Golfing Business Tees Off To A Good Start In China
Club Notice Board (CNB), a Suffolk-based small business with 6 staff, has been building web sites for over eighty golf courses around the country for the last five years, and has recently broken into overseas markets both in Europe and beyond. Visitors from over sixty one countries also access their websites, with a staggering six point four million hits last year alone.
The company's presence in China started last year when Ian Duncan, who runs CNB, responded to an enquiry from China via their website in 2004, in which he was invited to visit the Guangzhou Golf Show. Although the company felt it could not justify taking stand space at the show, it did offer to help in the development of golf in China.
Ian confirms that he was the only Englishman involved in the development during his visit to China, yet many other nationalities were represented. As Ian possessed no knowledge of the Chinese language at the time, and his Chinese contacts spoke little or no English, he spent much of the time sitting on the stand in silence!
The most embarrassing part of going to China was not being able to understand much of what was said. When on the golf course I couldn't even perform a basic task such as ask the caddies their name. I was talking to the top people in the Chinese golfing circles and couldn't even have a conversation with them.
On his return to England and subsequent participation in the UK Trade & Investment Passport to Export programme, Ian heard about the European-funded Language and Culture for Business programme in Suffolk, which was about to start a beginners course for local businesses via video-conferencing out of a learning centre in Eye.
Ian promptly jumped at the opportunity to learn Chinese. Says Ian, everybody said it was a hard language to learn, but I looked forward to Tuesday mornings, as it was so much fun and I could network with other clients. I had to work hard at it, but although I'm fifty I didn't find that I was too old to learn. The most useful topics were introducing oneself, hotel bookings and business talk (meetings), and general social ice-breaker sentences were most useful. Ian also managed to practice on his Chinese neighbours and the local takeaway!
Noticing the distinct competitive advantage that a knowledge of the language can bring, Ian confirms that now when I visit China, the Chinese fall over themselves with my basic conversation, but I am the only foreigner in the development group who could speak Chinese, and my standing in the peer group was enhanced considerably. To be able to go out for a meal and order the food on behalf of the US and Finnish managers was a definite bonus not only were they impressed but the Chinese were amazed, as at first they weren't expecting me to talk in Chinese. I was far more confident, and was also able to negotiate with the taxi driver whom I knew was overcharging me.
CNB confirm that culture is just as important, and they were able to combine a trip to China whilst the course in Suffolk was taking place. The ability to converse even at a basic level showed itself as a powerful tool, and also demonstrated CNB's commitment to the Chinese market. Says Ian, there are lots of opportunities to chat on a golf course, and I was even able to complement my Chinese partners on good shots.
www.club-noticeboard.co.uk