Getting in on the China action

[Brian Luce]

I'm optimistic that I'm adequately positioned to start tapping the Chinese market. Presumably I'd need a second website in Chinese? Or at least with some Chinese but with an English thrust so as not to get inquiries in Chinese -- which I'd never understand because I don't speak it.

Anyone have info? For example, any web designers that create bilingual pages? How do you game their search engines? What are hooks and doors involved in a China play?

[Jim Andrada]

Uhh - tapping the Chinese market for what?

The mechanics of multi language websites are no big deal but you definitely need a native speaker somewhere in the picture to avoid laughable errors - sort of like what you see in some electronics manuals. Also, each culture has different ideas about what constitutes good page organization. I don't know much about China (although I travel there on business) but I do know a lot about Japan where I lived and worked for several years and I know for a certainty that the way people like to see pages laid out, use of color, etc etc are different.

But seriously, do you think you can have a web presence in China without having some ability to understand what your customers would be asking you? It may come as a surprise, but most Chinese don't speak English - in fact, I think it would be safe to say that most Japanese don't speak English either.

By the way, depending on what market "tapping" strategy you have you may need to have several native speakers around as all of China doesn't speak thesae language.

[Brian Luce]

Originally Posted by Jim Andrada

Uhh - tapping the Chinese market for what?

For profit naturally :)

And to correct the record, to say "Most Chinese don't speak English" might be factually accurate considering that the population is still largely rural, but for those who are capable of engaging in meaningful business, English is generally not a huge issue; Perhaps you're unaware since, as you state, you've never lived there, but English is used to transact business between China and other countries 24-7 and it's been that way for a long time. Hong Kong was a British Colony for over a century after all.

So anyone with info on SEO and establishing a web presence etc, feel free to reply. I'm hoping for some advice from people with knowledge and experience in the region with regards to web penetration. I've used Google AdWords in another part of Asia but isn't the relationship between China and Google still broken?

[Jim Andrada]

OK - let me correct the statement as follows. Most Chinese CONSUMERS don't speak English.

Is that better:<)

So were you primarily thinking of tapping the Hong Kong or the Chinese marketS? They're quite different.

Oh well, what would I know - I've only been doing business in Asia for 25 years or so.

Good luck!