Exporters to be aided '¨by China web expert

Sales and export directors in the region are being given a chance to sit next to a business specialist as he investigates their company's export potential in China by negotiating the complex Chinese internet.

The clinics, to be held at customers’ premises, will be run by Chamber International’s China Affairs associate, Matthew Grandage, a fluent Mandarin-speaker who spent 15 years living and working in China, and now advises British businesses. He will help them to mine the complex Chinese internet for information relevant to their company, products, services and competitors.

Chamber Internationals China affairs associate, Matthew Grandage, holds one of his one-to- one clinics, helping a business to negotiate the complexities of the Chinese web to understand its market potential.

placeholder image — Chamber Internationals China affairs associate, Matthew Grandage, holds one of his one-to- one clinics, helping a business to negotiate the complexities of the Chinese web to understand its market potential.

“Without understanding how a company’s product or advertising is perceived by potential customers in China, a great business opportunity may be missed or become an expensive failure,” said Mr Grandage.

“Such information is hard for most people to access because of the language barrier, and because China’s online environment is so different to ours. It is written in Chinese; web searches must be conducted in Chinese and there is no Google, different social media platforms and an alien ecommerce culture.

“Using this method I’ve seen companies make significant breakthroughs in just a couple of hours, and change their long-term strategy for the Chinese market as a result.”

Slots for the Yorkshire clinics are available on March 27-28 when Mr Grandage will visit Yorkshire businesses. To book a visit, call Chamber International on 0845 034 7200.