A Study on the Communication Effect of Promotional Activities for Time-Honored Catering Brands on the Tik Tok Platform: A Case Study of "Hundred Years of Dehe - A Look Back at 1982"

Abstract

Nowadays, short video platforms have rapidly become a key battleground for brand marketing due to their efficient information dissemination and strong interactivity. Tik Tok, one of the most representative short video platforms in China, has developed into a core channel for brand promotion, leveraging over 700 million daily active users and precise algorithm recommendations. However, traditional time-honored catering brands face challenges in digital communication, including brand aging, limited communication pathways, and difficulty connecting with younger audiences. In this context, this study analyzes the communication effect of the "Hundred Years of Dehe – A Look Back at 1982" promotional activity for the time-honored brand "Dehe" on Tik Tok. Based on the Two-Step Flow Theory, opinion leaders are classified into three levels: small, medium, and large. Core indicators: like rate, comment rate, and share rate are extracted through tag filtering, and a weighted scoring method is applied to quantify communication effectiveness. Results are visually presented to compare the performance of each level. Findings indicate that communication through opinion leaders significantly outperforms brand-initiated communication, with small opinion leaders achieving the highest comment and share rates. The study concludes that time-honored brands should prioritize collaborations with small opinion leaders to better integrate cultural heritage and digital dissemination.