7 SIGNS IT’S TIME TO SWITCH YOUR BONE PORCELAIN VENDOR

INTRODUCTION

Regardless of your business size, you deserve top-quality treatment from your bone porcelain vendor. You may not satisfy with your current bone porcelain vendor, but switching suppliers isn’t simple, especially when your products are of many SKUs and mainly are unique and customized, many details need to be discussed, it’s disruptive and exhausting, and it impacts your business operations. What would the new bone porcelain vendor be like? People would hesitate when they consider the cost of communication and the uncertain future, they need to weigh the costs and benefits of switching vendors or staying with their current supplier, which is a common dilemma faced by procurement from different fields.

Does your current bone porcelain vendor deserve your business? Here are seven signs that it’s time to switch suppliers.

SEVEN SIGNS YOU SHOULD SWITCH YOUR BONE PORCELAIN VENDOR

Poor quality performance of bone porcelain tableware products

There are different quality problems for bone porcelain tableware. Common quality problems include breakage caused by poor package material or packing methods. The size and shape are different from the item needed, and the design might not shine enough or of the colors required. Most importantly, the products can’t pass the FDA or other tests which might cause a legal problem for the company.

Poor quality would lead to a series of serious problems. Inferior quality fine bone porcelain will lead to dissatisfied customers, resulting in lost revenue and decreased customer loyalty. In addition, poor quality can also cause customers to take their business elsewhere, resulting in a decrease in company productivity, which would seriously harm the development of the business.

On the other hand, having a reputation for high-quality goods is likely to lead to a higher chance of business success and business growth, providing them with a competitive advantage. Quality is always more important than price for customers with a sense of long-term development.

As one of our customers said, always bear in mind that 3 things are important, which are quality, quality, and quality. If your current bone porcelain vendor has serious quality problems, you should search for a new one without hesitation.

UNRELIABLE DELIVERY OF ORDERS

You rely on your supplier to deliver the goods on time so that you can meet your deadlines, there was a time you could set your clock by your vendor’s delivery, but in recent months they’ve been inconsistent.

In recent years, there are a few factors that could cause the delay in supply, the most serious issue is the covid-19 situation. Referring to China’s Covid-19 control policy, to minimize the affected people, China is conducting a 0-tolerance policy, this resulted in the pause of the people’s social life as well as the normal function of the business.

Another important factor is the environmental protection policy that has been conducted for a few years, This policy limited the normal function of bone porcelain tableware factories and other industries when the air conditioner is not so satisfying. You can refer to the article What is?

Other factors would cause the delay in the supply of your bone porcelain tableware, some are avoidable while some are due to natural disasters and other Force Majeure factors. Maybe they have had good reasons that were outside their control or maybe they don’t. If those issues aren’t getting resolved, there’s likely a deeper problem that isn’t being addressed.

Whether it’s late deliveries, inconsistent product quality, or poor packaging, a bone porcelain vendor that can’t provide reliable delivery is a significant problem that needs to be fixed—for good.

ATTITUDE TOWARDS MISTAKE

An unreliable bone porcelain vendor has implications for the overall health and growth of your business. Even the most reliable vendors will have an occasional hiccup. Commonly, there might be some mistakes happens especially at the beginning of cooperation. It is not realistic to refer to law for international business, as it’s quite time-consuming and the experience can be painful, especially for small businesses. Therefore, we need to pay extra attention to keep every step on the track, and due to misunderstandings and other reasons, mistakes might still occur from time to time.

Your vendor’s attitude matters, a lot when there is any mistake with the products they made. Loss is inevitable in this situation, it damages the reputation of your business and your relationship with your clients, are they willing to take their responsibilities and share the loss, Do they dig into the production process and communication process to find out the reason why this happened and do they have a plan to avoid this kind of mistake happen again.

While the vendors disappear or are reluctant to take any responsibilities, it is a trend in the wrong direction, and you might have to deal with bigger issues in the future. Therefore it is a strong sign you should change for another trustworthy one.

LACK OF COMMUNICATION

It might sound strange for some experienced procurement, the bone porcelain vendor you are dealing with might be some middle-aged Chinese who doesn’t know how to communicate in English without the help of a translator. As shocking as it may sound, years earlier, it was difficult for people outside of China to find a suitable supplier for their business, the only way to get to know each other is through the Canton Fair, and because of the covid-19, the fair switches to online show and it is difficult to travel abroad at such time. With the staff leaving the previous jobs and you sending new orders in, the previous factory can still fulfill the order but that’s it, no discussion about the development or you might need to wait days for updates of the order.

Strong communication is essential for a good partnership with your bone porcelain vendor. Any vendor worth their business will welcome frequent communication from their customers. They should be quick to respond to questions and concerns, and they’ll gladly make changes to an order to meet your needs.

Are you reluctant to contact your supplier because you’re made to feel like an interruption? Is it difficult to get in touch with a live person? Are your messages going into a black hole? That should raise a red flag.

EXCESSIVE RISE IN COST

Every vendor will raise their rates from time to time. With the increased rate of inflation, the costs increase year by year, including the cost of the raw material, the rent rate, the salary of the workers, and the electricity. Those are parts of doing business, and you shouldn’t be surprised when it happens. But you don’t want to do business with a bone porcelain vendor who raises their prices exorbitantly, without notice. Good suppliers simply don’t do this —they don’t increase prices unless they have no other options, they make it a priority to prepare their customers for necessary price increases, well ahead of time.

Unexpected price increases place you in a difficult position for your pricing and profit. Especially now, as the world economy is recovering slowly after the shock of Covid-16. You’re more likely to take a loss on current clients, and you’ll need to decide how to responsibly adjust your price structure moving forward.

Pay attention to frequent, small price-rate increases that aren’t communicated. If your vendor’s pricing practices aren’t giving you the respect your business deserves, it might be time to start comparing vendors, as they all say it is always a good idea to have a backup plan.

POOR SERVICE

Great customer service means following best practices like valuing customers’ time, having a pleasant attitude, and providing knowledgeable and resourceful resources, but you also take things a step further to exceed — rather than just meet — expectations.

If a vendor is serious about doing business with you, you’ll see it in their service. Your company deserves a bone porcelain vendor who will do the job and discloses the truth about their capabilities. High-quality service is critical to an ongoing business relationship.

Service not only includes answering clients’ questions in time, what’s more, important is fulfilling the orders in a timely order, recommending new products to customers from time to time, take themselves as a partner who should contribute to the development of customers.

Therefore, you shouldn’t have to deal with repeated invoicing errors, inattention to detail, slow response time, or general indifference. These issues create a waste of time and resources by pulling you away from your core business.

THEY CAN’T HELP YOU REACH YOUR LONG-TERM BUSINESS GOALS

If your bone porcelain vendor is always late in supply, it might imply that it either can’t fulfill the order or they are not familiar with or capable of supply chain management. Evaluate your vendors on a timely basis and track key measurables for their performance. As part of the evaluation, ask yourself whether it’s clear that your vendors are aligned with your long-term business goals. If it’s clear that they’re not helping you to achieve your goals, it’s probably time to let them go.

Conclusion: WORK WITH VENDORS YOU CAN COUNT ON

Switching vendors comes with a cost and degree of risk—but remember that staying with the wrong supplier is also costly and carries risks of its own. If your current bone porcelain supplier always comes up with one serious problem or another, don’t settle for anything less than the vendors who earn and deserve your trust.

At Longway Ceramics, we’re committed to doing the job right—and we want to prove it to you. Fill out the below form to see how we can deliver superior results.