Tired of endless Skype conversations with pig headed suppliers at 4AM in the morning? You’re not alone. Luckily, someone else can manage the more tiresome parts of your Ecommerce business for you – leaving you with more time to spend on making money.

In this article, you will learn how a sourcing freelancer can free up hours from daily schedule – for a price that anyone can afford. That said, things will go wrong, if you don’t manage your sourcing freelancer the right way.

What can a freelance sourcing agent do for my business?

A sourcing freelancer can act as your extended hand in China. They can do background checks on suppliers, gather quotations and other time consuming tasks that you rather leave to someone else.

They can also break down language barriers, and deal with suppliers in their own time zone.

Managed the right way, a sourcing freelancer can help you save countless hours on a weekly basis, for a fairly low cost.

However, sourcing freelancers are ‘everything experts’ that can help you with everything from product safety, to NDAs or patents. Yet, that is exactly what many Importers assume. Continue Reading →

An interpreter can be an indispensable partner while visiting manufacturers in China, if managed the right way. Managed the wrong way, they might communicate incorrect and conflicting information about your expected order terms, and product specifications – something that can result in disastrous quality issues further down the line.

In this article, you will learn how to prepare your interpreter, whether you should work with a freelancer or agency, and how much you should expect to pay.

What can Interpretation Service providers offer?

The role of an interpreter is to provide oral translation between two parties, for example during a negotiation. Translators, on the other hand, only deal with texts.

Importers often make use of Interpreters as representatives and assistants during factory visits and negotiations.

While most export focused factories have English speaking staff, an experienced interpreter can help buyer’s get their points across to the (often non-English speaking) factory boss, negotiate prices and prevent misunderstandings.

In addition, interpreters also tend to help their customers with booking hotels, trains and other transportation between factories – something that can be hard if you don’t speak a word of Mandarin Chinese.

As such, interpreters often work as all round assistants for people coming to China. Continue Reading →

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Ordering Product Samples from a supplier is a key part of the import process. However, there are various types of samples, that each has a unique function.

In this article, we explain everything you must know about buying product samples from China: Including factory samples, pre-production samples and batch samples.

We also answer many of the most common questions we receive, related to sample development, including how you can protect your Intellectual Property, shipping methods and how much you should expect to pay for samples.

Types of Product Samples

a. Factory Sample

A Factory sample is a ‘ready made’ product sample that is not manufactured according to the buyer’s design or customized specifications.

It serves as the most basic form of ‘evidence’ of the manufacturer’s production capability.

Commonly, factory samples are purchased as part of the vetting process, as they can be obtained from a large number of suppliers rather quickly.

However, a factory sample doesn’t demonstrate a supplier’s ability to manufacture a customized product. As such, the factory samples serve as a first introduction, rather than a signal for final selection of a supplier.

In addition, factory samples can be divided into two main categories:

• Material samples (i.e., fabric samples)
• Standardized products (i.e., Machine parts)
• Previous Batch Samples (i.e., Products manufactured on behalf of other buyers)

Continue Reading →

Made-in-China.com is a Nanjing based supplier directory, that some may see as an Alibaba.com clone. That is not accurate, as Made-in-China.com launched in 1998, one year before Alibaba.

That said, Alibaba is by far the largest supplier directory today, both in terms of suppliers and services. Still, Made-in-China.com remains a top 5 supplier directory, and certain buyer’s prefer to source suppliers on this platform.

In this article, you will learn more about their product categories, supplier verification, payment options and other services.

Made-in-China.com Product List

Made-in-China.com cover the same categories as most other directories, but with more of a focus on industrial and construction products, rather than consumer goods:

• Machinery
• Electronics
• Industrial Equipment
• Construction
• Auto & MC Products
• Sporting Goods
• Furniture
• Agriculture
• Textiles
• Bags & Cases
• Packaging

Can I find Wholesalers on Made-in-China.com?

Yes, there is an entire section dedicated only to wholesalers. However, my impression is that the MOQ is as high as for ‘make to order’ products.

In other words, you will not be able to buy small volumes from listed wholesalers – which for most buyer’s is the whole point of even considering a wholesaler, rather than a factory. Continue Reading →