Emojis have become ubiquitous in digital communications, but their use in marketing campaigns hasn’t always been successful. Canvas8 spoke to Dr. Sara Kim, an associate professor at the University of Hong Kong, to learn how people interpret and react to brands that use these symbols.

Burberry has opened its first ‘social’ shopping store in China, integrating WeChat into how visitors interact with all aspects of the store. By introducing gamified elements into the brick-and-mortar shopping experience, luxury brands can pique the interest of young, experientially-minded shoppers.

China may be returning to a state of ‘normality’ following COVID-19, but after spending months in lockdown, certain crisis-time consumer habits seem to be sticking around – one of the most visible being a mass shift to e-commerce. So, how do people want to browse and buy online post-pandemic?

In real life, we don’t just communicate with words – we use facial expressions, gestures, and vocal tones to convey meaning. But these physical cues don’t translate into the digital world. As more of our lives play out online, tone indicators are bringing precision to online communication.