Influencer marketing
The right creator talking about your brand is worth more than any ad.
We find the right KOLs and KOCs, vet them, brief them, manage the relationship, and track what actually came back. From Shanghai and Hong Kong.
The case for creators
Why influencer marketing is essential
Advertising puts your message in front of people. Influencer marketing puts your product in the hands of someone they already trust.
It reaches communities, not demographics
A KOL's followers share interests, taste, and trust. When that person recommends a product, the audience responds in ways they wouldn't for a paid ad.
Conversion rates tend to be higher
Brands using KOL collaborations on RedNote report conversion rates roughly 2.3x higher than traditional ad channels.
The market is growing fast
The influencer economy is forecast to hit RMB 117 billion by the end of 2025. Over half of advertisers already use influencer content.
But it's incredibly time-consuming
Finding creators, verifying followers, negotiating fees, reviewing content, tracking results. A single campaign with 15 creators can eat up 100+ hours.
What we do
KOL and KOC identification
Creator identification
Database of creators across Douyin, RedNote, WeChat, Weibo, Bilibili, and Kuaishou. Every creator checked for engagement authenticity, audience quality, content style, and brand fit.
Campaign planning and briefing
Every campaign gets a brief. Objectives, key messages, content format, posting schedule, platform rules. KOL schedules coordinated with your content calendar and paid media.
Negotiation and contracting
We negotiate rates, usage rights, exclusivity terms, and deliverables. Listed rates and what brands actually pay can differ by 15% or more. We know what things should cost.
Full service
From live commerce to compliance to reporting
Live streaming is a serious sales channel. A single session on Douyin or Taobao Live can move thousands of orders in a couple of hours. We coordinate host selection, product briefing, script development, real-time chat moderation, and post-session reporting.
Compliance and disclosure
Sponsored content on Chinese platforms is subject to advertising regulations. RedNote requires clear disclosure labels. Douyin flags undisclosed promotions. We make sure every piece of KOL content meets platform requirements and complies with relevant advertising rules.
Performance tracking
Every campaign is measured. Impressions, engagement rate, click-throughs, conversions, cost per result. Post-campaign reports include who to keep working with, who to drop, and who's worth testing next time. We refine the creator mix based on data, not gut feeling.
Live commerce
For brands with a Douyin Shop, we run sessions linked directly to your product pages. Host selection, product briefing, real-time chat, and post-session reporting. The commission model means your risk is partially shared with the host.
Payment handling
Negotiation, contracting, payment, tax documentation. You pay us. We sort out the rest with the creators and their MCNs. Flat fee, commission on sales, product exchange, or hybrid structures depending on the campaign.
Industry context
What is an MCN?
MCN stands for Multi-Channel Network. In practice, it's a talent management company for creators. MCNs sign contracts with KOLs and KOCs, then manage their content production, brand deals, and monetization.
As of 2025, there are roughly 29,000 registered MCN organizations operating across the market. Chinese MCNs train creators, produce their content, manage supply chains for live commerce, and handle platform compliance. A lot of the biggest names on Douyin and RedNote were incubated by MCNs.
When you want to work with a mid-tier or top-tier KOL, you're almost always negotiating with their MCN. We work with major MCNs across Douyin, RedNote, and WeChat. Those relationships mean faster response times, priority access to creators who are usually booked out, and pricing that's hard to get if you're reaching out cold.
Indicative pricing
RedNote / Xiaohongshu
Rates depend on follower count, engagement rate, content format, niche, and exclusivity. These ranges reflect Q1 2026 benchmarks. Not quotes.
Nano-KOCs (under 5K)
¥100 to ¥500/post, or product exchange only. Best for seeding campaigns that build search presence through volume.
Micro-KOCs (5K to 20K)
¥500 to ¥3,000/post. High engagement rates. Great for authentic product reviews and organic buzz.
Mid-tier KOLs (20K to 100K)
¥3,000 to ¥15,000/post. The sweet spot for most campaigns. Good reach, real credibility, and the cost per engagement usually makes sense.
Top-tier KOLs (100K+)
¥15,000 to ¥80,000+/post. Beauty and luxury KOLs command roughly 50% more than other categories. Video notes cost 20 to 30% more than photo notes.
Indicative pricing
Douyin
Micro-creators (under 50K)
¥1,000 to ¥5,000/video. Good for product demos and tutorials.
Mid-tier KOLs (50K to 500K)
¥5,000 to ¥30,000/video. Effective for brand awareness and driving Douyin Shop traffic.
Top-tier KOLs (500K+)
¥30,000 to ¥200,000+/video. Campaign anchors. Often bundled with live commerce sessions.
Live commerce hosts
Base fee plus 20 to 40% commission on sales. A strong host can move tens of thousands of units in a single session.
Indicative pricing
Official Account KOLs (articles)
¥5,000 to ¥50,000+/article depending on average views. The rough benchmark is about ¥1 per view. The most expensive platform per impression, but the audience quality is different. The attention is deeper.
Channels KOLs (video)
¥3,000 to ¥20,000/video. Growing format. Less established pricing than Douyin but expanding quickly.
Getting started
From brief to first influencer posts in two to four weeks.
Discovery call.
Your brand, your goals, and the type of creators you want to work with.
KOL shortlist.
Vetted creators matched to your brand, niche, and budget. Every engagement number verified.
First posts in 2-4 weeks.
Creator outreach, briefing, content production, review, and publication.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about influencer marketing in China with TheRedScroll.
We cross-reference follower counts against engagement metrics, comment quality, and audience demographics. A creator with 200,000 followers and 50 comments per post, mostly generic emoji, that's a red flag. Platform tools like Xingtu and Pugongying also provide authenticated data. After a few hundred campaigns you recognize the patterns quickly.
Depends on what you're trying to do. Seeding campaign: 20 to 50 KOCs. Brand awareness push: 3 to 5 mid-tier KOLs. Hero product launch: one top-tier creator supported by 10 to 15 KOCs. We build the mix around your budget and goals.
Generally yes. We share drafts or preview content before publication. Some creators resist heavy editing because it kills authenticity, and they're usually right. But key messages, compliance labels, and brand guidelines always get checked.
KOLs are professional creators with large followings and polished content. KOCs (Key Opinion Consumers) are everyday users with smaller audiences who share genuine product experiences. KOLs drive awareness. KOCs build trust and search presence. Most campaigns need both.
Two to four weeks from brief to first post. That covers creator identification, outreach, negotiation, briefing, content production, and review. Seeding campaigns with KOCs move faster, sometimes one to two weeks.
Sometimes. Usage rights have to be negotiated upfront. Some creators include ad usage in their fee. Others want a separate licensing payment, which can add 30 to 50% on top. We sort this out during contracting so nobody gets surprised later.
Beauty, skincare, and fashion see the strongest results because the creator ecosystem is the most developed. F&B, health and wellness, hospitality, and consumer electronics are close behind. B2B brands can also make it work, especially on WeChat and Zhihu, but the pool of relevant creators is smaller.
The whole flow. Negotiation, contracting, payment, tax documentation. You pay us. We sort out the rest with the creators and their MCNs.