You Wouldnt Think Of Going To A Job Interview Unprepared Youd Never Get Called Back. Yet Many E-Biz Owners Approach Wholesalers And Manufacturers Without Any Preparation At All. You Need To Realize It Costs A Supplier Time And Money To Set Up An Account. If You Seem Like You Wont Be A Profitable Customer, Theyll Probably Turn You Down. Says Manufacturer Charlie Hall, Owner Of Charlies Woodshop, I Spend A Lot Of Time Helping Online Retailers Get Going With My Product, But They May Not Go Anywhere If Theyre Not Doing The Follow-up Work.Giving The Right Impression Can Be The Difference Between Getting A Flat Out No And Beginning A Healthy Business Relationship. Whats The Right Way To Ask A Wholesaler For An Account?Be ProfessionalA Supplier Wants To See How Youre Going To Represent Their Products.1. Check Your Presentation Your Grammar, Your Punctuation, Your Capitalization. Almost Any Writing Program Comes With A Spellchecker Use It. If Your Email Looks Like It Was Written By A First-grader, A Wholesaler Will Think Youre Either Lazy Or Incompetent. Says Hall, These Are Little Areas That Tell Me Whether Or Not I Want To Do Business With A Retailer. If Theyre Not Doing All The Work, Theyre Last On The List.2. Provide All Relevant Information: Include Your Full Name, Business Name, Business Street And Mailing Address, And Contact Information. Include Your Tax IDs: Without These Numbers, No Legitimate Wholesaler Will Work With You, Or Give You Any Kind Of Pricing Information. They Need These Numbers To Verify That Youre A Legal Business, And That They Can Legally Sell To You Without Charging You Tax. In-state Manufacturers Need Your State Tax ID, And Out-of-state Manufacturers Need Your Federal Tax ID.Be Prepared1. Do Your Research First. Only Approach Companies You Have Studied And Feel Youd Like To Work With. Dont Send Out Mass Emails Looking For Information And Accounts. Even If You Use An Email Template, It's Best To Send Each One Individually. If A Wholesaler Sees A Block Of Names In Your Recipient Address Line, Theyll Assume Youre Fishing And May Not Even Bother Responding.Read Up On A Company Before You Request Any Info From Them. Look At Their Web Site And Policies. Asking Questions In Your Emails That Could Be Answered By Reading Their FAQs Page Sends A Message That You Arent A Serious Professional.2. Understand What To Expect Out Of Your Relationship. A Wholesaler Is Your Supplier, Not Your Business Coach. They Have Limited Time And Manpower, So Dont Expect Them To Hold Your Hand And Advise You On How Best To Run Your E-, Optimize Your Sales Pages, Or Increase Your Site Traffic. They Arent There To Answer Questions You Ought To Be Researching On Your Own Time.Not Every Wholesaler Will Be Taking New Accounts, And Not Every Supplier Will Be Willing To Work With Home-based Businesses. But Many Are; And By Being Professional And Prepared, You Can Greatly Increase Your Success With Them.
