Six months after the human-to-human transmission of the COVID-19 virus was confirmed, economic recovery has begun in countries in the Asia Pacific region. As of today, most of the economies in this region have emerged from confinement and commercial activities have been gradually resumed. Thanks to their previous experience with SARS, these countries appear to have managed to control health crisis in a short period of time. Just a few weeks ago, the first online edition of the Canton Fair was held, meanwhile, several countries are exploring the possibility of opening “travel bubbles” to allow the traffic of businessmen and tourists.
In the case of Mexico and other countries of the American continent, the peaks of the epidemic are barely being reached, so it will take at least another three months to significantly reduce the number of infections. Therefore, it is very likely that for the rest of 2020, travel restrictions will continue to be
imposed, and it is practically impossible to make trips abroad to participate in specialized events and business meetings.
Despite the fact that technology has played a key role during confinement, many aspects of business cannot be carried out through a computer. Facing this new reality, commercial representatives have become an important ally in an international business strategy.
WHAT DO COMMERCIAL REPRESENTATIVES DO?
As the name indicates, a commercial representative represents a company, public entity or an individual who hires him/her, to carry out tasks of marketing and promotion of products or services. One of the major requirements for being a commercial representative is that in addition to having interest in the country that the company locates, he/her must have necessary skills for efficient communication at the local level, that is, a broad knowledge of the language and business culture.
Job duties carried out by a commercial representative include direct contact with the company’s clients or suppliers, contact with potential clients, representation in negotiations, presentations at specialized events, participation in trade fairs, and identification of business opportunities.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF HAVING A COMMERCIAL REPRESENTATIVE?
In addition to the significant reduction in travelling cost, a commercial representative can carry out sales activities, promotion of the brand, identification of potential clients, participation in specialized fairs, informal and formal meetings, and mapping of trends in our sector. This allows the
company to save time and resources, which should otherwise be taken from other areas of the company.
Cities like Hong Kong offer an ideal business environment to establish a Commercial Representation. On one hand, it is possible to establish a company without having a physical presence in the city, in addition to the fact that the tax system allows us to carry out purchase and sale operations through our company with a minimum of taxes. On the other hand, Hong Kong has a privileged location in Asia, from here you can travel to the entire continent, and is the center of a large number of international corporate and specialized trade fairs, allowing a significant reach of clients.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN ASPECTS TO CONSIDER WHEN RECRUITING A COMMERCIAL REPRESENTATIVE?
In addition to his/her knowledge and experience at a local level, it is important that the Representative knows the services and products in detail, so that he can offer the best solution to our clients.
On the other hand, it is very important to sign a collaboration agreement specifying the needs of our business, the economic terms of representation, confidentiality and the intellectual property clause, to ensure that our project and clients are in good hands.
As of today, no country has an exact date of returning to “normalcy”. In fact, various analyses indicate that the world will continue to face the waves of COVID-19 during the rest of 2020 and 2021. Now more than ever, it is necessary to rethink our internationalization strategies, identifying actions that represent lower costs and better results. Therefore, a commercial representative / commercial representation can offer a short- and medium-term solution for our internationalization projects.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT COMMERCIAL REPRESENTATION SERVICES IN ASIA, DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT US.
https://gbalatamtradeinvestment.com/
Susana.munoz@gbalatamtradeandinvestment.com
Written by Susana Muñoz Enríquez, Managing Director in GBA LatAm Trade and Investment Advisors
