The China Story

What digital changes “did you need to implement“in this new market?A question posed to Barry Aldridge,Head of Marketing forTidyco andMember of the Board of Directorsfor Rail Forum Midlands.

中国故事The world is more digitally connected than everbefore and is set to expand, rapidly.Industry colleague and friend, Lucy Prior MBE shares with me a passion for all things ‘connectivity and IoT’related which we discuss with a great deal of enthusiasm on a regular basis.I have penned quite a few content pieces during my past two years working within rail, focusing on subjectmatters such as digital evolution, opportunities within international trade as well as emerging technology.IoE v.0.3 is scheduled to be published imminently, being mindful to analyse human inclusion within the realmsof technological advancements. 数字基金会

As an extension to the ‘One year down the line’ July 2017 publication,I plan to compose a follow-up regarding the activities that have takenplace since then.A lot has happened!

中国故事Importantly,Tidyco won Manufacturer of theYear and Excellence in InternationalTrade at the respective DerbyTelegraph and East Midlands Chamber of Commerce 2018 Business Awards.The company is now a RegionalWinner through the Chamber, successfully gaining recognition by the British Chamber of Commerce withthe possibility of becoming a National Winner in November of this year.I was delightedly invited to join the DerbyTelegraph at its table for their Awards Ceremony and was overcome withjoy whenTidyco became awarded in recognition for its core business function.There is a fantastic UK Midlands story unfolding before our very eyes.Manufacturing and exporting recognition alike is highly appreciated and incredibly topical regarding the UK’spositioning within a forever changing global trading arena. 数字基金会

2018 has seen a great deal of marketing activity targeting the Chineseindustrial consumer market.

中国故事When considering that China spends more online than the USA, UK and Germany combined,the country becomes an enticing consideration for potential market share and profitable growth.Being empathetic towards my interest in all things digital, China represents a thrilling opportunity coupled withan array of intriguing challenges.There are obvious hindrances such as the Great Firewall of China, differences in culture, potentially intimidatingconnected platforms, time differences as well as language but; there is a desire within China to procure from theWest.Considering the safety critical nature of a vast majority of theTidyco product portfolio, my communicationsstrategy weaves a narrative heavily focussed upon organisational commitment towards quality, safety and CSR.Trust is important whereby published marcoms feature company heritage in great detail. Of course, these keytalking points are equally important to all markets, industries and sectors (both local as well as global).The inclusion of data protection and cyber defence within CSR documentation is (to my mind) a forward thinkingSME differentiator. 数字基金会

Obviously, digital changes needed to be madeso as to reach out to a very new market.

中国故事By new, I mean new to me. I can safely say that at the start of this year I knew very little about China, its culture,technology or consumer behaviour. Fortunately, I am a fast learner!Previous writings have described platforms such as WeChat and Sina Weibo whereby working in partnership withLily Fu – Chinese British Business Consultant has revealed less of a need for Tidyco to focus its activity withinthese particular electronic environments.So, the important digital building blocks were put in place consisting of the purchase of a cn domain name,creation of a Chinese landing page, integration of the Alipay payment system, design and publication of a virtualbrochure all of which, was reinforced with Baidu indexing.It has taken a little time butTidyco is currently indexing on Badiu incredibly well. 数字基金会

So, next steps?IoE v.0.2 mentions chatbot technology. I have been keen to implement a chatbot within theTidyco digital space but wasstruggling regarding how best to accommodate a plethora of complex, technical queries further troubled by a databaseof over 300,000 product lines.However, Info-Bot has been programmed and integrated within the company website.Beginning its robotic life as a trial run I have subsequently receivedBoard Room approval to entwine automated chat technology withintheTidyco online landscape as an on-going affair.The intention not being ai world domination but rather,to make the human work force more efficient.

中国故事Through personal involvement within the Sector Deal, it became apparent howimportant I feel it is to place data, security and technological evolution at theforefront of all strategies.Moving forwards, managing the issue from the very outset of any plan (whether it be private sector, public sectoror not-for-profit) will ensure future security regarding the ‘next wave’.The ‘wave’ that I mention in previous IoE writings is not so much impending but more an already ‘self-learning’virtual enterprise whereby, everyday human existence is more involved and affected than many of us realise.Of course, I shall talk more of this in IoE v.0.3.The bot is continuing to learn and develop inter-personal skills on adaily basis, available to communicate across the globe 24/7/365. Interestingly, Info-Bot can speak over 100 different languages.The technology lends itself perfectly well to aninternational audience.Thinking about heritage and quality, I have been in deep Third Party Logisticsdiscussions with a potential 3PL partner who are keen tostore and distribute Tidyco rolling stock braking product 第三方物流to the Chinese rail industry. 3PLWith a rich history of supplying the UK rail market, I amhopeful that the trust and experience gained by Tidycowill resonate with Chinese rail procurement.Interesting times ahead!

WWW.TIDYCO.COM/CN Tidyco (UK) Ltd 五角大楼第二单元 诺丁汉路，德比DE21 6BW英国 T: +44 (0) 1332 851 300 E: [email protected]