China’s social media may hold lessons for Facebook in reducing pressure to chase ‘likes’

Both WeChat and Weibo have put initiatives in place to help social media users limit the time they are visible online. — SCMP

In China, the world of social media is no longer just about taking a snapshot and clicking the “post” button. It has become a stressful daily activity in the world’s most populous nation, as users spend more time online obsessing over the “likes” they get and what other people are posting.

That has prompted the country’s giant platforms to rethink their efforts on driving user stickiness and check the potential damaging effect of excessive social media interaction. Both WeChat, the country’s leading mobile messaging service and social network, and Weibo already have initiatives in place to help users limit the time they are visible online, a strategy which their Western counterparts are starting to pursue.