Miaopai Introduction: The 3 Basics of Getting Started

Miaopai (秒拍) is a short video sharing and live streaming platform in China, first launched in 2011 by Yixia Technology (一下科技). It’s China’s answer to Vine.

In 2013, Miaopai and Weibo established a strategic partnership that greatly increased Miaopai’s exposure and popularity and made it the official short video provider of Weibo. When users upload videos on Weibo, a Miaopai logo will automatically appear in the upper right of the video. In turn, Miaopai videos can also be easily shared to Weibo.

Before looking for opportunities of Miaopai marketing, let’s get familiar with Miaopai’s basic functions first.

1. Short video creation

Users can post short videos of up to five minutes. They can either record a new video clip by pushing the in-app record button or upload existing clips from their own devices.

There are a variety of special effects that users can add to their videos, including stickers, music and special voice effects. After editing the video, users can also write a short video description, select a thumbnail and add tags or location details.

Then they can share it to Weibo or to their WeChat moments page.

↑ Adding stickers and music to a video in Miaopai

2. Video viewing

Miaopai categorizes videos into “Hot (Most Popular) (热门)”, “Social (Social Media) (现场)”, “Funny (搞笑)”, “Star(s) (明星)” and “Beauty (女神)” so users can click on a specific category to find related videos.

The “Friend (关注)” category shows videos posted by the people that users follow.

On the “Hot (热门)” page, the most popular videos during the last 24 hours are shown. A brief introduction of the account, a view total and a “Follow” button are displayed under the video.

Users can swipe left to skip to the next video if they aren’t interested.

On the “Discovery (发现)” page, there’s a “Collection (精选合辑)” section where videos are grouped by topics such as “street snaps” or “Miaopai gossips [sic]”.

3. Live streaming

Since Miaopai and Yizhibo (一直播), a popular live streaming platform, have the same parent company, Miaopai also features some of the popular live streams from Yizhibo. Users can find them in the “live [sic] (直播)” section in the channel bar at the top of the homepage.

↑ A live stream of newborn puppies on Miaopai

Want to learn about Miaopai’s advanced functions or China’s other social media platforms? Check our blog articles or leave a comment below. We’d be happy to answer any questions you may have.

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