The WARC Podcast Winning the mid-funnel in China
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Feb 3, 2026 Lauren Cadman, WPP Media China GM focused on brand desirability in China, and Dennis Potgraven, WPP Media China CSO expert in funnel analytics, discuss mid-funnel weakness and how it erodes differentiation. They cover why awareness alone fails, redefining mid-funnel as desire, category differences like luxury versus FMCG, AI speeding decisions, channel roles across Red/WeChat/Douyin, and practical mid-funnel measurement steps.
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Mid‑Funnel Is China’s Biggest Leak
- China’s mid-funnel is the largest leakage point, with 35–60% of purchase intent lost between awareness and checkout.
- Brands over-invest in awareness and performance while underfunding mid-funnel strategies that drive conversion.
Mid‑Funnel Unlocks Growth Opportunities
- The mid-funnel drives growth by stealing share, premiumisation, and winning mid‑tier cities in China.
- Only 17% of marketers substantially invest in the mid‑funnel, creating a practical growth opportunity.
Desire Has Two Distinct Stages
- WPP redefines the mid‑funnel as building desire and triggering desire, not just consideration.
- Data shows roughly a 50/50 split between brand bias (building) and triggers (content/influencer) in many categories.