"See It, Want It, Taobao It!”: Localising Taobao for the Aussie Market

A Global Giant Steps into a New Arena

As one of China’s largest online shopping platforms, Taobao has long been a household name in Asia. For their expansion into the Australian market, especially the launch of their first-ever English-language platform, Taobao partnered with Brand Catalyser to lead the charge across strategy, execution, and influencer engagement.

Brand Catalyser: The Local Power Behind the Local Push

Having worked closely with Taobao over several years, Brand Catalyser has served as their trusted partner for localised execution across media buying, advertising, offline activations, and campaign strategy. This launch marked a pivotal moment—introducing Taobao to an English-speaking audience in Australia for the very first time.

100 Voices, One Message: Influencer Power in Action

To amplify the launch, we developed and executed a tailored influencer marketing campaign, activating over 100 local influencers across Instagram and TikTok. Through strategically crafted content and platform-specific storytelling, we generated significant local buzz, driving both awareness and trial in record time.

Introducing a new e-commerce platform to Australian consumers—who are deeply familiar with existing platforms and traditional shopping behaviors—posed a considerable challenge. To overcome this, Brand Catalyser crafted a bold and memorable campaign message:
“See something? Think something? Want something? Taobao it!”

This hook became the foundation for influencer content, driving home Taobao’s key selling points: compelling discounts, seamless usability, and unique value. By partnering with influencers in the fashion, lifestyle, and style inspiration space, we highlighted promotions like free shipping on fashion orders, appealing to a younger, trend-driven audience and differentiating Taobao from its competitors.

Young, Digital, and Discerning: Lessons from a Shifting Audience

Fruitfully, this campaign resulted in over 1 million Impressions, and over 50k in Engagement. This campaign reaffirmed the importance of audience research, influencer alignment, and creative agility. Younger consumers are driving change across the digital landscape, and tapping into their habits requires more than a one-size-fits-all approach. This experience reinforced several key insights for us at Brand Catalyser. While traditional influencer strategies may feel like a safe bet, they often fall short in fast-moving, highly dynamic markets. To truly connect with evolving audiences—especially digital-native consumers—ongoing analysis of user behavior and trend shifts is critical. Most importantly, we discovered the value of creative autonomy: by giving content creators more freedom to interpret and express the brand message in their own voice, we unlocked more authentic, engaging, and high-performing content.

Cultural Fluency Meets Market Impact

Brand Catalyser’s role as a cultural bridge and strategic marketing partner was instrumental in translating Taobao’s global brand voice into locally resonant, high-impact engagement with Australian consumers. By combining deep market insight with a nuanced understanding of cultural context, we were able to help Taobao break through the noise and connect meaningfully with a new audience.

Whether you’re an established global brand or a rising player looking to enter new markets, Brand Catalyser is your partner for dynamic, data-driven, and culturally fluent growth.

Let’s bring your brand to life in new markets—contact us today to start the conversation.

MORE OF OUR WORK

We are Brand Catalyser.

Brand Catalyser x Zesty Paws: The Pawfect Pair at Singapore’s Pet Expo

Uncorking Success: Wine Victoria Satellite Event in Shanghai

The Growth of E-commerce in Singapore and Strategic Market Entry

Brand Catalyser x Australian Table Grape Association (ATGA): Crafting a Culturally Adaptable, Market-Ready Brand Identity

From Campus Buzz to Brand Loyalty: How BC Supercharged Taobao & Trip.com at O-Week

Brown Brothers Focus Group – Pioneering Innovation in the Asian Market with Brand Catalyser

[email protected]

Envelope Phone-alt

© Brand Catalyser 2024

Scroll to Top