Creative analysis of advertising on Zhihu platform!

If Toutiao is an information engine for intelligent recommendation, then Zhihu is a knowledge engine for intelligent recommendation. In 2019, Zhihu began to accelerate in all aspects, trying to "monetize" in more diversified ways around "knowledge questions and answers", recruiting MCNs, short videos, product recommendations, live broadcasts, e-commerce, etc., which also attracted the attention and attention of more potential advertisers.

Placing ads in Zhihu’s information flow is an important way to generate accurate traffic on the Zhihu platform. At present, Zhihu's information flow advertising recommendation mechanism is relatively mature and the conversion chain is relatively complete, supporting multiple forms such as App downloads, form clues mobile phones, e-commerce SKUs, and mini programs .

As of March this year, the gender ratio of Zhihu users has become more balanced, with more than 80% of users being young people under the age of 35 . The group aged 24 and below accounts for the largest proportion, at 31.21%; users aged 25-30 are the second largest group, accounting for 29.15%.

According to our advertising algorithm, the platform 's mobile advertising revenue during Q1 is as follows.

Which specific industries are more suitable for placing information flow ads on Zhihu? Who are the popular advertisers? What are the characteristics of the materials and copywriting of information flow advertisements? This article analyzes the Zhihu advertising intelligence tracked from April to May to help everyone better understand the trends and material characteristics of Zhihu’s information flow advertising.

01. Which industries are hot on Zhihu? What are the characteristics of advertising copy and material formats?

Judging from the distribution of advertisement numbers in key industries, comprehensive e-commerce and gaming industries are the two leading industries, accounting for almost the same proportion, at 23.29% and 22.62% respectively.

In terms of material format, it adheres to Zhihu's consistent characteristics, with nearly 50% being pure text , 38.14% being pictures, and 12.11% being videos.

02. In App delivery, which styles/categories are more popular, and which top advertisers are competing for the volume?

2-1 War and Three Kingdoms mobile games take the majority of the market share, while e-commerce apps are strongly marketed

In the advertising of game apps, the number of advertisements for war and Three Kingdoms mobile games accounted for more than 30% , far exceeding the third-place anime mobile games (9.48%). This is also inseparable from the strong placement of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Strategic Edition" on the Zhihu platform.

Due to the impact of the "black swan" epidemic, the tourism and hotel accommodation industries have declined rapidly , and the proportion of e-commerce applications such as discount sales, platform e-commerce, and vertical e-commerce has steadily increased . K12 education, life services, and stranger dating peaked in March and then began to decline, while renting and buying houses gradually recovered as the epidemic situation improved.

2-2 3 shopping apps made the list

Based on the mobile advertising intelligence tracked from April to May, we further compiled the top 10 games and non-game apps with the most advertising on the Zhihu platform as follows.

"What's Worth Buying", "Xiaomi Youpin" and "A Little English" were the key app advertisers on the Zhihu platform during Q1. The TOP10 non-game apps were mostly shopping and house rental and purchase apps, with 3 shopping apps on the list.

The top mobile games are mainly of the Three Kingdoms and animation types, with large investments in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Strategy Edition", "Princess Connect", and "Mirror Flowers of Mountain and Sea" .

03What are the characteristics of Zhihu advertising creative materials?

The following focuses on the advertising copywriting routines and advertising material routines in the four major industries of games, comprehensive e-commerce, social marriage and love, and education and training .

In general, interrogative sentences are a common usage in Zhihu advertising copy, mainly sharing strategies and disguising them as reviews . The following are some of the more common creative points for advertising copy in various industries.

3-1 Analysis of copywriting in the top industries on Zhihu platform in Q1

3-2 Analysis of top industry materials on Zhihu platform in Q1

1) Inventory of creative advertising in the mobile game industry: real-life shooting and big imagination

Most mobile game advertising styles on Zhihu are similar to those on other platforms, but some advertisers will create advertising materials based on the platform's tone in a more targeted manner . Taking the two games "Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Strategy Edition" and "Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Fantasy Continent" as examples, we analyze the differences in advertising materials on different platforms.

The characteristics of the video materials of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Strategic Edition" on Zhihu are that they are introduced through interviews and funny real-life sitcoms, which further embed the selling points of the game .

The interview material begins by showing each player’s game ID and profession, with the last player explaining his or her views on the game, soft-implanting selling points such as the mobile game not requiring pay-to-win gameplay and emphasizing team battle strategies . The overall style of this type of material is relatively delicate and steady , and the professions of the players interviewed are more consistent with Zhihu users, which can not only narrow the distance with the audience, but also enhance the high-end feel of the game.

Another material uses the Tony hairdresser joke to attract users' attention, and then embeds the game download method, showing the process of fighting together with Tony teacher. The battle scenes are intense and the plot is ups and downs. At the same time, it emphasizes the selling points of real terrain, the alliance system , etc.

On other platforms, most of the video materials used are Gao Xiaosong explaining Xiliang’s advantages, Dong Jiayao analyzing war strategies, and anchors recording game screens .

The characteristic of the video material of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms Fantasy Continent" on Zhihu is the use of the beauty strategy, combined with imaginative and funny plot content .

The material starts with the gossip about a female colleague's skin becoming better during office chat, throws out the gimmick of "playing games to keep your skin healthy", and introduces the selling point of "Three Kingdoms Fantasy Continent" that does not require hard work to maintain the liver. The content is funny and attractive.

Another piece of material hits the sore spot of male players. The plot shows two beautiful girls begging a male player for help in clearing a level. The male player inserts the selling points of the game into the process of explaining the game. In the end, the player wins the game and gets a kiss from the beautiful girl, implying that the game can be used to seduce girls, thus attracting users to download and try it out.

Most of the materials of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms Fantasy Continent" on other platforms are animated materials such as game screen recordings and game character introductions .

A collection of the above-mentioned game advertising video materials:

2) Comprehensive e-commerce advertising creative inventory: simple, transparent, and high-end

The e-commerce industry advertisements on the Zhihu platform as a whole have the characteristics of strong visual transparency, simple elements, and a pursuit of high-end feel . From the comparison of the image materials of the two apps "What's Worth Buying" and "Xiaomi Youpin", it can be clearly seen that the advertisements on the Zhihu platform are minimalist , with the product names and prices prominently displayed , and the focus of the picture is on highlighting the texture of the product itself , without too many fancy selling points.

3) Creative inventory of social dating ads, using common interests and soulmates as attractions

The advertising materials placed by social dating apps on the Zhihu platform rarely show real people or their front faces . They mostly promote the selling points of finding soulmates, people with common interests, and the compatibility of world views. The style of the images is relatively simple . On other platforms, the appearance of the young ladies is often used as an attraction to guide users to download.

4) Creative inventory of education and training advertisements, with exquisite color matching and clean and refreshing pictures

Among the educational industry apps on the Zhihu platform, the advertising style of "myoffer" on Zhihu and other platforms is obviously different. From the comparison of the pictures, we can see that the color matching of "myoffer" in Zhihu 's advertisement is harmonious, the subtitle area is conspicuous, and the copy uses rhetorical questions, which are short but attractive and directly grasp the user's pain points.

On other platforms, the advertising material of "myoffer" is relatively complex, with many pictures and subtitles and a large amount of information. It is not as beautiful as the Zhihu ad on the right.

In general, the overall style of Zhihu's information flow advertising is in line with the tastes of young users and matches the tone of the Zhihu platform. The video material needs to use funny and imaginative plots , and when making picture materials, it is necessary to pay attention to the simplicity of the picture, highlight the subtitles, and pay attention to harmonious color matching .

The above is an analysis of the advertising creativity on the Zhihu platform.

Author: App Growing

Source: App Growing