Marketing Story

The concept of marketing has only recently been introduced to China as a university course, not as a tool in supporting sales efforts. However, the immaturity of the market economy has contributed to irrational product offer leading to over-supply of unmarketable commodities while a buyer’s market has eventually taken shape.
With a population standing at around 1.3 billion people, China has become one of the biggest markets in the world. A booming consumer market and the entry of foreign investment have further intensified competition.
Marketers, both foreign and local, are racking their brains for marketing strategies that will attract more customers. Many companies failed because of their lack of knowledge of the people and the market or have failed to conduct effective market research after their entry into China.
“You have no choice but to operate in a world shaped by globalization and the information revolution. There are two options: adapt or die” stated Andrew S. Grove, Chairman of Intel Corporation.

Since China’s entry into the WTO, international firms are excited about the huge opportunity to enter the potentially the largest consumer market in the world, as one in five of the world’s consumers is Chinese.
China is growing in importance both as a manufacturer and a marketer of innovative consumer goods and the “Made in China” stamp seen on every product is gaining status.
For example, Haier mini-fridges are now a bestseller in Wal-Mart in the US, and Tsingtao beer, China’s biggest export brand, is sold in 40 countries worldwide.
Huge diversity exists not just in the main population, but also across each region which retains different consumption patterns. Shanghai consumers are image-conscious and attracted to the latest trends while consumers in Beijing tend to be more conservative and nationalistic. Guangzhou differentiated by the historical impact of its closeness to Hong Kong culture has more mature consumers with a pragmatic consumer mentality, focused on functionality and price.
Allied to these strong regional differences, Chinese women have seen a huge shift in a relatively short space of time, from domestic servitude to the modern expectation that they are contributing financially as well as running the home.

It is not surprising to find that Chinese consumers from another generation are quite different through their own experiences, dreams and aspirations.
“Mao’s children’s generation” (over 45 years-old) are poorly educated following the effects of the Cultural Revolution when universities were closed and students were sent to work on farms, and are relatively disengaged from the emerging consumer culture in China.
However, the new generation of “little emperors” (under 25s) resulting from China’s one-child policy, which have lived through a period of economic growth with no memory of hardship, seek to be on top of new trends, standing out in their social lives.
Consumers in China are quickly adopting new values and western ideas because of their increased exposure to global media and western lifestyles, which lead to a new wave of consumerism.