How to communicate with Chinese sellers? (online)

Question

Electronic commerce

I would like to hear advice, or just links to articles on how to communicate with Chinese sellers (on aliexpress and other sites). What to ask, what not to talk about, and so on, in order to quickly find a common language and avoid misunderstandings.

Thank you in advance

Answer 1

Try to be polite, and in general, and in case of conflicts, and not "bully", as it is, unfortunately, customary among Russians. You "lose face" as a result, and this is a very important parameter for the entire East. "Lost face" loses everything in the eyes of his interlocutor, he turns into an animal, with which both the conversation is appropriate and the attitude.
Please also note that if you are not fluent in English, and build phrases as analogues of Russian, you can get expressions that sound excessively rude and harsh for the “English-speaking” ear. On the contrary, for you, normal correspondence in a business tone in English may seem full of stupid bows, bows and assurances of goodwill. But that's the way they do it.
Example: you want to say that you want to get something as soon as possible.
You write a phrase that sounds quite normal in Russian “I want to get it now” as “I want this item now” and you get a rude, and even threatening phrase.
Do not forget about the magic word “please”, if you write personified, then address by name, start the letter with “Hi, [name]” and end it with some
best regards,
[your name]
In general, apart from special sensitivity to “loss face", these are all standards of English-language business correspondence suitable for everyone, not only for the Chinese.

Answer 2

You need to communicate in the same way as when you communicate with a person with whom you have been working for a long time - politely and professionally.
Many Chinese people do not speak English well, so I usually try to explain in short phrases and use their vocabulary so that there are no misunderstandings.
Communication should be friendly. Exactly the way you would like to be communicated with you.