Article at a glance:

Building brands in China

• Chinese shoppers love brand names, but companies are having a difficult time translating these preferences into revenues, in the form of either increased market share or premium prices. But our market research suggests ways for companies to turn consumers into loyal customers.
• Salespeople in China have tremendous sway over the decisions of customers. Point-of-sale promotions can be an effective way of addressing last-minute switching and getting products into the hands of consumers.
• Compared with developed markets, messages that focus on functional features can be more important in China, since many product categories are new. This preference will probably change as shoppers become more experienced, but the pace will vary from one product to the next.
• Consumers in China also have strong national pride, so multinational companies could lose important segments by seeming too foreign.