Every year we have the big international business Expo, Kunming Commodities Expo June 12 to 18 this year. A large number of companies come to Yunnan from allover the world and China with no experience in working with, selling or negotiating with Yunnan Chinese companies dishonest ones or honest ones. What might we Yunnan experienced businesses suggest to help them be successful? Or to just enjoy Yunnan and Kunming?

You could produce a little handbook, on basic do's and don'ts. Key contacts including government, Kunming Business community, etc. This could be a free handout and could be a good marketing tool for you. You could include an advertorial.
If you take ads from the main international hotels and international restaurants, that would cover your costs. These are also some of the places that delegates could enjoy.
You could take a room in the conference centre for free seminars that you could run. If you want to hold any seminars, etc. this should be done during the day on the event days.

However, from personal experience, most delegates head straight for the airport as soon as the show closes. Trying to organize something for the day after the event needs to advertised before people book flights, which may not be possible, it depends on the Expo organizers' co-operation.

The topic spelling errors were deliberate. Tigertiger, thanks for the suggestions for ones personal business development.

I know of many successes at the KM Commodities Expo yet we keep reading about all the problems of

companies coming here have. This forum has helped some. Free advice. There is a lot of experience with Yunnan here. How to better use it and yes why not pay for some of it too?

1. US Commerce Trade and American Chamber of Commerce (and I'm sure the UK equivalents) published a "Doing Business in China" booklet. It's mostly focused on the more developed eastern seaboard.

China is a complicated as eastern and western Europe combined - so I find it infinitely amazing that "one book" covers all - this is equivalent to a pamphlet proclaiming "Doing Business in Europe", neglecting the rich and diverse cultures of all those people groups (before the EU).

On that note - as I understand the expo - most of these guys are SME's (Small to Medium Enterprises) looking for trading partners to represent them - with sales quotas (aka dreams).

On that note - I'd recommend you advertise yourself as that gap-filler - proposing an initial Tmall site, for a modest if not obscene fee, to help them trial the entire market of China...that has either internet or mobile internet services.

Then your only problem - import logistics, taxes, customs, government approvals, etc ad infinitum - which you can also provide for yet another negotiable fee.

Several years ago, I met the last VP of Sales for Nortel before the company finally died. His claim to fame - he helped Nortel get their equipment carrier certified for use in China - aka he was great at helping Nortel spend money.

So that's a primary issue facing all these tiny importers...the upfront costs of getting their product and or service certified for import into China.

$0.02