Health Supplement Market in China: A Guide for Marketers

For global supplement brands, China represents not just a new market, but the fastest-growing opportunity in global wellness:

• China is set to become the world’s largest dietary supplements market, outpacing even the U.S. in the coming years.
• More than 70% of young Chinese now purchase health supplements online

With rising incomes and Covid came a stronger health awareness:

Chinese consumers are turning to vitamins, minerals, and dietary supplements like never before. An habit already present by TMC (traditional Chinese medecine). For international brands, this shift creates a rare opportunity in one of the world’s fastest-growing wellness markets.

At GMA, we’ve spent years helping global brands selling supplement and wellness companies in China. And getting them good ROI with custom strategies going from e-commerce platforms to influencer marketing.

In this guide, you’ll learn the key trends shaping the market, the platforms that matter most, and proven strategies to build your brand in China.

Dietary Supplements in China: Where the need comes from

Having experienced during the last century various episodes of food restriction, during the wars and then the reform of the Great Leap Forward policy by Mao Zedong, China has now become a country that revolves around food consumption. You can see the street: stands, restaurants, supermarkets, and many other food shops that overlook the landscape.

However, today, being content with staple foods for eating no longer seems sufficient. With the rapid growth of the country, the fatigue and the stress supported daily make Chinese more and more dependent on dietary supplements and vitamins to preserve their physical condition. Also, the problems of urbanization and living environment have aroused people’s attention to health care.

Also, with the improvement of the national income level and the increase of the middle class in China, more people are able to spend money on their health. The seek for quality of life enter also into an account. The market is meeting a new stage of demand.

E-commerce is the best option for Brands in China

On the one hand, demand is growing rapidly, on the other hand, the industry is changing fast. Consumers are more mature and changing their spending habits. Actually, a lot of discounts are part of the online sales strategy leading users to consume more products online than in shops.

In the beginning, the idea to buy food products on the internet wasn’t a so reassuring idea. Because consumers can’t see in advance what they are paying for. But traditional channels are evolving. The Internet and digitization have changed the way businesses engage with consumers and create value.

With the e-commerce development in China, the security and safety of its services lead people to seek all their stuff online nowadays. The delivery time constraint is also no more a problem as this service is nowadays very practical and fast in China.

Swisse is a leading Brand online in China for Dietary supplements in 2024

Popular e-commerce platform such as Tmall is good for the company because it already captures a huge segment of clients. Also, users have faith in this platform and are willing to spend on it easily. Tmall is known to sell authentic products.

Influence of Douyin on Dietary Supplements in China

Douyin, the Chinese counterpart to TikTok, has significantly impacted the dietary supplements market in China. The platform’s vast reach and highly engaging format make it an ideal channel for promoting health and wellness products. Douyin’s influence extends particularly through sports Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) who often partner with dietary supplement brands to reach health-conscious audiences.

Sports KOLs and Douyin

Sports KOLs on Douyin leverage their expertise and follower trust to promote dietary supplements. These influencers often share their personal experiences with supplements, workout tips, and nutritional advice, thereby educating and influencing their followers’ purchasing decisions.

Their endorsements can greatly enhance brand credibility and drive sales, especially among younger consumers who look up to these fitness experts for lifestyle inspiration.

5 Tips to Activate Douyin Marketing & E-commerce for Dietary Supplements

1. Engaging Content Creation: Create short, captivating videos that showcase the benefits of your dietary supplements. Highlight key ingredients, usage tips, and potential health benefits. Use visually appealing graphics and demonstrations to make complex information easily digestible.
2. Collaborate with Relevant KOLs: Partner with sports and health-focused KOLs who resonate with your brand’s image. These collaborations can include product reviews, challenges, or educational content about health and fitness, tailored to the KOL’s specific audience.
3. Hashtag Challenges: Launch hashtag challenges that encourage user participation and content creation around your products. This can increase brand visibility and engagement, and if well-executed, such challenges can go viral, attracting a broader audience.
4. Utilize Douyin’s E-commerce Features: Take advantage of Douyin’s integrated e-commerce capabilities. Ensure that your products are available for purchase directly through the app, facilitating a seamless transition from discovery to purchase. This reduces the friction in the buying process, leveraging impulse buying behaviors.
5. Data-Driven Ads: Utilize Douyin’s Ads native system is great for any marketer. With Douanalytics brands ca track engagement , and sales and readjust your marketing budget to reach ROI. Understand which types of videa that bring sales and generate the most interaction and sales, allows our team to maximize ROI.

GMA Olivier VEROT video about this

By effectively using Douyin’s platform capabilities and the influential power of sports KOLs, brands can significantly enhance their presence in China’s competitive dietary supplement market. This approach not only boosts brand awareness but also drives conversions, making Douyin a pivotal channel in digital marketing strategies for health products in China.

How to market dietary food supplements in China?

There are some key factors that all dietary food supplement company has to get before entering this booming market :

Understanding Chinese consumers Need and habits

Elderly people were the most targeted by domestic manufacturers. Due to the necessity to take care of seniors in China, the youngest people and adults have to respect filial piety.

Offering food supplements to the oldest person is a good deal. Also, for this consumer segment, brands use a lot of television to advertise aged persons. They represent a very dedicated listening audience. Aged Chinese people rely also more on television advertising.

Building your brand’s online awareness

The newest generation uses consult online descriptions and information about food supplements. A lot of consumers have a low cognition of healthy food at present. That’s why they only can do more research or rely on other’s consumer’s feedback. They trust recommendations on the internet more than brand advertising in China.

The reputation of the brand and its products is very important. You can check for more information about Wechat, the main application of communication and promotion used in China.

However, domestic manufacturers often fail to develop product branding and credibility which leads most of them to have short life cycles. A few years ago, high-quality imported products only account for 10% of the total sales. Nowadays, imported products are getting very popular.

SEO campaign on Baidu

To increase your visibility online, it’s important to be well-referenced on Baidu, the main search engine in China. Brands have to create quality content in Chinese and use keywords. Learn more about our SEO services here.

By the way, Chinese people are searching for effectiveness in the product. Brands have to propose food supplements underlining the effect provided.  Showcases or key opinion leaders can be useful for promotion.

Healthcare and nutritious foods can be divided into health foods and functional foods according to their regulatory standards and uses. The most popular keywords in China for dietary food supplement research online are these :

• Fat reduction
• Supplemental protein for musculation
• Increase immunity
• Increase memory
• Antihypertensive
• Reduce fatigue
• Aid digestion

The Best Social media for Dietary Supplements in China Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu)

Little Red Book, or Xiaohongshu, is a prime platform for marketing dietary supplements in China, thanks to its blend of social media and e-commerce functionality. This platform is particularly popular among young urban women, making it a strategic channel for brands targeting this demographic.

Influence of Female KOLs on Xiaohongshu

Female Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) wield considerable influence on Xiaohongshu, driving trends and consumer behavior, particularly in the health and wellness sectors. These influencers often share personal stories about their health routines, including the use of dietary supplements, which can sway their followers’ purchasing decisions significantly. Their recommendations are trusted because they are viewed as authentic and relatable, creating an ideal environment for brands to promote wellness products.

Five Tips for Effective Marketing on Xiaohongshu

1. Create Unique UGC Content: Encourage the creation of user-generated content (UGC) that showcases real-life testimonials and detailed product experiences. Sharing before-and-after scenarios or detailed user stories can enhance credibility and attract more interest to your products.
2. Optimize for SEO: Utilize Xiaohongshu’s built-in search functionalities by optimizing your content with relevant keywords that potential customers might use to find dietary supplements. Regularly update your content to keep it fresh and ensure it aligns with current trends and user searches.
3. Leverage Native Advertising: You cant ignore native ads these day in China. These should not only promote your products but also offer valuable content or solve problems, thus fitting naturally into the content that users consume on Xiaohongshu.
4. Cultivate Recommendations: @mybrand is important on red 😉 Foster an environment where users are encouraged to recommend your products. This could be through incentives for reviews or creating shareable content that users want to spread within their networks.
5. Focus on the Community: Actively engage with comments and posts about your brand. This includes responding to queries, thanking users for their reviews, and participating in discussions. Engagement can build a loyal community around your brand, enhancing trust and visibility.

By implementing these strategies, brands can effectively harness the power of Xiaohongshu to boost the visibility and appeal of their dietary supplements, tapping into a community that values health and authenticity.

To finish, Branding and promotion are both important for your business in China. The market is young but competitive and you have to ensure a long-term strategy.

Need more information?

Do not hesitate to contact us. GMA is specialized in digital marketing in China. Our team is made up of experts in the Chinese market and its culture.

• How to launch your dietary brand and sell your products in China?
• What is the cost of a launching campaign ?
• What are the regulation in China ?
• Can I use a distributors ?

We can help you, reply to your question to develop your project and define together the best way for your brand to break through this market. Contact us or come and meet us directly at our offices in Shanghai!

Read also :

• How to market your brand in the diet and vitamin Market?
• 5 tips to market your beverage in China 
• Cross-Border E-Commerce (CBEC) in China: The Ultimate Guide