DOs

and DON’Ts When Doing Business in China

Dos Don’ts
RESEARCH & INFORMATION
DO join a trade mission with a government DON’T expect to obtain information for free;
agency if you are visiting China for the first when free, it’s usually useless.
time.
DO work with China businesses to open DON’T expect any government agency to
doors for you, including meeting with provide you with all the answers.
government officials when needed.
• DO understand that interactions with your DON’T expect to bring government officials
Chinese counterparts and maintaining with you to open doors in China. Shaking
good relationships are more important hands with mayors or signing MOUs may not
than only relying on written documents. bring you any tangible business.

MEETING & NEGOTIATION

DO prepare special business cards made DON’T expect English to be spoken during
out with English on one side and Chinese your business meeting in China.
on the other side, specifying your Be aware that someone may understand
company’s name, professional title, and/or English, but choose to say nothing.
qualifications, etc.
DO bring your own Chinese interpreter DON’T get confused by Chinese’s humility
when negotiating. The interpreter can and politeness towards foreigners. Chinese
help you understand everything that is find it very difficult to say "no" directly,
said in a meeting, both explicitly and instead ambivalent answers such as "I need
between the lines. to think more about it," "maybe," etc. are
often used.
HIERARCHY & “FACE”
DO understand the strong emphasis on DON’T make a Chinese executive lose “face.”
hierarchy in Chinese business culture, Causing embarrassment or loss of
always think of hierarchical orders when composure, even unintentionally, can be a
you and your colleagues enter the meeting disaster for successful negotiations.
room, shake hands, speak aloud, and lead Doing so is the same as telling them that you
discussions. don’t owe them your respect.

GIFT-GIVING & RELATIONSHIPS

DO understand the importance of DON’T give clocks, umbrellas or gift in
relationships, or connections, in the groups of four. Clocks are associated with
Chinese business culture. death, umbrellas in Chinese sound like the
word for “breaking up,” and the number
four in Chinese is a homonym for “death.”