When a large number of North Americans flock to Xiaohongshu...

As TikTok faces the risk of being banned in the United States, a large number of North American users have begun to look for alternative social platforms. Xiaohongshu has become a popular choice for these users due to its short video and interactive community features similar to TikTok. This article will explore the impact of this phenomenon on Xiaohongshu, and how domestic influencers and merchants can seize the new opportunities brought by this wave of overseas traffic.

If you’ve opened Xiaohongshu recently, there’s a good chance you’ve seen a page like this…

This is not Instagram or Lemon 8, but Xiaohongshu

The thing is, TikTok (the overseas version of Douyin) was recently banned in the United States. A large number of American users who are accustomed to short video social networking need to find a new platform to meet their social and entertainment needs. Since Xiaohongshu has similar short video and interactive community functions to TikTok, it provides a familiar and available alternative for American users. Therefore, a large number of American users flocked to Xiaohongshu. They called themselves "TikTok refugees", which made Xiaohongshu quickly rush to the top of the rankings in the US app store.

Xiaohongshu has been exploring overseas expansion in recent years. Xiaohongshu probably didn't expect that it would attract a large number of overseas users in this way. Xiaohongshu doesn't even have a language translation function for notes yet.

Xiaohongshu's current wave of prosperity is really the result of the right timing, right location and right people. On the one hand, Xiaohongshu recently put video streaming at the same first-level entrance as notes in its new version; on the other hand, Xiaohongshu is slightly similar to Instagram in terms of usage, with a simple and clear user interface, which is easier for overseas users to use, and it perfectly caught this wave of overseas traffic.

Now, a situation has formed where people on the outside are discussing how to join Xiaohongshu, and people in China are discussing how to seize this wave of opportunities. So, what opportunities can domestic influencers and businesses have in the face of this wave of overseas users?

1. Filling the traffic shortage and data recovery

The influx of a large number of overseas users has further increased the user base of Xiaohongshu. Some time ago, Xiaohongshu launched a plan to promote its products in lower-tier cities to fill the gap in the slowdown in the growth of community users. Unexpectedly, it was flooded with overseas users in just a few days. Of course, this phenomenon has both advantages and disadvantages for merchants who are doing grass-roots marketing on Xiaohongshu.

On the bright side, due to the sudden increase in community users, the natural traffic has increased significantly in a short period of time, and the traffic of notes may rebound and rise in a short period of time. However, on the other hand, large fluctuations in data in a short period of time are not necessarily a good thing. There may be a messy portrait and inaccurate reach, because there are a large number of users who have not formed clear labels in the community. Therefore, it is recommended that you take this part of the impact into consideration when attributing note data in the near future.

2. Good news for brands going global

In the past, domestic brands needed to adapt to overseas user habits and media environments before going overseas. Now, this is no longer necessary. They can directly reach a large number of overseas users on domestic platforms. Therefore, brands that are trying to go overseas can first try to create bilingual content on the Xiaohongshu platform to increase exposure to overseas users.

The previous slogan was "All businesses are worth doing again on the Internet", and the next slogan is "All businesses are worth doing again overseas with English content"

3. New opportunities for overseas upstream and downstream industries

In the past two years, China has been continuously optimizing its entry policies such as visa-free transit, regional entry visa-free, and port visas. Since China Travel opened up the 144 visa-free policy, a large number of foreigners have entered the country to travel. After coming here, many foreigners found that the reality was completely different from what the foreign media had advertised. This kind of "rehabilitation" content itself has been very popular on TikTok. Xiaohongshu itself also has a large number of travel guides and beautiful scenery pictures. Inbound tourism and other business friends can take advantage of this wave of popularity to prepare corresponding content and undertake the inbound tourism needs of overseas users.

In addition to inbound tourism, cultural and creative products, specialty goods and other products that are easily noticed by overseas users can actively respond to this wave of popularity and promote overseas users.

4. Final Thoughts

This is probably just a phenomenon and is unlikely to continue.

TikTok is only facing the risk of being banned, but as to when it will be banned and whether it will be banned, it is still unknown. For overseas users, flocking to Xiaohongshu may just be a way of "expressing emotions"

Coupled with the cultural differences and language barriers between the two sides, it is easy to foresee that the enthusiasm will fade.

Therefore, the types of merchants mentioned above can seize the opportunity while the popularity is still there; other merchants should remember to take this part of the impact into consideration when taking notes on data attribution recently.