A day in a life of a Chinese Millennial.

Eliza Mao
Category: Market trends
A day in a life of Eliza Mao, Customer Success Director at Splio in Shanghai.
I think the life of Millennials all over the planet is very much alike, but it's true that one particularity about the Chinese lifestyle nowadays is our relationship with WeChat.
I am very happy to share with you a glimpse of my daily way of life so that European retailers and brand marketers that wish to develop in China or target the Chinese tourists in Europe understand a bit more about young Chinese consumers.
I generally wake up by checking for new messages from my friends on WeChat. We love to exchange tips, good deals, and gossip.
I also quickly swipe through WeChat Moments* to see the posts from the weekend late night party people or the early birds who share news or motivation to start the Monday grind.
I glance at YSL's new ads in a WeChat Moment, where it shows a limited gift box for Valentine's Day. I immediately shared the news with a friend of mine who's in a cold war with his girlfriend...it may be helpful!
I found a new coffee shop nearby. The staff welcomed me with warm smiles and told me to scan the QR code to get a welcome coupon on WeChat. What a great way to start the day!
I scanned the QR code that redirected me to a WeChat Mini-App*. I received my coupon in 1-click without even giving out my phone number.
I picked out my coffee and a muffin and the team scanned both my coupon and my WeChat Pay* account. I received a WeChat Service message right after showing me my new Loyalty points balance.
I have to walk approximately 10 minutes to get to the metro station but as the sun is shining today and I saw some Mobikes parked in front of the coffee shop, I decide to go for a Mobike ride! I take my phone out again and scan the code on the Mobike: it unlocked immediately with a nice welcoming voice.
When I arrived at the metro station, I needed to scan my phone to go through the turnstile. It's THE peak time on WeChat because all the travelers are staring at the app. I find out about this morning's hottest news and read some articles and benchmarks written by my favorite KOLs*.
Last week, I bought a new red dress on the WeChat Store of my favorite KOL and this morning, I saw that she just launched a new cardigan that would perfectly match with my dress! I added it to my cart: I'll see later if I buy it or not.
To get out of the metro, I once again had to scan my phone. My Alipay account notified me right away to show me the cost of my ride. 8 yuan deducted from my account as well as a discount. Thank you
On my way to the office, I stopped by the convenient store to get some chewing gum. I paid by scanning the Alipay QR code on the counter and took my chance on the Alipay lottery.
After my meeting, I discovered what my colleagues have been sharing on our employee WeChat group. One of them bought a case for his smartphone on Pinduoduo*, another one a bottle of milk on Elema* and the last one shared a promotion for free delivery of coffee from Luckin Coffee, a very famous Chinese coffee shop chain. It's Monday morning and we need a high amount of caffeine, we all ordered a coffee and they were delivered 15 minutes later.
I had lunch with a customer today! We got our phones out and scanned the restaurant's QR code that redirected us to a WeChat Mini-App. We chose our menu and placed our orders.
We spent a great moment together and we shared some news and marketing trends. She showed me a great WeChat Mini-App, a game promoting the Louis Vuitton Travel Exhibition in Shanghai. I played, of course, and then sent it to a friend of mine that immediately replied that we should definitively go. I bought our tickets for next Saturday directly in the Mini-App and shared the booking confirmation with my friend.
Such a great weekend in perspective!
I just received a notification: I forgot that my little cousin's birthday is tomorrow! I have no idea what I should buy for a baby. I went on the chat section of the " Xiaohongshu " app to get some insights. Some posts and videos were displayed.
I opened the Taobao app and found some brands suggested on Tmall. I checked out the customer reviews, geo-localized the products and found him the perfect present. I placed the order and gave my cousin's postal address so he can receive his present right on time tomorrow. Perfect!
I have an appointment downtown, so I booked a taxi on WeChat. While I was in the taxi, my Mom called: she just got back from the beach and is complaining about some severe sunburns. I ordered her an Aloe Vera lotion on JD.com for a delivery today. Hold on Mom, the Aloe Vera is on its way!
I got out of the taxi and the taxi cost has been automatically withdrawn from my bank account.
I better do some delivery grocery shopping if I want to eat tonight. I've ordered some fish and vegetables on Elema for delivery at 7:30 pm.
There is a new access system in my building since yesterday. I just need to scan the WeChat Mini-App QR code to get into the entrance hall, goodbye keys!
The Hema delivery is right on time. Let's go eat!
It's the end of the month, time to pay my bills and my rent, which I did in a few clicks on Alipay... I also took a quick look at my monthly expenses on Alipay and WeChat thanks to the category ranking. I'll need to take it easy on expenses next month!
*WeChat Moments is a news feed dedicated to friends to like, comment and share photos and other content.
*WeChat Mini-App, also called WeChat Mini-Programs, is an app inside the WeChat app. Developed externally, they allow brands to have additional notoriety without getting out of WeChat.
*WeChat Pay is the leading payment method in the Chinese market.
*KOL: Key Influencer Leaders
* Pinduoduo is an e-commerce website specialized in the low-price products.
*Elema is restaurant delivery platform.
To get regular insights on how to develop and strengthen your Loyalty strategy in China, scan the QR code to follow us on WeChat!
Contents