Hartmut Wimmer in Shanghai
In order to open up new markets, it is not enough to just integrate the language of the country into the website or translate texts. Every market is different, the players have different views and business behavior. It is important to know the market before entering it.
Outdooractive is constantly opening up new markets and integrating other countries into the partner network. One target country is China – and what better way to get to know a country than by travelling there and looking at everything first-hand? That’s exactly what CEO Hartmut Wimmer has done. During the VIR delegation trip to Shanghai, not only the sights will be admired, the main goal of the trip is to get to know the culture and to make contacts. The agenda includes visits to Chinese companies and above all a stay at ITB China.
Visit to C-Trip
The travel giant was founded in 1999 and is now one of the world’s leading online travel agencies. Similarly to booking.com hotels and flights as well as offers can be booked here. In the data center, employees can call up graphics with real-time data using voice commands. It is also interesting to note that most bookings are made mobile. What is also new for us Europeans: in China employees have significantly less free time, a company is free to grant additional holidays in addition to the statutory holidays. Most employees have between 6-15 additional vacation days.
The data center of C-Trip
WeChat instead of WhatsApp
WhatsApp is the most-used app in Germany alongside YouTube, with around 73% of smartphone users using the Messenger service every day. China, however, takes it even one step further. Without WeChat nothing is possible here. In addition to the Messenger function, photos can be shared and liked, similar to Facebook. Video and voice calls are, of course, standard. In China, however, the app is also used to process payments and submit tax returns.
What other impressions will remain from this experience?
There are an incredible number of start-ups in China – also in the travel industry. The trend in China shifts away from guided group travel towards individual travel and increasingly abroad. For this reason, China is extremely interesting as a new market. The general work ethic in China is very disciplined, the Chinese are very consistent in the implementation of new ideas and concepts.
China is home to 1,386 billion people. So for the travel industry in Europe it’s a country which is now to be discovered. For Outdooractive the first step has been taken, but surely this was not the last trip to East Asia.