Global 100 companies are using at least one of the social media platforms, but only 20% are utilizing all four platforms to engage with stakeholders.

• ACROSS PLATFORM: Twitter is the most popular social media tool among Fortune Global 100 companies, with almost two-thirds (65%) having a presence on it. At least one-half are reaching audiences through Facebook (54%) and YouTube (50%). One-third (33%) maintain corporate blogs.

• ACROSS REGION: Companies based in the United States and Europe were most likely to use Twitter (US: 72%, Europe: 71%) or Facebook (US: 69%, Europe: 52%) than they were to have corporate blogs (US: 34%, Europe: 25%), while companies from Asia-Pacific were more likely to utilize corporate blogs (50%) than other forms of social media (Twitter: 40%, Facebook: 40%).

• PRESENCE: On average, the Fortune Global 100 companies have 4.2 Twitter accounts, 2.1 Facebook fan pages, 1.6 YouTube channels and 4.2 corporate blogs.

• ACTIVITY: Companies with active accounts have 27 tweets per week, 3.6 Facebook posts per week, 10 new YouTube videos per month and 7 blog posts per month. Within the last week (during the period of data collection) 82% had tweeted and 59% had posted content on their Facebook fan page. And in the prior month, 68% had posted a video on YouTube and 36% had posted an entry on a corporate blog.

• ENGAGEMENT: Companies using Twitter were following an average of 731 people each, and 38% of companies were responding to people’s tweets. 32% have also “re-tweeted” or reposted user comments during the last week.

Unfortunately, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube have been blocked in China till now. So I don’t have any comment on regard to local insight.

“This report’s findings show how China’s netizens are already discussing many aspects Shanghai Expo, from tickets to pavilions to sponsors,” said Thomas Crampton, Asia-Pacific Director, 360 Digital Influence, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide. “Chinese consumers can make or break brands online, so listening is the first step to developing a powerful strategy to engage them.”

“China has one of the world’s highest levels of engagement within social media, with brands featuring in many discussions,” said Sam Flemming, chairman and founder of CIC. “Anyone looking to truly understand Chinese consumers – and the digital world that is so important to them – can find no better place than social media.”

The report, ExpoSay, tracked 128,854 Expo-related comments taken from 13,994 blogs, bulletin boards, news and social networking sites in the Chinese Internet space during December 2009. Ticket-related topics were the subject of most online Expo chatter.

Ten key findings from this report:

1. BBS were the most popular platform to discuss Expo, followed by blogs. These two platforms accounted for 68% of total buzz.

2. Expo buzz peaked during Week 2 (Dec. 8-14) after an announcement of an impending price increase (from 140 RMB to 150 RMB) of the Expo ticket. The news quickly brought predictable criticism and became a hot topic for discussion.

3. Phrases about “what (price) to buy” and “how to buy” became the most frequently associated keywords with “Shanghai Expo Ticket”.

4. Among the buzz around buying a ticket, “way to buy” and “place to buy” became hot topics. Group purchases and online purchases are the most common way to buy a ticket.

5. Expo tickets has become a hot incentive for various brand campaigns and organization activities. Happy awarded netizens were showing off their tickets online.

6. Mobile phone tickets are expected to change purchase modes. Discussions centered around the benefits of the
RFID SIM card (as a mobile credit card), the mobile device (whether it supports the card or not) and where to get a mobile phone ticket (which service halls sell the card).

7. Expo Global Partners including China Mobile, General Motors, Bank of Communications and State Grid accounted for almost 50 per cent of buzz among all sponsors.

8. Nonsponsors were the subject of more than 80% of buzz, primarily due to content contributions from Sina, Sohu and Netease, all of which are major Chinese portals and competitors of senior sponsor QQ.

9. Taipei overtook Hong Kong as the second most discussed city among Netizens when pop singer Wang LeeHom was named goodwill ambassador for the Taipei Pavilion.

10. USA overtook Japan to be the most mentioned country as news of movie star Jackie Chan’s imminent appearance on a Shanghai World Expo float in the Rose Bowl Parade broke in December.

The Economist recently issued a special report on social networking. The report, A World of Connections, provides a clear and high-level overview of the development/status of social networking sites and how they impact brand advertising, corporate internal communication, small business, talent search & recruitment, and privacy.

The content probably nothing new to digital marketing savvy and social media guru, but trust me, it is worth reading. As always, The Economist special report can help you neaten your knowledge and its flow.

I. Netizen Size

The number of Chinese netizens reached 384 million. Among them, 60.8% have accessed the Internet via mobile phones, the size almost double within one year.

• The total number of netizens in China had increased to 384 million | 28.9% increase YoY
• The Internet penetration rate reached 28.9% | 27.9% increase YoY
• 346 million netizens (90.1% of total) access the Internet via broadband | 28.1% increase YoY
• 233 million netizens (60.8% of total) access the Internet via mobile phones | 97.5% increase YoY

.
II. Netizen Demographic

With the “Xiao-Xiao-Tong” Internet popularization program by Ministry of Education, the number of schoolchild netizens grew sharply in 2009. In addition, 30 – 49 years old with stable income is the main class of Chinese netizens.

• Gender:

- 54.2% male netizens and 45.8% female netizens | fluctuated from 52.5% : 47.5%

• Age:

- 1.1% under 10 | 175% increase YoY
- 31.8% between 10 – 19 | 9.7% decrease YoY
- 28.6% between 20 – 29 | 9.2% decrease YoY
- 21.5% between 30 – 39 | 22.2% increase YoY
- 10.7% between 40 – 49 | 11.5% increase YoY
- 4.5% between 50 – 59 | 7.1% increase YoY
- 1.9% 60 or older | 26.7% increase YoY

• Education:

- 8.8% with elementary or lower | 63.0% increase YoY
- 26.8% with up to middle school | 4.3% increase YoY
- 40.2% with up to high school or basic technical training | 2.0% decrease YoY
- 12.2% with college school | 12.2% decrease YoY
- 12.1% with a bachelors degree or higher | 8.3% decrease YoY

• Profession:

- 28.8% Students | 13.3% decrease YoY
- 7.5% Employees in Party, government, and institute | 27.2% decrease YoY
- 3.1% Managers | 31.1% decrease YoY
- 15.0% Enterprise Staff | same
- 10.4% Technical professionals | 19.5% increase YoY
- 2.4% Rural migrant workers | 7.7 decrease YoY
- 4.4% Workers in industries and service industries | 120% increase YoY
- 13.0% Self-employed/Freelancer | 5.1% decrease YoY
- 2.8% Agricultural, forestry, husbandry, fishery laborers | 21.7% increase YoY
- 2.1% Retirees | 5.0% increase YoY
- 9.8% Jobless, laid-off and unemployed people | 78.2% increase YoY
- 0.8% Others

• Income (RMB):

10.0% no income | 566.7% increase YoY
18.0% Under 500 | 30.8% decrease YoY
14.5% 500 – 1000 | 10.5% decrease YoY
13.7% 1000 – 1500 | 14.4% decrease YoY
13.4% 1500 – 2000 | 2.9% decrease YoY
15.4% 2000 – 3000 | 12.4% increase YoY
9.3% 3000 – 5000 | 16.3% increase YoY
2.7% 5000 – 8000 | 6.9% decrease YoY
2.9% Above 8000 | 52.6% increase YoY

• Structure:

- 72.2% urban netizens, and 27.8% rural netizens | fluctuated from 71.6% : 28.4%

.

III. Netizen Behavior (Internet Access)

Home is the main place netizens browse Internet. Less people go to Internet Cafes while more people surfing the Internet in their office. Mobile becomes a main device for netizens, one reason is mobile phone has a much higher penetration rate than computers in China, especially those underdeveloped districts.

• Access Places:

- 83.2% from home | 6.1% increase YoY
- 35.1% from Internet cafes | 20.8 decrease YoY
- 30.2% from office | 45.9% increase YoY

• Access Time:

- average 18.7 hours a week | up from 16.6 hours

• Access Devices:

- 73.4% via desktop computers | 17.9 decreased YoY
- 60.8% via mobile phones | 53.9% increase YoY
- 30.7% via laptop computers | 10.4% increase YoY
- 0.5% via other devices

.

IV. Netizen Behavior (Internet Application)

Search engine service replaced instant messaging service to be the 3rd top online application. Social networking service is a lightspot in 2009, which reduced the popularity of IM and BBS. Online gaming and shopping kept a sustaining growth rate. Financial related applications like online banking, paying, and stock speculation increased most significantly. Although the overall rate of online travel reservation isn’t high yet, the growth is really rapid.

• Popular Internet Applications:

- 83.5% netizens are using online music service | 0.2% decrease YoY
- 80.1% netizens are using online news service | 2.0% increase YoY
- 73.3% netizens are using search engine service | 7.8% increase YoY
- 70.9% netizens are using instant messaging service | 5.8% decrease YoY
- 68.9% netizens are using online gaming service | 9.7% increase YoY
- 62.6% netizens are using online video service | 7.3% decrease YoY
- 57.7% netizens are using blog service (on both BSP & SNS) | 6.3% increase YoY
- 56.8% netizens are using email service | same
- 45.8% netizens are using social networking service | N/A
- 42.3% netizens are using net literature| N/A
- 30.5% netizens are using forum / BBS service | 0.7% decrease YoY
- 28.1% netizens are using online shopping service | 13.3% increase YoY
- 24.5% netizens are using online banking service | 26.9% increase YoY
- 24.5% netizens are using online paying service | 39.2% increase YoY
- 14.8% netizens are using online stock speculation service | 29.8% increase YoY
- 7.9% netizens are using online travel reservation | 41.1% increase YoY

.

V. Mobile Internet

The penetration of mobile Internet was very high, but it was still dominated by traditional messaging and information based applications. However, mobile search was a star point for marketers and music kept the popularity.

• Base:

- 233 million mobile netizens (60.8% of total netizens)

• Popular Mobile Applications:

- 77.8% mobile netizens are using mobile instant messaging
- 75.4% mobile netizens are reading mobile information (WAP news, SMS/MMS newspaper, and e-novel)
- 55.2% mobile netizens are using mobile search engine
- 50.4% mobile netizens are listening/downloading mobile music content
- 22.8% mobile netizens are connecting to mobile social networking
- 19.3% mobile netizens are playing mobile online game
- 18.4% mobile netizens are using mobile email service
- 16.5% mobile netizens are watching mobile TV

.

Below is the full report (in Chinese), and you can also download it here in PDF.

Google Inc., owner of the most popular Internet search engine, is considering shutting its Chinese Web site and offices after discovering a “highly sophisticated” attack last month aimed at gaining access to e-mail accounts of human-rights activists.

In investigating the attack, Google said it discovered that at least 20 other large companies in industries such as finance, technology, media and chemicals had been targeted. The company also said it plans to stop censoring results on its Google.cn site and hold talks with Chinese authorities.

Click here to continue reading reading the new on BusinessWeek.

Around the noon, the Google.cn search results indicate the search giant may have already stopped filtering.

For more updated information, please keep following the HASH tag #GoogleCN on Twitter.

In December, automobile brands were still the major players, as well as FMCG brands. I’m very excited to see more and more domestic brands like Chery, Harbin Beer, and Zhonghua Toothpaste started investing in viral marketing and presented very cool video clips. 2010 is the year of Expo and World Cup, so Coca-Cola and Adidas delivered relevant videos respectively at the end of 2009.

1. “Theory of Relativity” | New Regal / BUICK / Shanghai GM

View: 963,636 | Comment: 173 | Favorited: 169 | Embed: 426

2. “The Fatty’s Love Story” | smart / Mercedes-Benz

View: 243,342 | Comment: 232 | Favorited: 79 | Embed: 238

3. “The Beauty Comes Across The Most Tough Egg” | Chery A3

View: 1,821,951 | Comment: 1,243 | Favorited: 172 | Embed: 771

4. “If You Are The One” | Chery Fengyun II

View: 901,858 | Comment: 816 | Favorited: 399 | Embed: 228

5. “Swiping The Card Amazingly” |  Mobile Phone with Public Transportation Card Inside / China Unicom

View: 1,719,943 | Comment: 62 | Favorited: 7 | Embed: 155,284

6. “The Most Impressive Launch” | e-surfing 3G / China Telecom

View: 879,009 | Comment: 500 | Favorited: 1,157 | Embed: 2,885

7. “School Beauty Throwing Famous-branded Goods” | Zhonghua Toothpaste / Unilever China

View: 1,258,797 | Comment: 53 | Favorited: 177 | Embed: 5,233

8. “-34℃” | Harbin Beer

View: 1,090,038 | Comment: 239 | Favorited: 341 | Embed: 23,076

9. “Blind Date” | Mengniu (果蔬酸酸乳)

View: 1,058,368 | Comment: 717 | Favorited: 951 | Embed: 811

10. “The Best Medicine for Mania” | Mengniu (果蔬酸酸乳)

View: 442,899 | Comment: 250 | Favorited: 61 | Embed: 96

11. “Happiness in China – Our Dream” | Coca-Cola Shanghai Expo2010

View: 406,068 | Comment: 479 | Favorited: 12 | Embed: 11

12. “The Lionheart of Lampard” | Adidas Football

View: 476,943 | Comment: 35 | Favorited: 70 | Embed: 128

Any time, when you come across a Chinese viral video, please do me a favor to dig it out. You just need to send the video URL to EYES-ON-ME@in2marcom.com, I will add it to the monthly list. I believe EYES ON ME will be a comprehensive and authentic highlight for China Viral Video under everybody’s collaboration. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

ChinaMode is the first grassroots award to encourage innovative Internet and mobile applications and services in China, initiated by OpenWeb.Asia and operated by the 14 most influential Chinese tech bloggers Appin, Williamlong, Web20share, Kenengba, Jandan, MobiNode, Webleon, Showeb20, Vista2.o, Yunkeji, Riku, Herock, China Web2.0 Review and MobiNode.TV.

Who are the real winners, which application and services are the most valuable ones and which are the most innovative startups in 2009, now their names are in Chinese Internet users’ hands. Details of this awards, including nomination details, award categories and etc, will be available on the official site on 15th Dec, 2009.

In November, some brands utilized viral video as a channel to promote their campaigns. Chevrolet again delivered a new video for the “CRUZE, Chasing in Marcao” campaign. RedBull produced five rough clips for the “It’s Time for RedBull” campaign and P&G made a clip for a campaign of LivingArtist. Castrol kicked off its 2010 World Cup sponsorsip program through three well-done videos. This month, some IT brands also stood out, including IBM Cognos, Lenovo ThinkPad, and Lenovo IdeaPad. Last but not least, 2009 ONE SHOW (CHINA) Young Ceative Competition generated a lot of awesome viral videos for HP, the sponsor of the competition.

1. “Chasing in Marcao – The Bounty Hunter” | CRUZE / CHEVROLET / Shanghai GM

View: 817,297 | Comment: 194 | Favorited: 15 | Embed: 22

2. “It’s Time for RedRull – Watch Derby Match” | RedBull

View: 384,476 | Comment: 138 | Favorited: 5 | Embed: N/A

3. “It’s Time for RedBull – Make Your Husband Love Shopping” | RedBull

View: 233,256 | Comment: 180 | Favorited: 16 | Embed: N/A

4. “It’s Time for RedBull – Chase Beautiful Girl” | RedBull

View: 308,172 | Comment: 193 | Favorited: 22 | Embed: N/A

5. “It’s Time for RedBull – Play Mahjong” | RedBull

View: 176,770 | Comment: 122 | Favorited: 3 | Embed: N/A

6. “It’s Time for RedBull – Hang Out in The Night Club” | RedBull

View: 229,185 | Comment: 146 | Favorited: 5 | Embed: N/A

7. “Kleif Makes Professional Spa at Home” | P&G LivingArtist

View: 212,138 | Comment: 550 | Favorited: 352 | Embed: 118

8. “A Middle-aged Lady Juggle The Tofu” | Castrol

View: 1,604,643 | Comment: 71 | Favorited: 194 | Embed: 118,281

9. “A Man Juggle The Briquet” |  Castrol

View: 586,968 | Comment: 8 | Favorited: 19 | Embed: 352

10. “A Boy Juggle The Shoe” | Castrol

View: 931,648 | Comment: 16 | Favorited: 39 | Embed: 1,688

11. “Magic” | IBM Cognos

View: 81,691 | Comment: 34 | Favorited: 8 | Embed: 184

12. “38,756 Piece of Stickies” | Lenovo ThinkPad

View: 973,083 | Comment: 348 | Favorited: 366 | Embed: 373

13. “The Zebra Girl – UU” | Lenovo IdeaPad

View: 1,001,518 | Comment: 1,164 | Favorited: 306 | Embed: 152

14. 2009 ONE SHOW (CHINA) Young Ceative Competition – viral video for HP MyStage
please click here to check out all the finalist videos (very awesome)

Any time, when you come across a Chinese viral video, please do me a favor to dig it out. You just need to send the video URL to  EYES-ON-ME@in2marcom.com, I will add it to the monthly list. I believe EYES ON ME will be a comprehensive and authentic highlight for China Viral Video under everybody’s collaboration. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

The campaign started with creating a profile page of the store’s manager, Gordon Gustavsson. Then Gordon uploaded 12 pictures of store’s showrooms to his photo album. Within a two-weeks period, the person who tagged their names on a product first can won the item. Through the campaign, people gladly added their name to an “interactive IKEA catalogue” and spread to all of their friends via FB profile page, newsfeed, links, etc.

Check out below video, it is a great animated showcase.

Regrettably, today I read a post by Mandi Bateson which said Facebook wouldn’t allow such competition any more due to its new promotion guidelines:

Two weeks ago Facebook changed their promotion guidelines to only allow competitions through applications and only with prior consent from Facebook. This means no 25 words or less responses to status updates, no uploading photos to walls, no using fan profile photos nor even referencing Facebook as part of the competition.

The findings in this study are based on comprehensive qualitative and quantitative offline research conducted by CIC in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu. Topic 3 looks to evaluate consumer online behavior and provide suggestions for how brands can participate in online communities based on these consumer preferences. Below are some top-line findings and highlights from the study.

Do netizens want companies to listen to IWOM and participate in online communities?
The majority of netizens are positive towards companies listening to IWOM and participating in online communities.

• 52.7% of netizens interviewed responded positively to the idea of companies listening to IWOM.
• 47.2% of respondents do want companies to participate in online communities so that they can communicate with the companies directly.

About 40% of respondents are indifferent to companies listening and participation with concerns over the sincerity and motivations of companies’ listening to IWOM and participating in online communities.

How should companies participate in online communities?
Based on the research, netizens’ online communication platform preferences are as follows:

• 68% of respondents prefer to communicate with brands on third-party BBS over other platforms.
• 37.3% of respondents prefer to communicate with brands on company BBS hosted on an official website.
• 24.5% of respondents prefer to communicate with brands on a company blog hosted on an official website.
• 10.8% of respondents prefer to communicate with brands on a company blog hosted on a third-party website.

CIC recommends that companies abide by the following e-community participation principles: be transparent about their participation, use friendly behavior, avoid interrupting the community dynamic, respect efluencers’ independence and be fair in response to complaints.

What kinds of online campaigns will attract netizens’ participation?
Based on the research, CIC found consumer preferences for campaign activities and rewards.

• Entertainment-driven activities are the most attractive to netizens overall, followed by product experience activities.
• Male respondents had more passion towards communication-driven activities and lottery driven activities; female respondents preferred product experience and event-driven activities.
• Cash or gift items were the most attractive rewards to netizens, followed by opportunities to join offline activities and free product trials.
• Male netizens care more about the emotional satisfaction of being recognized during the activity; female netizens prefer more practical incentives such as financial incentives or experience opportunities.

Below is the full report:

Send me a message to jason.zhanjia@in2marcom.com if you want a PDF version.

Disclosure: CIC was my former employer from August 2006 to June 2009.

Following last month’s heavy podcast, automobile brands like FAW Volkswagen and Shanghai Volkswagen still actively took advantage of viral videos to promote their new models in October. The other two major product launches in this month were the Windows 7 and China Unicom’s iPhone, of course Microsoft, China Unicom, and Apple won’t forget to made viral clips to catch as much attention as possible. At the same time, Unilever’s Lipton brand contributed some cool videos produced by AKQA.

1. “Let Designer Tell You About Golf 6″ | GOLF6 / FAW Volkswagen

2. “Crazy Car Trilogy – Episode 2: Save Energy” | SUPERB / SKODA / Shanghai Volkswagen

“Crazy Car Trilogy – Episode 1: Parking Disturbance”

3. “It’s Your PC, Simplified” | Microsoft, Windows 7

4. “iPhone and WO” | China Unicom

5. “An Introduction to iPhone 3GS” | Apple, iPhone 3GS

6. “Happy Afternoon In The Office: Sugar + Red Tea” | Unilever, Lipton

7. “Happy Afternoon In The Office: Lemon + Red Tea” | Unilever, Lipton

8. “Happy Afternoon In The Office: Milk + Red Tea” | Unilever, Lipton

Any time, when you come across a Chinese viral video, please do me a favor to dig it out. You just need to send the video URL to EYES-ON-ME@in2marcom.com, I will add it to the monthly list. I believe EYES ON ME will be a comprehensive and authentic highlight for China Viral Video under everybody’s collaboration. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

Without a key feature of WiFi connectivity and at higher prices than widely available black market models, China Unicom’s iPhones are absolutely not able to satisfy Chinese consumers. As a result, it is ridiculed as a “castrated iPhone”. I came across below cartoon last night. It is a classic visualization of such satire.

According to Baidu Index, the media attention rate of China Unicom’s iPhone has increased 200% in this week, while the consumer attention rate has only grown 51%. Can China Unicom meet its goal of selling 5 million iPhones in three years?

some related reading material
FINANCIAL TIMES: iPhone hits the shelves officially in China
CBS NEWS: iPhone Comes to China without WiFi
WSJ: Chant in Beijing: ‘iPhone! iPhone!’

Currently, Effect Ripple is seeking an online community manager who is responsible for developing client schedules and leading a social networking team. The candidate will also need to help develop creative online campaigns around the online communities.

Position: Online Community Manager (Shanghai)

Responsibilities:

• Serve as the primary point of contact for multiple communities and provide best practice guidance in the areas of content and service development, event programming, online facilitation, member outreach, etc.
• Drive to completion, from investigation to delivery, initiatives that use community, social networking, and other technologies to increase community participation.
• Develop and post interactive content that encourages participation and the development of member-generated content to ensure that the community is achieving its objectives.
• Monitor and moderate community participation to ensure that rules of engagement are adhered to.
• Provide tracking and metrics to communicate and validate the community interaction.

Requirements:

• Bachelors degree; 3+ years experience in Online Product Marketing / Management, Communities or Self Service Support Programs in a high tech company.
• Overwhelming passion for today’s social networking and collaboration technologies.
• Experience building online interaction among members of a large-scale technical community around novel and complex technologies.
• Experience with, and passion for, creating and consuming new content types: websites, blogs, podcasts, wikis, etc.
• Specific experience identifying and utilizing appropriate content streams: transcripts, articles, surveys, web seminars, podcasts, wikis, blogs, etc.
• Strong interpersonal skills with a desire to work cross-functionally and in teams.
• A self-starter with the willingness, and desire, to roll up your sleeves’ and get the job done.
• Proven history of developing new, sustainable processes.
• Preference for working in a fast paced, entrepreneurial, start-up environment.

Salary: Depending on experience; probation is required.

If you are qualified and interested in this job, you can send your resume to jobs@EffectRipple.com. Please also refer to IN2marcom in the email.

Key findings in China Digital Brand Index:

• 173,533 online conversations pertaining to 67 large technology brands, contained within 779 influential channels monitored between July and September 2009.
• Nokia and Samsung topped the rankings by way of volume of conversations. The top ten most mentioned technology brands are as below.
  1. Nokia | 19,907 mentions
  2. Samsung | 14,598 mentions
  3. Google | 11,910 mentions
  4. Microsoft | 9,632 mentions
  5. Sony | 7,526 mentions
  6. HTC | 7,247 mentions
  7. Oracle | 6,512 mentions
  8. Sony Ericsson | 6,228 mentions
  9. Dell | 5,834 mentions
  10. MSN | 5,514 mentions
• With 3.0 brand mentions for every person, Sony Ericsson, led Oracle (2.8) in terms individual engagement across the 67 brands researched.
• While a number of examples of brands engaging with bloggers were found over the three month research period, no proactive examples of engagement with forums or news sites, which constitute 98.34% of all conversations monitored could be found.

For more details and market-by-market fact sheet downloads, link here.

For more insights and implications from DBI, link here to a blog post by John Kerr, Edelman Digital Asia Pacific head.

To better understand the methodology of this research, link here. (I think this is very essential)

1. Overall Attention

Baidu Index indicated that both consumer attention and media attention of Windows 7 increased significantly with the product launch and reached a peak on October 23. After then, media attention dropped immediately while consumer attention still kept in a high level.

2. Geograhpy

Baidu Index showed Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou were the top three cities where consumers search Windows 7 most. Shenzhen, Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Nanjing, and Chongqing were the followings.

3. Demography

Among the people who had search Windows 7:

- gender: 88.86% were male, while only 11.14% were female;
- age: teenage and young adult were the major population;
- profession: IT professionals and academicians/students dominated, follow by telecom/network professionals, media/entertainment professionals, and finance/property professionals;
- education: high school students and people who hold a bachelors degree or higher were the most.

4. Hot search keywords

The top ten Windows 7 related search keywords in October are:

1. Windows 7 download
2. Windows 7 final version
3. Windows 7 Ultimate
4. activate Windows 7
5. Windows 7 activation
6. the download of Windows 7 operation system
7. Windows 7 theme
8. Windows7 Master (a Chinese Win7 system optimization software)
9. home of Windows 7 (a Chinese Win7 forum – iwindows7.com)
10. the price of Windows 7

The top ten increased search keywords with the launch of Windows 7 are:

1. Windows 7 Ultimate
2. Windows 7 final version
3. Windows 7 oem version
4. the launch of Windows 7
5. the price of Windows 7
6. Windows 7 download
7. Windows 7 7600 activation
8. Windows 7 msdn
9. Windows 7 installation
10. Windows 7 activation

The results indicate that how to get a pirated Windows 7 is Chinese consumers’ biggest concern.

5. Hot online buzz

Windows 7 online discussion increased considerably with the launch, according to the data from Qihoo BBS & Blog search. The top three Chinese Windows 7 forums PCBETA.com, iWindows7.com, and Win7c.com generated 25,000, 2,400, and 2,550 average daily posts respectively.

Just similar as the popular search objectives, the hottest Windows 7 buzz angles were about where to download a pirated copy of Windows 7 (esp. the ultimate version), what should be paid attention during the installation, and how to active the pirated Windows 7 successfully via different methods (e.g. crack software, OEM key).

Actually, copies of Microsoft’s new Windows 7 operating system were already available in the market a week before its official launch, which cost 10-20 yuan ($1.5-3). If you even want to save such little money, various versions of copies (from home to ultimate, from Chinese to English) are free to download through Internet. You can continue to read Reuters’ special coverage “Software pirates hijack Windows 7 China debut” to get more info about this situation.

Blog Action Day

Blog Action Day 2009 will be one of the largest-ever social change events on the web. With thousands and thousands of web sites pledging to post today, the 15th of October, millions of readers from over 140 countries will find out a great deal more about this years topic of climate change.

This December world leaders will gather in Copenhagen to negotiate a global response to climate change. As a world leader in greenhouse gas pollution as well as clean energy technology, the United States needs to take bold action by implementing comprehensive clean energy policies to curb emissions. This is a chance for people around the world and in the United States to join together in telling President Obama that we want him to lead the United States in taking bold and significant action to reduce greenhouse gasses.

Time is running out, and our planet can’t afford to wait. IN2marcom encourages you join in and take action!

In addition to the previous Nonopanda and Super Baozi, a new one catches my eyes recently.

Xiexielong is a new online cartoon character created by a young creative collective called Dong Li Fang (動立方). The team, lead by Zhejiang University of Media and Communications graduate Pangjun, currently has six Beijing-based members.

On October 4th, Dong Li Fang issued it’s latest animation piece, titled Xiexielong’s Private College Diary: Let’s Reminiscence on Tudou and Youku. Check it out below. You will find it contains quite a few obscure Chinese 80-generation cultural references. For example, teasing TV series of our youth, like Legend of the White Snake, Growing Pains, and even the more recent TV show Super Girl.

This post was originally published on NeochaEDGE, a site I regularly contribute to. NeochaEDGE is a daily-curated, bilingual website and discovery engine dedicated to showcasing leading-edge creative content and emerging youth culture in China. To see more of my posts on NeochaEDGE, click here.

Position: Education Online Community Manager (Beijing) | Dell

Responsibilities:

• Listen Actively & Engage Online: As a community advocate, the community managers’ primary role is to represent the customer. This includes monitoring, actively listening in both the Dell community areas as well as external websites.
• Brand Evangelist: The community manager will promote events, products and news to customers by using traditional marketing tactics and conversational discussions. As a trusted member of the community the individual offers balanced opinions on products or services.
• Dell Community Management & Community Building: The community manager should familiar with the tools of online communication, from forums, to blogs, to podcasts, to twitter.
• Editorial Planning: The role is responsible for the editorial strategy and planning in APJ and will work with many internal stakeholders to identify content, plan, publish, and follow up. Ensures internationally focused content and has sights on a global audience. Creates editorial content in English and Chinese languages (and other languages as appropriate). Creative skills such as feature writing, photography and video are a regular part of the role.

Qualifications:

• BA/BS or equivalent experience
• 5-7 years of experience in education, customer facing or communications background.
• B2B social media and online communications experience
• Background working in customer service or in an education or public sector environment would be desirable.
• Excellent written English and native Chinese
• Languages (Japanese/Korean) would be desirable
• Comfortable with technology and natural interest in trying new social media tools.

If you are interested and qualified in this job, please go to Dell official website to apply it.

For more China social media jobs info on IN2marcom, link here.

Razorfish was acquired by Microsoft as part of its acquisition of aQuantive, but functioned as an independent company. On August 9th, 2009, Microsoft sold the firm to Publicis Groupe. In China, Razorfish purchased Hong Kong and Shanghai based e-Crusade in October 2006 to enter the Greater China market. On March 1st, 2009, e-Crusade rebranded to Razorfish (China).

Currently, Razorfish is looking for a Beijing-based social media manager who is to work on IT & technology clients like Microsoft.

Position: Social Media Manager (Beijing)

Responsibility:

• Develop and implement social media plan for our clients, which will include IWOM (internet word of mouth program), influencers marketing, partnership program with communities and web2.0 websites.
• Come up programs and partnerships ideas with portals and community websites, work out the details with partners, monitor progress and make any adjustment to deliver good results. The programs will can be tactical or long-term and be in various formats like user generated content, viral campaign, etc. to engage consumers on special topics on the brands / campaigns.
• Develop and implement seeding plan, monitor and moderate participations and interactions, and make any adjustment if needed.
• Engage influencers in the various social community sites, and develop special partnership and program with them to influence their preference on brands / products / campaigns, and get positive discussion on line.
• Establish performance benchmark of the social media campaigns and measurement methodology. Provide tracking and metrics to communicate and validate the community effectiveness, and prepare reports and presentations to client.

Requirements:

• Strong experience in implementing social media programs in key portals, bbs, communities and web 2.0 websites
• Passionate for today’s trends on social networking, user generated content, web2.0.
• Experience on technology clients and familiar with IT portals and communities will be an advantage.
• Experience with, and passion for, creating and consuming new content types: websites, blogs, podcasts, wikis, etc.
• Strong relationship with community sites, web2.0 sites, influencers, to able to implement interesting and unique campaigns.
• Experience handling international brands will be an added advantage
• Good English and good presentation skill will be an advantage.
• A self-starter with the willingness and desire to roll up your sleeves and get the job done.
• Self-motivated showing strong sense of ownership, and enjoy satisfaction of implementing your ideas/plans and see the results.

If you are qualified and interested in this job, please send your resume to jobs@in2marcom.com and DO include “Razorfish Social Media Manager” in your email title.

Disclosure: Razorfish is my current employer. I am the head of social media China.

Last month, China Mobile and Hyundai Motor presented most viral videos. This month, they kept producing a significant number of new clips. As usual, automobile brands keep investing heavily in creating viral videos targeting their young and digital-savvy consumers, all the videos are highly entertaining and engagingactive. In addition, many domestic brands start spread the word through viral video.

1. “The Change” | China Mobile

View: 337,798 |  Comment: 106  |  Favorited: 232  |  Embed: 145

2. “Mobile Changes Life” | China Mobile

3. “Crazy Mobile Video” | China Mobile

4. “Miss Bean Comes Across Obscene Man” | ELANTRA / (Beijing) Hyundai Motor

View: 841,549 | Comment: 259 | Favorited: 232 | Embed: 280

5. “How Does The 4S Store Salesman Chase The Girl” | (Beijing) Hyundai Motor

View: 749,218 | Comment: 2,046 | Favorited: 821 | Embed: 1,052

6. “Discover Love” | ACCENT / (Beijing) Hyundai Motor

View: 121,480 | Comment: 119 | Favorited: 199 | Embed: 199

7. “Drifting and Chasing” | CRUZE / CHEVROLET / (Shanghai) General Motors

View: 627,550 | Comment: 335 | Favorited: 402 | Embed: 814

8. “Prison Break” | CRUZE / CHEVROLET / (Shanghai) General Motors

View: 126,633 | Comment: 46 | Favorited: 10 | Embed: 22

9. “Prison Break – Behind The Scene” | CRUZE / CHEVROLET/ (Shanghai) General Motors

View: 192,682 | Comment: n/a | Favorited: 78 | Embed: 69

10. “Crazy Car Trilogy – Episode 1: Parking Disturbance” | SUPERB / SKODA / (Shanghai) Volkswagen

View: 1,102,731 | Comment: 362 | Favorited: 215 | Embed: 569

11. “Crazy Racing Car” | C-QUATRE / CITROEN

View: 1,455,359 | Comment: 577 | Favorited: 1,002 | Embed: 692

12. “Parkour at Street” | BUICK / (Shanghai) General Motors

View: 692,244 | Comment: 569 | Favorited: 484 | Embed: 488

13. “Transformers Dances as Michael Jackson” | Nokia 6700c

View: 92,543 | Comment: 14 | Favorited: 12 | Embed: 5,377

14. “Daddy Day Care” | HP Total Care

15. “How Does The After-90s Wrap His Book” | Asus UX30

View: 2,574,385 | Comment: 2,442 | Favorited: 2,384 | Embed: 61,641

16. “Why It’s Me Again” | China Merchants Bank Credit Card

View: 1,101,676 | Comment: 257 | Favorited: 2 | Embed: 13,483

17. “Stop Messing with Your Boyfriend” | Gome

View: 108,031 | Comment: 36 | Favorited: 47 | Embed: 6,178

18. “Astrology Whitebook – Chapter 1: Taurus Girl with Virgo Boy” | Midea Fruit & Vegetable Washer

View: 616,782 | Comment: 704 | Favorited: 816 | Embed: 991

19. “Astrology Whitebook – Chapter 2: Cancer Girl with Scorpio Boy” | Midea Microwave Oven

View: 873,860 | Comment: 914 | Favorited: 592 | Embed: 814

20. “Astrology Whitebook – Chapter 3: Pisces Girl with Pisces Boy” | Midea Oven

View: 751,406 | Comment: 2,102 | Favorited: 1,959 | Embed: 3,030

21. “My First Lover and My Wife (spoofing on the film Sophie’s Revenge)” | Mengniu 新养道

View: 761,401 | Comment: 727 | Favorited: 1,609 | Embed: 6,191

22. “Fan Bingbing and Her Men (spoofing on the film Sophie’s Revenge)” | Mengniu 新养道

View: 442,191 | Comment: 95 | Favorited: 92 | Embed: 178

23. “The Song of Milk (spoofing on the film Sophie’s Revenge)” | Mengniu 新养道

Any time, when you come across a Chinese viral video, please do me a favor to dig it out. You just need to send the video URL to  EYES-ON-ME@in2marcom.com, I will add it to the monthly list. I believe EYES ON ME will be a comprehensive and authentic highlight for China Viral Video under everybody’s collaboration. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

To answer these questions, CIC today releases the second topic titled “How IWOM is generated and disseminated.” In this study CIC found that consumers in online communities not only passively listen to and receive messages, but also proactively post and spread comments about brands and products. According to the research findings, 54.1% of 640 surveyed BBS and blog users will initiate conversations or post comments related to brands/products.

In addition to answering that initial question, CIC also took an in-depth look into the reason as to why consumers generate and disseminate IWOM and discover that 8 main types of motivations exist, the 3 most important being interpersonal communication, self expression and experience sharing, which respectively accounted for 82.7%, 79.5% and 78.9% of 346 BBS and Blog users who post comments on brands/products online and the other 5 types being community status (54.6%), helping others (53.2%), upholding justice (45.4%), work related (44.2%) and seeking help (25.4%).

You can read this white paper in full below via Slideshare:

Send me a message to jason.zhanjia@in2marcom.com if you want a PDF version.

Disclosure: CIC was my former employer from August 2006 to June 2009.

The report has three main sections:

First, CIC has been watching the expansion of Video Sharing. Video sharing sites contain a wide variety of information from user generated content to the latest TV and movies which is easy to share in BBS, SNS and via Instant Messaging.

Secondly, let’s see how serious offline social issues and events have been discussed online. The internet offers a free and accessible platform where netizens can share information, upload pictures and videos and share their opinions, all in real time.

Lastly, CIC has also been seeing the emergence of better digital campaigns as brands start to realize the importance of having a strong Internet presence which they can use to effectively connect with their customers.

Here is the full report:

Send me a message to jason.zhanjia@in2marcom.com if you want a PDF version.

Disclosure: I was a former CIC employee from August 2006 to June 2009 as the account manager. From 2008, I had been the editor-in-chief of this regular IWOM Watch report, including monthly reports for clients and half-year summary reports for public like this one. You can find my key contributions: “IWOM Watch – Sichuan Earthquake Special Edition“, “IWOM Watch – 1st Half Year Review 2008“, and “IWOM Watch – 2nd Half Year Review 2008“.

Currently, ZeroDegrees is seeking a SNS Project Manager who is responsible for managing project schedules and resources to ensure content delivery as well as content seeding across major Chinese Social Network Sites.

Position: Social Media Manager (Shanghai)

Responsibility:

• Develop project plans specifying goals, requirements, strategy, staffing, scheduling, identification of tasks, and allocation of available resources where assigned;
• Develop and maintain training programs, guides, and manuals for content publishing and seeding to cater to specific brand/campaign;
• Oversee the day-to-day management of online content publishing to ensure the content quality and publishing schedule;
• Oversee the day-to-day management of SNS content seeding to ensure the conversion between SNS and brand online community;
• Analyze and define new and improved workflows and best practices for content publishing and seeding strategy;
  Maintain standards and procedures for project reporting.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor degree is required
• 3+ years of management experience; be able to manage a team with 5+ people
• Familiar with China major SNS and fashion SNS (Kaixin, Xiaonei/Renren, Douban, Tianya, Onlylady, Yoka, etc.)
• Good Chinese content editing skill and English/Chinese communication skill
• Ability to plan, organize, analyze, and establish priorities and resources to achieve results
• Ability to meet deadlines and work professionally under pressure
• Ability to work independently within a team-oriented environment
• Ability to learn new skills, technologies, methods, and procedures quickly and effectively
• Detail and results oriented
• Online marketing experience will be a plus
• Blogging experience will be a plus

Salary: 6,000-8,000 RMB/month; probation is required.

If you are qualified and interested in this job, you can send your resume to hr@zerosocialmedia.com. Please also refer to IN2marcom in the email.

Launched in 1950 and designed as a vehicle for presenting captivating photographs alongside informative and interesting articles, China Pictorial became the first comprehensive publication conceived after the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949. The inceptive masthead of the magazine was inscribed by the late Chairman Mao.

Take a look at these 60 cover images, they are great and visible epitome (though they are not objective enough) of key characters, works, events, and issues in the past 60 years of People’s Republic.

.

1950 | The Opening Issue

1951 | The Chinese Nightingale

1952 | Young Pioneers of China

1953 | Death of Marshal Stalin

1954 | The Young Pioneers who Present Flowers to Chairman Mao

1955 | Joy of A Good Harvest

1956 | Qi Baishi

1957 | The Night in Ansteel

1958 | Secretary of County Party Committee and Experimental Field

1959 | China’s First World Champion

1960 | First Summit of Mount Everest

1961 | Death of Mei Lanfang

1962 | Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom (let a hundred schools of thought contend)

1963 | Zhu Kezhen

1964 | Film: Ashima

1965 | The Legend of the Red Lantern

1966 | The Little Red Book

1967 | Long Live Chairman Mao

1968 | The Oil Painting ‘Chairman Mao Goes to Anyuan’

1969 | Mao Zedong and Lin Biao

1970 | The PLA Army Is Ready at Any Time

1971 | People’s Republic of China Attended the United Nations

1972 | Film: The White-Haired Girl

1973 | The Tenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China

1974 | China’s First Gift to UN – Ivory Carving of The ‘Chengtu-Kunming Railway’

1975 | The Child Star in The Film ‘A Sparkling Red Star’

1976 | Death of Chairman Mao

1977 |  Study the ‘Selected Works Of Mao Tse Tung‘

1978 | Reform and Opening-Up Policy

1979 | The Growing Up of China Sports

1980 | Film: Nezha Conquers the Dragon King

1981 | Death of Soong Ching-ling

1982 | The China Women’s National Volleyball Team

1983 | Chinese University Students

1984 | China-Japan Friendly Relations

1985 | China’s Great Wall South Pole Station

1986 | China Aerospace

1987 | Chen Xiaoxu, Actress Famous for Her Role as Lin Daiyu in The TV Series ‘Dream of the Red Chamber’

1988 |  CCTV Headquarters

1989 | Tsien Hsue-shen

1990 | The 11th Asian Games in Beijing

1991 | Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant

1992 | Deng Xiaoping’s Southern Tour of China

1993 | Gong Li

1994 | Jiang Zemin and The New Generation of Central Leadership

1995 | Yang Liping

1996 |  Sister Ju Ping and The Famous National Children’s TV Show ‘Seven-piece Puzzle‘

1997 | Death of Deng Xiaoping and Hong Kong’s Return to China

1998 | Liu Chuanzhi

1999 | NATO Bombing of The PRC Embassy in Belgrade

2000 | National Centre for the Performing Arts

2001 | Migrants from The Three Gorges Area

2002 | The New Era in Media Exchanges Across Taiwan Straits

2003 | Shenzhou V and The First Human Spaceflight Mission of PRC

2004 | Liu Xiang

2005 | Hu Jintao at The Annual APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Korea

2006 | Qingzang (Qinghai–Tibet) Railway

2007 | Compulsory Education in China

2008 | Wenchuan Earthquake

2009 | A Look Back at 2008

Wuzhi’s latest work was uploaded to Tudou just a few days ago and already has nearly a million views (unfortunately it has been blocked due to spoofing on sensitive content). Check it out below.

Watch closely and you will notice quite a few pop culture references, some unique to China (e.g. grass mud horse, green dam girl, etc.  and even a dancing panda-ized version of Michael Jackson makes an appearance).

If you like Nonopanda, download some of the character’s fun avatars and animated emoticons. For more from Lin Wuzhi on NeochaEDGE, link here.

This post was originally published on NeochaEDGE, a site I regularly contribute to. NeochaEDGE is a daily-curated, bilingual website and discovery engine dedicated to showcasing leading-edge creative content and emerging youth culture in China. To see more of my posts on NeochaEDGE, click here.

Two Chinese web savvy Riku and Youthfilm have collaborated and created a “Twitter Notebook” so as to extend the online experience of Twitter to offline. The idea is about encouraging people to put tweets on a notebook.

I bought both two versions, they are pretty well-designed:

Each notebook also contains a postcard and three bookmarks:

You can find more pictures on flickr about the Twitter Notebook.

Will you write down each note/tip/sentence up to 140 characters on a notebook? Haha, I am going to try it.

NeochaEDGE is a product of Neocha.com, an online community and social network that empowers Chinese creatives (musicians, artists, writers, and designers) to promote their work, collaborate with other creatives, and engage with fans.

Moreover, as a destination, NeochaEDGE is a daily-curated, bilingual website and discovery engine dedicated to showcasing leading-edge creative content and emerging youth culture in China.

In addition, as a consultancy, NeochaEDGE is a full-service idea and execution house passionate about helping clients understand, engage, and co-create with Chinese creative communities, trendsetters, and youth culture opinion leaders.

Being a member of NeochaEDGE, I plan to contribute my unique views on Chinese youth and creatives. My focus is on Chinese online creative communities; Chinese creatives’ work / presence / lifestyle / innovation / revolution in the digital spaces; and how brands connect and engage with Chinese creatives, esp. through social media and any other digital channel.

Last but not least, I published my first post on NeochaEDGE this afternoon. Hope you like it and enjoy all the cool content there. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

Nowadays, viral video has become an essential part of online marketing communication in China, especially for technology brands (e.g. Microsoft, Intel, Nokia) and automobile brands (e.g. Ford, Chevrolet, Nissan).

EYES ON ME is a newly-created post series on IN2marcom. It is a monthly highlight of popular Chinese viral brand videos in the period. Through it, I will keep you update and bring fun/innovation/inspiration/insight to you.

1. “Monkey King PK Bull Demon King”  | Pringles / P&G

View: 1,272,488 |  Comment: 974  |  Favorited: 773  |  Embed: 2,017

2. “The Female Driver Makes The Policeman Go Mad”  |  ELANTRA / Hyundai Motor

View: 1,701,458 |  Comment: 979 |  Favorited: 1,236 |  Embed: 5,897

3. “Unprincipled Man Burns Himself in The Car”  |  ELANTRA / Hyundai Motor

View: 545,186 |  Comment: 187 |  Favorited: 132 |  Embed: 148

4. “Drifting Man v.s. Parkour Girl”  |  ELANTRA / Hyundai Motor

View: 84,890 |  Comment: 124  |  Favorited: 54  |  Embed: 52

5. “It’s Not that I Can’t Be Without My Mobile. It’s that I Can’t Be Without You.”  |  China Mobile

View: 1,419,161  |  Comment: 1,605  |  Favorited: 1,177  |  Embed: 4,563

6.  “Take a Walk with a Bird – More Joys at Mobile Market”  |   China Mobile

7. “Drink Beer – More Joys at Mobile Market”  |  China Mobile

8. “Monitor – More Joys at Mobile Market”  |  China Mobile

9. “Mosquito Repellents – More Joys at Mobile Market”  |  China Mobile

10. “Break Wind – More Joys at Mobile Market”  |  China Mobile

From now on, if you watch a Chinese viral video, please do me a favor to dig it out. You just need to send the video URL to  EYES-ON-ME@in2marcom.com, I will add it to the monthly list. I believe EYES ON ME will be a comprehensive and authentic highlight for China Viral Video under everybody’s collaboration. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

Currently, they are seeking a talent who can help manage eno online via providing social media expertise and strategies.

Position: Social Media Manager (Shanghai)

Description:

eno offers a unique working environment for a prospective candidate. eno is a rising lifestyle brand made specifically for the China market. We do a lot of work with artists, musicians, and other creative youth and now it is time to promote this even more online through various social media platforms. We want to build eno’s brand online and provide valuable content to its fans.

The ideal candidate will have experience developing strategies for brands using social media sites.This requires understanding branding, marketing, and how the Chinese youth are using the Internet.

Requirements:

• 2-3 years relevant experience
• In-depth knowledge of all Chinese social media platforms with a strong presence online, including a group of dedicated followers on their SNS, blog, etc.
• Previous experience building social media strategies
• Ability to identify creative ways for brands to interact on SNS
• Good relationship with some influencers and/or experience in identifying & recruiting influencers.
• Experience in dealing with communities. Understand the approach to cooperate with communities and those forum administrators.
• Good at Chinese/English copy-writing, be able to create viral content and topic. Ability to edit picture and video can be a plus.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in Mandarin and English required.

If you are qualified and interested in this job, please sent your resume to jobs@in2marcom.com.

I put together a quick and simply sharing deck. It is also a new type of my blogging, hope you like it.