Want fame and fortune? China’s internet celebrity business offers both
WeChat is now a battleground among content producers as a single article with an embedded advert can be worth up to a million yuan
Whether they know it or not, the millions of WeChat users who tap on their smartphones for the latest data everyday are generating millions of yuan for Chinese online content writers and producers.
Posts on social media platforms are no longer dominated by amateur writers or part-time enthusiasts, but by a rapidly maturing and lucrative business – some are chains and franchises – of content producers.
The popular Chinese messaging app, which boasts 1 billion active monthly users, is now a battleground among content producers as one article with an embedded advertisement circulating in WeChat could be worth up to a million yuan.
The value of China’s internet celebrity market is tipped to surpass 100 billion yuan in 2018, nearly twice the 52.8 billion yuan in 2016, according to Beijing-based research agency Analysus.
As appetising as it sounds, it’s not an easy market to gain entry to at this point, given the already stiff competition, says Teacher Xu (徐老師), a popular internet celebrity, or wang hong (網紅) as Chinese users call them.
Posting about six articles daily, Teacher Xu’s public WeChat account “Shen Ye Fa Chi” (深夜發媸) primarily focuses on the latest trends and talking points covering branded clothes, shoes and cosmetics, as well as celebrity gossip.