Group purchasing guidelines in China

One of the best ways to shop for goods and services in China is group purchasing 团购 (Tuángòu). Most popular group purchasing websites in China are dianping.com, nuomi.com, meituan.com, etc. They sell everything starting from food ending up with luxurious hotels twice sometimes even three times cheaper than the actual price. You may wonder what the retailer gains from selling their service that cheap. They will get an access to the whole new customers. So this is a win-win situation for everyone!

Well, the bad news is that it is all in Chinese. How can a foreigner who doesn’t communicate in Chinese purchase vouchers? Here is how:

1. You need to be fearless and open-minded. Don't worry as these websites are safe in terms of personal information.
2. You might want to download Google Chrome with the help of which you can translate any website from Chinese to English.
3. Once everything is translated, start searching for whatever you are looking for. In our case, we are always seeking some activities for our toddler. (One time, we were able to find photo shoot service for 1 RMB! Imagine that!) Also, you can choose the location. Better to choose the one that is in your district.
4. After everything is found and you are pretty sure that you want to buy a voucher from the particular retailer, it is time to be fearless again. Because now you are about to share your phone number!
5. So let’s get it started! Time to press “purchase” button.
6. After that, the website will take you to the page where you create a login. In order to set up a login you need to put your phone number and in about 60 seconds you will receive a confirmation code.
7. Next, you have to choose the method of payment (Alipay or WeChat wallet).
8. And the last stage is receiving confirmation message where it will be written what type of service you purchased with detailed information such as location, telephone number and expiration date of the voucher (please save this message as it is very important).
9. Hallelujah! You completed group purchasing!

Now it is time to actually go to the place and get the service. Actually, you have to book an appointment by calling the retailer. But if your Chinese pronunciation is not as perfect as mine, you just show up at the place. Once you arrive, you just show them what services you purchased and then, they will book an appointment for you or just give you a service if the place isn’t crowded. I gotta tell you, sometimes not speaking Chinese fluently can be a good thing!




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