#86 Surviving the cutthroat world of e-commerce in China, with Dr Lin Zhang author of "The Labor of Reinvention"

<p>For a decade or more, rural Chinese have been setting up online stores in their homes, hoping to make a living through e-commerce rather than factory work or farming. But any easy money there was in online selling is beginning to dry up. Village neighbors have been pitted against each other in competition for customers, unscrupulous merchants copy products and images from competitors with impunity, while rural residents also struggle to keep up with evolving trends like livestreaming. For over 10 years Dr Lin Zhang followed several of these rural entrepreneurs and their families, culminating in her latest book <b><em>The Labor of Reinvention - Entrepreneurship in the New Chinese Digital Economy</em></b>.<br/><br/><b>Featuring<br/></b>- Dr Lin Zhang : University of New Hampshire Professor, author of <b><em>The Labor of Reinvention - Entrepreneurship in the New Chinese Digital Economy</em></b><br/><br/><b>Win a copy of the book !<br/></b>- Share your favorite Middle Earth Podcast episode on any social media with the #MiddleEarthPodcast to enter the lottery.  Three lucky winners will receive a hard copy. Free shipping in China and the USA.<b><br/><br/>Where to buy the book <br/></b>-  <b><em>The Labor of Reinvention</em></b>, published by Columbia University Press<br/>https://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-labor-of-reinvention/9780231551298<br/><br/> <b>To go further<br/></b>- Middle Earth episode <a href='https://www.buzzsprout.com/1763226/8465415-01-how-to-be-internet-famous-in-china-part-1-of-china-s-internet-and-creation'>#01 How to be internet famous in China (Part 1 of &quot;China&apos;s internet and creation&quot;) </a><br/>- Middle Earth episode<a href='https://www.buzzsprout.com/1763226/8465386-29-online-kol-marketing-in-china'> #29 Online KOL marketing in China</a> <br/><br/>Middle Earth is made by <a href='http://bit.ly/34glLBk'>China Compass Productions</a> and hosted by <a href='https://www.linkedin.com/in/aladin-production-services-china-news/'>Aladin Farré</a>. If you have a China-themed cultural projec