BASIC PRINCIPLES OF WORKING WITH CHINA
How to start cooperating with China
To begin with, you need to understand and answer this question for yourself – why do you want to do this? If the answer is banal, or “I want to try, maybe it will work out,” then this is not the right answer and motivation. If you want to use China as a business tool, you need a holistic approach and have a goal in mind: to create your own business, expand your products, and learn about new platforms for buying for your own needs and in bulk. By answering specific questions, you will be able to answer yourself whether you really need it or whether it is too complicated for you.
So why do you need China?
If the answer is quite simple, like ordering a couple of things from China for your own use or for a small business, then you probably won’t be interested in further, because you don’t need to understand who you are dealing with, it’s just a simple purchase, as most people do in online stores. Just clicking to buy or order from Ali is not a complete knowledge, but if you plan to delve into this process with a “head” – then you need to understand in more detail who you will be dealing with, how to interact properly between sellers, what are the subtleties in communication and many other interesting things.
The peculiarities of China, take the above
It all starts out trivial, but communication is the most important thing you need. Understanding how to behave or communicate is the key to a reliable partnership. If on Taobao you can only clarify something about the product, and it is not a fact that you will receive an answer, then when interacting with a factory or retailer, you need to adhere to a business style of communication, be polite and careful, without unnecessary jokes and only on the topic of conversation. When submitting a product request, you should clearly formulate your questions about the product and write a complete list of
And this is important
Starting a dialog in an arbitrary manner can have a negative impact on the interlocutor. I’ve had cases where I’ve been ignored for asking a simple price question without greeting or introducing myself.
Language barrier
Yes, this is indeed a problem, and at the same time it is not a problem. If you want to order from China as efficiently as possible, you need to hire a translator who can communicate in Chinese. This will give you not only huge bonuses but also trust from the other side. If you want to cheat the system by using Google Translate, I’m going to hasten to disappoint you – it won’t help you. After all, even the most accurate translator will not convey your idea with the right message. In order not to be seen as a person who wants to “suck up” – then the best language of communication will be English as an international language, neither you nor they will have any problems with it. But it will deprive you of some of the advantages and interesting things that you would get by communicating in their native language.
So what can we conclude
Cooperation with China is a rather complex and specialized job that requires a lot of effort if you want to think of it as a simple matter. However, for a small business or for minimal personal needs, you will need almost nothing from the training. This business market has quite a few pitfalls, just like any other global market in any given country. Studying the nuances that may occur along the way or unusual situations is all that everyone who wants to consider China as a major business partner in a few years should go through.
I ordered and that’s it, the main thing is as in the description
Yes and no, most of the descriptions that are provided are just an illusion, or a standard ad. When dealing with factories when ordering for business, you may come across many products of the same type – but if you order from different companies, and each will have its own peculiarities and nuances, each will have something different. Yes, they don’t like questions, but they are necessary, especially when your order will cost more than your cell phone. China will never take responsibility, only companies that have high ratings or have been on the market for a long time can take responsibility, and ordinary sellers or small factories will do everything to avoid questions, not to return the goods or something else.