The peculiarities of international business communication on the Internet

Syun Tszyi Postgraduate student, the department of General and Russian Linguistics, Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 117198, Russia, g. Moscow, ul. Miklukho-Maklaya, 15 xxzyjy@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Business communication at the international level is a complex process in which connections are built between business partners. Taking into account the heterogeneity of communication participants, in addition to the set uniform norms and rules, restrictions related to cultural and national characteristics significantly affect, for which it is necessary to understand the distinctive characteristics of representatives of different countries, as well as their behavioral characteristics. The specifics of international negotiations are particularly evident in the example of countries with very different cultures, in this case, China and Russia.

Economic ties between China and Russia are actively developing in the modern period, but the problem of mutual understanding between the parties still remains urgent. China is a specific and unique country not only in terms of culture, but also in the field of business communication. Business communication in China differs significantly from European models, so there is a need for a comparative analysis that allows you to identify the most characteristic features. Knowledge of the specifics of business communication of a business partner has a beneficial effect on the process and outcome of communication (conclusion of a transaction, priority in setting the terms of the contract, etc.). However, it is necessary to pay attention not only to business communication in the face-to-face participation of both parties, but also to the part of communication taking place in absentia (online). In the era of globalization, the Internet is an important factor influencing the peculiarities of the culture of business communication. Hence, it is important to consider the specifics of Russia's business relations with China in the aggregate, taking into account the sphere of communication functioning (within the Internet).

Thus, the relevance of this study is due to the developing international relations (including in the field of business) and consists in considering the peculiarities of the culture of international business communication on the Internet, in particular, between China and Russia. The purpose of the study is to identify the features of international business communication on the Internet, taking into account the specifics of communication participants (using the example of China and Russia). Among the research methods, the following were used:

· analysis and synthesis of theoretical literature on the topic;

· description (features of doing business in China, specifics of Internet communication);

· comparison (consideration of specific features of Internet communication in the business sphere, in particular, in the field of doing business by China and Russia as economic partners);

· generalization (highlighting the features of business communication on the Internet between China and Russia), etc.

The specifics of doing business in China and Russia are due to the influence of the peculiarities of mentality and culture. In particular, business literature is quite widespread in China, ranging from ancient literary monuments (for example, "The Art of War by Sun Tzu", which is still relevant, but already in the field of business) to modern manuals. Having adopted business forms from the West (negotiations, business communication, discussion and signing of contracts, etc.), China has transformed standardized processes for itself, developing its own strategies and plans, behavioral models, etc., which often causes a negative attitude from European partners. In order to successfully conduct business with Chinese companies, it is necessary to be aware of the culture of China, the peculiarities of etiquette (for example, in China it is impossible to give watches, since the word "watch" sounds similar to the word "funeral" ^{[9, p. 57]}; such a ritual as the exchange of business cards, which is a kind of etiquette macro-culture, is important); familiarity and rudeness are unacceptable – the Russian partner should know that he must first establish trusting relations with the Chinese side before proceeding directly to the discussion of the transaction.

The specifics of doing business in China were shaped by various factors. Ethical and philosophical teachings and religion have significantly influenced, namely: Confucianism (which introduced the concept of "patience" into business ethics, which is one of the Confucian virtues) and Taoism (aiming at harmony in relationships), as well as the ancient Chinese treatise "36 stratagems", containing a set of strategic techniques and tactical moves. Russian representatives, in turn, are not influenced by religion, their communication is based on national character, value orientations and norms and rules (including Soviet ones).

The history of negative relations between the West and China in the past has left a certain imprint on Chinese business ethics, as a result of which the Chinese have a dislike for foreigners, which complicates doing business ^{[6, p. 118]}. In the process of communication, the Chinese first of all find out the status of business partners, as well as the internal hierarchy that organizes further communication. The appearance, the venue of the negotiations, as well as the quantitative composition of the other side of the negotiators are very important, while the European partner should be ready for a long process of discussing and concluding a deal, taking into account the non-punctuality of the Chinese side ^{[7, p. 47]}. For Russian partners, such a delay in negotiations is uncharacteristic, as they tend to get straight to the point.

Currently, China is one of the main participants in international business on a par with Western companies, which causes the latter to consider the Chinese as strong "players" and be prepared to interact with them, since, despite borrowing the European business model, China is largely influenced by Confucianism, Taoism and various literary sources who previously belonged to the military sphere and moved into the business sphere, turning it into a subtle game management and strategy building. However, this applies not only to the field of real-time negotiations in the face-to-face presence of both sides in the same location, but also to the field of Internet communication, online business correspondence.

There are various forms of contactless business communication: telephone dialogues, meetings and conferences, reception of groups and delegations of partners, and the exchange of business letters, in which the Internet plays an important role in the modern period, which is a new form of communication both in everyday communication and in business. Internet communication is mediated communication, which differs from contact communication by brevity, regulation, compensation of non-verbal means such as gestures, facial expressions, intonation, demonstration of etiquette norms and politeness, etc. ^{[2, p. 33]}. However, the Internet has a number of advantages: efficiency, hypertextuality, creolization (combination of letter, visual and auditory elements), globality (removal of space-time constraints), creativity (identification of new opportunities), interactivity, multimedia, synchronicity (simultaneous activity of communication participants), dynamic nature of communication, weakening of social and cultural boundaries, ensuring status equality of communicants.

In connection with the development of the Internet, new forms of interaction are emerging, new platforms for communication that has its own specifics that differ from traditional forms. In particular, the technology of network videoconferencing has great potential in international business and communication, which has become especially relevant during the pandemic and in the conditions of the impossibility of face-to-face contacts. Thanks to the Internet and electronic communication, not only the time spent on receiving and sending messages to both international partners and within the company has been significantly reduced, but also the costs of communication (paper, telephone charges, which are also gradually being replaced by Internet analogues; courier fees for document delivery).

In international business, Internet technologies are used in cases where business partners are located far away, as a result of which it becomes more profitable to transfer part of the communication online. The Internet is also used when partners have established connections; then the Internet serves as a means of maintaining long-term contacts. The Internet is also an operational tool in such cases as re-ordering under a previously concluded contract, communication for the purpose of appointment of face-to-face meetings, etc. In the situation of communication on the Internet, personal acquaintance is not an obligatory factor, and the addressee can introduce himself in a letter by providing brief information about the party/company he represents ^{[4, p. 189]}. Written business communication, in the form of which a business dialogue takes place on the Internet, is represented by such types as business letters; documents fixing business relations, contracts, contracts, agreements, etc.

In business online communication with China, it is first of all important to pay attention to the language. In general, English is actively used for conducting international negotiations, but in communication with Chinese partners it is important to use both English and Chinese at the same time, which emphasizes the modern nature of international relations, but the Russian side prefers to use either English or Chinese ^{[5, p. 85]}. In both cases, the influence of Western standards is emphasized. So, when writing business letters, statements, agreements, etc., the official business style is used. The official business style of the Chinese language previously (until 1940) had a complex structure that obeyed strict rules, including stamps, normative patterns, turns, and established expressions. Later, the Chinese official business style was simplified, as a result of which business communication became easier to implement for foreign partners. The main form of written business communication is a contract, which includes seven modules with an established structure (headings, standard phrases, etc.):

· ( (representation of the parties);

· (subject of the contract);

· ( (obligations of the parties);

· ( (terms and procedure of settlements);

· ( (responsibility of the parties);

· ( (term of the contract);

· ( (legal addresses of the parties).

The official style of business correspondence ensures regularity in international communication on the Internet. Standardization covers all levels of business correspondence (syntax, vocabulary, text organization, morphology, etc.). The presence of a certain structure of business writing simplifies communication between Chinese and Russian partners. At the same time, a double interpretation of the business text can lead to misunderstandings, mistakes, further financial and strategic losses on both sides and distrust between business partners ^{[9, p. 58]}. Russian Russian translator plays an important role here as an intermediary between Chinese and Russian, who must be proficient in Chinese at a high level, since Chinese is significantly different from Russian. In particular, Chinese does not have many grammatical categories typical of the Russian language, it has a peculiar syntax (for example, in the sentence "The customer's requirements for the quality of work and safety measures taken by the contractor" / the word "requirements" is a definable word, the rest of the words act as a definition to it, which is characteristic of the Chinese language, in which the subordinate clause is formed as a definition to a noun).

In addition, the translator needs to know special vocabulary (for example, in business communication, / is most likely to be used (currently)), to be aware of the cultural context in order to carry out adequate translation and avoid communicative errors, to be able to express a thought as briefly and clearly as possible, subordinating the style to literary norms. At the same time, it is important to take into account the Chinese partner's belonging to a certain dialect, if this is required; usually literary Chinese (Putonghua) is used in business communication. Repetition of words, terms, and names is used to ensure accuracy and standardization. When doing business, China strives to "not lose face", therefore, it is necessary to express itself as clearly as possible so that the Chinese partner does not have to further clarify misunderstood meanings (in most such cases, the letter will be ignored). It is important to take into account the differences in the system of calculation: in China, one of their main units is a value equal to ten thousand (?), so a million will be represented as "one hundred times ten thousand" (?)), and, for example, a billion will be represented as "ten times a hundred million" (10 ?). The designation of dates also differs: for the official business style in Chinese writing, the construction ?...?... ("from ...to ...") is used, used only in business correspondence; for everyday communication, another expression is used (?...?...). In Russian, the expressions "from... to..." and "from... to..." are used both in official business communication and in everyday speech ^{[4, p. 191]}. In specifying the date in China, put the year first, then the month and the date. Accordingly, in order to conduct business online correspondence, the Russian partner needs to possess cliched phrases that simplify communication with normativity and allow achieving communicative accuracy:

· …?…,…… («In response to your request from..., we ask...");

· , («We hope that you will pay due attention to our complaint and immediately inform us of your decision.»);

·, («We cannot agree with your point of view for the following reasons.»);

· ("what we inform you about");

· ("thank you for your letter");

· ("with deep respect"), etc.

There are also standard phrases for various parts of a business letter. For example, the salutation: Dear sir, Dear ladies, Dear colleagues... (,,......); conclusion ( / "specially bringing this letter presented to Your attention"; – "we strongly ask you to provide a written response"), wishes to establish a trust relationship ( / "I sincerely wish you prosperity in business"; in greeting observed translation transformations, such as permutation: in Russian, the letter in the first place will be "Hello"and then the treatment, while in Chinese, the appeal is in the first place (,!)). In written business speech, when addressing a business partner, both in Russian and in Chinese, the word "dear" is actively used. Addressing a company is one of the most common forms of politeness in business communication in China ^{[1, p. 9]}. Forms of politeness in Chinese business writing are usually used to form long-term cooperation, which is typical for collectivist-type cultures. In modern business correspondence on the Internet, there are often letters where the greeting formula is absent in the presence of the name of the addressee and the subject of the letter, which is typical in a situation of long-term contacts ^{[3, p. 592]}. In Russian, the formulas of speech etiquette of greetings and addresses in electronic communication are less formal.

Business writing in Chinese is characterized by the presence of a special vocabulary and phraseology ("I wish you wealth!"), compound words and abbreviations ( / "legal representative", "legal representative"), loanwords, vignanisms (? / "to be, to be"; ? / "this, this"), the designation of persons by indicating a sign/attitude ( / "consumer"), etc. Also, business communication is not characterized by the use of exclamation and interrogative sentences (with the exception of congratulations: !! / "We wish your company rich and happy customers!»). However, Chinese business communication is more emotional, which can be traced, for example, in verbose apologies, the presence of praise at the end of the letter; in case of refusal, it must be mitigated with humor or compensation. The pragmatic side of the correspondence lies in the emphasized politeness (/ "We have the honor to invite you") ^{[8, p. 61]}. In commercial communication, archaisms are used, familiarity is unacceptable, the use of colloquial vocabulary in large quantities, as well as jargon.

One of the features of business correspondence on the Internet with Chinese partners is the blurring of deadlines. So, the response time to the letter from the Russian side may be 2-3 weeks, in addition, the Chinese side may not respond at all. If there is a delay in sending a letter to the Russian side, a short message is sent containing information that the answer will be given later (when the necessary information is received, for example). Often, the letter remains unanswered due to the incorrect design of the letter: it is important to indicate the subject of the letter, indicating the content and degree of importance, insert a greeting (expressed in speech etiquette formulas), put the main content in a small volume with high informativeness and concreteness (however, too brief a statement can lead to communicative failures), in speech formulas to indicate farewell, and also provide information about the company at the end. When writing a letter, it should be borne in mind that in Chinese, the addressee is indicated at the beginning of the letter on the left (respectful address + position or Mr. / madam); in a letter from Russian partners, the addressee will be indicated separately at the beginning of the letter in the upper right part (position, initials and surname, if necessary, the postal address of the organization).

In addition to the exchange of business letters by e-mail, Internet communication is carried out in messengers (special programs for smartphones or computers that allow you to quickly exchange messages, make phone calls and video calls). The main messenger in China is WeChat (the application also works in Russia), Telegram, Skype, etc. are more popular in Russia. However, in China, many services available to Russian partners do not work, since there is a policy of Internet regulation by the Chinese authorities (applications such as WhatsApp, Skype, Viber, etc. do not work), so it is rational to use WeChat, which is available everywhere in China. This type of communication at the present stage of development in the context of international communication is not used so actively, and the etiquette of communication in messengers is at the stage of formation. Messengers are mainly used to carry out communication within the company for the development, adoption and implementation of management decisions, etc., but it is also used to establish business contacts and conclude transactions. Unlike communication in e-mail, where it is impossible to track the status of the message, in messengers it is possible to find out whether the message was read and when the interlocutor was online for the last time. In the field of international communication, the use of messengers is possible in the case when an e-mail correspondence has already been conducted with a partner, and the messenger in this case is the next stage in the development of business contacts by switching to a less formal communication channel. In some cases, communication in messengers occurs at the request of the interlocutor to carry out the most expeditious communication through instant messaging.

Within the framework of business communication in messengers for the purpose of doing business (exchange of business information), there are a number of restrictions. So, messages are written only during working hours, which is especially important for partners located in different time zones (the time difference with China varies depending on which part of Russia the main office of the Russian side is located). It is incorrect to send a message too early or too late, as well as on weekends, since there are concepts of working and personal time. Also, when conducting business correspondence, the technique of imitation of the interlocutor is often used: the etiquette of business communication in messengers allows addressing the interlocutor in the same tone that he uses (however, it is worth adhering to the official business style). The technique of imitation of the interlocutor helps to achieve mutual understanding between the parties, and also simplifies communication ^{[2, p. 35]}. As one of the examples of imitation is the use of emoticons and emojis; since they go beyond the boundaries of business correspondence, making up the specifics of Internet communication, they use them with great caution. If the Chinese partner used a sticker, the Russian side can respond in the same way (standard emoticons are not always adequately perceived by the Chinese). As in the correspondence in emails, in general, the messages of both sides (both Chinese and Russian) should be adequately concise, concise and specific. The text of the message is not accompanied by introductory questions, and the greeting is sent in the same message as the main text. It is incorrect to answer monosyllabically even in the conditions of communication in the messenger – partners must show interest in communication, as well as satisfy the information requests of the other party.

However, messengers are only an intermediate and secondary form of international communication. Messengers are correctly used to establish preliminary agreements, as well as to discuss issues, but in the context of business communication, priority is given to emails that have more weight, since final decisions are made through a detailed business letter, or at a personal meeting about which an agreement was made ^[10]. Messengers are not used in case of confidential communication, as there is a risk of leakage of information containing trade secrets, personal data, etc. In addition to the above disadvantages, there are also technical imperfections, consisting in data loss due to a failure or in blocking the messenger for certain reasons.

One of the forms of business communication is a corporate website. With the help of it, both the Chinese and the Russian side can present their products/services, etc. The website is an additional information channel containing more extensive and detailed information than an email. In business correspondence, the website is one of the important components of establishing a new contact, and when conducting long-term negotiations, it is an auxiliary tool ^{[9, p. 58]}. With the help of the website (with its proper design), it is possible to create a unique image of the company, attract new customers and partners, as well as achieve high competitiveness when concluding a transaction (since the website allows you to attract new customers, distribute the products / services of the organization, expand the scope of activities and influence). Such a partner will be more profitable than a partner who does not fully own information technologies and Internet capabilities. Accordingly, with the help of the website, you can demonstrate to a business partner a catalog / list of goods and services provided, provide the partner with information about the company's history, news, event announcements, structure and management, annual reports, financial indicators, ratings, etc. In the modern period, it has become possible to create a bilingual website (switching the language from Chinese to Russian and vice versa), which facilitates business communication in conditions of belonging of business partners to different linguistic cultures.

Thus, the study revealed that, as in the situation of real communication, business communication on the Internet is influenced by factors such as mentality, national traditions, established etiquette norms and rules. When carrying out communication, it is necessary to know the peculiarities of the language, lexical, grammatical and cultural differences. Both Russian and Chinese communication on the Internet is characterized by standardization, the use of speech formulas, cliches, ready-made samples. The more emotional nature of the business correspondence of the Chinese side, the use of numerous forms of politeness is noted. In the modern period of establishing international relations, adherence to traditions gives way to current standards. There is a gradual deviation from adherence to the language of which the business partner is a native speaker, and English is used. Also earlier, China was more committed to face-to-face meetings, organizing offline negotiations, but now, under the influence of modern trends, as well as in the context of the development of the pandemic, the Chinese have begun to use the Internet more often. Messengers have become a more common means, which, however, are not the main form of online business communication. Messenger provides more efficiency than e-mail, but it cannot serve all business communication. To optimize business communication on the Internet, there is a website that serves not only to attract new customers and expand the scope of activity, but also to represent the organization in front of business partners. Representatives of Chinese and Russian businesses should not only speak at least two languages, but also have extensive knowledge of the culture and traditions of the partner country, as well as have sufficient flexibility, which is manifested in the use of modern technologies in doing business, in particular, the Internet and its capabilities.