Using the internet to export to China

Yesterday I attended a UKTI seminar on E-commerce in China.

Why you may ask? Because, as everyone knows, China is a rather large economy and one that continues to grow. Although none of my clients currently export to China it can only be a matter of time when they, or a new client, does; and I want to be ready to help!

I learned a lot and will split my observations over three articles. This first one will focus on general market trends, the second on how and where to sell online in China; while the final article will focus on social media in China.

The Chinese market

After years of very high growth, the Chinese economy is now 'slowing' to around 7.5% per annum. This is considered to be 'better quality' growth in that foreign investment is now encouraged and wealth is now spreading beyond the Eastern coast and into the interior.

The Chinese economic model is now shifting from an export-investment model towards greater domestic consumption. This offers greater opportunities for exporting high quality consumer goods from the West.

Traditionally, exporters have focused on Beijing and Shanghai. However, not only are these two cities already saturated with competition, it also ignores the rapid growth elsewhere in China. The size of the country makes it difficult to retail goods in every area which is why e-commerce can provide a good solution especially as the infrastructure is rapidly improving.

Being a large country, not only does the climate vary from sub tropical to very cold, but the population also vary in terms of attitude and even size! Understanding a very wide range of consumer profiles is essential.

The Chinese consumer

Estimates for 2020 suggest the middle class will grow to being 71% of the population in advanced cities, 67% in developing cities and 42% in emerging cities.

Middle class isn't measured on how much they earn or how big their house is, but how much disposable income they have (normally high due their being the inherited beneficiaries of the one child policy...) and their aspirations.

The statistics below are from Social Media Today.

About 45% are online - that is 618m people. However, internet speeds do vary greatly across the country.

A similar number are active users of social media.

Mobile phones penetration stands at 91%.

Register your trademark now!

The most important thing, repeated again and again, was even if you are not ready to export to China yet, it is worth spending around £1000 on trademarking your name. Once your application is in, you have protection even though the process can take 12-18 monte to complete.

There are many stories of brands exhibiting in Europe, or even just exporting to one country and someone trademarking the name in China. It can take years and cost thousands of dollars to regain your brand name....

the boathouse, Bradford on Avon Marina

My latest project has been to help launch the newly refurbished boathouse in Bradford on Avon.

This was formerly the Beef and Barge which had closed a few months ago. Although in a prime spot looking over a marina filled with narrowboats, the pub had struggled and was in need of a major refurbishment.

Fortunately, the new owners of the nearby Widbrook Grange Hotel saw an opportunity and grabbed it with both hands!

I have worked with the hotel for some years and was asked to set up a holding page for the new pub and then a full website for launch.

Social Media Strategy

In addition, I set up their social media profiles and managed their online marketing in order to create a buzz ahead of the launch.

With a new refurbishment, there is a ready made story. I visited every few days, took photos throughout the process and posted them online. Countdowns to the reopening, 10% off vouchers and a steady release of news all helped to generate a buzz.

It was interesting and rewarding to see how the Facebook Page grew so quickly. Clearly there was a willingness amongst the local community to see the pub re-open and lots of excitement at seeing the refurbishment happen.

Within one month, we grew Facebook likes to over 1500 by the opening (way ahead of our target of 1000). Admittedly, we did spend some money on Facebook Ads but they were targeted on the core audience and the high levels of engagement proved that the adverts were working.

Twitter wasn't quite so popular. However, it did reach people (in particular local businesses and journalists), that were more active here than they were on Facebook; and so it was important to cover both platforms.

Email Marketing

I also designed their email newsletter templates and we devised a 10% off voucher to encourage sign ups. This was publicised via Facebook, Twitter and the website and succeeded in substantially growing the number of subscribers.

"Everyone knew about it"

Chris, the General Manager, reported that when they handed out flyers in the centre of Bradford on Avon a couple of weeks before the opening, everyone had heard about the boathouse reopening.

Why was the marketing activity such a success? 

Because it was a multi channel approach. It encompassed both traditional marketing and online marketing. Traditional marketing activities included:

• Banners were put up outside the pub - as it is situated on the road between Trowbridge and Bradford on Avon, it was very visible to lots of people. 
• Local press - articles were published in the Wiltshire Times, the Community website and Local Life (where they ran a competition and included a recipe from the menu).
• Flyers, with vouchers which encouraged people to try the menu in the first few weeks of opening, were handed out in town and distributed to local businesses.

This multi channel activity demonstrates that social media does not make traditional marketing redundant, but compliments it. 

The good news is that the pub was fully booked over the first weekend and continues to be very popular.

The boathouse is a welcome addition to the Bradford on Avon pub and restaurant scene and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to contribute to its successful launch.

The differences between social media platforms

It is one of life's challenges - to explain the differences between the various social media platforms. Which one should you use to communicate certain messages? How differently do people interact with each platform?

There is no right answer; there are no rules which cover all eventualities.

However, I saw this quote in today's Guardian and I thought it provided a neat summary:

"If Twitter is a lively, rambunctious public salon and Facebook a warm gathering of friends and family, LinkedIn is a group of dead-eyed, sharp elbowed junior executives in the bar of an airport Novotel at 2am after a conference, slapping themselves on the back, while scanning their peers for signs of weakness."

Ok, it may be a bit of a cynical view about LinkedIn, but I do think the Twitter / Facebook comparison is a good one.

The other point I enjoyed is "Thou shalt chill out a bit with the goddamn #hashtags." They used to help in searching for topics but they are no longer required. If you must use a #hashtag, then please use them sparingly. 

Here is a link to the Guardian article. 

Email Marketing for Mobile

A quick post today to mention a very useful article on the Econsultancy website about how to optimise your email newsletters for mobile.

The key points that the article makes are to ensure the senders name describes your organisation and the optimum length for the subject line is 45 characters.

And a bonus link! Web Designer Depot published this introduction to good email practice design yesterday.

If you would like any advice with email newsletters, I'm here to help!