WeChat: The Hidden Features [Part 3]

6 Minute Read

• If you’ve been in China for two minutes, you’ll have heard about, or already be using, WeChat. The social media application provides just about every function you can think of. However, if you are new to China, it can be a bit confusing trying to work out all the inner workings and different WeChat features of the app.

• We have compiled a list of the key and lesser-known hidden Wechat features to help you understand it, as it must be one of the most important apps on your phone.

 Disable ‘Find Me By Phone Number’ 

By default, anyone who has your WeChat also has your phone number, but you can disable this feature.

Go to Me > Settings > Privacy > Methods for Friending Me, and disable Mobile Number.

 Broadcast Messages 

Have you ever wanted to send a personal message such as greetings - to a large number of people at once, but wondered if such a thing was possible on WeChat, especially for professional purposes?

Well, Broadcast messages is about to become your new best friend, just go to Me > Settings > General > Plugins > Broadcast messages > Send now.

You can then choose up to 200 contacts to send your message to, and… voila!

 Private Chats 

If you’ve attended a business or networking event in China in recent years, chances are you must have heard organizers mention a special group that they have already set up on WeChat at the end of their presentation so attendees can access materials and photos from that event.

What makes it great is that admins can create a private group chat on WeChat and generate a unique link and a QR code for others to scan and join on their own. They can create a password and share with whoever needs to join this chat.

 Secret Menu for Data Recovery 

You can now recover data in WeChat via a secret menu for data recovery. First click 'Add New Contact' and search ':recover'. You will then be taken to the WeChat data recovery menu (in Chinese).

 WeChat Fapiao System 

In China, there are times that you need to issue a fapiao (Receipt) for some reason or other. Whether you’re travelling for business or purchasing something related to your work, an official tax receipt is generally required to receive a reimbursement. But, the reality is that ordering a fapiao can be super inconvenient.

WeChat has come up with a relatively simple solution. Since we can make mobile payments, it follows that we should be able to make a fapiao through our phones, right? Tencent has come up with a shortcut that can help save you time going forward.

1. Find the Mini Program

To get started, search ‘WeChat Fapiao Helper’ (微信发票助手, Weixin fapiao zhushou in pinyin) in English or Chinese in the WeChat search bar. Click on the first mini program that appears.

2. Edit your Fapiao title

If this is your first time making a fapiao on WeChat, click ‘Add Fapiao Title’ to create your tax receipt. Once you see the editing page, you have six boxes to fill out. Start off with your company’s full name (including which office branch, if necessary) before adding in your company’s tax number, company address, your phone number, bank name and your bank account. Warm reminder, make sure to double-check everything you type in, especially the tax number. When you finish, click ‘save’ to store your information.

3. Show your Fapiao title

Once you save your information, the mini program will automatically generate a page with your fapiao info included. You can see a QR code underneath, which also allows businesses to access your fapiao information with just a quick scan.

4. Edit and share your Fapiao

You can share your fapiao to WeChat friends by clicking on the small circle icon in the top right-hand corner. You can also edit or delete your fapiao by tapping on the small edit icon next to ‘company name.’

5. Manage your Fapiao or check a Fapiao

If you return to the home page of WeChat Fapiao Helper, you can access your various fapiao. Furthermore, the mini-program is able to check a fapiao simply by scanning the QR code.

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