ByteDance's "Canelé" Makes a Comeback: A New Strategy for Influencer Marketing?

ByteDance's "Little Red Book" Rival Makes a Comeback: Can It Succeed Where Others Failed?

ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok and Douyin, is once again trying its hand at conquering the social commerce space with a revamped version of its "Little Red Book" rival, "CanSong" (可颂). This move comes after several unsuccessful attempts in the past few years to replicate the success of domestic competitor Xiaohongshu.

The Comeback Kid:

CanSong originally launched as a direct challenge to Xiaohongshu, but failed to gain traction. Now, ByteDance is giving it another shot with a revamped focus on user-generated content and community engagement.

This strategy seems to be inspired by the success of Lemon8, ByteDance's international "Little Red Book" app, which has become the top lifestyle app in the US. Unlike CanSong, Lemon8 focuses heavily on high-quality content creation, with users encouraged to share detailed product reviews and multi-image posts.

ByteDance's Two-Pronged Approach:

ByteDance appears to be taking a two-pronged approach:

• Domestic Market: CanSong aims to capitalize on the growing trend of interactive and community-driven content in China.
• International Expansion: Lemon8's success demonstrates ByteDance's ability to adapt its strategy for different markets. CanSong could potentially serve as a platform for exploring new opportunities within China's rapidly evolving social commerce landscape.

Challenges Ahead:

Despite the renewed focus, CanSong faces several challenges:

• Competition: Xiaohongshu remains the dominant player in the domestic market with a strong brand reputation and loyal user base.
• Differentiation: CanSong needs to clearly differentiate itself from other social commerce platforms and offer unique value propositions to attract users.
• Content Quality: Sustaining high-quality content creation is crucial for success in the competitive social commerce space.

A Test of ByteDance's Strategy:

CanSong represents another test for ByteDance's strategy of rapid product development and experimentation. While Lemon8 has proven successful internationally, CanSong's domestic performance will be a critical indicator of whether ByteDance can replicate its success on home turf.

Conclusion:

The relaunch of CanSong highlights ByteDance's persistent interest in the social commerce market. Whether it can overcome the challenges and carve out a significant share remains to be seen. The coming months will be crucial for determining CanSong's fate and its impact on the evolving landscape of Chinese social commerce.