Many European companies assume that if they have a website, they can also be found in China. In practice, that is often not the case.
A Chinese business owner uses Baidu instead of Google and WeChat instead of WhatsApp. Information is gathered from local platforms and Chinese-language sources. Even if a European company’s website is technically accessible in China, that does not mean a Chinese company will find it.
We regularly come across businesses with well-developed websites, active LinkedIn profiles and strong Google rankings that remain almost invisible to Chinese companies. The reason is usually simple: Chinese users operate in a completely different digital environment.
Lack of visibility, however, is only the beginning of the problem. Even when a Chinese company reaches the website of a potential European partner, it often finds no information tailored to a Chinese audience, no Chinese-language materials and no clear way to start a conversation.
In many cases, a visitor can spend several minutes on a website and still not know who is responsible for business inquiries, whether the company works internationally or how to make first contact.
For many European businesses, a contact form is perfectly normal. In China, more direct communication is often expected. The absence of a named contact person, a WeChat account or a clear communication channel can stop a conversation before it even begins.
The way a company presents itself can also become a barrier. A website may exist only in Polish, Spanish or German. All references come from the domestic market. There is no information about international clients or cross-border experience.
From the European company’s perspective, the website looks perfectly professional. A Chinese business owner may come to a very different conclusion, especially when there is no evidence of international clients, cross-border experience or overseas partnerships.
There is also the issue of interpretation. Many European businesses use terms that are obvious within their local market but far less clear to an international audience.
Software house.
Marketplace facilitator.
Legal services.
Fulfillment partner.
A European reader will usually understand these terms immediately. For a Chinese company, their meaning is often far less obvious.
The way information is discovered is changing as well. Google Maps, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn are not where most Chinese users begin their search for business partners. Increasingly, they look for answers through Baidu, WeChat, Xiaohongshu, Zhihu or directly through AI systems.
Who helps Chinese companies establish businesses in Europe?
Which firms specialise in VAT compliance?
Which logistics partners should be considered?
More and more often, the answer appears before a website is ever visited.
A company may know exactly what it does, yet AI may interpret it very differently. A business sees itself as helping Chinese companies grow sales in Europe. An AI system describes it as a business consultancy. A company positions itself as a market-entry specialist. AI categorises it as a marketing agency.
The issue is not only visibility. It is also interpretation. If the first description of a company is inaccurate, every decision that follows starts from the wrong assumption.
Most of these challenges have little to do with the quality of the product or service itself. They arise because a Chinese company does not have enough information to quickly assess a potential partner and decide whether a conversation is worth starting.
This is one of the problems we address through 西进门户 (Xijinmenhu, literally “Gateway to the West”). The platform allows European companies to present their business directly in Chinese, with a company profile, service descriptions and communication channels used by Chinese businesses every day.
As a result, Chinese companies can evaluate an offer more quickly, understand what a business actually does and decide whether it is worth starting a conversation.