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WeChat hopes the partnership will better serve the Chinese community in Glasgow.
Glasgow Taxis have recently made their debut on the Chinese social media app WeChat to strengthen their connection with Chinese people living in Glasgow during the Chinese New Year.
WeChat is a Chinese multipurpose app used for messaging, social media and mobile payment with 1 billion monthly users. The move was undertaken in partnership with specialists Red Unit, a strategic design consultancy in Scotland specialising in innovative solutions for businesses to access and develop the global Chinese market.
Cameron Coutts, Strategic Partner at Red Unit, said: “The strategic move to take Glasgow Taxis onto WeChat is a great testimony to the company’s vision and values to cater for all nationalities in one of Scotland’s most diverse cities.”
According to the University of Glasgow’s most recent planning and business intelligence data, the number of Chinese students at the university during the 2018/19 year was almost 3,500. WeChat hopes that by reaching out to the local Chinese community they will better serve the Chinese community in Glasgow.
Last year, Glasgow Taxis made an effort to win the support of the Chinese community by releasing six iconic Glasgow Taxis with the company’s slogan “Your City’s Friend” printed in Mandarin on the side. This move was incredibly popular among both Chinese students and tourists.
Glasgow Taxis claims that the main barrier for Chinese people in Glasgow using the taxi service is that very few Chinese people are familiar with the Glasgow Taxis app, and instead prefer to use Uber because it is known globally.
Qiyan Zhang, a Chinese student studying at the University of Glasgow, said that until Glasgow Taxis opened a WeChat account, she only knew about the service from its poster in WeChat, and is now considering ordering more Glasgow Taxis in the future.
Zhang said: “I felt at home when I noticed the slogan of the poster written in Chinese.”