Market Information

LOCAL markets may be selling mineral water and potato crisps which have unacceptable levels of bacteria by China’s standards. Beijing quarantine authorities this week seized a batch of French Evian mineral water and American Lay’s potato crisps which were found to contain bacteria. Manufacturer Pepsi said the company had established a manufacturing base in China. A spokesman said Lay’s crisps sold on the Chinese market should be made in China rather than imported from the United States. The products in question were imported by sales companies rather than Pepsi, the company said. The high level on the bacteria index was caused by different measurement standards between China and the US, the company said. Pepsi said it would discuss the matter with its US headquarters to find a way to solve the problem. Evian said the company would issue a statement when a conclusion was drawn. The Shanghai Exit-Entry Inspection and Quarantine Bureau said it will investigate local markets to see whether the imported products are being sold here. Several batches of imported food - a total of 23 brands - found to have quality problems were seized by authorities this year, state-level authorities said. Famous brands such as Pringles crisps produced by the US-based Procter and Gamble Group were also on the blacklist.

from Shanghai Daily: Metro by Lu Feiran Contaminated water, crisps warning

China will soon set up a potato research center for the Asia-Pacific region. The move shows the world’s biggest producer and consumer that they are committed to spending more on global agricultural research.

Via: People’s Daily:   New Potato center to help global research in agriculture. 

The leaning towers of the new China Central Television (CCTV) headquarters in Beijing Their full height will be 230m (755ft).

Photos by Joe

Image from: www.businessweek.com 

Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) is expected to become one of the world’s top five busiest airports by the end of next year. BCIA said that it will have seen more than 64 million passenger departures and arrivals by the end of next year.

from China Business Beijing airport to be among world’s busiest 5

Second-tier cities remain the key focus for domestic and foreign property investors for 2008, fuelled by their strong economic fundamentals and bigger profit margin, industry experts said.

Via: China business   2nd-tier cities a popular option

Source: information from The Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China & National Bureau of Statistics of China

Chinese Domestic enterprises were urged yesterday to focus on using new business models to sharpen their competitive edge, as more foreign companies entered the domestic market.

“More and more transnational companies have entered the domestic market with competitive business models, posing a strong business threat to their domestic counterparts,” Liang said.

Via: People’s Daily online:  Try your hand at new business models, firms told

When official figures are released on Australia’s global trade in 2007, they are expected to show that China has emerged for the first time as the country’s leading economic partner.

It is already way ahead of the United States in trade with Australia and is rapidly overhauling Japan. Statistics released in Canberra in August showed that Australia’s goods and services trade with China last year reached A$50.3 billion ($57.6 billion), barely A$5 billion less than the value of Australia’s two-way trade with Japan.

Via NZ Herald: Booming China becoming big part of Australia’s economy

Beijing and Shanghai are up 13 and 23 positions to rank 95th and 100th among 300 locations worldwide, according to the latest Cost of Living Survey conducted by ECA International, a leading international human resources organization.

Living costs for foreigners in Chongqing have increased about 12 percent in the past 12 months - double the rise in living costs experienced by foreigners in Beijing during this period.

Via: People’s Daily online : Expats feel price hike

Photo by Joe: SOHO Beijing 2007. “Show your mercy to the green lawn”

A great sticky message is one that people can understand when they hear it, that they remember later on, and that changes something about the way they think or act.

Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference explains that successful messages have a Stickiness Factor: Stickiness means that a message makes an impact – it’s memorable.

“There is a simple way to package information that, under the right circumstances, can make it irresistible/sticky and compels a person into action. All you have to do is find it.”

Companies will often spend months coming up with business plans and product ideas for China but then spend only a few hours thinking about how to convey that message to their Chinese customers often translating it directly from English to Chinese. Great ideas need great messages. It’s worth spending time making sure that your message is going to be meaningful and memorable in the Chinese context.

When we undertook the market entry campaign for Canterbury of New Zealand we needed to create messages that would open doors and make companies sit up and listen. We wanted to present Canterbury’s company information in a way that would be irresistible to potential partners in China. Here’s a sample of some of the messages we used when introducing Canterbury to potential partners (translated from Chinese).

“Canterbury is the world’s original rugby brand, for this reason they have forever earned a place in history.”

“Canterbury’s products are the culmination of over 100 years of pride and tradition.”

“Canterbury is sold in many of the world’s leading retailers including Harrods and Saks Fifth Avenue.”

The elements in these messages that stuck in the Chinese mind were the references to Canterbury’s heritage and their international credentials “Ming Pai”. Ming Pai and heritage are two of the most important qualities Chinese businesses look for in foreign brands. We crafted stories and messages to reinforce these elements, giving just enough information to wet taste buds and leaving people wanting to know more.

Being able to create a meaningful message in China requires an understanding of the culture, language and a perception of how messages are understood and remembered by Chinese people.

The Stickiness Factor test

• Is your message going to be memorable?
• Does it make sense in the Chinese context?
• Is it practical – how does the message fit?
• Is the message unique?
• Is the message packaged to make the desired impact?

Unicon work with companies to create meaningful messages in the Chinese context and we’re bloody good at it too! (kiwi context).

www.unicon.co.nz