How to make foreign cooperater feel that we are reliable?

[englishdavis]

Is there anyone who know how to make foreign cooperater feel that we are reliable?

I'm an international freight forwarder in China,but our foreign clients don't have 100% reliance on us,how to solve the problem?

[aeon]

Do you think they might have done business in China before?

You yourself may be absolutely squeaky clean, honest and above board, but until standards of business probity in China match those in the west you will be tarred with the same brush as those who are out to take make a fast buck at foreign clients expense.

When doing business in an environment where you feel you can't trust the other parties involved, it makes sense to spread the risk by using a variety of suppliers or agents. Your only hope of getting all the business your client could put your way is to do as you say you will, when you say you will. If you abide by all your contracts and verbal agreements, then over time your client will come to trust you. If you are more trust-worthy than other businesses, then you will get more of the trade.

[elina]

I agree:

Your only hope of getting all the business your client could put your way is to do as you say you will, when you say you will. If you abide by all your contracts and verbal agreements, then over time your client will come to trust you. If you are more trust-worthy than other businesses, then you will get more of the trade.

And I think your question may be a little big. If you could express more detailed about yourself or the relationship with your foreign cooperater, people may give you more practical help.

Why don’t your foreign clients believe you? Which part of your services are the most dissatisfied for them?

[stephanhodges]

Also, other countries' companies are not 100% fair.

You will have situations where they will try to take advantage of you too. I suggest that you also have good arbitration guidelines and policies.

Additionally, perhaps there are organizations that you can join, which would increase your reputation. It would have to be an international organization, with a good reputation with high member standards.

[Manchu]

First, If it's a first-time customer, you should make sure that you're not dependant on their money for cash flow -- you should be able to service them even if they pay a bit late. Secondly, you should also be able to extend some credit to them, so that they're not forced to pay before shipment arrives.

Thirdly, if you're afraid that they might use you once and never pay you for the shipment, you might want to use a profressional escrow account. This basically just brings in a third party to mediate the money issues. You should negotiate the fees on this (not sure of your margins), but they'd be thrilled if you offer to pay for it. Once you've had a few shipments with them, you could revert to the standard letter-of-credit system that most forwarders use.

[self-taught-mba]

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate!!!!

Understand their needs first. IF you can meet them reflect them back in the customer’s viewpoint. Don’t give up, pursue them let them know they are important and how you can help them. If a competitor can do it better for right now—refer them to the competitor. In the long run this is best and they will appreciate you for it. Then in the future when another job comes up they know they can rely on you for honesty or they may refer you more business through their network. Especially important in the service oriented businesses. Good luck!

[imron]

And don't be afraid to be honest, even if it's bad news. If you know beforehand that the shipment is going to be late/delayed by say a week, then let them know ASAP, rather than waiting until just before (or even worse, just after) the shipment was supposed to arrive.

By the same token, if you know something is going to take 2 weeks to arrive, don't tell the customer it will only take a couple of days - even if you think that's what they want to hear.

In these situations, a bad truth is better than a nice lie, as your customer will appreciate the extra notice in being able to plan for not having the goods on time rather than you just surprising them with the bad news.

Be upfront and honest (i.e. reliable) with your customers and over time they will repay you with their repeat business. Once you have a few customers who trust you and who know you are reliable, then ask them if they would mind serving as a reference for other new clients. That way when a new customer comes along and is concerned about your reliability, you can point them to all your existing customers who are happy with the service you provide.

The other thing you might want to consider doing is hiring a foreigner to communicate with your customers (preferably someone from the same/similar country to the one(s) that you are doing business with). People are more likely to extend trust to people who they can communicate effortlessly and fluently with in both written and spoken communications.

[elina]

And don't be afraid to be honest, even if it's bad news. If you know beforehand that the shipment is going to be late/delayed by say a week, then let them know ASAP, rather than waiting until just before (or even worse, just after) the shipment was supposed to arrive.

By the same token, if you know something is going to take 2 weeks to arrive, don't tell the customer it will only take a couple of days - even if you think that's what they want to hear.

That’s right. Consider your promise as your “life”, 说到做到，做不到的就别说. I think it’s wise to provide a time limit to your customers a little longer than the practical delivery time, in order to avoid taking the risk of making your customers disappointed, so that if the actual time is less than that you quote, your customers could feel glad; if the actual time is exact as that you quote, it’s just usual. But be careful, I mean “a little longer than the practical delivery time”, not too longer than that, otherwise, you’ll be less competitive correspondingly compared with others in your field.

[mpallard]

You should think about hiring a foreigner to communicate with your clients. The first time I went to China there was a foreigner working at the hotel I stayed at and for some reason it made me feel way more at ease.

[englishdavis]

Maybe it is a little blurry,now i'm trying to be patient with my foreign clients.Hope this way will work.

What is your way to deal with your foreign clients?

thanks

Yours Davis

[elina]

What is your way to deal with your foreign clients?

No others, treat them as your own friends. 经商即做人，你应该怎么做人，就应该怎么去经商。

now i'm trying to be patient with my foreign clients.

在成功之前要耐得住寂寞 / You must bear the loneliness before success. In this period, self-examine, market research, and try your best to perfect your services in all the respects.

I remember there’s a very famous enterpriser, when a reporter asked him what his successful secrets are, he answered:

First secret, persistent

Second secret, persistent

Third secret, persistent

And there’s the fourth secret: give up

Yes, 绝不轻言放弃，但也要审时度势，该放弃时就放弃吧，也许这个项目并不适合你 / never say “give up” early and easily, but if the project is not suitable to you, give up without hesitation.

Personally I like the above saying, I think it can cover almost everything in a person’s whole life, not only doing business.

Good luck!