China’s consumers, workers, and manufacturers look with relative confidence in their country’s position in the tariff war between the US and the rest of the world. Marketing expert Ashley Dudarenok looks at the social media, memes, comments, and other reactions of the Chinese, she tells at Time.
Time:
The AI-generated videos depicting Americans taking factory jobs, says Ashley Dudarenok, who runs a China and Hong Kong-based consumer research consultancy, relied on subverting a “long-standing stereotype about global labor dynamics.” And quickly, she tells TIME, the caricature was “absolutely everywhere, and it’s still trending.”
“There was the trade war, there was the tariff war, and now there is the meme war,” Dudarenok says.
Even among the Chinese workforce, more and more aspire to work in sectors other than manufacturing. Dudarenok says across Chinese social media she’s seen comments saying, “Chinese people don’t want to do these jobs, why would Americans want to do these jobs?” or “Chinese manufacturers are moving into Vietnam, into Africa—now we have another option: America.”
Still, the tariffs are no joke to those in China whose livelihoods depend on manufacturing goods for export. Some have also taken to social media to respond to the tariffs: by explaining how cheaply they actually manufacture goods and how much of the price consumers paid pre-tariffs came from brand markups…
Some have even appealed to Americans to buy directly from them. “They want to get rid of the middleman,” says Mei. But consumers should beware that claiming to manufacture for big brands while actually producing knock-offs is a common scam, and some scammers could be exploiting consumer panic about potential price hikes. While China produces more than half of the world’s clothing and textiles, Dudarenok says manufacturers that are “trusted partners” with big brands don’t typically sell their partners out so easily. ..
The government’s message is clear, Dudarenok says: “China is prepared to fight for its right to be in the room and to be at the table.”
Ashley Dudarenok is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at your meeting or conference? Get in touch or fill out our speakers’ request form.
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