The opportunities available to you in the field of international trade are on the rise. It’s been around for a long time, make no mistake about it but in the 21st Century more and more people are finding ways to make money through importing and exporting.
Back in the days of early international traders like Marco Polo, the industry was rather different. Those pioneers of it had to feel the industry out and rely on their wits and innovation, nowadays there are a ton of resources available to anyone who wants to work in the field.
It’s a line of work that has a ton of benefits, and it’s probably one that is never going to slow down. Think for a moment and what the industry actually is and you’ll be able to see why this is the case.
You are just trading products. That’s the job summed up in the simplest possible terms but that’s really what it is. Every kind of product that you can imagine from clothes to electronics to cars to food and drink and pretty much everything else that people use on a regular basis.
All of these things are manufactured somewhere and all of them are used globally. For you to succeed, you should pick one specific product that you want to focus on and then base your business around that.
If you can get your business off the ground, you can make a ton of money. If you want to have as much success as possible, you need to understand the industry inside out and so there are certain things you should consider.
Here’s a few essential tips for maximizing profits in an importing or exporting business:
Understand Currency Exchange
You are always going to be dealing with currency exchange to some degree in a business like this. If your business is based in the United States, there are only two or three other countries in the world who use the U.S dollar as currency.
And the differences in value can be quite staggering depending on which countries you are trading with and what’s more, it is in a constant state of fluctuation which you need to keep on top of too.
They can change day to day, and one way that you can utilize this to your advantage is to monitor the rates and conduct your transactions on days when there is a favourable exchange rate.
This method will require a lot of patience and a lot of time and effort put into keeping track of the fluctuations but in the long run it will be worth it and you will see those extra profits slowly starting to pile up.
The fact that currencies are ever-changing also allows for traders to get away with scams quite easily so you should always be aware of that and make sure that you only trust your money with reputable traders.
Know Your Product Inside Out
This one should be a given but you’d be surprised at the amount of people who don’t really consider the actual product on too deep of a level. They just assume that the business of exporting is all they need to focus on.
And while that attitude might be enough to grow the business to a point where it is generating profits, it’s not going to allow you to achieve your maximum potential, for that you need to really understand what you’re selling.
You should know about specific trends that are happening so that you can alter the product or stop selling something entirely in favour of a different but more popular product, you should know if global prices of your product are increasing or decreasing so you can factor that in too.
Know about niche markets that you might be able to tap into just by customizing your product a little bit. There are always going to be certain markets that other traders haven’t discovered yet which makes them huge opportunities for you to make money in.
And you won’t know about these unless you study the product. There’s lots of information available to you online. Find avenues for research such as checking the stock prices and trends related to your products.
If you’re dealing with oil for example, keep on top of which oil refiners are making headway so that you can analyse their business and marketing strategies. To truly succeed, knowledge is power.
Form Relationships
Networking is going to be beneficial to you in any field, but for importing or exporting it is so important because you are dealing internationally. You need people in other countries to be aware of you.
We talked earlier about finding reputable traders, well you also need to be one of those yourself otherwise people aren’t going to want to trade with you. In addition to always being on time with payments and deliveries and the like, get to know the people behind the products.
This will first of all help you to discover who’s trustworthy and who isn’t, while also helping you to show others that you can be trusted and entice them to trade with you again in the future. Having a presence online wil help with this too.
You’ll pop up when people are doing their research and word of mouth will spread online as to whether or not you’re worth working with. And of course, the more people willing to trade with you, the more opportunities to make money you will have.
It’s important to note that this is not an easy business to be successful in, and it can definitely be a cutthroat environment, but if you are willing to do research, work hard and be patient with the progression of your business, you can make a ton of money in international trading.