For most small and medium-sized enterprises, their products do not have much advantage over their peers in terms of quality and price, especially in concentrated production areas of similar products. For example, dozens of factories in the entire county are all making ballpoint pens, and all of them have the same products. In this case, the only thing the foreign trade department can compete with is “customer service”. To provide good customer service, you must first understand your own products, respond to customer inquiries as soon as possible when developing customers, and provide as detailed product information as possible. Therefore, the first basic task of a “one-person foreign trade department” is to sort out the data of existing products and establish a database, including photos, product dimensions and packing information.

This work may seem basic and simple, but in fact many factories have not done it. The products are not numbered, the prices are temporary, the photos are copied from others, and it is difficult to remember how much an outer box can hold, what the size and weight are… Therefore, it is imperative to establish a complete database. While establishing a database, you can also understand the products as soon as possible and discover knowledge blind spots that you have not noticed in the past. It is common sense that the richer and more professional the product knowledge is, the more trust you can win from customers. On the other hand, a complete product database is also a valuable information and a bargaining chip for your personal career development, which is a later story.

Build a product database. If you know computers and have the conditions, you can make a management software. If you don’t have the conditions, you can use Excel to make a table.

As a supporting tool, set up a sample room for the foreign trade department, try to collect as many samples as possible, and manage them by number.

Similarly, build a customer information database, including contact information, transaction records, etc.