Subscription and Service WeChat Official Accounts: Main Differences EXPLAINED!
WeChat has become one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, with over 1.2 billion monthly active users. It is not only a messaging app but also an all-in-one platform, often called a super-app, that offers a wide range of services including social networking, mobile payment, e-commerce, and more. With such a massive user base, businesses are increasingly recognizing the potential of WeChat as a marketing tool. One of the key features of WeChat for businesses is the Official Account.
- What is WeChat Official Account?
- What are the main differences between WeChat Subscription Accounts and Service Accounts?
- How do WeChat Subscription Accounts and Service Accounts cater to different business needs?
- What are the key features and benefits of WeChat Subscription Accounts?
- What are the key features and benefits of WeChat Service Accounts?
- How do the publication limits differ between WeChat Subscription Accounts and Service Accounts?
- How can businesses decide which type of WeChat Official Account to choose for their marketing strategies?
What is WeChat Official Account?
WeChat Official Accounts, colloquially called WeChat business accounts, are verified accounts created by individuals, businesses, and organizations to connect and engage with WeChat users. These accounts grant businesses access to a variety of features and tools to promote their products and services, build brand awareness, and interact with their target audience.
WeChat Official Accounts are divided into two main types: Service Accounts, and Subscription Accounts.
Benefits of having a WeChat Official Account for Businesses
Having a WeChat Official Account offers numerous benefits for overseas businesses. Firstly, it provides a direct channel to reach a massive user base of over 1 billion active users. This allows businesses to tap into a vast market and connect with potential customers.
Secondly, WeChat Official Accounts offer advanced features such as push notifications, custom menus, and in-app mini-programs, which can enhance user engagement and drive conversions.
Lastly, WeChat Official Accounts provide valuable data and analytics, allowing businesses to gain insights into user behavior and preferences, and optimize their marketing strategies.
Understanding the different types of WeChat Accounts
WeChat Subscription Accounts: Features and benefits (and cons)
WeChat Subscription Accounts are ideal for businesses that focus on content marketing and brand promotion. Subscription Accounts help to deliver frequent updates and articles to followers. Because of their ability to publish on a daily basis if needed, they are perfect for media outlets, lifestyle brands, magazines, communities – everywhere that news had to be delivered immediately or often.
Some key features of WeChat Subscription Accounts include:
✅ Daily publications: Subscription Accounts can publish up to one ‘push’ per day to their followers, ensuring regular communication and engagement. Each ‘push’ can consist of up to 8 articles.
⛔️ Followers’ content feed: articles published by the Subscription Account appear in the ‘Subscription Accounts’ folder so unless users don’t visit the folder, they won’t know that there is an update from the followed brand. This seriously decrease visibility and exposure for businesses. Notably, the articles there are also shown in algorithm-led folder.
WeChat Service Accounts: Features and benefits
Then there are Service Accounts, Tencent’s alternative for businesses that want to provide services and engage with their customers on a deeper level. Service Accounts offer a wide range of features and benefits that enable businesses to deliver personalized content and services to their followers.
Some key features of WeChat Service Accounts include:
✅ Visibility: Service Accounts showcase new articles directly on the main screen, offering immediate visibility among WeChat friends’ messages, unlike Subscription Accounts tucked in a separate folder.
✅ Customization: Service Accounts can create custom menus with different levels, allowing users to access specific services or information easily. Service Accounts have access to WeChat’s API, which enables businesses to integrate their account with their existing systems or develop custom features such as CRM, e-commerce, etc.
⛔️ Publication limits: Service accounts can publish only 4 times per calendar month but each of these publication can consist of up to 8 articles. Tencent introduced the limitation to prevent brands from overwhelming users with constant updates. Simultaneously, this restriction helps drive more attention to new articles, granting them increased visibility.
It worth noting that the capabilities for article design and layouts are exactly the same! Both types of accounts support various forms of rich media content, including text, images, audio, and video. This allows businesses to create engaging and interactive articles. We recommend that beginner brands use popular 3rd party app to create attractive layouts such as Xiumi.
What Type of Account Should You Choose?
Many brands think that Subscription Account with their daily posting capability would be a better choice. Let us explain why whenever possible we lean towards Service Account.
- First of all, check if your paperwork allows you for selected type of official account.
- Secondly, preparing a WeChat article is a time-consuming process that would often involve translation and layout design. You might want to focus on quality than quantity of your content.
- Thirdly, your content will be less visible in the ‘Subscription Account folder’. As opposed to Service Account’s publications which are published directly within the main page.
- Lastly, Service Accounts allow for adding additional advanced tools such as payments or tracking if you need in the future.
Check our e-book to understand more about differences between these two types of accounts. You will be also able to consult the chart to see which one will be more suitable for you. Make sure that selected type of WeChat official account will reflect your WeChat strategy.
How to Create WeChat Official Account?
To register a WeChat Official Account, businesses need to follow process:
- Prepare the necessary documents: Businesses need to prepare the required documents, such as a business license, organization code certificate, and proof of ownership or authorization to apply for a WeChat Official Account.
- Create an account: Businesses can register through the WeChat Platform by providing the necessary information and uploading the required documents.
- Verification and approval: WeChat team will review the application and verify the provided information.
- Optimizing the account: Businesses can then log in to the WeChat Official Account Platform. Next, they optimize their account by adding profile information, menus, and configuring other settings. They can publish now!
Register your WeChat account ASAP!
WeChat Accounts offer businesses a powerful tool to connect with the vast user base of WeChat. Not to mention that they greatly improve engaging with potential customers. Each type provides unique features and benefits that cater to different business needs.
By understanding the different types of WeChat Official Accounts and their respective registration processes, businesses can make informed decisions and choose the best type of account for their own marketing strategies. So, if you want to leverage the power of WeChat for your business, take the first step today.
If you want to learn more about WeChat marketing and how to choose the best type of account for your business, grab a copy of our comprehensive e-book “WeChat Decoded: Your Essential Handbook for Marketing Success” now. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to reach over 1 billion potential customers on WeChat!
