Shenboyang on the competition between the Chinese and local internet start-up companies

LinkedIn, the world's largest professional social networking site, established a joint venture with Sequoia Capital and broadband capital in January this year, announcing its official entry into China.

Led by the famous American investor Hoffman (Reid Hoffman), launched in May 2011 on the NYSE, the main source of revenue is to provide recruitment and marketing programs. With more than 300 million users worldwide, China currently has about 5 million users. In order to attract more Chinese users, what kind of localized expansion strategy will the UK take in China? Why did he choose to co-operate with the VC companies such as Sequoia Capital, rather than the Chinese internet giants?

In an interview with the newly appointed Chinese president, Shenboyang, the first Financial Secretary said that increasing the number of users is only a short-term goal to enter China, leading the British long-term commitment to change the Chinese job hunting habits. The choice is to co-operate with the VC because it will ensure that China is more like an independent start-up company to compete with local internet start-ups.

Join hands micro-credit Weibo

First finance: You will be the president of the China area in the early years of this year, can you give me a detailed introduction of the short and long term plans for the UK in China?

Shenboyang: I took office in early January this year, with the English version of February, we will focus on short-term and long-term plans. In the short term we have some urgent problems to solve, for example, to build a better and larger team; the second is to improve speed, our visit to China is not fast enough, the third is to develop more localized product features, such as the integration of micro-credit microblogging.

I told Headquarters not too much emphasis on numbers, because so many Chinese users, to reach a certain number of users is not difficult, but more importantly, we want to change a job search habits, to cultivate professionals to use the British to find a job search habits. 5 years later I hope that when you find a job, you will not send your resume, but the file of the British. When you want to talk business or go to an interview, you can get into the habit of finding out the other person's files from the collar to the UK, so that our purpose in China is achieved.

First Finance and economics: the first step in China is to introduce the Chinese language, and then what are the local initiatives? such as cooperation with micro-letters?

Shenboyang: The reason for the introduction of the Chinese version is that even Chinese people who speak English well are always more comfortable talking in their native language. In addition to the Chinese version, we now and micro-bo, micro-letter has some integration, the next step will be more in-depth. For example, we have been combined with the micro-letter to introduce the function of the title, that is, in the micro-letter of the personal files, but also can display the personal files of the UK, after the point open, you can save and share business cards.

First finance: We see the global Web site began to encourage users to write some content spontaneously, then in China will implement the same strategy? Is there a limit to this?

Shenboyang: In China, our next consideration is to bring experts from some industries to our website so that they can share content. There are two advantages. First for these experts, they can establish a better personal brand, and the other is that people who pay attention to them can learn useful knowledge, these experts can be legal field lawyers, can also be an entrepreneur. What they contribute to workplace awareness can be very helpful.

Why do you lead a hand in a venture

First Finance and economics: What is the profit model of the leading British in China?

Shenboyang: I have repeatedly stressed that in China profitability is not our primary goal, the biggest task is to enlarge the size of users. The current global profitability model relies on three solutions: corporate recruitment, marketing and sales solutions. These three big directions should work equally well in China, but localization may make some improvements.

First finance: Leading the British into China is the Chinese investment side Sequoia Capital and broadband capital, their role in addition to investment there are other?

Shenboyang: This is also our very interesting, unique business model, leading the British into China is not the choice to come in, nor choose to cooperate with the Internet giants, but the choice with two local very experienced top VC (venture capital) business cooperation. There are several reasons: first, they can give us a very good experience in the local operation, and the 2nd and most important point is to make it more like an independent company to operate. We have an independent board of five members in China, including the founder of the UK, the CEO, the Shen of Sequoia Capital, the Tian Sunin of broadband capital, including myself. We will have a meeting every quarter to study the development of the UK in China, which will ensure that we are more like an independent start-up company running forward.

First finance: Compared to many foreign Internet technology companies in China, leading the British in China's smooth development is a successful case, the future will do what different attempts? What challenges will you face?

Shenboyang: I can't say I'm going to make it, but I did a full study before I got into China. Before I joined, it had taken years to study the Chinese market, because you just mentioned that some internet companies in China are not so bright. Through these studies, we find that these multinational internet companies in China, more like the branch of foreign enterprises in China, rather than a start-up company, but they are facing the competition is the local very fierce internet start-up companies. That's why we're setting up a joint venture and recruiting entrepreneurs like me to manage the team rather than recruit a traditional executive from a branch of an overseas firm.

First finance: You have a very rich experience in the Internet industry, Chinese internet start-ups and Silicon Valley Internet companies are very different, what do you recommend to Chinese start-ups?

Shenboyang: The characteristics of internet companies in China and Silicon Valley vary widely. When I spoke to the Chinese internet, my senior executives pointed out three features: the first is that China has a huge internet market, and the second is that China's Internet is very special, such as user operations, offline advertising is very important, and the third is that China's Internet is very active, changes very fast, may be other countries in 45 will not happen, It will happen in China in two years. Two years can make a lot of companies fail, but it also makes a lot of companies and products like millet and micro-letters, so it's a different place in China's Internet.