购货，选工厂？还是外贸公司? Factory or Foreign Trade Company?

外贸连

大家都知道，如果客户直接从工厂采购，价格肯定会比通过贸易公司低，但是价格并不是唯一考虑的因素。有许多客户仍然乐意出高价去委托外贸公司。连粉们怎么看待这个问题呢？还是让阿连先来分析一下你们再做打算也不迟！
As you know, if customer purchases from the factory directly, the price will be lower than that from foreign trade company, but the price is not the only factor that customer considers. Many customers are still willing to pay a high price to foreign trade company. As to your opinion about this matter, let me analyze it first!
1、成本 Cost
外贸公司自己没有工厂，价格上没有优势。
Foreign trade companies have no plant, so no advantage on price.
虽然从工厂直接采购的价格会比通过外贸公司要低，但一个客户往往需要多种产品，如果很难从一家工厂那里得到满足，那么他就必须配备足够的人手和不同的工厂打交道，这增加了他的人力成本，也抵消了从低价采购当中得到的好处。
Although price of factory is lower than that of foreign trade companies, customers often require a variety of products. Thus, if it is difficult to get satisfaction from a factory, he must be equipped with enough people dealing with different factories, which has increased labor costs, and offset the benefit from the purchase at a low price.
2、风险 Risk
作为一个客户，他需要一个稳定的供应渠道，能随时正常的采购来保证正常的供给（给客户的下家）。如果他直接从工厂采购，一旦工厂方面出现问题时，他就面临着如何寻找替代者的问题，而寻找个替代者需要时间，这就存在着整体供应链脱节。
As a customer, he needs a stable supply channel to ensure the normal supply (destiny for our customers) with normal purchase. If he purchases from factory directly and once problems occurred, he has to search for a replacement which takes time, so there is a disconnection between overall supply chain.
但是，即使国际市场不景气，工厂不能接外单，还能接内单过日子。外贸公司受到的冲击则比较大 。
But, even the international market downturn; the factories can’t receive exported orders but domestic orders. But it will make great effect on foreign trade companies.
3、市场秩序 Market order
国内采购的客户很多都不是直接用户而是中间商。因为在长久的商业历史中形成了一个稳定的工厂-外贸公司-中间商-直接用户这样一个稳定运转的链条，作为客户他本身并不希望破坏这一结构，产生不稳定的因素，毕竟要形成新的链条需要时间和金钱。
Many domestic resourcing customers are middlemen rather than direct users. Because in the long history of commerce, a stable chain had formed that plant - foreign trade companies - middlemen - direct users. Customers themselves are not willing to destroy the structure to cause unstable factor, after all, to form a new chain costs time and money.
4、服务意识的差别 Different service awareness
外贸公司长期从事外贸工作，在这方面积累了许多经验，工厂可能有所欠缺：
Foreign trade companies have engaged in foreign trade work for long-term, accumulating a lot of experience in this field, while plants may lack of it:
1）、吝于供样：如果你不能给客户提供足够的样品供他们挑选并向最终用户推销，客户又怎么会给你下单呢？
Stingy for sample: if you can’t give customers enough samples to choose and sale to the end users, how could they give you orders?
2）、反应缓慢：市场变化快，而且竞争激烈，客户通常都是同时向几家供应商询盘的，如果你反应缓慢，无疑你会丧失商机。
Slow response: the market changes quickly with intense competition. Customers usually enquiry several suppliers at the same time, and if you are slow to respond, there is no doubt that you will lose business opportunities.
3）、考虑不周：有碰到这样的情况，向工厂索样，工厂也很快就寄样来了，但收到的样品，没有价格，规格，没有编号，甚至连谁寄来的，都不清楚。这样就浪费了双方的时间和精力。
Ill-considered: such a situation had happened that ask samples from factory, and soon it sent to me but without price, specifications, number, and even not the name of sender. It wastes time of both.
当然，外贸公司也有其弊端：
Of course, foreign trade companies also have its disadvantages:
1)当老外询价时，工厂可以当天报价，而外贸公司起码要2到5天，因为要向工厂询价。
When customers inquire, factories can quote the same day, but at least 2 to 5 days for foreign trade companies because they need to inquire factories.
2）有些单子比较小，外贸公司要组货柜，所以外贸公司等各产品工厂交齐货肯定会拖延时间。
Due to some small orders, foreign trade companies need to set of container, so the foreign trade companies must delay the time to wait for all various products.
总之，凡事有利弊。购货选工厂还是外贸公司，这下大家心里应该比阿连清楚了吧！
In a word, every coin has two sides. Choose factory or foreign trade company? It is your choice!
来源：网络