Mini programs are appearing more and more in daily life and perform well in operation, so many companies want to develop and run their own. Here is what preparation is needed before development and operation.
1. Register a company or an individual business. Many of the people who ask about building a platform are individuals without a company. WeChat does allow individuals to apply for some mini programs and official accounts, but if the product you want is a platform, for example one that needs an online payment interface or carries corporate information, individuals are not permitted. So the first step is to register a company or an individual business. A few notes. Company registration is now generally free in most provinces and cities, and even the company seal is often issued free of charge, so it is not as troublesome as it sounds; check your local commerce bureau’s website or call to confirm. The receiving account differs: a company must use its corporate account to receive payments, while an individual business may use a bank card in the name of the legal representative. The company name affects later steps: trading, technology and information technology names are common, but an e-commerce name is not advisable, because ICP filing will then require an ICP operating licence, which is difficult to obtain. And the business scope must match: if the platform sells goods, the registered scope must cover that, or the review will not pass.
2. Open corporate online banking. Once the company is registered, it is worth opening online banking on the corporate account when you set it up. It will be needed later when applying for verification of an official account or mini program and for payment interfaces, where a transfer of a few cents is required to verify authenticity. Many banks open corporate accounts free of charge; ask nearby branches after registration.
3. Qualification documents. After development is finished, WeChat reviews your qualifications. If you are building a dining mini program, you need a food business licence in addition to the business licence; if it is a food retail program, you need a food operation licence. Without these qualifications the program cannot go live even when development is complete, so this point deserves attention. A responsible developer will tell you in advance. We have seen a client spend around 100,000 yuan on a finished mini program that could never be published, simply because the vendor never mentioned that some industries need qualifications beyond the business licence, and those qualifications are genuinely hard to obtain.
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