Zero rent, no property management fees, rent-free period for renovations, discounts on utilities...

When you’re looking for business opportunities, do you often see these kinds of promotions?

Many industrial parks have repeatedly slashed rents and property management fees to help ease the financial burden on businesses.

Without the financial benefits from land sales, attracting businesses is indeed challenging these days. Some feel as though they’re “at the mercy of the weather”—it’s no longer about professionalism but more about luck, inevitably leading to a sense of helplessness that “no matter how hard you try, it’s all for nothing.”

The underlying cause is often issues in the stages of securing resources, facilitating deals, and retaining businesses.

However, by applying the right techniques and being flexible, you can smooth the path of investment promotion even in challenging circumstances.

01 Securing Resources: From Searching for Water to Digging a Well

Sometimes, you might spend hours calling through a meticulously organized Excel spreadsheet, attend countless trade shows, and work nonstop—only to see very few projects actually materialize.

During our [Investment Promotion Network] offline events, we’ve also heard some investment promotion bureau directors mention:

“We’ve spent a lot of effort in the early stages trying to find companies with investment intentions, but very few of them are actually reachable.”

Sticking to the same old methods may seem safe, but in reality, it wastes energy on sending messages and waiting for replies—resulting in a lot of wasted effort.

The crux of the problem is that many investment promotion professionals focus on individual companies. Regardless of whether a deal is closed with one company, they have no idea where the next one is or how to find it.

It’s like searching for water in a desert: stumbling upon a single bottle won’t last long. Only by digging a deep well and finding a stable water source can you establish a lasting foothold.

The same principle applies to investment promotion. Rather than searching for projects piecemeal, it’s better to proactively build a resource pool.

Use soft connections—such as investment promotion seminars and industry salons—to build rapport.

Compared to rigidly pushing out promotional materials, sitting down to discuss the industry and needs is a far more effective way to build trust. Over time, you can cultivate your own corporate resource pool, creating a snowball effect where “one effort yields multiple returns.”

Of course, not every company should be included in this resource pool.

You can start with a screening process, prioritizing upstream and downstream companies that have been visited in person or recommended by industry associations.

Subsequently, regularly share order information and identify business needs, so that companies feel joining this resource pool is beneficial—even if they aren’t currently collaborating, they’ll be willing to refer peers to join.

Effective investment promotion relies heavily on leveraging technology.

By analyzing big data on local industries, businesses, and talent, you can pinpoint investment targets instead of searching for a needle in a haystack.

Meanwhile, the [Investment Promotion Network] can assist with preliminary project screening, saving you the time and effort of verifying authenticity, so that investment promoters can focus on discussing cooperation with companies and building trust through communication.

Based on actual feedback, once trust is established between government parks and companies, businesses often proactively recommend new leads.

This is the key to “digging a well.” By shifting time from information dissemination to discussing needs and negotiating partnerships—moving from a short-term search for water to a long-term strategy of digging a well—project resources will naturally grow.

02 Closing Deals: From Meeting Needs to Exceeding Expectations

To close deals in investment promotion, the key is to precisely meet the company’s needs. Take, for example, the Singaporean foreign investment project we attracted to the Yangtze River Delta.

At the time, industrial parks in southern Jiangsu were clustered together, with little difference in transportation, supporting facilities, or policies, making competition extremely fierce. Parks in Wuxi and Suzhou had already begun engaging with the company before we did.

In response, we didn’t compete on infrastructure but instead found a breakthrough through attention to detail.

We first addressed the issues companies cared about most: the stability of the supply chain and whether policies could be delivered. Every round of communication centered on these two points, and we proactively provided lists of local suppliers and past examples of policy fulfillment.

When engaging with potential projects, we invited park leadership to be present in advance so they could provide on-the-spot solutions to any questions the companies had. We also calculated the savings in labor and logistics costs that renting a factory here would yield based on the company’s new organizational structure, and compiled a detailed proposal by the very next day.

Leveraging the park’s strengths as a biopharmaceutical industry cluster, we tailored policies for the company, clearly outlining how to claim talent recruitment subsidies and calculating the exact cost savings, while thoroughly explaining how we differed from other parks.

Simultaneously, we established a dedicated technology task force led by senior management to facilitate communication and provide timely feedback on needs; we increased in-person interactions to quickly respond to new requirements from the company’s headquarters. Ultimately, it was this business-savvy service that secured the project.

In fact, corporate needs are much like human needs and can be mapped onto Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Investment promotion services must also align with these needs.

○ Basic Needs: Helping Companies Take Root

With orders secured, ensure land, water, electricity, and other infrastructure are in place; guarantee a steady supply of raw materials such as steel, coal, and electricity; and keep the supply chain running smoothly.

○ Safety Needs: Providing Companies with Peace of Mind

Ensure a solid business environment, such as fair rule of law, the absence of cutthroat competition, and the fulfillment of promised policies.

○ Social needs: Helping businesses build a “network”

Integration into the industrial chain ensures timely raw material supply from upstream and smooth product shipment to downstream markets, supported by local R&D institutions.

○ Respect for Businesses: Fostering a Sense of Achievement

First, through product reputation to drive repeat purchases; second, through government recognition, such as designation as a “Specialized, Refined, Unique, and Innovative” enterprise or a high-tech enterprise.

○ Self-actualization needs: Helping businesses grow and strengthen

Provide support through industrial funds, concierge-style services, and the ability to resolve major issues on a case-by-case basis. Think one step ahead of the enterprise, provide service before they even ask, and let them feel our professionalism and sincerity—only then will they be willing to pay for this dedication.

03 Retaining Businesses: From Landlord to Partner

Many assume that when a company terminates or changes its lease, it’s a sign of operational trouble. But from another perspective, the company isn’t seeking trouble—it may simply be dissatisfied with the current service.

Sometimes, once a business has been attracted to the premises, it becomes difficult to get them to leave. After all, the cost of relocating is far higher than one might imagine.

The visible expenses alone are significant: renovations cost at least several hundred thousand yuan, moving can damage office equipment, and a few days of downtime may result in lost revenue.

Even more challenging are the hidden costs: employees may resign due to longer commutes, and clients might question the brand’s stability upon seeing the company relocate.

Therefore, companies won’t move unless absolutely necessary; most of the time, it’s because the partnership hasn’t met their needs. To retain a company, you must first address their real pain points.

If a company finds the rent too high, we can help negotiate flexible terms with the landlord; if they aren’t using all the space they’ve leased, we can scale back the area to meet their needs; and if they’re dissatisfied with the services, we must ensure every detail is handled properly.

Signing a contract is never the end; industrial parks must act as partners to the companies, and ongoing support is essential.

For example, we conduct regular visits to monitor relocation and licensing progress. For the administrative details—such as site selection, company registration, approvals, financial integration, and bank account setup—a dedicated team provides end-to-end support, treating the company’s matters as our own.

More crucially, we must build an industrial ecosystem where upstream and downstream enterprises can complete most of their production within the park. Production factors must align with corporate needs; whatever enterprises lack, we allocate resources right at their doorstep.

Achieving these goals will naturally boost the park’s appeal. Companies along the industrial chain will actively seek us out based on word of mouth, and existing tenants will become more loyal.

When we cannot compete on price or match the quality of physical infrastructure, professional services and an industrial ecosystem become our strongest competitive advantages.

We must not merely act as salespeople selling land and leasing factory space; we must become site selection consultants who genuinely care about the enterprises—concerned with whether they can operate successfully and turn a profit here.

By solving problems with attention to detail and building trust through genuine care, companies will stay and be willing to recommend us to others.

This approach not only eliminates the frustration of failing to attract businesses but also helps the park gain a firm foothold in the competitive landscape, ensuring that companies stay and thrive.