Business culture and construction marketing in China

China has a unique business culture, which emphasizes more on personal relationship (guanxi) rather than on the business deals. China's construction industry, which is influenced by its business culture and the socio-economic system, is operated in a different way from western countries. Business success in China is heavily dependent on a wide and effective guanxi network in this Confucian society. Foreign companies venturing to China should have a deep understanding of the local business cultural environment. Singapore developers, consultants and contractors should take the cultural dimension into account as well as the technological and financial consideration when they market their services to China. Suitable culture-affecting marketing strategies for venturing to China were suggested in this study, such as alliance with local partners or employment of local staff, participation in government-encouraging projects, starting business in China by association with a foreign investor. Cultural problems often influence the business performance of a Singapore company in China. Based on the case studies on some Singapore companies, suggestions on dealing with the cultural problems were provided, which include cultural preparation before entering China, development and maintenance of guanxi, dealing with business entertainment and gift-giving, consideration of regional cultures, and so on.