As the majority of Chinese and business contacts do not speak English, an English Web site is not enough to communicate with your potential Chinese customers.

MKT is specialize in web design and online marketing, especially search engine optimization(SEO), for websites targeting the Chinese market. You tell us the goals you want to reach with your website and we’ll give you honest input to lead you on the right path to success.

Helping you to develop your website is not just about making a webpage that’s nice to look at. We like to focus on the ‘brains’ of your website too, which means making it search-engine and user friendly so that people are directed to your website for the products and/or services your website offers.

We offer crucial web design and marketing advice specific to your market sector while maintaining focus on the Chinese culture and preferences. This step is especially important since the success of your online webpage is incumbent upon your ability to make your products and or services attractive to customers in the Chinese market.

In these times of sophisticated Internet search engines, it’s no longer enough to just have a website. The key to a successful web site is letting people know it is there! Up to 95% of the internet traffic comes through Search Engines. That’s why it’s critical that your site content become friendly to local search engine by implementing a variety of  SEO techniques. As Internet users continue to become savvier and their search queries more sharply defined, by properly optimizing your pages, your site will place higher in the search listings and stay ahead of your competition. Higher rankings in search engine results generate more traffic and more enquiries from your online presence.  SEO techniques play a vital role in the success of a website.

Over 85% of consumers in China use Baidu, Google or Yahoo to research company, product or service information.During Q4 of 2010 it is estimated that there were 4.02 billion search queries in China of which Baidu had a market share of 56.6%.You need to ensure your site will consistently achieve high rankings in leading Search Engines such as Google, Yahoo or Baidu in China. We use proven search engine optimization strategies on your site and we offer a variety of organic search engine placement services to suit every budget and every marketing goal. MKT has years of experience and hundreds of clients to attest to the effectiveness of our web services.

Staying current on the latest trends, maintaining optimization and reviewing the success of your SEO campaigns takes considerable time and effort. SEO needs long-term commitment and managing SEO in-house is not necessarily the best option for many companies. A successful SEO campaign is an ongoing project, not a one-time task. It takes time and resources to stay optimized and many customers have their hands full with other aspects of the business. Outsourcing relieves a site owner of the burden of researching, testing, implementing and maintaining a complex SEO project.

Before undertaking any part of an SEO overhaul, a website should undergo a thorough analysis for the purpose of benchmarking by which to measure any improvements gained as a result of any SEO effort. Some of the SEO tools are briefly describe below.

Check our web design reference

Is marketing in today’s China different from marketing in the West? Prof. Dr. Willem Burgers, a permanent faculty member at the China Europe International Business School in Shanghai and visiting professor at Nyenrode’s Europe China Institute, shares his views.

In a general way, are markets in China different from Western markets? If so, how do Chinese markets differ from Western markets?
“Markets in China are much more competitive. The number of competitors in most industries vastly exceeds what we see anywhere else. There are some 300 local beer companies, for example, but in addition some 50 foreign beer companies have entered the market. In the United States there are 25 pharmaceuticals distributors; in China, there are well over 24,000. The pesticides industry includes 2,800 licensed manufacturers plus maybe 3,000 unlicensed manufacturers and copycat manufacturers. There are more than 100 car companies trying to become the next GM, and so on. Therefore, it is not surprising that margins in China are likely to be low, very low, especially in industries that are open to competition from private and/or foreign companies. The often hugely profitable state owned enterprises tend to operate in more protected industries such as the oil sector, shipping, steel, telecommunications, and other such presumed strategic industries.”

Is marketing in China different compared to the West? Could you give some examples?
“One key difference is that in many markets the Chinese consumer is making his or her first-ever purchase in the category. People are buying apartments for the first time; they are buying cars for the first time. Their parents never owned an apartment or a car. People have very little context or idea on how to make these types of decisions. For example, car buyers have no clue where or how to buy car insurance, or what to insure against, so they end up buying insurance from the dealer. Marketing has a very important educational role to play, and communication strategies need to focus on providing helpful information. Unfortunately, many companies, Chinese and foreign, tend to copy today’s Western advertising approaches, which are aimed at symbolically positioning the product. Consumers have little use for this sort of advertising. I often show advertisements from the 1950s to Chinese managers and advise them to copy those ads, not today’s sophisticated – but for novice consumers incomprehensible – ads.”

Why is it important for managers to learn more about marketing in China?
“If managers have direct or indirect responsibility for marketing in China, it is critical that they develop some level of sensitivity to some of the significant differences that do exist. Many failures by Western companies in China were avoidable. I increasingly see examples of marketing practices and ideas in China that are really quite innovative. The high pressure competitive environment and fight for survival faced by companies does lead to much greater openness to innovative ideas. Product innovation is not so strong here because of problems with intellectual property rights protection, but business model innovation, not measurable in R&D dollar spending, may be much stronger in China. I think that a manager learning about marketing in China might pick up some pretty interesting new ideas for marketing in the Netherlands or Europe.”

Could you give a few examples of mistakes that are commonly made by Western companies in relation to marketing in China?
“A lack of careful research prior to entry may be the main source of mistakes. Another frequent mistake is the arrogance companies have believing that with the better product, the Chinese consumer will be willing to spend his money. But no effort is made to explain to the consumer why the more expensive product is the better product. In fact, more often than not it isn’t really better. Another aspect, although not so relevant today but definitely in earlier years, was the speed with which companies entered the market. Only post-entry would we look around and wonder how we got ourselves into this mess. Actually, mindless imitation among foreign companies might be the worst mistake. It is surprising to see how many companies, perhaps all using the same consulting and market research companies, come to China only to implement identical strategies, identical advertising appeals, identical channel strategies, identical pricing strategies. Foreign beer companies in particular have been a great example of this.

For a two-semester stay in China, you will need at least EUR 5000 plus enough to cover tuition fees; this is a conservative estimate. If you intend to travel during the holidays, of course, you will need a correspondingly greater amount of money available. Many students use the winter holidays for a trip to the south provinces, for example Yunnan.

Plane Ticket

The cheapest option is definitely a ticket valid for one year, that means, the return flight must occur within one year of departure. Normally, you book a specific return date, but for a fee the date can later be changed. Even those planning long stays should under no circumstances buy a one-way ticket intending to buy a return ticket while in China, because international flights are considerably more expensive there than in Europe. A ticket for one year costs about EUR 700.

Tuition Fees in China

Scholarship students (e.g. of the German Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst, the American Fulbright program, etc.) and those who participate in programs through their home universities normally need not concern themselves with tuition. Students arranging their own financing will have to pay an application fee of about USD 100 (Peking University) plus tuition, which run to USD 3200 – 3700 per year; other, less renowned schools are cheaper. Most universities have an English webpage where such information can be found.

Chinese Dormitories

Prices for a dorm room vary and have grown more expensive at most universities over the last few years. This is because many dorm buildings have been modernized for foreign students. A double-occupancy room without adjoining shower/toilet costs between USD 3.5 and USD 6 per night. Single rooms with facilities are USD 10 and higher per night. Getting your own apartment Particularly for extended stays, it’s worthwhile to rent your own apartment. Aside from getting your very own room, bathroom, and kitchen, the rent is often less expensive than you would pay in the dorms: monthly rent for a Chinese apartment amounts to about EUR 100, somewhat more in large cities such as Beijing or Shanghai.

Note the following:

• In many cases 3 – 6 months’ rent must be paid in advance
• A deposit of one month’s rent is required.
• When moving out, don’t give in too easily if the landlord, for whatever reason, wants to keep part or all of the deposit
• Renters should take care to ascertain that their dwelling is legal. Normally, the renter and landlord go together to register with the police

Standard of Living

It’s possible to save a lot on this front. Most students eat out every day because there is often no suitable kitchen in the dormitory; a cheap restaurant meal starts at one euro and up. As a student you can comfortably survive on EUR 150 a month, as long as you buy only essentials and don’t go out to western bars too often. If you’ve had different experiences or can contribute other suggestions about this topic, please send your comments.

In February 2010, the Chinese State Administration of Taxation issued a circular entitled “Tentative Measures for the Administration of Taxation on Representative Offices of Foreign Enterprises”, to clarify and update the taxation policies with respect to representative offices (RO) in China. The circular, which applies retroactively as from 1 January 2010 and abolishes previous guidance governing RO, sets out the requirements relating to the methods to be used to calculate tax, the tax filing procedures, etc. applicable to RO.

Setting up a representative office in China is simple and convenient: there is no registered capital requirement, the application process is easy and the operating costs are relatively low. Therefore, registering an RO in China is generally the initial step for foreign companies wishing to invest in and experience the local market.

Although the Chinese government has stipulated various restrictions on the activities of RO (e.g. it has prohibited most RO from carrying on direct business activities), in practice some RO have conducted business beyond their approved scope. To address this issue, the State Administration for Industry & Commerce issued a “Notice on Further Strengthening the Registration Administration of Foreign Enterprises’ Representative Offices” in January 2010, which imposes more stringent requirements on RO (e.g. an RO is normally not allowed to have more than four representatives (including the Chief Representative)). These instances of non-compliance have also attracted the attention of the Chinese tax authorities.

As a result the methods of filing an Enterprise Income Tax return and an application for an exemption from EIT are no longer determined based on the principal business of the head office of an RO, should be submitted and tax paid based on the profits attributable to an RO. Business Tax (BT) and Value Added Tax (VAT) returns should be submitted and tax paid in accordance with the relevant tax regulations.

An RO is required to maintain accounting books and records based on official and valid vouchers. It also must accurately calculate its taxable turnover and profits (“actual amount method”) based on a principle that reflects the actual functions performed by the RO and the risks borne. An RO should submit quarterly EIT and BT returns based on actual results within 15 days after the end of each quarter, and submit a VAT return and pay VAT due in accordance with the deadlines stipulated in the “Provisional Regulations of Value Added Tax”.

If an RO is unable to provide a complete accounting record or if it cannot calculate its income and expenses with reasonable certainty, the tax authorities reserve the right to use one of the following “deemed amount methods” to determine taxable turnover and profits:

1. A cost-plus method for an RO that is able to provide accurate details of its operating expenses but cannot accurately substantiate its turnover or costs; and

2. The deemed profit method (based on the turnover) for an RO that is able to provide accurate turnover information but the cost and expense details are not clearly shown.

(continue reading…)

Das Amt für administrative Verwaltung von Industrie und Handel (SAIC= State Administration of Industry and Commerce) hat zu Beginn dieses Jahres neue Regelungen für Repräsentanzbüros in China erlassen, die mit sofortiger Wirkung in Kraft treten. Die Richtlinien beinhalten folgende wichtige Neuerungen:

(1) Jährliche Neuregistrierung des Repräsentanzbüros statt wie bisher alle drei Jahre.

(2) Ein Repräsentanzbüro kann maximal 4 Repräsentanten beschäftigen.

(3) Die Überwachung der Repräsentanzbüros und die Einhaltung der geltenden Regelungen wird verschärft.

(4) Die Muttergesellschaft muss zum Zeitpunkt der Gründung des Repräsentanzbüros bereits mindestens zwei Jahre bestehen.

(5) Ein Existenzbeweis der Muttergesellschaft muss fortan jährlich erbracht werden.

(continue reading…)