![]() Xuan Bai, a senior marketer at a Beijing-based Tmall Partner (agencies licensed by Tmall to operate e-commerce stores on behalf of brands), believes that WeChat Moments adverts, charged by cost per mile, can often be too expensive, especially for smaller names. And though driving traffic from WeChat to Tmall stores may be a huge opportunity, placing ads on WeChat Moments might not work for all brands. The latest development seems to operate as a trial case for Tmall merchants advertising on WeChat Moments, although the function has yet to be made available for every brand on Tmall. Since then, users could open direct links to Tmall within WeChat’s in-built web brow ser, as lo ng as the links are being shared one-to-one or in group chats. The first sign of these two rivals relaxing restrictions on each other came after the Chinese government’s anti-monopoly push in 2021. ![]() There were hints of this earlier, however. Yet, as a sign of greater shifts within China’s tech ecosystem, it recently became a reality in the run up to 618. Other examples of this anti-competitive behavior are Weibo completely blocking mentions of WeChat and QR codes that link to WeChat accounts, and Douyin seeming to limit the organic reach of posts that might take a user to other platforms. Such a WeChat advert leading consumers straight into the Tmall app used to be unthinkable due to the ongoing feud between Tencent and Alibaba, who, like other tech giants, have fiercely blocked traffic from one to the other. While seemingly minor, this is a significant step forward in the interoperability between WeChat and Tmall. On closer inspection, tapping the advert revealed a branded landing page directing users to the advertiser’s Tmall store in the Tmall app or on the Tmall website if users didn’t have the app on their phones. The distinct brand name and logo of Alibaba’s marketplace were in plain sight (as per screenshots of the advert), an unheard-of concession from any of the usually walled gardens of the Chinese internet. ![]() In the days leading up to the 618 shopping festival - one of China’s major e-commerce extravaganzas - users were served a WeChat Moments advert that led them directly to Tmall. ![]()
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