Question:
Hi everyone,
I’m in the process of verifying a supplier, who, after received the LOI from my buyer, reply as below:
“can you accept 40% in advance and balance against copy of BL ” (that’s really is everything in the email)
It sounds reasonable, given that my buyer’s payment term was 40% on loading and 60% on shipping documents (not sure if this is reasonable, I just went with it)
So I’m going to email the supplier back ask for some verifications to make sure they are legitimate.
Would the following be thorough enough? The supplier does have a website, and since they’re a trading company, their address is within the city center, so that kind of checked out.
(I’ve taken the below from Amin’s walkthrough video)
“Hi, in order to assure my buyer, would you mind helping me do some verification before placing the order?
- Are you able to accept a site visit before any payment?
- Are you able to show past shipment records?
- Are you able to show your business registration and tax records?
The buyer has expressed his concerns of some companies and that is why he would need to see past shipment records before his visit.Sometimes, fake companies make a standard reply saying that their policy is to not show past shipping records. If this is your concern also, I would recommend you sanitise your documents and hide the sensitive details and show the rest of the document.
This way, you will not be breaching any of your own policies and you can satisfy the buyer’s need for verification. Without these documents, the buyer can’t continue further.And also, do you have a Whatsapp account so we can talk in real time?”
Besides that, what else should I verify on my own? Also, I was going over the walkthrough again to learn how Amin set his price while talking with the supplier. How do you set that rate, to determine the profit you can get from the supplier?
Sorry for a lot of questions. I just didn’t expect everything could be so overwhelming.I know to keep a low expectation. I’m just treating this as a learning experience, so whether this supplier is legitimate or not isn’t really matter, but I want to get the verification process down.
Looking forward to your reply,
Thanks,
David
Answer:
You shouldn’t say everything in one go. Rather have a conversation with the supplier and when he answers one thing, then ask him for another.
You can ask him for all verification elements at the same time though.
The rate that you charge is everything between the buyer’s max price and the supplier’s lowest price.
Nothing special to it.
Amin