You have to maintain relationships as a merchant on Tmall. This not only goes with your buyers and customers, but the agents you deal with, the other merchants and anyone you come in contact with. In Chinese culture, respect and the right relationship building is going to result in a great deal of growth and higher profits. They work through relationship building and you have to do so as well if you want to do well in the online marketplace.
In these three sections from Instant Profits with Alibaba, by Issa Asad, you will learn how to maintain relationships, how to build your customer base and how to become a leading merchant, regardless of the goods you are selling through Alibaba.
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Maintain Your Consumer Relationships
The Chinese culture is not the same as US in terms of relationships. The Chinese people rely heavily on building a meaningful and respectable relationship in order to do business with different clients. As a merchant you must keep this in mind. If you are trying to sell to these people, you have to do so in a manner of respect, you have to build a relationship and maintain the proper demeanor. Doing so will allow for growth, and more new customers through your merchant site.
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Honest and Loyal
Customers look for loyalty and honesty in the product they buy from the merchant they are purchasing from. As a merchant on this site, you must keep this in mind. If there is an issue with an order, if a customer is not happy or if there are other issues, you have to strive to fix them. It is not simply about making a sale, but about showing your customers you respect them and would like to do business with them in the future. This will make for more growth, and help you to build your merchant account as well.
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Keep It Real
Many merchants try to sell fake or knock off goods through Alibaba. Not only do they fail, they are also the merchants who lose their site in no time. You want to be honest. You want to tell your customers exactly what you are selling. And, you have to give them the real product lines they want to buy. Honesty, loyalty and integrity are a few of the foundations in being accepted as a top business person in China. Therefore, you want to maintain these traits as an online merchant on the site you are selling through as well.
As a merchant, you have to maintain the right relationships and build a respectful relationship with your clients. Not only will it result in better business, it will also help you build your online merchant site. Furthermore, it will result in repeat business, new referrals and more sales in the future. So, striving for meaningful, respectful relationships and those built on continual communication with your customers are some of the things to keep in mind.