HKUST MBA

Technology advancements have dramatically changed the media landscape and how marketing works. A wide range of new media has evolved. Compared to traditional media, new media enables creative participation and interactive feedback from users, which has changed the marketing strategies of many companies. While celebrities are still engaged as spokespeople for brands, many businesses have started to engage influencers such as Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) or bloggers to promote their products. One of our full-time MBA students in the 2018 intake, Simai Huang, is a KOL on Xiaohongshu, a popular social media and e-commerce platform in mainland China. Her blog has attracted 29,100 followers and 48,000 likes in less than 2 years. Let’s take a closer look at how she manages her commitments in this new digital era.

Xiaohongshu, also known as RED, was created in 2013. In 5 years, it has accumulated over 100 million registered users and reached 30 million active monthly users by June 2018. With 60% of its users under 30 years old, the app allows users to post and share product reviews, travel blogs and lifestyle stories, making it a new marketing platform for brands targeting young audiences. Simai, who began her blog under 2 years ago, has already obtained multiple opportunities via PR agencies to help various brands promote their products and services on the mainland. Her MBA study at HKUST has expanded her social media horizon to Hong Kong.

In HKUST’s MBA, Simai met a student from the MBA for Professionals who is a new media expert in a Hong Kong PR agency. Through the MBA marketing course, she also came to understand marketing strategies for different market segments in the mainland and HK. While WeChat and Xiaohongshu are popular in Mainland China, Facebook and Instagram are more widely used in HK. Simai has since had opportunities to collaborate with HK brands, ranging from a local designer of environmentally friendly outdoor and portable products, to a mobile app offering online yoga classes through videos.

Apart from product promotion, Simai has also shared her MBA journey on her blog. Her stories range from discussing the very beginning of the MBA (the immersion program), courses she has taken such as Management Consulting and Fintech & Big Data, and her experience applying to the MBA program, to the enjoyable International Night. Two of these posts received a total of over 2,000 likes and 450 comments within a very short period of time, proving how powerful KOLs can be in this new digital era.

With her goal to inspire and share great stories with female readers, Simai shows a passion for blogging more in the coming year. “As a blogger, I try to inspire and be friends with my audience. Blogging about my MBA journey is in the pipeline for the upcoming year.”