WeChat Mini Program Developer in Shanghai

QPSoftware is a WeChat Mini Program development company in Shanghai. We design, build and launch Mini Programs for foreign brands that sell to Chinese consumers, such as the booking Mini Program of Huttopia and the cross-border marketplace of Ma France. Founded in 2009, we have delivered more than 200 projects with an international team.

A Mini Program is an app that runs inside WeChat: nothing to download, WeChat login and WeChat Pay available, and a QR code or a shared link to open it. Our WeChat Mini Program developers handle the whole path, from the first specification to WeChat’s review, the launch and the versions that follow.

What our WeChat Mini Program developers build

• Booking and ticketing. Huttopia sells glamping stays through a Mini Program connected to its booking system in France, with WeChat Pay and WeChat Login. Go City sells sightseeing passes with one-click refunds, prices converted into Chinese yuan and a back end on AWS, built to load fast for users inside and outside mainland China.
• Cross-border e-commerce. For Ma France, a marketplace of products made in France, we designed the store, built promotion coupons and a back office for orders and stock, and connected the GoAllPay platform: customers pay from their WeChat wallet, and the money reaches Ma France’s bank account in France.
• Services and customer support. Doc Chat is a WeChat application that puts Chinese users in touch with doctors in the United States, with WeChat signup, online payment and a support ticket system.
• Marketing campaigns. Vouchers, special offers, promotional announcements and WeChat Mini Games that engage your audience.

Why choose a Mini Program rather than a native app?

Tencent launched Mini Programs inside WeChat in January 2017. Brands now use them to sell, to serve their customers and to run campaigns in China. Compared with a native app, a Mini Program has clear strengths:

• No download. Users open it from a QR code, a search in WeChat or a link shared by a friend. People who only want a look can try it at once, which helps you win new users.
• Light by design. WeChat limits each code package to 2 MB and, in most cases, all the packages of one Mini Program to 30 MB, which keeps the first launch quick (WeChat developer documentation).
• Easy to share. Happy users pass a Mini Program on to their friends and become a marketing channel for your brand.
• Lower cost. Developing an average Mini Program usually costs less than developing a native app.

A Mini Program can complement an existing native app. You can also launch the Mini Program first and decide later whether to add an app. High-end brands can use it to give new users a taste of their services before moving them to an app, a website or an online store. To go further, read how Mini Programs differ from mobile apps.

How our Mini Program development works

Our agile project methodology keeps you involved: you review and accept each phase before the next one starts.

1. Scoping. We analyze your business model and your marketing goals, then advise you on the Mini Program that fits them. We also check which account and rules apply to the company that will own it.
2. UX and UI design. Screens made for WeChat’s design guidelines and for Chinese users, in Chinese, English or the languages you need.
3. Development. WeChat’s own framework (WXML, WXSS and JavaScript) or a cross-platform framework such as Uniapp with Vue.js, a back end, and the integrations: WeChat Pay, WeChat Login, your booking engine, ERP or e-commerce platform.
4. Testing. Functional tests inside WeChat before each submission.
5. Review and release. We upload the code, submit each version to WeChat’s review and release it once approved, following WeChat’s release process.
6. Follow-up. Usage data with the WeData analytics tool, fixes and new versions.

For the technical side, read our guide on how to develop a WeChat Mini Program.

WeChat Mini Programs for foreign brands

As a WeChat development company, we often work for brands based outside China, and the same questions come up early in each project:

• Who owns the account? Registration, WeChat verification and filing depend on the company that owns the Mini Program. Under a 2023 notice of China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, apps that provide internet information services in China, including those distributed as Mini Programs, must be filed, and new ones before they start operating (MIIT notice). We check how these rules apply to your company at the scoping stage.
• How will you get paid? A Mini Program can collect WeChat Pay payments for a brand based abroad: for Ma France, the money reaches a bank account in France through a cross-border payment platform. Our China payment gateway integration service covers WeChat Pay, Alipay and UnionPay.
• Is WeChat the only platform? No. Alipay, Douyin and Baidu also run Mini Programs, as our comparison of the Mini Program platforms in China shows.