The Snake Oil of China’s Livestream Dream

If you’ve ever been sold a dream, you know the pitch. It’s slick, it’s loud, and it comes wrapped in promises of fast success and easy money. These days, in China, that dream is livestreaming.

A market where Li Jiaqi, the “Lipstick King,” can sell 15,000 lipsticks in five minutes. A market that pulled in nearly $690 billion in 2023. It’s no wonder aspiring livestreamers are lining up with cash in hand, hoping to learn the secret sauce to going viral.

The problem? Most of them are getting ripped off.

The Livestreaming Dream: Big Money, Big Promises

Livestream training courses are exploding across China. The pitch is irresistible:

“Pay us a few hundred bucks, and we’ll make you the next internet celebrity.”

Companies promise “masterclasses” led by top streamers, insider tips to crack the algorithm, and a golden ticket to China’s $690 billion live commerce market.

For aspiring influencers, it’s a no-brainer. The industry is packed with success stories: streamers who went from nobodies to celebrities with millions of followers and endorsement deals. Who wouldn’t bet on themselves?

The Reality: It’s Mostly Snake Oil

State-run People’s Daily recently blew the lid off the livestream training industry, and here’s what they found:

• Useless Classes: Most programs teach theory—not the skills you actually need to make it big.

• Fake Experts: The so-called “masters” running these courses rarely have livestreaming success themselves.

• Upsells Galore: Starter courses lure you in for cheap (399 yuan, $55 USD), then upsell you into “advanced” classes (2,999 yuan, $413 USD) and one-on-one “masterclasses” for a whopping 6,999 yuan ($962 USD).

And yet?
Students who shell out for these programs barely see their follower counts budge.

Xiao Ai Xin, an aspiring streamer, has taken more of these courses than she can count:

Why? Because the real stars of livestreaming—the Li Jiaqi’s of the world—aren’t sharing their secrets. In this cutthroat market, knowledge is power, and the big players aren’t giving it away.

Why People Keep Falling for It

The livestream dream is intoxicating. One moment, you’re nobody; the next, you’re pulling in millions of viewers and counting stacks of cash.

It’s the lottery that doesn’t feel random. There’s a formula to it—or so these companies say.

But here’s the dirty truth:

Most shortcuts are scams.

Courses promise the world, but they deliver buzzwords and empty advice. They sell the fantasy of fame, not the skills to actually get there.

Can the Industry Be Fixed?

There’s hope for China’s livestream training market, but it won’t come from some guy in a rented office spouting “secrets to success” over a PowerPoint deck. It’s coming from systems that actually roll up their sleeves and do the work.

1. Xiliu E-Commerce Industrial Park
   In the northeastern city of Anshan, there’s a factory for influencers—2,300 of them—each pulling in at least 100,000 followers. Xiliu isn’t selling shortcuts. It’s building careers, one stream, one sale, one follower at a time. These are government-backed operations that treat livestreaming less like a get-rich-quick scheme and more like a trade. The result? Actual businesses, not pipe dreams.

2. Vocational Colleges
   China’s education system caught on early. Nearly 300 colleges now offer courses in online marketing and live commerce, and 60 of them have practical livestream programs. These aren’t “masterclasses” with flashy promo videos—they’re full-blown degrees teaching everything from lighting setups to how to actually move product on a stream.

And here’s where things get interesting: China’s government knows how much livestreaming matters. This isn’t some niche side hustle. It’s a multi-trillion-dollar juggernaut. They’re treating it like an industry that deserves rules, standards, and oversight.

Compare that to the United States, where the “guru economy” runs wild—no regulation, no accountability, and no end in sight.

You know the type. The guy on YouTube shouting, “Buy my course, and you’ll be flipping houses by next Tuesday.” Or the influencer on Instagram promising six-figure dropshipping businesses from the comfort of your couch. Or worse, the “crypto genius” offering a surefire way to turn your life savings into Monopoly money.

We’ve got courses for everything: becoming a millionaire, building passive income, losing 50 pounds in 50 days, achieving enlightenment. Hell, someone’s probably selling a class on how to sell classes (There are.)

And you know what happens? You get scammed.

You fork over $999 for “secrets to success” that are regurgitated nonsense you could find for free on Reddit. You’re promised blueprints and end up with buzzwords. The only person getting rich is the guy running the course.

Meanwhile, China’s at least trying to regulate the madness. There’s talk of setting professional standards, requiring recognized qualifications for instructors, and tailoring training to actual data—like follower counts and sales performance.

If China can clean up livestream training, it might just give their aspirants a fighting chance.

In the US? We’re still letting clickbait salesmen run the show, laughing all the way to the bank while regulators stare at their shoes.

The Bottom Line:

Success doesn’t come prepackaged in a $1,000 course. China’s experimenting with solutions that may move the needle—government-backed parks, legitimate colleges, and real-world training.

Maybe it’s time we stopped listening to the guy in the rented Lamborghini and started demanding something better.

As always, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

What We’re Watching:
The livestream training boom isn’t slowing down anytime soon, and without better regulation, scams will keep popping up. Watch for:

• Government crackdowns on fake training companies

• More schools offering credible livestream education

• Whether livestream “industrial parks” like Xiliu become the model for success

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