2.4　Establishing Business Relations建立商业联系

Once you know who your prospects are,and what their contact information is,you may start off establishing business relationship.This can be achieved in a number of ways.You can write an email,add connections at a social media platform,send a fax,make an international phone call or attend a trade fair,etc.Mostly,however,exporters start by writing an email,as it is the most convenient and cost-effective way for establishing business relations,particularly for international business.This is often termed “email direct marketing”.Sending a fax or making a phone call may come at a later stage or when necessary.When you make phone calls,remember to prepare a list of topics you want to talk on the phone,in case you forget.And when you attend a trade fair,selecting the right trade fair,preparing it well and following up timely are essential to the success of that endeavor.Asemail direct marketing is so prevalent in international business,I would like to introduce a few basic principles for an effective email as follows.

The Internet has greatly changed our way of communication.Emails and instant messaging have made our words shorter and shorter.So is our attention span.A survey of international buyers shows that they spend an average of 2 to 3 seconds on an email.Plus,cultures differ in their dependence on contexts for communication.Different from people from high-context cultures,people from a low-context culture are generally less dependent on the context for communication.They prefer straightforward to roundabout expressions,which requires us to use the fewest possible words to make our expression straightforward and stick to point.For an effective email,I’d like to offer the following basic principles:draft a short and attractive subject line; be short and concise with your main body; stress your strength briefly; use simple words in case the receiver is not a native speaker of English; and end your email with a call to action.