Lessons Learned about Chinese Culture from Chinese MBAs.

1) You must be patient when dealing with new ideas in China. "China is taking the path of gradualism" in its economic reform." "Grassroots companies are China's future. They're growing fast, and their leaders are clever visionaries. These companies have long been denied access to capital markets. No more."

2) Chinese people are very protective, especially since they usually have only one child, and that child is the center of their world. Want to sell something to Chinese parents? These are the two things they want the most...
Health and competitiveness are what Chinese want most for their children. Therefore, products and services offered in China should feed these two needs in their lives.

3) Chinese education is very textbook oriented as opposed to the more social education of the West. China also needs better continuing education for adults. The Chinese also do not say what they feel, and therefore need to learn people "soft-skills", and there is probably a market for offering training in those types of communications areas.

4) There are many Chinese people overseas, and online dating and job recruiting are popular web services for them.

5) Market research in China is a new thing, since the Chinese don't open up very often. Western companies can benefit from local Chinese companies that can help navigate the cultural waters while the Western company tries to settle itself into Asian territory. Chinese can learn from the Westerners' advanced skills.

BRAINSTORM

Although I didn't learn a lot from this article, what I did learn I believe is important. Understanding cultural beliefs, mores, and basic attitudes that, in this case, have changed very little over the past centuries, should make all the difference in the world when marketing internationally to the Asian community.

What have we learned? Chinese are not exactly impulse buyers. They are "gradualists", learning to expand their Asian culture to incorporate the new technology and skills that the Western world embraces. Therefore, if you are marketing to the Chinese, you must give them time to settle into the idea of your product and services.

I would think this would include a long courtship of advertising, networking, and word of mouth to convince the Chinese that you are trustworthy. If you were going to market a product or service to the Asian community, how would you gradually integrate your services into their everyday world?


What are the Chinese hot-spots? Health and products and services to give their children a competitive edge. If you are in the educational and training areas, and have something to sharpen competitive kids, this would make a great target market. I'm not sure how prevalent indigenous health services and products are in China, but if you're in the health industry, then this is another market for you. Remember #1 though - you have to be patient when working with the Chinese. Don't rush it.


Interpersonal skills seem to be at a lack, at least by Western standards. Teaching those "soft skills" to adults in adult education could be a possible area for you. You could do it in person, or perhaps digitally, over the internet. How about teaming up with a Chinese entrepreneur now in the States, who can help you through the maze of what is acceptable and what is not, and create a curriculum on soft-skills for Asians when dealing with Westerners?


As part of their culture, the Chinese stick together. This is also evident in the Chinese dating and job search services made popular online. Could you create services (possibly even travel services) or meeting places designed to make the Chinese population working overseas feel more at home while abroad?


Market research is a new concept in China. I would think that whoever gets them to open up first wins. (smile). If the right amount of cultural understanding combined with business savvy and a knowledge of people in general could produce products or services that get the Chinese to open up, so demographics could be built, that would be a huge "win." With the younger generation, it could be through online games and such, but with the older crowd, how?