Xiaohongshu Marketing Tips: How to become a blogger on Xiaohongshu (RED) (Part 6)
How to Optimize Your Xiaohongshu Account for Success? Answers to Your Top 100 Questions.
The sections covered will include:
- The Basics: How to setting up and getting started on XiaoHongShu ⇐ Part One
- Xiaohongshu Marketing Violation Policy: Ensuring Compliance and Account Integrity ⇐ Part Two
- Captivating Xiaohongshu Notes: Boosting Exposure and Utilizing Data Insights ⇐ Part Three
- The Comprehensive Marketing Guide to Note Compilation on Xiaohongshu ⇐ Part Four
- Unlocking Efficient Traffic Generation on Xiaohongshu ⇐ Part Five
- Xiaohongshu Marketing Tips: Boost Your Success on the Platform
1. If I consider being a creator as a side job, how much time do I need to spend each day? And how can I earn money?
If you want to be a part-time creator and earn income through advertising, you’ll need to invest more time initially to understand the platform’s rules, what type of content PR agencies prefer, and how to plan and create engaging content. Once you have a clear understanding, you can start consistently producing content. However, not everyone can immediately create popular content, so patience is required. Regularly review and adjust your strategies based on data analysis. Once you become familiar and stable, posting three times a week is a reasonable goal. The time spent on each post varies from person to person, ranging from 1-2 hours to 3-4 hours. Once you find your own methods and techniques, note-taking will become much quicker.
It is definitely possible to make money as a creator on Xiaohongshu, but how much you can earn and how you earn it depends on the niche you choose. There are two different approaches: driving traffic to your own platforms for sales or relying on the platform to receive advertising opportunities.
2. I want to focus on the workplace as my content niche, but I don't know how to get started. Are there any creator I can emulate?
There are two things you need to do right now. The first is to determine how you want to monetize your Xiaohongshu account. If you want to create content related to the workplace, are you planning to sell courses in the future or collaborate with brands for promotions? Have you thought about these questions? Once you have a clear idea, your content will naturally have a direction.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, you can search for workplace-related creators who gained followers in the past year and have around 100,000 followers or fewer. Choose around 5 creators and list the top 10 topics with the highest number of likes for each blogger. This will give you 50 topic ideas. Based on these topics, you can select the ones that interest you and are suitable for your content. I recommend creating videos as they help establish an authentic persona and enhance trust. Conduct thorough research before creating content.
3. Are health-related posts easily restricted on Xiaohongshu?
Yes, health-related bloggers often face this challenge. It’s not uncommon to encounter restrictions. However, the extent of restrictions depends on the specific topic. In the case of health foods, the restrictions are relatively lenient. Registering your food products with relevant certifications can help. However, if your products are related to pharmaceuticals, the restrictions are stricter.
Here are some methods you can try:
- Use homophones for keywords in your notes instead of specific names, as specific names might cross the line.
- Avoid using exaggerated claims about the efficacy of products.
- Focus on quantity; the more notes you publish, the higher the chances of approval.
- Promote your products as branded items and sell them through legitimate channels. Registering as a company can help establish your brand.
Please note that most Xiaohongshu users have a strong intention to make purchases, and those who can be easily scared away are likely not your targeted customers.
4. Are pet bloggers popular on Xiaohongshu? How should I approach it?
Pet bloggers are popular on any platform, including Xiaohongshu! If you have a cattery or a pet shop, there are two approaches you can take. First, create a personal account where you can portray yourself as the owner of the pet shop, sharing aspects of your work and daily life to naturally attract followers. Alternatively, you can create a business account to share insights from your work. Business accounts can directly reach potential customers and are more lenient when it comes to attracting followers compared to personal accounts.
5. If I have two different content domains, should I use the same account to post or separate them?
It is recommended to separate them and use different accounts when initially dealing with two different content domains. Mixing the content will definitely affect verticality. The keywords need to be recognized by algorithms, so they should be placed in corresponding note categories.
For certain categories, once you reach a certain number of followers (e.g., ten thousand), you can combine them. For example, sharing baby products and home furnishings (such as recommending a good high chair for babies), or fitness and diet (such as healthy meal options). However, dog training (pet-related) and exam preparation (knowledge-related) have no overlap, even though both are related to education. They target completely different customer groups. Therefore, regardless of the number of followers, they need to be managed separately.
6. Is it not possible to publish evaluation content on Xiaohongshu?
The prerequisite for publishing product evaluation content is not to intentionally defame or excessively express subjective opinions. Be cautious about creating red and black lists of products, as they can easily lead to complaints from businesses. However, you can still conduct individual product evaluations and evaluations of products under the same brand.
7. Can you create a Xiaohongshu account for offline physical stores that suffer from significant product homogeneity?
Actually, it’s quite simple to determine whether you can create an account. Just check if your competitors are doing it.
8. I want to create an account related to health and wellness. The planned content includes exercise, diet, and meridian massage, in the form of pictures and videos. Is there any advise?
Exercise, diet, and meridian massage cover a wide range of topics, and they belong to three different categories. It’s important to focus on a specific area that you excel in. Alternatively, you can consider featuring a wellness enthusiast who shares their lifestyle, including healthy eating habits, exercise routines, and personal brand building. It’s also recommended to choose between pictures and videos, with videos being a good option to start with, using simple voice-over narration.
9. How can I create engaging content related to astrology?
Astrology is a topic that easily ventures into the realm of feudal superstition, making it challenging to create content in any public domain. Regarding Xiaohongshu, here are some suggestions: In terms of content, it is recommended to start with monthly or yearly horoscope analyses for different zodiac signs. You can cover aspects like love prospects, financial luck, etc., either in a single video or separate videos. Additionally, you can leverage short-term trends, such as creating content related to zodiac signs and college entrance exams or studying luck, or even lucky fortunes. It’s not advisable to focus too much on scientific explanations as the keywords can easily lead to sensitive areas. Analyzing common zodiac signs like Gemini or Pisces and face reading are still acceptable to some extent, as long as you adhere to regulatory guidelines.
In terms of format, it is suggested to create video content with voice-over narration. You can show your face or wear a half-face mask (partially covering your face) to add an element of mystique. You can opt for pure voice-over narration or have a star chart alongside your explanations.
10. How should wine content be approached?
Wine content can be combined with local cuisine, but it is recommended to focus on one of them in the initial stages. If you choose to focus on wine, you can start with introductory and more specialized content to build up your data. For example, you can create content that introduces wines from around the world or specifically from France, beginner’s wine tasting guides, wine evaluation guides, and more. The choice between focusing on wine or local cuisine depends on your goals for creating the Xiaohongshu account. Whether it’s for sharing interests, driving traffic to your own business, or other purposes, you should align your content and target audience accordingly. Art and museum-related content is a separate category, and if you want to build a large following in that area, it’s better to create a separate account. However, occasional sharing can be done on your existing account, depending on your goals.
The benchmark for advertising is to select notes with good baseline metrics, such as newly published notes with a certain level of interaction. You can choose to advertise immediately. My suggestion is to start with a small budget and test the preferences of users for your new note by selecting views or video plays. Based on user interest, you can modify the title and cover image accordingly.
11. My notes for driving traffic are performing well and consistently gaining followers. Should I consider paid marketing and promotion?
For notes that are intended for driving traffic, I do not recommend investing in paid marketing, especially for those notes that are already yielding results. It is crucial to avoid running paid promotions for such notes. If you do, you risk triggering the platform’s review process, which may lead to violations and the suspension of traffic for your notes. It’s best to let these notes gain exposure naturally. If you notice a sudden drop in traffic for a note that was previously gaining organic exposure (due to being flagged for driving traffic), you can make some changes to the content and repost it.
As for the duration, it is generally recommended to test the ads for 12-24 hours. However, it depends on the quality of your note and user habits. Each account is different, so in the initial phase, you can set the same note for both 12 hours and 24 hours with a small budget. Adjust the duration based on the feedback data.
The benchmark for advertising is to select notes with good baseline metrics, such as newly published notes with a certain level of interaction. You can choose to advertise immediately. My suggestion is to start with a small budget and test the preferences of users for your new note by selecting views or video plays. Based on user interest, you can modify the title and cover image accordingly.
12. I plan to create content for a mother and baby home goods brand. How should I position and operate the account? Are there any benchmark accounts I can refer to?
a) I recommend creating content that combines home goods and mother and baby themes, focusing on sharing great products. It’s easier to attract followers and engagement through soft product placements. The effectiveness of driving traffic will also be good.
b) Xiaohongshu encourages “genuine and sincere sharing.” Initially, I suggest avoiding directly selling the brand and instead focus on soft product placements or not mentioning the brand at all. Let users come and ask about the brand themselves, and then you can engage with them through private messages to drive traffic. In terms of content direction, you can consider:
- Creating collages of multiple attractive bedding sets
- Showcasing individual products and featuring the most beautiful image as the cover photo.
- Providing guides on how to select bedding, how to avoid common pitfalls, and so on.
These are all compilation-style content, which Xiaohongshu users tend to enjoy. You can start by testing 5-6 posts and continue if they perform well.
c) Regarding benchmark accounts:
(1) One way to quickly find benchmark accounts without using tools is to search keywords related to home goods or bedding, such as “four-piece bedding set” or “cooling mat.” Look for highly ranked notes in the comprehensive and popular sections and check their homepages to see if they are suitable for reference. You can also explore topic tags, such as “my favorite bedding,” which can provide more specific subcategories and make it easier to find benchmark accounts. The homepage recommendation section also shows more accounts related to the home goods field if you browse and search for home goods content frequently. Accounts in the lower and intermediate levels of expertise in the home goods category are worth dissecting and emulating. “Home goods” is a competitive but high-traffic keyword, so make sure to use it in your titles and captions.
(2) The positioning of the account, topic angles, keywords, topic tags, content format, titles, image styles, and production can all be analyzed and referenced. It would be helpful to create a library to record the topic angles, titles, and commonly used popular keywords from popular notes for learning and usage. Pay special attention to studying images, as they are crucial for successful product-sharing IPs.
13. I want to create an account on Xiaohongshu for book and movie recommendations, as well as personal growth experiences. What are the potential monetization avenues for such an account?
First, let’s discuss monetization options for movie resource editing. This type of account is relatively easy to start and attracts a wide range of followers. You can promote related products, such as editing courses, templates, or plugins. Additionally, you can recommend motivational or self-help books based on the content of your movie edits (the choice of products primarily depends on the type of content your account focuses on).
For monetization through book recommendations, it’s relatively easier for personal growth bloggers to receive sponsorship opportunities, but there may also be opportunities for other types of promotions. In terms of gaining followers, movie-related content tends to attract followers more quickly, while book-related content may take more time due to its niche appeal. In terms of monetization difficulty, personal growth bloggers can easily incorporate book recommendations as their primary revenue source, but the success will depend on the quality of their content and their personal influence.
14. I have been consistently posting over 10 skincare notes, but they are not generating much traffic. What aspects can be optimized?
I recommend optimizing the following aspects:
- Improve topic selection: For example, if you plan to share skincare tips, you can strategize your topics around price comparisons, product performance, how to choose skincare products, and product combinations. Consider creating topics like “affordable skincare series” or “best and worst product experiences.” Put yourself in the users’ shoes and think about what they would like to see and what their needs are. For the cover photo, you can try combining multiple products in one image, add stickers or flower-shaped captions to make it visually appealing.
- Enhance image quality: Ensure that your photos are clear, apply simple enhancements, have a clear theme, and feature compelling titles. Study benchmark bloggers carefully and pay attention to every detail of their image creation.
- Further improve the written content.
- If you are comfortable appearing on camera, consider creating videos with your face. Such accounts tend to have higher monetization potential compared to text and non-face videos. When creating videos, study the work of high-quality skincare bloggers and learn from their strengths. Of course, this decision depends on your personal circumstances, time availability, and willingness to appear on camera.
15. I want to be a creator focused on writing or official document writing, but it's not convenient for me to appear on camera. Is it still feasible? Are there other monetization options?
If you want to sell writing materials, whether or not you appear on camera is not crucial. The key is to present your materials effectively. The monetization direction here is focused on driving traffic through the materials you offer, with the additional option of selling them for a fee. It’s not difficult to use materials as a means of driving traffic. Regarding monetization options, in the initial stage, you can focus on selling writing materials, and later on, you can transition to offering writing courses. Additionally, consider offering coaching or guidance for job interviews (research the demand in this area). Apart from selling virtual materials, you can also explore opportunities to distribute official document writing templates and courses from other organizations, expanding your SKU (stock keeping unit).
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