In total, 213 firms were found to be ineligible (e.g., the firm
was listed more than once, the firm had never exported, the firm
had ceased export trading). A further 278 declined to
participate. A total of 309 questionnaires were mailed out,
and 137 completed questionnaires were returned, equating to a
response rate of 44%. The telephone analysis showed that the
two main reasons for non-response and non-participation were,
respectively, (1) time constraints, and (2) company policies
restricting the giving of information to external parties. In terms of the sample itself, on average, firms employed 102 people,
exported to 10 countries, had been exporting for 18years, and
generated 79% of their sales from their exporting activities. The
average annual sales turnover in the sample was approximately
HK$149million.