The methods used in the West to promote holidays and special events such as Christmas and Valentine's Day should be applied to traditional Chinese holidays, a survey has found.

The poll, conducted by the China Youth Daily and the website www.qq.com, found that more than 86 percent of the 10,732 respondents also thought it necessary to learn Western sales techniques to promote traditional Chinese culture, the newspaper reported yesterday.

A spokesperson for the five-star Beijing Hotel said more than 90 percent of the places available at its Christmas evening banquet, costing 2,388 yuan (US$325) a person, had already been sold, a week ahead of Christmas.

Ji Yan, a public relations official with the five-star Zhaolong Hotel near Sanlitun in Beijing, said: "Between Christmas Day and the Lantern Festival and Valentine's Day, there are many reasons for promotions."

Li Jie, a student at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, said he always tries to make Christmas special.

"My classmates and I don't celebrate it for its religious meaning, it's just an excuse for a gathering," Li said.

In contrast, the most important Chinese holiday, the Spring Festival, is still mostly about following traditions such as eating dumplings, watching evening gala shows and shooting off firecrackers, experts have said.

Li Mushan, deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Acrobatics Association, said industries promoting Chinese culture have been left far behind their foreign counterparts in areas such as manufacturing special products and developing brands.

Sun Jianjun, president of Pegasus & Taihe World Entertainment, a company that produces the well-known dance show Dynamic Yunnan, said to shape a well-known brand, managers have to study what kind of products the international market wants.

"There are always some general techniques behind successful cultural commercialization," he said.

(China Daily December 19, 2007)