When running a
company, at some point you might consider doing business with overseas
manufacturers. It is with no doubt, a milestone for a company, but at the same
time tricky. You may ask why it’s tricky to conduct deals with foreign
manufacturers, they supposed to be more reliable and, in every sense, it is the
right choice for a business boost. Basically, doing business with foreign
partners is a try and error procedures. You might learn something from mistakes
and wrong dealings with wrong partners, or you might find success in your
first attempt only. However, there are few tricks and tips to minimize such
uncertain gamble. Through years of experiences and encountering mistakes, we
have come up with several tips that can lead you to the way of doing trade with
overseas manufacturers.
1. Verify the foreign manufacturer company
The first step is
to verify the manufacturing company you want to work with. An experienced, well-known company is always safer to work with. Such companies keep the quality of
the work and partnership integrity intact and often focus on business
prospective which is beneficial for both parties. If the manufacturer ignores
your request for providing credentials and references, it’s wise to pass the
option of working with that particular company. Read More:
Suppose the
manufacturer gave you the response up to the required expectation, you may
consider proceeding with the negotiation of the business process and monitory
aspects. If you think the manufacturer and your company can be able to meet each
other’s expectations, proceed forward with a partnership agreement. That leaves you
with the summary that, verifying a foreign manufacturer is the very first thing
you should carry out before hoping into the field doing trades with a foreign
company.
2. Conduct Online tour of the production facility
Use
of modern technology in the field of communication made remote business
partnership process much convenient. Using video sharing applications such as
Skype, Viber, etc. revolutionized any types of business communication
processes. Make full use of this facility when partnering with foreign
manufacturers. Ask them for regular communication over skypes and request for scheduled live video tours of the production facility.
3. A
third-party company to manage foreign partners
Consider hiring a
third-party sourcing company that can keep up the relationship with the foreign
partner on behalf of you. The company will keep the contact regarding prices,
quality, work progress, scheduled delivery, and other relevant conversations
alive between two parties. These media in-between usually create an overview
of all the production goods and cost-related negotiations with the
manufacturer, but it is often worth it with a smoother communication process.
Such deployment of sourcing company saves time, and provide assurance that the final
produced goods meet the expectation at its best level. Such a third-party company
is usually available in a native country. Although various overseas sourcing
company has its headquarter or office in Asia or other countries.
4. A face to face meeting with
foreign manufacturer
Gear
up yourself and your company representative, because at this point you need to
face your overseas partner in real. Once your products are in the mass manufacturing
process, you may need to conduct a face to face meeting with your partner.
Consider a trip to the country your partner company is located. A practical
factory visits while productions are in progress is necessary to keep up with
the quality. It is also useful when keeping further market analysis as well as
keep a close watch with the delegates of your partnering company.
5. Keep backup manufacturers onboard
A
good strategy of doing business with overseas partners is keeping backup
companies aside. You never know what disappointment or distress in business
may arise while doing business with a current foreign company. For instance, your
current foreign partner may fail to deliver you the quality your clients are
expecting, or they might have missed the shipment schedule. Even it might be
getting impossible to continue working with the current overseas manufacturer
for several inconsistencies or breaks of agreements. Such a drawback always demands
immediate switch to the new foreign manufacturer, in order to keep the
production line flawless and uninterrupted.
At the end, partnership with overseas
manufacturer can sometimes be challenging, Nevertheless, choosing the right
manufacturer from countries that provides cost-efficient labors and raw
materials may result in a viable solution for meeting big contracts. Once you are successful
in building a relationship with the right overseas manufacturing company, you can
have a long-term advantage in the market which can eventually be able to help
your company prosper. Read Also: 4 Steps to Getting Great Small Business Ideas
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