Narrative Analysis - Chinese Culture - Essay Example

? Analysis of a Business Narrative Narrative analysis is a form of research, which determines the pattern of narration of any event or incident. Narrative analysis analyzes experiences or social phenomena through the content of the stories. Baidu is a Chinese search engine and the name takes inspiration from a poem, which was written in the Song Dynasty. Baidu story appeals to users as it builds cultural connection with them. Google follows a more chronological way of writing its history. The company simply gives facts and figures along with the relevant dates in a simple chronological order. Both, Baidu and Google history describes the story of their origins. However, narrative style adapted to describe their history of origination by both companies, is quite different (Reissman, 1993). It is very important for any narrative to have a plot, a central idea, theme on which the entire construction of narration relies. The plot for business narratives can change according to the customer’s response and needs for that particular company. For example, if a company wants to build an emotional connection with its customers, it will try to make the narrative empathetic and would demonstrate the understanding of emotional, social and cultural values. Similarly, if a company emphasizes on the product, it will focus on its product development procedure and how that product can help provide the consumers with the solutions they want (Fritz, 2008). By keeping the above mentioned key point. Baidu search engine narrative and Google timeline is analyzed. Baidu narrative chooses an emotional plot. It shows cultural connection through one of the poem of the Song Dynasty. Then it further describes, as to how this search engine is best suited to the Chinese people as it is sensitive to the various nuances of the Chinese language. Consequently, Google narrative also builds an emotional connection with its consumers, but the style varies. It does give the history in a perfect chronological order, but this history tells the consumer how the founders struggled to invent a search engine that we have today (Reis & Judd, 2000). The idea for Google started off in 1996, in America. It started as a joint venture between two university students, who worked together to follow their dream. The way the story of Google’s initial years is written, it develops a sense of familiarity for American youth. Almost every university student and graduate in America can identify the sentiments for aims, fears, and unleashed zeal to achieve targets and to find a person who shares the same dream as yours and who works along to fulfill those dreams. The story for Google tells the consumer how this conglomerate was started as a university project by two students, who were no different than the average student today. Thus, it develops a relation of similarity with it users by describing the originators as average students. The timeline mentions every person who has been associated with Google in its initial years, even the cook. This shows the emphasis on the element of respect and contribution for even the smallest participation by people who chose to believe in the company at a time when there was no guarantee of success. By telling the story of its inception in a simple manner and recognizing the input of every person, Google conveys the idea of valuing its employees and their contribution even if it’s of a meager kind. Thus, Google considers its employees as an asset, which are important enough to be mentioned in its history. The company conveys the idea of following one’s dream, even if there are numerous hardships and obstacles along the way. The story of Google is a perfect example of how a small startup, which started in a garage, has now become the world’s largest search engine. The company went against the odds, and even though there was competition present in the form of Yahoo and MSN, Google still managed to create a place for itself. Google’s startup and its values represent American culture from which Google has risen to become the company that it is today. Americans believe in being independent and self sufficient and pursuing their dreams even if it seems impossible. This is the core idea of Google narrative. The story of Google is very familiar as most of the students and startup entrepreneurs can identify with it. Thus, narration style does not only provide facts in a simpler manner, but it also connects the reader to an emotional level. The narrative clearly reflects the American belief of mobility. This is apparent in the fact that in a span of two years, the company changed its location twice. This is closely similar to the lifestyle Americans have (Stewart, 2005). Americans believe in being practical, freedom of speech and progress. All of these things are clearly evident in Google’s narrative. According to the narrative, the founders of Google, Larry and Sergey, both initially disagreed with each other on nearly everything. They were however, practical enough to realize a common dream and put their differences aside to work on the project. They were so confident about their project that they had their first cheque way before the company name was even registered. They used their insight and hard work to reach to the top and thus, made progress. Hard work and dedication is one ingredient which has led Google from a borrowed garage to a multi-million dollar company. American culture does not allow people to take anything for granted. Americans believe in working hard to achieve what they strive for and utilizing whatever resources they have to maximize their efforts. This is the belief that was followed by Larry and Sergey (Stewart, 2005). Baidu was started in 2000 by Robin Li, creator of Hyperlink Analysis. The basic idea was to provide a search engine, which can provide relevant results for the local people. Chinese is one of the most difficult languages and there are numerous ways of saying the same thing. For example as Baidu narrative states that there were around 38 ways of saying “I” in the Chinese. Thus, the people needed a search engine which was sensitive to these changes and the solution was Baidu. In addition to the basic search engine, the company also offers a variety of other products like online community portals, encyclopedia, knowledge sharing platforms, maps, images, video search and more. All of these products have one thing in common; they are all specified in Chinese language. The people of China are very proud and attached to their culture and their heritage. They prefer to converse in their local language and most of their official documents are in the Chinese language too. Since, Chinese is their language the people of China also required a platform where they could use their local language for online searches and for various other matters . Conventional search engines like Google and Yahoo had left this gap which was filled by Baidu. Not only this, the company helped other local businesses, by providing them a platform based on their local language, to advertise for their business. Since, Baidu is used by people who speak Chinese language, businesses in China found this platform extremely beneficial as it helped them reach their target consumers. Baidu clearly reflects Chinese culture which is based on respect and benevolence. Chinese are humble and believe in respecting others and caring for them. They are also attached to their long history of religious leaders and warriors (Wang et al, 2003). Baidu encompasses all of these values and gives people a search engine which is not only in their own language, but the company encloses basic Chinese values, which are important for the people of China. The story of Baidu reflects the cultural heritage of China. Chinese portray politeness and pay a lot of attention on language in their conversation. They keenly tend to notice how their words and actions affect others. So much so that in China people find it very difficult to say no. If they have to refuse somebody they usually use phrases like “yes, but that can be next to impossible” rather than saying no. For such a nation, any business or company is like a family unit where they take care of each other. This point is highlighted indirectly in the narrative of Baidu. The story also tells how Baidu provides a marketing platform for various companies. Baidu also aims to help companies realize the importance of search engine marketing and how these companies can use the services of Baidu, to not only educate themselves but also develop the market. This action can be termed philanthropic, and this is what the Chinese culture embodies (Wang et al, 2003). Baidu is a very customer oriented search engine, which keeps on molding itself according to the demands of its consumers. One might argue that this is the common goal of every company. That may be the case, but Baidu has emphasized this point so much in the narrative that it gives an impression that, the consumers are the most essential part of the organization and that the company exists to serve the consumers. This gives the consumers a sense of belonging and importance. Along with this, the company is giving its consumers a lot of respect by publicly announcing that everything Baidu search engine does is to make the lives of its consumers easier and simpler (Alon, 2003). Both the companies from two different cultures are competitors, but reach their consumer in a way that they become an essential part of their lives. Their cultural values and beliefs are evident in a way they approach their consumers. References Fritz, K. (2008). Case Study & Narrative Analysis. Johns Hopkins University. Retrieved from http://ocw.jhsph.edu/courses/qualitativedataanalysis/PDFs/Session4.pdf Reissman, C.K. (1993). Narrative Analysis. SAGE Publications, 1993. Reis, H.T & Judd, C.M. (2000). Handbook of Research Methods in Social and Personality Psychology. Cambridge University Press, 2000. Stewart, E.C. (2005). American Cultural Patterns: A Cross-Cultural Perspective. Intercultural Press, 2005. Wang, Y., Zhang, X. & Goodfellow, R. (2003). China Business Culture: Strategies for Success. Thorogood, 2003. Alon, I. (2003). Chinese Culture, Organizational Behaviour and International Business Management. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003. Read More