Enterprises try to refurbish image in overseas advance

 CHENGMAI, Hainan, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- As China seeks to shake off its image of the world's mass-producer of cheap products and move up the value chain, Chinese companies are trying to reshape their reputations in the international market to win acceptance.

This image of dull producers of cheap products has continued to haunt many Chinese companies who have tried to shift their focus onto quality and branding, as well as those who have mulled presence in foreign countries.

"The image has significantly restrained Chinese companies' price negotiation¹ and their overseas expansion," said Wang Shutong, chief executive officer of DHgate.com, a major Chinese B2B e-platform that helps small and medium traders tap overseas markets.

NURTURING² TRUST

Lack of trust in Chinese products is one of the major stumbling blocks in Chinese companies' overseas advance, according to company representatives attending the 2012 APEC SME Summit.

Wang Hong, general manager of the Yuwang Company, a fruit seller in southwest China's Sichuan Province, recalled the first time when the company tried to sell fruits to foreign customers.

"In their impressions, especially for some Europeans, Chinese products are below quality standards, and they immediately put that label on us, " she said.

The company analyzed³ its failures and kept trying to build trust, and now the company had made successful advances in many regions across the world.

For the companies that have similar experiences with Yuwang, the lessons they learned along the way were simple -- to win trust with quality and faith.

"Trust is a major issue. Chinese companies should place more emphasis on product quality and be more confident in winning trust in the overseas market," said Xu Zhihua, CEO of Peak Sport Products Co. Ltd, a shoemaker in southern China's Fujian Province that has gained increasing popularity overseas.

OVERSEAS IMAGE

While seeking to export higher-quality products, some Chinese enterprises, due to fierce competitions and rising production costs at home, have been taking steps to build up business bases overseas.

Following the footsteps of China's company giants such as Huawei and Haier, the country's small- and medium-sized enterprises are also trying to go global.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Chinese investors⁴ have set up 18,000 businesses overseas as of the end of last year.

But the SMEs' increasing presence overseas have encountered a range of problems, including bias⁵ from local consumers and misunderstandings of local laws and rules, which, to some extent, have affected⁶ the world's perception of Chinese businesses.

Besides respects to the local rules and laws, experts have called for more attention to the corporate⁷ social responsibility (CSR).

"When companies want to go abroad, CSR is among the most important issues they have to face," said Martin Cauchon, Canada's former minister of justice, at the 2012 APEC SME Summit.

He said eliminations⁸ of child labor⁹, environment and anti-corruption are among the most concerned.

BUSINESS ICON¹⁰

In addition to product, service and company operation, entrepreneur's personal charisma¹¹ is a valuable asset in refurnishing China's image in global market, expert said.

"The successes of Microsoft and Apple show how personal influence can promote the image of their company," said Wang Yiwu, director of National Modern Economic Theory Research Institute of Hainan University.

"Bill Gates and Steve Jobs speak for the innovation spirit and global influence of America's IT industry. China also needs its own entrepreneur icon to represent the image of China manufacture," he said.

Wang suggested that Chinese entrepreneurs take more active role to deliver the concept behind their products and services.

He also called for a more amicable¹² environment for business talents to innovate¹³, as the next-generation of manufacturing will be all about innovation and ideas.

1 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

2 nurturing   

养育( nurture的现在分词 )； 培育； 滋长； 助长

参考例句：

• These delicate plants need careful nurturing. 这些幼嫩的植物需要精心培育。
• The modern conservatory is not an environment for nurturing plants. 这个现代化温室的环境不适合培育植物。

3 analyzed   

v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The young man did not analyze the process of his captivation and enrapturement, for love to him was a mystery and could not be analyzed. 这年轻人没有分析自己蛊惑著迷的过程，因为对他来说，爱是个不可分析的迷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

5 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

8 eliminations   

n.排除( elimination的名词复数 )；除去；根除；淘汰

参考例句：

• The eliminations came from Mitsubishi's sales and credit departments. 在冲销来自三菱的销售和信贷部门。 来自互联网
• This is the largest batch of job eliminations in British banking industry. 这是今年以来英国银行宣布的最大规模裁员计划。 来自互联网

9 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

10 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

11 charisma   

n.(大众爱戴的)领袖气质，魅力

参考例句：

• He has enormous charisma. He is a giant of a man.他有超凡的个人魅力，是个伟人。
• I don't have the charisma to pull a crowd this size.我没有那么大的魅力，能吸引这么多人。

12 amicable   

adj.和平的，友好的；友善的

参考例句：

• The two nations reached an amicable agreement.两国达成了一项友好协议。
• The two nations settled their quarrel in an amicable way.两国以和睦友好的方式解决了他们的争端。

13 innovate   

v.革新，变革，创始

参考例句：

• We must innovate in order to make progress.我们必须改革以便取得进步。
• It is necessary to innovate and develop military theories.创新和发展军事理论是必要的。