Brokering deals, what I specialize in my business, can sometimes
be dull as well as exciting. Regardless
of the day to day events I always learn something new. A couple of weeks ago I
had a Central American client who was interested in a product, the client had
specifically stated that she wanted the product to be manufactured in the
United States. Now, I am an advocate for U.S. companies exporting their
products but I honestly had nothing to do with this request, for whatever the
reason this client wanted her products to bear the "Made in the
U.S.A" stamp. I go about doing my
normal research, after a couple of days
I narrowed it down to a couple of companies that had the product. After narrowing the list I started to make
phone calls. This is where I made my mistake, and I relate it to you so you
avoid it. Once I started calling I usually contacted the Sales Departments...
wrong answer. These Sales departments are ruthless, and obscuring the truth
seems not to be an issue. However many of them, specially with other small
companies, are just way out of their league when it comes to exporting. They usually don't have the knowledge or the
decision making authority to obligate the company to an export deal. I wasted
about a week doing this with little feedback, almost no information to give my
client and as far away from the deal as I started. I changed tactics and started
researching the leadership of these
small companies, you will be surprised how much info you can find online. I started contacting V.Ps and Owners and the
answers and I got were way more helpful.
Some of the manufacturers that I contacted, companies known for their
U.S. products, were even made in the U.S. at all. I received an answer stating that " our
products are Chinese made but we distribute in the U.S" now talk about
useful information! I am still working on the deal, but now we are finalizing
details of a trade rather than on the initial market research stage. Here are
some tips for your own search:
1. If contacting a large supplier, contact the sales
department first. However, double check absolutely everything that the
department tells you. Ask about their exporting history and for point of
contact information of officers if the
company exporting history is flimsy.
2. If contacting a small business or supplier, contact the
officers directly. Ask about the
exporting history and on what terms they would be willing to conduct an export
if no previous history.
3. Double check the answers you receive! There is nothing
worse than presenting false information to your client.
4. Be prepared to answer numerous questions, make sure you
understand the requirements of your client, the regulations that will govern
the trade, the terms of your client,
request of samples if necessary, etc. You are the expert for both your
client and the supplier.
5. Stay positive, sometimes the deals fall through, The
details might not be favorable or the client loses interests, there are a
million reasons for the deal to go bad. Don't dwell on it, learn from the
experience and move on to your next deal.
As always, look forward to your comments.
