How to do business with Indians?
Post 1 of 21
Hi,
Our company main products are office furniture and i realize that India can be a very potential market since the demand on office partition is high. But the problem now is that i have talk with a few India buyer this 2 months, proceed to send them proforma invoice and confirm about the delivery time and other details..but in the end, the run off...i have yet successfully to do business with one India buyer..can anyone enlighten me here? how do deal with India buyers? anyone have experiences? anyone know what do the India buyer likes and dislikes?
And also the UK buyers...most of them usually ask us a few questions regarding delivery time and payment and they are gone![[em8]](http://img.alibaba.com/images/eng/style/icon/emoticons_cry.gif)
since they are gone and i follow up with email and they never reply, so i really don't know what's the problem there and how can i improve?
Our company main products are office furniture and i realize that India can be a very potential market since the demand on office partition is high. But the problem now is that i have talk with a few India buyer this 2 months, proceed to send them proforma invoice and confirm about the delivery time and other details..but in the end, the run off...i have yet successfully to do business with one India buyer..can anyone enlighten me here? how do deal with India buyers? anyone have experiences? anyone know what do the India buyer likes and dislikes?
And also the UK buyers...most of them usually ask us a few questions regarding delivery time and payment and they are gone
since they are gone and i follow up with email and they never reply, so i really don't know what's the problem there and how can i improve?
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15 Oct 2008 22:34
Post 2 of 21
Quoting from [Elisha]:
Hi,
Our company main products are office furniture and i realize that India can be a very potential market since the demand on office partition is high. But the problem now is that i have talk with a few India buyer this 2 months, proceed to send them proforma invoice and confirm about the delivery time and other details..but in the end, the run off...i have yet successfully to do business with one India buyer..can anyone enlighten me here? how do deal with India buyers? anyone have experiences? anyone know what do the India buyer likes and dislikes?
And also the UK buyers...most of them usually ask us a few questions regarding delivery time and payment and they are gone
Calm down, Mam,
many people here in this B2B platform web (alibaba) is mediator some one who live from looking for low cost price product and find other buyer offline to sell that product high prices.
even many scammer (in seller term and in buyer term) gather also here in.
ussually a seriuos seller and buyer will not look only for cheaper product but also find out that their counter part is a real one ( as manufacture ) before go further.
then teach yourselft to find out your counterpart, (as buyer or seller).
I have also same experiences in such, with one from china. and oppositely many buyer have worst problem caused by scammer from our country.
have a good future in your business.
24 Oct 2008 20:03
Post 3 of 21
![[em1]](http://img.alibaba.com/images/eng/style/icon/emoticons_smile.gif){kind=icon}
indians, they can accept everything before they get the info they wanted from you. even you ask if they confirmed the prices,they will confirm it immeditaly, after you give them all the informations,they go away. sometime,it looks like they do not like to assume responsibility for our works. i think the buyers should inform sellers if seller's products don't meet their need,but not vanished.![[em18]](http://img.alibaba.com/images/eng/style/icon/emoticons_deal.gif){kind=icon}
25 Oct 2008 09:58
Post 4 of 21
Quoting from [Elisha]:
Hi,
Our company main products are office furniture and i realize that India can be a very potential market since the demand on office partition is high. But the problem now is that i have talk with a few India buyer this 2 months, proceed to send them proforma invoice and confirm about the delivery time and other details..but in the end, the run off...i have yet successfully to do business with one India buyer..can anyone enlighten me here? how do deal with India buyers? anyone have experiences? anyone know what do the India buyer likes and dislikes?
And also the UK buyers...most of them usually ask us a few questions regarding delivery time and payment and they are gone
ussually a seriuos seller and buyer will not look only for cheaper product but also find out that their counter part is a real one ( as manufacture ) before go further.
I really agree above saying.Net business is unvisuable,but we need to fine the valued customers and counterpart.This is the most important.
In this year,we go to India visit our customers for our XGK cold rolling mills,we receive our customers warm recept,and I think I like Indian peoples,most of them are hardworking and very kind.
27 Oct 2008 01:13
Post 5 of 21
Quoting from [Elisha]:
Hi,
Our company main products are office furniture and i realize that India can be a very potential market since the demand on office partition is high. But the problem now is that i have talk with a few India buyer this 2 months, proceed to send them proforma invoice and confirm about the delivery time and other details..but in the end, the run off...i have yet successfully to do business with one India buyer..can anyone enlighten me here? how do deal with India buyers? anyone have experiences? anyone know what do the India buyer likes and dislikes?
And also the UK buyers...most of them usually ask us a few questions regarding delivery time and payment and they are gone
I think i am not only the one who face the same problem with indian....
30 Oct 2008 22:08
Post 6 of 21
Quoting from [Elisha]:Most of them usually ask us a few questions regarding delivery time and payment and they are gone
Dear Elisha,
The Indian buyers will not tell you their reason, this is their nature, what I understand from our past dealings with them, and from the culture.
The reason may not be due to the price, your price may be low, and your quality may be good, but as our Indonesian member said, it may be due to the lack of trust between the seller and the buyer.
If you want to sell to Indian companies, you must go into the "betweens" or intermediates. When reading your posting, I cannot help but to guess that you must have insisted on prepayment by telegraphic transfer in advance before sending the goods. Putting the entire load of risk on the buyer to trust your company completely and absolutely, which is not what the Indian company will do. Indian companies have strong sense of pride and integrity, and it is only up to you to do your search, and due diligence.
To them, there is zero trust for Foreign companies in Malaysia and even Singapore. The idea of payment by Letter of Credit is out of their mind, because this process is expensive to the buyer, and time consuming. They have to get a third party to survey the goods, seal them and then put shipping marks such as ship name and issue bill of lading before they can clear the goods, due to the condition of the LC. No money to your bank, meaning no clearance of goods, and these LC has expiratory dates and time frames. If you missed them, you have to apply for extension, and that means money to the bank.
We had a sale to an Indian company who wants to pay by Payment Against Documents, something like Cash on Delivery. This places the risk on to the seller, as there is no guarantee that you will get the payment once the goods are exported. Also the exporter has to apply for Certificate of Origin for the goods. The requirement by Customs of the Originator's country. To apply for the Certificate of Origin, you have to fill up a form, which must be truthful and without any mistakes. The Payment Against Documents, is actually to secure transaction between payee's bank and beneficiary's bank. There is some costs involved and beneficiary has to submit all the documents, including the CO, Bill of Lading or AWB, Flight number, carrier name, date and time of departure and export permit of the shipper. After the shipment is done, and the buyer received the goods, then the payment can be transacted, but a guaranteed amount is already placed from payee's bank to bene's bank. Beneficiary bank has to send original documents of the CO, AWB, Invoice, Delivery Note and Packing Order and submit to the bank for payment by buyer. This process is not only tedious, it is frustrating, time consuming and money costing, as you must first determine who is paying for the costs of telegraph fees, Admin charges by both banks, exchange rate fluctuation risk, insurance coverage of the shipment, and sending the documents by courier or air mails. It will take at least one week to two for the payment to be cleared.
So, to conclude, you have to comply with their terms if you want to sell to Indian companies.
Bakso
The Indian buyers will not tell you their reason, this is their nature, what I understand from our past dealings with them, and from the culture.
The reason may not be due to the price, your price may be low, and your quality may be good, but as our Indonesian member said, it may be due to the lack of trust between the seller and the buyer.
If you want to sell to Indian companies, you must go into the "betweens" or intermediates. When reading your posting, I cannot help but to guess that you must have insisted on prepayment by telegraphic transfer in advance before sending the goods. Putting the entire load of risk on the buyer to trust your company completely and absolutely, which is not what the Indian company will do. Indian companies have strong sense of pride and integrity, and it is only up to you to do your search, and due diligence.
To them, there is zero trust for Foreign companies in Malaysia and even Singapore. The idea of payment by Letter of Credit is out of their mind, because this process is expensive to the buyer, and time consuming. They have to get a third party to survey the goods, seal them and then put shipping marks such as ship name and issue bill of lading before they can clear the goods, due to the condition of the LC. No money to your bank, meaning no clearance of goods, and these LC has expiratory dates and time frames. If you missed them, you have to apply for extension, and that means money to the bank.
We had a sale to an Indian company who wants to pay by Payment Against Documents, something like Cash on Delivery. This places the risk on to the seller, as there is no guarantee that you will get the payment once the goods are exported. Also the exporter has to apply for Certificate of Origin for the goods. The requirement by Customs of the Originator's country. To apply for the Certificate of Origin, you have to fill up a form, which must be truthful and without any mistakes. The Payment Against Documents, is actually to secure transaction between payee's bank and beneficiary's bank. There is some costs involved and beneficiary has to submit all the documents, including the CO, Bill of Lading or AWB, Flight number, carrier name, date and time of departure and export permit of the shipper. After the shipment is done, and the buyer received the goods, then the payment can be transacted, but a guaranteed amount is already placed from payee's bank to bene's bank. Beneficiary bank has to send original documents of the CO, AWB, Invoice, Delivery Note and Packing Order and submit to the bank for payment by buyer. This process is not only tedious, it is frustrating, time consuming and money costing, as you must first determine who is paying for the costs of telegraph fees, Admin charges by both banks, exchange rate fluctuation risk, insurance coverage of the shipment, and sending the documents by courier or air mails. It will take at least one week to two for the payment to be cleared.
So, to conclude, you have to comply with their terms if you want to sell to Indian companies.
Bakso
06 Dec 2008 05:13
Post 7 of 21
It seems like u have provide me a solution but this is a solution that i cannot use cuz it's against our company's policy
anyway i would still like to thank you for spending time and posting up a solution for me![[em19]](http://img.alibaba.com/images/eng/style/icon/emoticons_great.gif)
anyway i would still like to thank you for spending time and posting up a solution for me
11 Dec 2008 00:18
Post 8 of 21
Quoting from [Elisha]:
t seems like u have provide me a solution but this is a solution that i cannot use cuz it's against our company's policy" border="0" src="http://img.alibaba.com/images/eng/style/icon/emoticons_smile.gif" />
anyway i would still like to thank you for spending time and posting up a solution for me
In this case, you have to tell your company to change the policy (must be prepayment by t/t) to a more likeable term of payment.
May I suggest Credit Card payment or PAYPAL or ALIPAY ?
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11 Dec 2008 17:30
Post 9 of 21
it is very simple. indians just looks like to pretend that they are smart business men
they bargain a lot. but give the rates 5 times then they will bargain for 50% then also u r making a profit of 450% it is more than enough
10 Apr 2009 06:08
Post 10 of 21
I also face the same problem with you. Many buyer ask me to sent them the catalogue and price list ,but at last they didn't reply to me . Maybe they just want to compare the prices provided by various suppliers.
16 Jun 2009 01:07
Post 11 of 21
Hi.it is very disturbing when you are ready to welcome your first customer of the day with a smile and do the business with all your sincerity,where as the customer takes your time and without any reply leaves the threshold of you store.
Relax..doing business with indians is not easy..The mantra is first understand India..coz its so much diversified that even Indians can not cover the whole country...multilingual , regional , vast difference in incomes..etc etc..
Understand Indian pshyci first..then it will be easy...
23 Nov 2009 03:32