在政府刺激措施和收入提高的激励下，中国消费者对各类商品都表现得如饥似渴：从汽车、家电、手机，到昂贵化妆品、基础食品和家居护理产品。就像大多数西方消费者一样，他们看重基于价格、品质感和功效的良好价值。他们迫切希望了解新产品，把品牌视为可靠性和档次的保证。
对于西方市场营销者来说，这一切都相当平常，一些公司已经学会了如何吸引上海、广东和北京三地更富有、更成熟的消费者。
但对许多公司来说，要把市场扩展到中国其它地区，将需要针对更广泛人群的策略，以及专为中国研发的产品特色。已经在这方面取得经验的公司，总结出了一些实用的基本原则：
考虑地理因素。中国的国土面积以及城乡二元人口结构意味着，拟定计划，分阶段向占据中国绝大多数财富的数百个中小城市铺开市场，这一点十分重要。麦当劳(McDonald's)正在一些较贫穷地区开设分店，虽然不会马上在这些地区实现盈利，但它可以及早培养品牌认知度，抢占黄金地段。
设计多渠道并行的营销活动。随着年龄、财富水平和居住地的不同，大多数中国消费者选择购买产品的方式也有很大差异。一款产品或许可以通过电视发布，但消费者的实际购买行为，取决于在线广告和论坛、口碑以及购买点信息。教育不了解产品的消费者，介绍产品功效。蒙牛特仑苏牛奶的包装，通过强调天然乳蛋白及原产地，帮助该品牌获得了高端牛奶市场逾70%的份额。
注重价值。中国消费者在意价格，喜欢便宜货，但并不总是选择最便宜的产品。他们会研究同类产品，乐于尝试，因此，新竞争对手一款物有所值的产品，会迅速瓦解品牌忠诚度。中国在很大程度上是一个以现金和储蓄为导向的经济体，因此知名品牌的降价促销特别有效。
家乐福(Carrefour)根据当地消费者的价格敏感度调整店内产品价格，同时提供一系列定价较主要品牌低20%左右的自有品牌产品。
牢记“1-2-4家庭模式”。一个孩子、两位父母、4位祖父母的现象意味着，年长者把大量注意力放在孩子身上，孩子则背负着实现家庭厚望的压力。人们认为，花钱购买有助于孩子出人头地的产品（比如有教育功能的电脑、玩具、游戏和DVD）是值得的。通过工作或继承父母的全部资产，这一代生逢其时的独身子女拥有相当高的可支配收入。
在上海，住在家里或小公寓里的较年轻消费者经常外出，并购买时装和配饰。事业有成的独生子女会为父母购买贵重商品，在父母年老时予以赡养。
精通分销之道。现代零售店在大城市之外的分布很少，销售渠道仍然很散乱。
除了通过西式零售商销售产品，宝洁(Procter & Gamble)还经常用三轮车把少量产品运到“夫妻店”。戴尔(Dell)不得不采用传统方式销售电脑的一个原因，就是很少有消费者通过信用卡付款。
与当地竞争对手合作。受尊敬的本土竞争对手为数众多，且往往雄踞一方。一个西方品牌可能在全国排名第一，但在某个地区的销售规模却只排到第二或第三。外国公司也许可以通过合资或收购当地企业，来了解当地市场并增加当地品牌。
大众(Volkswagen)与上汽(Shanghai Automobile)及一汽(First Automobile)建立的早期合资企业，帮助其获得了近50%的新车销量份额。欧莱雅(L'Oréal)的收购中，既有面向大众市场的国产护肤品牌小护士(Mininurse)，也有在高端百货商场销售的奢侈化妆品牌羽西(Yue-Sai)。
与政府保持密切关系。无论作为客户还是监管者，国家级、省级和市级政府都很重要。共产党及军方在许多国有企业享有全部或部分管理权。打理政府关系，与正确的人打交道，至关重要。
到1998年，美国直销公司已相当成功，而中国竞争对手寥寥无几，以至于中央政府突然下达了直销禁令。过了5年，雅芳(Avon)、玫琳凯(Mary Kay)等公司才再次获准经营。
把品牌本土化。中国的民族主义情绪十分强烈。因此，国际品牌实现营销的本土化将不无裨益：在广告中启用当地的体育或娱乐人物代言产品；迎合当地的品味或材料偏好；确保品牌拥有听起来和看起来都很合适的中文名。
可口可乐(Coca-Cola)、Visa和锐步(Reebok)选择篮球明星姚明作为品牌代言人。BMW的中文名是宝马，有骏马之意。
没有强大的中国业务，任何西方品牌都称不上是全球品牌。成功将取决于大力投资，以及高超的本土化营销技能。
哈佛商学院(Harvard Business School)教授约翰•奎尔奇(John Quelch)也是中欧国际工商学院(CEIBS)的访问教授。凯瑟琳•乔克斯(Katherine Jocz)是哈佛商学院的研究员。
Spurred on by government incentives and higher in-comes, Chinese consumers are hungry for all kinds of goods ranging from cars, home appliances and mob-ile phones, to luxury cosmetics, basic foods and homecare products. Just like most western consumers, they focus on good value, based on price, perceived quality and benefits. They are eager to learn about new products, and view brands as vouchsafing both reliability and status.
All that is pretty standard for western marketers, and some have already learnt how to appeal to the weal-th-ier, more sophisticated consumers in Shanghai, Guangdong and Beijing.
But, for many, extending their market into the rest of the country will require strategies aimed at a broad-er swathe of the population, and with a flavour developed specifically for China. Companies that have al-ready gained experience in this have developed some useful ground rules:
Think about geography. China's size and an urban/rural population split mean it is important to plan a stag-ed roll-out to the hundreds of smaller cities that ac-count for the vast majority of the country's wealth. McDonald's is opening outlets in some poorer areas where it will not make profits right away, but where it will develop brand awareness early and snap up the prime locations.
Create parallel marketing campaigns. How most Chinese consumers choose what to buy varies hugely by age, wealth and where they live. Television may launch a product, but consumers rely on on-line ads and forums, word-of-mouth and point-of-purchase information before actually buying. To educate consumers new to the product, talk about product benefits. Packaging for Magniu's Milk Deluxe, which highlighted healthy protein and the brand's geographic origin, helped it to capture more than 70 per cent of the premium milk market.
Focus on value. Chinese consumers are priceconscious and like deals but do not always choose the cheapest option. They re-s-earch alternatives and will experiment, so brand loyalties can be unglued quickly by a good-value proposition from a new competitor. China is very much a cash-and-savings-oriented economy, so cash-off promotions on well-known brands are especially effective.
Carrefour adjusts prices in stores according to local price sensitivities and offers a line of private-label products priced at about 20 per cent below main brands.
Remember "1-2-4 families". The one-child, two-parents, four-grandparents phenomenon means elders lavish attention on children, who are under pressure to meet high family expectations. Spending on products to help children excel (such as educational computers, toys, games and DVDs) is considered worthwhile. This privileged, one-child generation has high disposable income through work or inheriting all their parents' assets.
In Shang-hai, younger consumers who live at home or in small apart-ments go out a lot and spend on fashion and accessories. A successful only-child makes big purchases for his or her parents and supports them in old age.
Master distribution. Modern retail outlets are sparse outside the largest cities and dis-tribution remains fragmented.
As well as selling through western-style ret-ail-ers, Proc-ter & Gamble delivers small quantities frequently to "mom-and-pop" shops by bicycle cart. One reason Dell had to embrace traditional distribution methods for its computers was that so few consumers pay by credit card.
Collaborate with local competitors. Respected domestic competitors are plentiful and often regionally based. A western brand might be the biggest nationally but rank second or third by size in a region. Foreign companies may participate in joint ventures or acquire local businesses to learn about the local market and to add local brands.
Volkswagen's early joint ventures with Shanghai Automobile and First Automobile helped it capture almost 50 per cent of new car sales. L'Oréal has acquired both Mininurse, a Chinese skincare line with mass-market distribution, and Yue-Sai, a luxury cosmetics brand sold in high-end department stores.
Stay close to governments. The authorities are important at national, provincial and city levels, either as a customer or a regulator. The Communist party and the military run, in whole or in part, many state-owned enterprises. Managing government relations and dealing with the right people is critical.
By 1998, American direct-selling companies were so successful, and Chinese competitors so few, that the central government banned dir-ect selling overnight. It was five years before Avon, Mary Kay and others were allowed to operate again.
Localise your brand. Nationalist sentiment is strong in China so it is helpful for global brands to make marketing local by embracing local sports or entertainment personalities in advertising, by responding to loc-al preferences on flavour or ingredients and by ensuring the brand name sounds and looks right in Chinese.
Coca-Cola, Visa and Reeb-ok chose Yao Ming, the basketball star to endorse their brands. BMW's Chinese name is pronounced Bao Ma, and means beautiful horse.
No western brand can claim to be global without being strong in China. Success will hinge on big in-vest-ments and intelligent localisation of the marketing programme.
Prof John Quelch of Harvard Business School is also a visiting professor at CEIBS in Shanghai. Katherine Jocz is an HBS research associate Lucy Kellaway's column returns next week
http://www.ftchinese.com/story/001030678
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