GLOBAL DIGITAL TIMES | 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐨 Become an Oil Distributor Entrepreneur - Is being an oil distributor the right choice as a business field? Without knowledge of oil, don't even try to become an oil distributor. Knowledge of the product is very important. If it's a matter of love for a product that will become a platform for doing business, that's another matter. Love, however, can be grown over time. The point is, even if your soul and love are not yet in the direction of becoming an oil distributor, but there is an opportunity on the path of an oil distributor, take it first. 

Use this opportunity as a learning tool. Later, if your love for oil turns out to be well-fertilized, keep going. But if your love for oil doesn't grow too, leave and look for other business opportunities. The theory may look easy but in reality it is that easy. Many entrepreneurs turn around after being an oil distributor for a while. It turns out that the oil business is not as slippery as the oil. Still, whatever is in front of your eyes, when the opportunity becomes an oil distributor, hit it first.

Doing business is not easy. Lots of obstacles. Lot of challenges. But do all the obstacles and trials have to drown the desire to become a businessman? For a true businessman, his life is his business. Obstacles and trials are just part of the art of managing life. Even when you decide to become an oil distributor.

Various businesses are tried before finding a true business oasis. Likewise with the initial steps as an oil distributor. There are several things that must be prepared.

First is market analysis. Is there a market that will support business as an oil distributor? If the answer is there How much is the market absorption of the oil products that will be sold? If there are enough and profitable enough, then think about a place to be used as a warehouse and office. After that, prepare a transport fleet such as Colt diesel trucks, pick ups, Fuso trucks, and others. 

Second, to support the business as an oil distributor, assistance from other parties, such as employees, is needed. For newly opened companies, employee recruitment may be limited. What a new oil distributor company needs is a marketing team that, apart from knowing about the products to be marketed, also understands the market and how to get offers from several potential customers.

Price wars may occur. Therefore, excellent service is one of the keys to the success or failure of an oil distributor company. In addition to a solid marketing team, a worker who is responsible for administration is no less important.

Without good bookkeeping and filing, as an oil distributor you will definitely be overwhelmed, the officers in the field will definitely have extraordinary difficulties, especially when there are lots of offers coming in. Sometimes the number of incoming offers will be a problem in itself. Moreover, consumers will usually pay for orders the fastest one month later. 

For a newly established oil distributor company, this situation can be a headache. To overcome this, one solution is to involve a third party. These third parties can be referred to as equity holders for this type of special offer.

Of course there is a pre-agreed profit sharing. The principle of 'instead of losing 100%, it's better to give victory to others but still feel the pleasure of victory', may be one of the inspirations for people who practice this method in their oil distributor companies. It doesn't matter what principle is used as long as the result is halal.

Learning is endless. For a businessman, learning is breath. If you don't learn, it means your breath stops and you die. What else should someone who is engaged in the oil distribution company learn?

As someone who is interested in becoming an oil distributor, of course the language used in explaining each oil product is produced by various companies both in Indonesia and oil companies from other countries.

COO or Certificate Of Originality which is a proof that the oil being marketed is genuine oil and not imitation oil. It is a very detrimental thing for oil distributors when it turns out that the oil they are marketing is counterfeit oil.

This counterfeit oil can quickly destroy an engine. If this happens, the oil distributor company will end. Even if it doesn't end, maybe your oil distributor company will die slowly or it will be difficult to gain the trust of its consumers.

After COO, there is COA or Certificate Of Analysis. This one certificate is usually found on imported products. For example, products from Shell, Mobil, Esso, Total, and others. The oil distributor company must check all the information contained in the COA.

The COO mentions the batch number (date-month-year of production and when it expires). The COA also states how to handle certain types of oil and their specifications. For example, SAE (Sociaty Automotive Engineering or oil viscosity standard for automotive). This viscosity is for example denoted by SAE 20-50w. An absolute oil distributor knows it.

In addition, oil distributors must also know that there is also information regarding density (specific gravity of oil), ISO (International Standard Organization) which indicates the standard of oil viscosity used for industry.

Usually, before marketing a certain oil, the oil distributor company has received training from the company that produces the oil. The training is in the form of knowledge about the product, how to use it, problems that may occur and how to overcome them. Even the way of marketing.

If there are problems that cannot be overcome by the oil distributor, the oil producer will provide the necessary technical assistance. 

Excellent cooperation between the oil distributor company and the oil producing company will greatly determine whether the oil business will run smoothly or not. Oil, which is very much needed to support the smooth running of a machine, must be treated in a special way.

Promising profits are pretty good. One drum of oil can provide a profit of IDR 200,000 – IDR 300,000. If in one month a company orders 100 drums regularly for one year, you can calculate the profit. IDR 200,000 multiplied by 100 drums multiplied by 12 months. Prosperous oil distributor company. As long as you are able to retain old customers and continue to get new customers, you can certainly expand the wings of an oil distributor company.

The problems faced by oil distributor companies are almost the same as the problems faced by other distributor companies. For example, transport. If the oil distributor company does not have a sufficiently reliable transportation fleet, the delivery of oil to consumers can be hampered. Disappointment experienced by consumers can result in a decrease in orders in the next ordering period. 

In addition to transportation, price wars with other oil distributor companies may occur. The presence of oil mixing can also make the original oil languish, although maybe not too long. This situation must be addressed with the maturity of a fairly well-established business style.

But for beginners who have just opened an oil distribution company, this can make their heads explode if their emotional state is unstable. Making friends with fellow entrepreneurs whose emotions are more manageable is one of the strengths of the entrepreneur's soul.

Therefore, there is nothing wrong with forming a group of oil distributor entrepreneurs . In addition to healthy competition, it is also to protect each other's psychological condition when a rather complicated problem occurs.