Guanxi and relationship marketing: An anthropological case study of China's foreign banks

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to record and discuss the research design and methodology for a research (the Research) conducted by Wan and Ng (2013) in relation to the use of guanxi in Relationship Marketing (RM) of China's Foreign Banks (CFBs). The Research is further extended to: (1) formulate a conceptual framework of guanxi for the CFBs (Wan et al. 2014); and (2) investigate the relationship between marketing research in the subject area and business anthropology (Wan and Ip 2014). Its contribution is twofold. First, it serves as a pioneering attempt to provide the CFBs with a theoretical research model as a sample for future studies on the subject. Second, it practically gives insights into the RM of banks in China, particularly the CFBs, to establish platforms for further research on a conceptual framework of guanxi for improving their business performance in China.