It took only 5 years for WeChat to become the Chinese “One APP to rule them all”. What can’t you do on WeChat? Today, we look as a few unexpected tools you can access from the APP that can make your life so much easier:
- Booking an ayi (house cleaning lady)
- Order a dry cleaning pick-up
- Order food from pretty much any restaurant
Book an ayi via WeChat
Trouble finding an ayi? E-house cleaning makes it easier for users to order house cleaning services just with only three steps.
Price: depends on areas. Usually 25 RMB / hour in Beijing, 2 hours each time.
1. Add the ejiajie WeChat account (WeChat ID: ejiajie)
2. Choose 预约保洁 in the bottom menu
3. Click 单次保洁 (one time service)
4. Enter your address (服务地址)and time for booking (请选服务时间)
5. You might want to pick “现金支付” as payment method to pay cash.
6. You’re done! WeChat saved the day once again.
Handle your dirty laundry via WeChat
Your apartment is now clean. Good. But what about your clothes?
No worry, WeChat is here too! You can use the e-washing laundry services directly through WeChat.
1. Scan the ewashing QR code (WeChat ID: ewashing)
2. Click on the “洗衣家纺” button
3. The next page will contain detailed pricing information for each item. You don’t need to do anything in particular here beside checking the prices are okay for you. Click “预约取件” at the bottom of the page
4. Write your phone number, click “发送验证码” and enter the confirmation code in the box bellow. You will be automatically logged in.
5. Enter your name, address and pick a time for the clothes to be picked up. Then press the blue “立即预约“ button to schedule a pickup.
6. You’re done! Ewashing will soon drop by your place and pick-up your clothes at the specified time, and return them back within 72 hours. Another victory for WeChat!
Order food from WeChat
Your house is clean, so are your clothes… You must be getting hungry! Once again, WeChat is here to help.
There is an innumerable number of services which enable you to order food from WeChat. Let’s just have a look at one of the biggest: Baidu Waimai (百度外卖)
1. Add Baidu Waimai WeChat account (WeChat ID: baiduwaimai)
2. Click on the “订外卖” sub-menu of the account
3. Select your city (auto-detected) and start browsing. You can also use the search bar on top to look for your favorite restaurant in town.
3. Select the dishes you like and press “选好了”
4. Like in previous cases, verify your number to log-in, then enter your address and delivery time. You can select “到货支付” to pay cash on delivery. Then press “确认下单” to confirm the order.
5. Your food is on its way, sit back and chill!
Conclusion
The breadth of services within WeChat is incredibly exciting. It is a testimony of the successful approach of Tencent building a “super APP” which would go way beyond its initial features: it is a true ecosystem in which both companies and users are striving and from which they are benefiting.