Today China has matured into a marketplace with products from every corner of the world. At the same time, the Chinese public has become more enlightened and Chinese consumers more sophisticated.

To succeed in China in the long term, international companies and organizations need to start, if not yet done so, investing in the cultivation of long term “two-way symmetrical public relations”. In short, a positive public relations with the external environment is indispensable for international companies and organizations. Why? Because it is the relationship with the public that will determine your ultimate success or failure.

It is generally accepted that public relations (PR) is the management of reputation – the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organization and its public. Goodwill and understanding have to be created and perceived through various communication channels. What contributes to the creation of goodwill and understanding is culturally specific and culturally determined. It is a challenging task for international businesses and organizations to accomplish the objectives of PR in the Chinese cultural context. Goodwill and understanding between an international business or organization and the Chinese public require a set of strategies largely based on the Chinese cultural values and social norms.