Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands, Sales and Marketing: The Essential Cultural Guide—From Presentations and Promotions to Communicating and Closing

THREE TIPS FOR SELLING IN INDONESIA

1. Respect Indonesian History

2. Understand Indonesian Languages

3. Follow Their Social Agenda

1. RESPECT INDONESIAN HISTORY

The Republic of Indonesia became an independent country in 1945, so it is natural to regard it as new. However, Indonesia encompasses hundreds of cultures, some with written histories more than a thousand years old. Indeed, Indonesia was occupied by precursors of modern humans. The remains of a Homo erectus skeleton found in Indonesia—popularly known as “Java Man”—date back to 2 million years ago.

A number of kingdoms ruled over portions of Indonesia’s 6,000 inhabited islands. There is archaeological evidence that a Hindu kingdom existed in Indonesia in the first century A.D. (The island ...