Australian Government Recognizes Web Presence In China

Sept. 13, 2011 - PRLog -- This week, the Australian Government approved Web Presence In China as a service provider whose fees Australian businesses can offset via Austrade’s Export Market Development Grants program. Now, small to medium Australian enterprises looking to expand into China’s booming market will be reimbursed up to $50,000 for developing an online Chinese presence using WPIC’s services.

Austrade’s EMDG program is a key Australian Government financial assistance program for aspiring and current exporters. The scheme supports a wide range of industry sectors and products, including inbound tourism and the export of intellectual property and know-how outside Australia. By subsidizing Australian SMEs who choose WPIC, Austrade is acknowledging its support for an online approach in helping Australia develop its exports to China.

“I truly appreciate Mr. Backhouse’s faith and vision,” says Sam Clohessy, Australia Director for WPIC. At a recent meeting with Nathan Backhouse, Western Australia’s Director of International Trade and Investment, Clohessy presented the WPIC business model of helping non-Chinese organizations establish a comprehensive online presence in China through a combination of localization, Chinese SEO, and China social media marketing. “I think Mr. Backhouse appreciated that an online Chinese presence could be so scalable and easy, compared to the expense and learning curve of trying to establish physically in China,” reports Clohessy. “But to subsidize our fees through the EMDG program confirms that the online approach to Chinese customers is a concept whose time has come.”

Tellingly, only $120 million of the $200 million available through EMDG annually was claimed in 2010. Even with 50% of costs over the first $10,000 covered, up to $110,000, many Australian enterprises still couldn’t develop a viable export marketing strategy for those numbers, to take advantage of the program.

“Traditionally, developing a successful export market in China is either very expensive or very tricky,” says Joseph Scavera, a Sydney-based China export consultant. “Or both. Opening an office, doing all the paperwork, finding reputable partners, all of that is expensive and time-consuming enough. Then you have to worry about how best to advertise your product or service. I’d agree that those who can leverage the Chinese Internet to reach the market online would have a significant advantage in terms of resources and time committed.”

Indeed, in terms of both time and resources, WPIC’s services take considerably less, falling well in line with EMDG’s parameters. WPIC undertakes a four-step process. First, a client’s website is translated from English to Chinese, both accurately and for sales impact, then the new copy implemented into a Mandarin site on a Chinese server. Then, WPIC secures hundreds of quality links to the new site on high-ranking websites related to the client’s product or service. Next, professionally-written articles and press releases about the client’s product or service are strategically disseminated across the Chinese Internet. These two steps ensure that the client’s keywords will rank high when searched for on Chinese search engines, without having to resort to expensive, wasteful pay-per-click campaigns. Finally, WPIC undertakes a comprehensive Chinese social media campaign on behalf of the client, creating blogs and micro-blogs with frequently updated, dynamic content that draws followers and gets the word out, China wide. Such service packages usually cost from $20 - $30,000, which would work out to $15-20,000 after government rebate.

However, WPIC can also hire, train, and manage a highly-qualified Chinese employee for a client. The employee can find and follow leads, build a distribution line, handle queries, orders, and after-sales service, as well as translation on-demand. Meanwhile, WPIC can maintain a virtual office for a client, who will then have a physical address for mail, deliveries, and sales benefits. Such services usually cost $4 - $6,000 per month, which would still fall under EMDG ‘s subsidization parameters.

“China is our biggest trading partner, but we need to step up our side of the relationship,” claims Scavera. “We’ve got a lot more to offer China than iron ore and wool: education, tourism, wine, pearls, and that’s just for starters.”

But how viable is the Chinese online market for such goods and services? “The online market is outstripping every other Chinese market in terms of growth,” says Clohessy. Boston Consulting Group predicts that China’s 145 million e-shoppers in 2010 will grow to 329 million by 2015. The market was worth close to $100 billion in 2010, with annual growth confidently predicted between thirty and fifty percent by various marketing groups. Meanwhile, Chinese shopping platforms such as Taobao and Alibaba, plus others making noise with huge IPOs on Wall Street, are constantly streamlining Chinese consumers’ online shopping experience, making it more trustworthy and appealing.

“The Chinese online market is a goldmine,” says Scavera. “Of course, when you’re mining, you need the right tools.” With WPIC now approved under Austrade’s EMDG scheme, Australian companies now have a powerful, cost-effective tool to go mining for online profits in China.

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Through a combination of site localization, China SEO, and Chinese social media, WPIC creates a web presence in China to brand, build, and bring Chinese customers to your business.