China for Internet Marketers

It is easy to see why China can be a lucrative market for businesses, both big and small. With China's burgeoning population of at least 1.33 billion people, there's not only room for everyone, but there's also a big chance for an enterprise that captures a small portion of that pie to gain a fortune.

It is by no means necessary to be based in China in order to reach and profit from the Chinese market. With Internet and superior technology, buying and selling online are two activities that are literally at anyone's fingertips. In recent years, China not only opened its doors to foreign merchants but also allowed its nationals, albeit reluctantly, to get on the information superhighway.

It is undeniable that e-commerce has flourished because the Internet has made trading across continents faster and cheaper.

In China, industry watchers are expecting an Internet boom to happen any time soon because of the observation that more Chinese prefer to spend their free time surfing the Internet rather than watching TV.

The China Internet Association said that there are 137 million "netizens" (net citizens) in China. Out of that big number, they say that 2 out of 3 Chinese Internet surfers may be expected to purchase something online. As a result online businesses are looking to China for future profits.

As with any regular business plan, if you want to start an e-business with the Chinese, you should be able to study your market first. There are a few things that you or any electronic retailer may find useful to know such as the following:

Online consumer make up. Based on statistics, Internet users in mainland China are most likely to be:

* young people, or those under 40 years old;

* purchasing books, computer devices and accessories; and

* average or high income earners.

Online retailer's problems. While selling to China online is easy, e-commerce still faces some problems, such as:

Lack of secure and trusted payment systems

With credit card fraud on the rise, Chinese buyers are not comfortable with giving their credit card information online, and prefer to pay for their purchases on a cash-on-delivery basis or through post office transfers.

Government control of web content

The Chinese government is wary of the Internet and of its possible influence on the Chinese culture. While Chinese nationals are allowed to go online, much of the content that they are able to access have been subjected to censorship. The first to go were anti-government blogs. What constitutes objectionable material to the Chinese authorities is not clear but websites with pornography and smut were definitely taken down.

Foreign websites and cybercafés have been placed under the watchful eye of the authorities for possible violations of the strict censorship rules. This has led to the closure of some 1,600 cybercafés nationwide, which have been believed to be instruments of undesirable Western influence.

Very recently even the mighty Google capitulated to the Chinese government's insistence on censoring search results. Rather than risking the government's disapproval, Google has also reportedly blocked some of its usual applications from Chinese access.

There is no doubt that western business will face some hurdles in China, but the potential rewards for the persistent ones is enough to fuel their determination.