In recent years, with the rapid rise of short-video platforms, mini dramas have gained immense popularity due to their bite-sized format, quick pacing, and ability to entertain a broad audience. Often referred to as "digital pickles," these shows are not only highly engaging but also serve as light and easily consumable content, much like pickles that enhance a meal. Originally favored by younger audiences, mini dramas have gradually captured the attention of older viewers as well, becoming a cross-generational phenomenon. According to the latest "Statistical Report on China's Internet Development" released on August 29, 2024, 52.4% of internet users are now mini drama viewers, and the market size reached 37.39 billion yuan in 2023, a 267.65% increase from 2022, with projections suggesting it will surpass 50 billion yuan in 2024.
With such explosive growth, more brands are exploring mini dramas as a key marketing strategy. These dramas allow brands to seamlessly integrate their products into popular storylines like romance or family themes, achieving frequent exposure while resonating emotionally with viewers. In the following sections, we will explore several case studies to demonstrate how brands can effectively leverage this trend to maximize their marketing impact and create lasting consumer engagement.
Case 1: Liby – Mini Dramas for Household Products
👆🏻Liby's mini dramas
Liby, a leading brand in the household cleaning industry, made a significant impact by using mini dramas for the first time in its marketing efforts. Liby’s mini drama marketing aimed to showcase its scented laundry detergent, a product whose benefits are difficult to visually communicate. Mini dramas proved to be an effective medium for targeting a broad audience and tapping into the emotional connections that viewers form with brands.
In the story, Liby incorporated its scented detergent into the daily lives of two key demographics: Generation Z and white-collar professionals. One storyline revolved around a popular “CEO falls in love” plot that resonated with these audiences. The brand cleverly illustrated how its fragrance products could give characters a social edge and professional confidence, making the intangible benefit of scent feel aspirational.
👆🏻Liby's mini dramas brings both target customer and sales growth
Liby’s strategy led to substantial growth in key target groups — Gen Z and white-collar professionals increased by 200% and 300%, respectively. Sales of Liby’s scented detergent saw a 341% increase, and overall sales increased by five times. The campaign boosted Liby’s net promoter score (NPS) and lowered cost per thousand impressions (CPM), proving the efficiency of mini drama marketing.
Case 2: KFC – Mini Drama Success with Humor and Storytelling
KFC’s approach to mini drama marketing demonstrates the potential for fast food restaurants to harness this medium. In contrast to McDonald's underperforming mini drama, KFC launched "Rebirth of the Foodie Queen," which featured a time-traveling love story embedded with frequent references to KFC's weekend deals.
👆🏻KFC's mini drama achieved a 140 million views in total
With 13 episodes on Douyin (TikTok in China), KFC’s mini drama exceeded 1.4 billion views, with individual episodes earning over 52,000 likes. The cleverly named characters and consistent product integration strengthened consumer engagement with the brand. The focus on humor, combined with storytelling, made the promotion of KFC’s weekend deals memorable and entertaining.
Case 3: Starbucks – Fusing Coffee Culture with Mini Dramas
Starbucks took mini drama marketing to new heights with its series, "I Opened a Starbucks in Ancient Times," which debuted during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The storyline followed modern Starbucks employees transported to ancient China, where they introduce coffee culture to the local community. Alongside the drama, Starbucks launched promotions on Douyin, allowing users to watch the series while redeeming coupons.
👆🏻Limited-edition drinks made with Chinese traditional food
👆🏻Decorated live streaming room in traditional Chinese style 👆🏻Starbucks Express in ancient Chinese carriage
The mini drama introduced limited-edition drinks such as Fire Crystal Persimmon Frappuccino and Chestnut Latte, creatively tying them to traditional Chinese festivals. The unique blend of humor, storytelling, and product integration led to over 2 million views on the first day, with strong engagement across social media. The drama helped solidify Starbucks as a leader in creative marketing, enhancing its brand story and driving both online engagement and offline sales.
Case 4: Kans – Dominating Skincare Marketing through Mini Dramas
The Chinese skincare brand Kans emerged as a market leader in the mini drama marketing space, partnering with influencers to create multiple mini dramas. Kans’ mini dramas generated over 50 billion views and helped the brand achieve a sales total of 3.34 billion yuan in 2023, a 374.4% increase from the previous year.
👆🏻Kans produced 5 mini dramas with Douyin influencer @Jiang17, achieving a 3.34 billion yuan sales with 50 million yuan investment.
The drama series leveraged popular tropes like "CEO falls in love" to embed the brand’s products naturally within the plot. These dramas achieved high emotional resonance, making Kans’ skincare products, such as the Red Waist Gift Box, part of the characters’ daily lives. This helped the brand increase product relevance and engagement, showing how mini dramas can elevate sales without being overtly promotional.
Case 5: Xianyu – Interactive Mini Drama Marketing
Xianyu, Alibaba’s secondhand trading platform, explored user interaction by launching its self-produced mini drama "The Secret Deal of the Crown Prince’s Consort," in which users could participate as screenwriters, actors, and set designers. By incorporating real user stories and items for sale on Xianyu into the drama, the platform fostered a highly engaging and interactive experience, strengthening its community and brand loyalty.
👆🏻Users contribute to the script and vote for the ending.
👈🏻 Second-hand items provided by users are used as props for filming.
👆🏻A 10-meter-long yellow carpet of thanks written with users' names who contributed to the mini drama.
DOUBLE V TIPS：
Mini dramas are becoming a powerful tool in brand marketing, offering an accessible way to emotionally engage with diverse audiences. As this trend continues to rise, brands looking to leverage mini drama marketing should consider the following recommendations:
● Seamless Product Placement: Integrate products naturally into the storyline so that they feel like an organic part of the characters' lives, rather than a forced advertisement.
● Target Audience Alignment: Choose mini dramas with themes and audiences that closely match your brand’s target demographic to maximize relevancy and connection.
● Leverage Emotional Storytelling: Focus on creating emotional resonance by linking your brand to key moments in the drama that evoke feelings of joy, nostalgia, or aspiration.
● Collaborate with Influential Talent: Work with popular actors or influencers in the mini drama space to enhance credibility and trust among viewers.
Mini dramas present a dynamic and growing marketing avenue for brands, especially those seeking to engage audiences with emotional, memorable content. Careful planning, creativity, and differentiation are crucial to standing out in an increasingly competitive space. Brands should also pay attention to copyright protection and maintain originality. By investing in community building and fostering fan engagement, brands can convert mini drama viewers into long-term loyal customers, securing a lasting place in their target market’s hearts.
Double V Consulting is a marketing consultancy specialized in female consumer goods brands. We have been helping overseas brands navigate the complexities of the Chinese market since 2017. We specialize in creating strategies that resonate with Chinese female consumers, leveraging deep market insights and cultural understanding.
If you're interested in learning more about how we can assist your brand in understanding and connecting with Chinese consumers, don't hesitate to reach out here.
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