One of my most memorable quotes_x000D_

Editor's note: A veteran with 30 years of foreign trade experience, he has developed many overseas customers. Looking back, the most memorable one happened to him in 2001-2002. The development of new customers this time took a long time, the process was twists and turns, the frequent correspondence, the amount of written materials, and the rich experience and lessons made him unforgettable.

Now, he records the whole process in detail, recreating the experience that made his heart ache. Although it happened three years ago, the spirit and strategy of perseverance, discernment, integrity first, and win-win for both customers and me are still worthy of reference by today's foreign trade people.

One of my most memorable business quotations, it took one year and 21 days, four major twists and turns in the quotation, nearly 400 round-trip emails, and nearly 400 drafted texts. half a foot thick. After more than a year of marathon and arduous negotiations, we finally won the trust of a customer I met online and got the first order of more than 40,000 US dollars.

Throwing stones for directions

At the end of April 2001, I saw a customer's purchase information on the Internet. The product he wants is the high-tech product that our company has been promoting in recent years. As always, I sent this customer a routine email saying we could supply the product. He responded quickly and asked to send samples. From this day on, the year-long quotation negotiation between us kicked off.

After receiving the samples I sent, he called to praise my prompt reply and quick sample delivery. Satisfied with the sample. But strangely, instead of continuing to negotiate or place an order for the product, he asked me if I would like to see his samples.

Judging from the English product name he mentioned, it is obvious that this is a new product that is not available in China. What exactly does it look like? What material is it made of? What's special about the production process? ...I'm not sure about all of this.

However, considering that the categories of light industrial products in Wuxi are relatively complete, and the production equipment and related technological levels are also based, they should be able to produce, so I sent a letter to ask him to send samples. On July 31st, I received his first shipment of 4 samples of different specifications, materials and sizes.

I was very excited. This new online customer has sent me so many samples after three months of contact. At least a few points are explained: First, it is a test. First, I want to send a sample quotation to see if what I said is consistent and honest; the second is to investigate , Sending new samples is to see if I know how to do it, whether I have the ability to develop new products and make accurate quotations; the third is to further understand whether we can cooperate for a long time and whether it is reliable from the quotation.

The most important point is that he is not your average bagger or general trader, probably a larger end user. Later facts proved my inference to be correct.

Accurate quotation

We have put a lot of effort into the implementation of a professional factory that produces similar materials in this system, and carried out careful mapping, analysis and cost calculation of the various components, parts and accessories of the incoming sample, and then reported Make a price list listing the parts.

The client responded enthusiastically to my first offer. The telegram on August 29 said: "Your prices appear to be very competitive on these products. Why is there such a wide discrepancy in price for these products?" He said, our prices are very competitive, and the factory and I are very competitive. Happy. It shows that our quotation is accurate and reflects the sincerity of our cooperation. is a good sign!

Bidding setbacks

Unexpectedly, a few days later, on September 19, the customer sent a letter saying, "Your prices are high, and several suppliers in your country are offering more competitive prices."

This is a real hit! The shock wave of vicious competition and low-price competition rushes directly to this unpublished "swaddle" product.

After my repeated contact and inquiries, he called on November 6th and said, "We sincerely regret to inform you that some one came in at better pricing than your company. Again, thank you and I hope to contact you soon with additional items that may be of interest to you." Broken up politely.

This proves that the disorderly competition of domestic products and markets has been transferred to the international market, regardless of the rules of international trade. Blindly bidding at low prices by domestic manufacturers not only disrupts the normal business of others, but actually damages himself.

Turn the tide

What to do? Is it the golden pot to wash hands, stop contact, and just quit? Or try harder, stick to it, and try your best to save it? I chose the latter.

Our analysis believes that the key to the price is the material of the product. If 100% of the new material is used, the price will not change much unless it is shoddy, or adulterated, or the waste material is used instead of new material , first drive away opponents with low prices, replace them, and then raise prices. We will never do such immoral things to deceive customers, but it is necessary to remind customers to avoid being deceived.

On November 7th I wrote, "I know that someone's price is lower than ours, but I also know that some suppliers use the old and wasted materials to make the items you needed."

I highlighted , quality is more important than price: "So, you must consider the quality of the items while you pay attention to the price."

I also asked the question if it got the promise of quality from others. Here's what I wrote: "I don't know whether you give the guarantee from the suppliers for the quality of the materials."

Please note that I used the word "give" in place of the original The word "get" was changed on a whim while operating a computer. Unexpectedly, this change completely changed the original meaning of the sentence, and it has a questioning tone, which means whether you make a promise to others.

A word is worth a fortune! This change, crooked and right, has had a completely unexpected effect.

The customer called on November 8th and said, "Thank you for your persistence. You are indeed correct that the prices we have received do not guarantee the business." He also said that they will also check the quality of samples from other suppliers Detection: "If for some reason they are unable to provide our requirements. You will be our first contact." This gave me another glimmer of hope.

He decided to include me in their bid for any future new product offerings," We sincerely appreciate your continued pressure to give you a second look. It strengthens our resolve to let you be a part of any future bidding that take place."

Honesty earned initial trust.

Actively make price changes

Things can't stop here, but wait for the customer's next visit and contact, you must bring the customer back! It seems that we can only make a fuss about the price.

In fact, for the first quotation, I am not sure if the factory quotation is overestimated and by how much. Therefore, when we negotiated with the factory and asked whether we could lower the price by 10% in order to adapt to the competition, so as to win back customers, the factory refused to do so.

We had to let another factory look at the samples, measure the cost, and re-quote. The manager of the factory was very active. He came to our company with detailed quotation information the next day, and readily agreed with our new quotation plan, and was willing to copy the samples and send the customers to test the quality until the customers were satisfied. Confirmed sample. This has greatly boosted my confidence.

When the client received my new offer, he immediately accepted it and replied on November 14th: "Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding. We will send out all set items immediately."

On December 12, he really used UPS to send a full set of samples in 6 shapes, 4 specifications and 24 sizes. On January 30, 2002, I remitted more than 5,000 US dollars for the cost of opening the casting mold, and asked me to copy the sample and send it to them for testing and confirmation. In this way, with the tacit understanding of both sides of industry and trade, I finally regained the negotiating power that I almost lost in the quotation.

Delayed Proofing

When we went all out to open more than 10 pairs of molds and planned to complete the sample work before the Spring Festival in 2002, we suddenly received a call from the customer, requesting to stop the mold opening work immediately. Said that his competitor has launched a new product with a beautiful appearance, and asked us to wait for him to get the new product before proofing the new product.

This wait is more than a month. The new products received after the Spring Festival are different from the original samples in terms of materials and main components. If the mold is opened according to the new product, the original opened mold is useless, and the preliminary work is equivalent to doing it all for nothing. So, I hurriedly sent a letter to explain that reopening the mold was not only a waste, but also delayed the proofing period. The new material was expensive and involved re-quoting. It is recommended to temporarily put the new product on hold and produce samples according to the original plan. After several correspondence, the client finally agreed with me.

Really hard work pays off, honesty and sincerity are the first.

Successful sample testing

On April 19, 2002, the customer called me to congratulate me: "Congratulation!" Said that their company's quality control testing center has tested the 2 sets of duplicate samples sent by us, and the quality Very satisfied, will order soon. "We have reviewed the items and are very pleased with your products. We plan to place an order with you not later than tomorrow."

He also said another set of duplicate samples had been sent to their brother company, They will contact me shortly to discuss ordering.

Ah, that's great! On April 12, 2002, this nearly one-year quotation negotiation finally came to an end. The customer faxed the first order, asking for 12,000 pieces, with a total amount of 43,000 US dollars.

Before preparing the contract, I successfully persuaded the client that the FOB should be a CIF. So far, the success of this negotiation is imminent, as long as the customer signs the contract back, it will come to an end.

Payment turmoil

I marked the negotiated 100% advance payment in the contract, and we will deliver the goods within 45 days after we receive the payment. But after the contract was sent by fax, there was no reply for three or four days.

It's a lot of work! When I called repeatedly to ask questions, the customer reluctantly replied that the issue of advance payment was rejected by the vice president of finance in charge of the company. At the same time, I was asked to quickly provide three companies that have done business with this country for reference. Obviously, the client needs to do a good faith investigation on us to decide whether to sign the business contract.

I have provided three companies truthfully. Unexpectedly, three days later, the customer sent a letter saying that they had sent faxes or telephones to the three companies. The first company said that they had never done business with us (not a fact), and the second company said that the quality of the factory's products was poor and urged them not to do so. Doing business with us (customers exporting for the factory as agent), the third company will not reply. Although neither of these two companies are our basic customers, they are our clients acting as agents for the factory, but the consultation results are obviously not favorable to us.

The client explained that there was a great deal of internal repercussions in their company and they strongly disagreed with the advance payment. If you want to sign, the payment terms must be changed to D/P 60 days, that is, the other party receives the product and the payment is made after the quality test is passed.

In all honesty, D/P 60 days isn't too harsh. Many foreign merchants in the same industry are this payment method and are also accepted. And it is the first time that the two of us met and contacted online, and the first time the deal is imminent after long-term negotiation. Why should we ask the customer to take the risk of poor quality of the factory's products? But on the contrary, when D/P 60 days forward payment, how to avoid the risk of not receiving the payment?

Factory and other company leaders tend to accept D/P for 60 days in order to sign up. I disagree. Because I never do D/P, D/A, etc.

I have to think about it. I want to do better!

The result is a win-win situation.

I calmed down and carefully and carefully analyzed the customer's mentality. First, he has sent 3 different types of samples in 4 times, and the quality of the returned samples for 2 types of replication has been improved. Confirmation shows that customers can trust our product quality and development capabilities.

Second, the customer prepaid the mold opening fee, and its cooperation sincerity is obvious.

The third is the correspondence and telephone exchanges in the past year. I have more confidence in me personally. It can be said that I have reached the level of obedience. Otherwise, I would not agree to the absolutely favorable payment terms such as 100% advance payment.

Fourthly, although the customer's knowledge is not good for us, it also proves that I am honest with the customer and I do not conceal or deceive.

It's just that the client cannot change his VP of Finance's decision against us. So, what method can be used to make the client negotiate internally, strive to change from passive to active, and solve the current deadlock?

So, on the one hand, I used my brains every day to carry out "carpet-style" bombardment of letters and telegrams every day, reaching a letter of hundreds or even thousands of words a day. 4 categories of samples, make careful calculations, quote a better price, and hold him back so that he doesn't give up.

In response to his mentality of wanting to cooperate and worrying about the risk of advance payment, he took the initiative to revise the payment terms, and listed three types of payment according to the logic of "take the law from the top and get it in the middle; take the law from the middle and get it from the bottom". Methods for customers to choose:

1. 50% in advance, 30% by B/L fax after delivery, and the remaining 20% after delivery;

2. 50% in advance, B/L after delivery 20% for /L fax, and the remaining 30% upon arrival;

3. Irrevocable L/C at sight.

April 28th client called and said, "We would like to choose option #3 (irrevocable L/C at sight)."

That's awesome! This third clause is our preferred and safe and beneficial payment terms for our customers. I got it, the client got it, and his company agreed to sign up. The result is a win-win.

On April 30th, I made a new contract and faxed it to the client overnight. On May 1, the customer signed the contract back. From May 1st to May 9th, I took advantage of the long holiday of International Labor Day to conduct tense consultations with clients every day to determine each term of L/C.

On May 9th he called and said: "Great News! The L/C has been completed today! We are very happy to finally have all the steps in place. As I have mentioned the other divisions are very interested and I believe they will be placing orders separately or through us in a short period of time." He said that not only had the letter of credit been opened, but his brother company would soon place an order from me. The client's bank officially opened the letter of credit on May 10, 2002.

But it's not over yet.