CIM 051: Easternization & Understanding Young Chinese Consumers with Zak Dychtwald, Author of “Young China”

July 1, 2019

Today we hear from Zak Dychtwald, author of the book “Young China” and Founder of the think tank Young China Group.

In this episode we dive deep, trying to understand young Chinese people and what they are all about. Zak shares some of the defining characteristics of the post 80s, post 90s and post 00s consumers, how they differ from older generations, as well as common misperceptions international companies have about this highly sought-after consumer group.

If you’re working for an international brand in the China market or one that’s looking to enter the China market, I highly suggest you listen to this episode and check out some of the videos of Zak’s speeches that I have linked below.

To learn more about influencer marketing in China, sign up for our new newsletter: The China Influencer Update!

Notes:

Zak shares his China journey and how he became interested in this topic
Why he chose to live and write the book in Chengdu
Chengdu and Chongqing are leaders for Chinese youth-culture trends
Easier for people in lower tier cities to look up to lifestyles Chengdu and Chongqing than Beijing and Shanghai
Key misperception: tacit expectation Chinese want to Westernize, but now this is less and less true. Concept of Easternization. We need to accept that other countries will not always orbit us, we might not continue to be the center.
As Chinese consumers mature, they want more distinctive brands, less about those big names that everyone recognizes
Quality of life is being valued more and more
China doesn’t have ‘millennials’ – stop trying to shove them into Western generational frameworks
Key differences between various generations of Chinese consumers
Most of the time we tend to focus only on the top 10% of Chinese consumers and miss opportunities
Why you cannot expect to understand Chinese consumers if you haven’t spent much time outside of Beijing and Shanghai

Guest: Zak Dychtwald

Email: zak@youngchinagroup.com

Website: https://www.youngchinagroup.com/

TEDx speech

Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents Speech

BBC World Program on Millennials (password is BBC. Necessary for folks outside of the UK)

Host: Lauren Hallanan

Website: www.chinainfluencermarketing.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-hallanan/

WeChat: H1212118514

Check out my book: Digital China: Working with Bloggers, Influencers and KOLs

Thanks to our sponsors PARKLU: www.parklu.com and TMG Worldwide: www.tmgworldwide.com

For additional information and show notes head over to www.chinainfluencermarketing.comIf you like this podcast and know someone who might find it interesting, please share!