Three reasons why you should stop to meet those only want to meet without a real business intention

Too often, you’re asked to visit when foreigners are coming to your country. Sometimes you’re confused as to why they want to see without an explicit explanation. First, they didn’t tell you why; second, they said they just want to visit. Is that for personal or for business, you’re not sure.

First, if those guys have a genuine business intention, they should have already told you before their visit. You must negotiate together for more than twice the time on price and discuss the product itself even longer. They should also tell you their business schedule rather than suddenly give you a surprise, tell you that they want to meet you when you’re busy with important things, and run a busy business schedule. If their visit is for personal reasons, you should ask for leave. However, suppose those individuals simply want to visit your company for personal reasons and provide fabricated lies about their interest in your product. In that case, you should consider whether your company can accept them.

Second, how could a real client visit your company without knowing what they want to buy? Or, they may not even mention the price. After their visit, you may encounter various fabricated claims, such as that your price is high or that they have not yet confirmed the order with their client.

Third, are those guys respecting you? Are they serious about business? You won’t believe that you spent all day with them and finally couldn’t close any business. You should be aware that you’re spending your working time, not on holiday. Are those guys respecting your time? Or are you to be utilized to pay their bills and act as their free local guide?

How David ruined his business by continuous waiting

With nearly 10 years of experience in business, David understands the crucial role funding plays in business operations. Five years ago, business was easy to manage; he could make a substantial profit by importing and selling in his local country.

The purchase department had negotiated a business deal with their business partner in China for almost three months. They had decided to buy, knowing the product was a lucrative business that could bring numerous business opportunities if introduced to the local market. However, David is a shrewd businessman, and he has some hesitations before finally deciding to send the deposit to the supplier to procure his goods immediately.

First, David thinks the current market situation is unstable, and the global economy is in a poor state, so he believes the best way to address it is to keep the money in the bank and wait until the economy improves. Second, David is waiting for a buyer; he believes the best way to conduct business is to have the buyer take the goods immediately upon arrival at his warehouse. No stock is always the best choice. Third, he thinks the current supplier’s price is a bit high, even though he can make 10% to 15% profit. By procrastinating a bit, he could encourage his supplier to lower the price, allowing him to buy at a cheaper rate and make a higher profit.

In the fourth month, David gets a report from his sales department. They said they didn't meet a buyer who could buy one or two containers at a time, but all the buyers before, if their purchasing quantities were combined, could make more than one container. The purchasing department argued that if they could have obtained one container of goods in the first month, by the fourth month, these goods would be divided among the buyers. 

Over the past five to six months, the sales department has reported to David that the market situation appears to be deteriorating. The previously 10% to 15% profit margin on goods has been reduced to 5% to 6% due to the poor economy and increasing competition. No buyer can purchase one or two containers at a time; however, the combined purchasing quantities of all buyers can result in two to three containers. Since David didn’t have the stock of those goods, he was unable to harvest those businesses.

During the six months, the financial department reported to David that his company had lost twice the amount he could use to place the order with the supplier they had negotiated with for three months. The first thing is that the bank interest is low, even the smallest profit of his order could be much higher than the bank interest. The second thing is that his company is consuming itself; there are huge expenses every day, and the only way to compensate for them is profit. The financial department suggested to David that the business's funds should be used for buying and selling, as without these activities, they could be gradually consumed by daily expenses. David should be aware of it; waiting seems not to be a good choice. On the one hand, a waiting business is consuming itself. On the other hand, the market is not waiting, and a company that waits is losing business opportunities.