Lyden Smithers talks about Ecom Mastery .ai featuring BDSS

What's the one sourcing hack that saves sellers the most money? Something most people don't know about. >> So, I'd have to go with go to China, which doesn't sound like a hack because but you're talking about saving money, right? And people go, "Well, I'm spending money to go to China." But you're not. You're wasting money. So, go to China. Go to Canon Fair. Most factories, as you know, um that I deal with don't aren't on Alibaba or 1688. and you can't find them online because they don't want to deal with 100 emails a day asking what's your lowest price can I have two units um and it's ridiculously difficult to get a booth at Canton Fair there's a secondhand market for boobs at Canson fair people are paying 40 50k um just to exhibit there because they know that people that are traveling halfway across the world are going to be good buyers and serious buyers are not some of the guys that sign up to Alibaba to get some free lighting What's going on? >> What's up, Amy? How are you? >> I'm great. I'm stoked because I'm going to see you speaking at Kevin King's next event, Ecommastery.ai, that's happening in Nashville April 8th through the 12th. And I just wanted to call you today to ask you a few questions, get into your topic a little bit, get excited about product sourcing, which is what you're going to be covering. And how excited are you for this event where all the e-commerce channels merge with the latest and greatest in AI? >> Yeah, I'm really excited. I've never been to Nashville either, so I'm really excited to to come and check that out. And then, yeah, just get together. There's a there's a pretty good lineup of speakers, so no pressure. Best be a good presentation. So, I'll be working on that. But, yeah, good to see you again. And uh yeah, can't wait to get over there. It's going to be a lot of fun. He knows how to throw a good event, Kevin. So, I'm sure it'll be a good one. Yeah, you know, Kevin always puts on the craziest, most awesome events. He's got so many cool parties and things in the evening that are definitely Nashville themed, but there's also some really cool surprises on the technology and AI side that are really going to blow everyone's mind. So, I I can't wait for that. You know, we've been to multiple Kevin Gang events and it's always really cool. So, speaking about your topic, product sourcing and all of the magic tricks that people need to have, uh, you and I both know, we both go to China a lot and we really understand product sourcing. We can see what a huge difference it makes when a seller is sourcing properly and really saving money, setting up their business foundation, ensuring quality products. But what's the one sourcing hack that saves sellers the most money? Something most people don't know about. >> So, I'd have to go with go to China, which doesn't sound like a hack because but you're talking about saving money, right? And people go, "Well, I'm spending money to go to China." But you're not. You're wasting money. So, go to China. Go to Canonfair. Most factories, as you know, um that I deal with don't aren't on Alibaba or 1688. and you can't find them online because they don't want to deal with a hundred emails a day asking what's your lowest price can I have two units um and it's ridiculously difficult to get a booth at Canton Fair there's a secondhand market for boos at Canson fair people are paying 40 50k um just to exhibit there because they know that people that are traveling halfway across the world are going to be good buyers and serious buyers are not some of the guys that sign up to Alibaba to get some free right so um yeah my my advice would be maybe it doesn't sound too magic But go get on a plane, go to China, go to Canton Fair, and Canton Fair vet every single one of those factories. So, you know you're getting cream of the crop. >> Yeah, that's honestly the best advice anyone can give. And I know that when people are networking with you, when they listen to you during your session, they're going to learn how to navigate sourcing in China, whether they can go or not. Uh but either way, as you mentioned, it's not even you're not spending money to go. You're going to save so much more. So supply chain costs are eating into everyone's margins. What's especially right now with the crazy tariff? >> It's coming back. I thought I thought we're going to have a year off, but it's coming back. >> You know, we're just on this this whirlwind ride, and we're used to it. It's fine. You know, we just we navigate it. But what's the biggest sourcing mistake sellers make and how much money is it actually costing them? >> Yeah. So, I think with that one, the biggest mistake would be people walking into a negotiation and trying to win it. Um, and and going in like it's a battle and their their their opponent is their supplier. It's completely the wrong way to do it. You need to get on the same side as the supplier, face the problem. Um, and and make it a win-win situation. um what they're trying to do is negotiate down the price. They got the tariffs and just tell them they want it cheaper. Chinese factories, as you know, Amy, you've been to plenty of them. Um they they work on a 10% 15% profit margin. So, when you're asking for a 30 40% reduction in price, they're going to find it somewhere. They're not going to lose money. They're going to find it somewhere. What we need to do is reverse engineer the production line, reverse engineer the product, go to the factory, uh, and immerse yourself in the manufacturing process, understand how it's made, and choose how to reduce the price. Because if you just try and battle it and and negotiate the price down, you might get a short-term win, but in the long term, it's going to kill your business. It's going to cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> Yeah, it's so true. And really your supplier, no matter where you're sourcing from, most of us are sourcing from China, but no matter where you're sourcing from, your supplier is your partner. And uh I I know during your talk, you're really going to help people with not only some tactics and techniques um around proper sourcing that are really going to change their business and save them a ton of money, things that they never thought about doing. A lot of people just have this distant relationship with their supplier, but what is one thing you think that is the most important thing people are going to walk away with um after attending your session? >> Yes. So, I'm really going to focus on um that what you just said. So, this isn't a transaction, it's a partnership and we need to treat them as such and stop treating them as a vendor and as a partner. Um and we're on the same page and it's the only real way to succeed. Um the success is in the buying, not just the selling. So, we need to make whilst we're going to have all the AI tactics to make sure we can market our product, uh we definitely need to buy correctly and get the right quality um and price to succeed. But I know that you uh in true Kevin King style, you want to hack. So, I'll give you one. Um so, go to China, like I've already said, go to Canton Fair, but before you go, tell your supplier you're heading to China. Tell them you're visiting Canton Fair, but you'd also like to visit them in the factory. This automatically puts you on the on the front foot and in the driving seat when it comes to negotiation because they know you're walking the halls and you're going to see all of their competitors and they know that you would have had a chance to build a relationship with them and listen in China we know that the the culture and I talk about it a lot that Guanchi which means relationship is very very important. So, by the time you finish Canon Fair and visit them, you're going to be in the driving seat and they're going to they're going to have their pencil sharpened ready to ready to give you a good deal. So, that's the that's the hack. Tell your supplier before you've even booked your flight. Tell your supplier you're going to Canon Fair and you're automatically going to get a reduction in price. >> I love it. Uh, and I think what people are going to learn from you is that the little things that they can do in working with their supplier and becoming a partner, these tactics that you're going to give are very practical. They are very time-tested. Um, you know, they you've been through this with with hundreds, maybe even thousands of different brands and different product types. So, it's really really little things that you can do that you're probably not doing that can save you hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. We see it all the time. So excited to learn from you, Leiden, as always and so excited to hang out with you in Nashville checking out this event. Everyone, this is happening April 8th through the 12th in Nashville, Tennessee. Ecommastery.ai is the website. That's ecommastery.ai. And if you use Leiden's code mastery, you can save 20% on your ticket. We are almost sold out. Leiden and I are recording this in February and this event is in April and we're almost sold out. So don't wait. Come enjoy, learn all the things, the latest, the greatest, and be there with us. Hang out in Nashville. Have a great time. Can't wait to see you there. >> Can't wait to see you. Looking forward to it. All right. Cheers.