How To Secure Your China Quote.

Not exactly sexy, but absolutely crucial for anyone sourcing product from China are the nuts and bolts of how to do so. I have been around long enough to see the countless mistakes sourcing neophytes can make when buying product overseas, including the following:

1. Not realizing that the payment was for product at the factory, and did not include any transportation costs.

2. Not realizing that the Christmas product ordered in August would not arrive until the following year.

3. And my personal favorite, and one I have seen on more than one occasion, not realizing until the product hit the United States that it is illegal to import or has a prohibitive duty.

Anyway, the über practical China Sourcing Blog just did part 4 of its series entitled, "How to Make a Good Enquiry" and those at all new to buying goods from China (or from anywhere else, for that matter) would be well advised to check them out, here, here, here, and here (in order from 1 to 4).

The concluding sentence of the last post in the series is as follows:

In this series we have talked about a lot of elements which together make a good enquiry. These elements can reduce risk, increase sellers' and therefore buyers' efficiency, and of course help in getting the quotation you want.

I wholeheartedly agree.