AHK visit, Barcamp, and Skype conferences
I look back on a successful time in China. In addition to my work as a trainer on behalf of the China Academy and my work as a freelancer for ad customers, I have often visited the Middle Kingdom as a guest lecturer for digital marketing over the past twelve months.
Even before my first, longer visit to China between summer 2011 and January 2013, I was fascinated by the economy and society of the huge eastern empire. During my work for the data monitoring company Brandtology, I then had the opportunity to get to know the Chinese social media landscape better and to participate in transnational case studies. Sina Weibo, WeChat, and Alibaba are no longer foreign words to me.
My work for Trendiction and the Essen-based full-service agency adKunden allowed me to establish contacts with German companies and at the same time offer training courses for companies. After moving back to China, I managed to win over several Chinese medium-sized and large companies as customers. I became more and more aware of the need for adequate training.
Intensive exchange with German universities of applied sciences
The offer of the Changshu Institute of Technology, a technical university in Jiangsu Province near Shanghai, to offer lectures in the field of digital marketing came at just the right time for me. In the fields of mechatronics and electrical engineering, there has been an intensive exchange between Changshu and German universities, such as the Mittweida University of Applied Sciences, for over five years. In the areas of international and digital marketing, there are exchange and cooperation programs with American universities. This gives Chinese students the opportunity, for example, to acquire internationally recognized double degrees and spend time at American partner universities.
My teaching activities allow me to pass on my specialist knowledge to students and at the same time to use the input of Chinese course participants to optimize my workshops on online marketing in China and Germany: In my lecture “Digital Fundamentals” (SS 2015, WS 2015/16, SS 2016) I explain the importance of KOLS and brand ambassadors for companies as well as the development and setup of business accounts on social networks such as WeChat, Weibo or Dianping.
Training in dealing with platforms such as Alibaba and Amazon
As part of my seminar “Practical E-Commerce” (WS 2015/16, SS 2016) I train students in dealing with B2B and C2C platforms such as Alibaba, GlobalSources, “Made in China” or Amazon. I show them which legal issues need to be considered when exporting goods from China and how I, as a customer or supplier, can avoid expensive middlemen. In my seminar, I also address legal issues, such as customs regulations, and show students which techniques are available to achieve a good ranking in the search results of B2B and C2C platforms.
My teaching gives my students new perspectives: As part of an excursion to the AHK on December 10, 2015, my course participants had the opportunity to learn more about German companies operating in China. When visiting the Shanghai Barcamp, several of my course participants had the opportunity to get to know the international start-up community. Regular Skype interviews allow students to find out more about companies in Germany.