Mar 16 · 19 min read
How to Purchase from Alibaba as an Amazon Seller: Step-by-Step Guide
If selling on Amazon ever came to mind or was a consideration, one of the primary questions you may ask yourself is, “Where do I get my products?” While there are several ways in which you can source products, purchasing from Alibaba is undeniably the most popular for sellers on Amazon.
Why do a lot of vendors use Alibaba? Also, what is it, you may ask? Notably, how do you purchase from Alibaba?
We’ll cover all the information necessary about acquiring products for your business with Amazon in this Alibaba FBA Amazon Guide. Then, we’ll talk about purchasing from Alibaba, how to handle your purchases once you receive them, as well as additional recommendations and ways to propel your Amazon selling abilities.
Alibaba is a large Chinese internet wholesale merchant. In reality, it is one of the few stores that can compete with Amazon globally.
Alibaba is designed for business-to-business (B2B) purchases, whereas Amazon is usually for consumer-to-consumer (C2C) purchases. (The firm also runs Aliexpress, a consumer-oriented website.)
On this site, all of the vendors are producers and wholesalers, mostly from China, with factories that specialize in selling to resellers.
Though some Alibaba merchants allow you to buy one item individually, most of them only sell large quantities and require minimum purchase amounts.
Alibaba is used by Amazon merchants first and mainly due to their awesome prices. Most Amazon Sellers work directly with a factory, allowing you to avoid the intermediary and save money.
Another factor is simplicity.
Assume you’ve chosen to sell a phone case on Amazon and are looking for a producer. Where might you look for one? If your response is “I don’t know,” you’re not alone. The majority of individuals have no notion of where to begin.
All you have to do with Alibaba is visit their site and look for a “phone case” to get thousands of suppliers.
It saves sellers a huge amount of time and makes it simple for them to discover a provider that can provide the goods they need at a decent amount.
Alibaba is used by more than just Amazon merchants. They are also used to find items by selling on eBay, Etsy, and their online and physical retail businesses.
Unfortunately, even though there are several options, there’s no particular site providing the same level of service as Alibaba.
Alibaba is a wonderful location to find items for your Amazon store. However, you probably have a few concerns before starting.
The following are frequently asked questions regarding purchasing items from Alibaba:
If you’re making purchases for your Amazon store, it’ll most certainly be a significant investment. As a result, you must ensure that anybody you deal with is reputable and will not exploit you.
Alibaba is among the biggest online merchants on the planet. They’re a well-known corporation with a New York Stock Exchange listing. Nevertheless, just because the organization is trustworthy does not imply that every vendor on the site is, so proceed with caution.
Fortunately, Alibaba’s Trade Assurance service ensures that you will get your funds refunded if you don’t get your items or if your purchase does not match your requirements. As a result, a great way to maintain security on the site is to only transact with vendors who are members of this program.
You can purchase almost anything from Alibaba because it’s such a large store with various vendors.
As a result, if you’re a novice seller, the choices could be daunting, and you could have difficulties selecting what to offer on Amazon as your first item. It’s not simply about what’s fashionable right now. There are several more factors in play.
You would like to look for items that are extremely popular yet have little competition from other merchants. Additionally, you should think about delivery expenses. Because you’re importing things from China, you’ll have to have them transported to you, which might be costly. However, compact and light items are far less expensive to transport, making them the greatest option for sellers on Amazon.
Okay, so let’s assume that you’ve done your research and decided on a product you’d like to sell. How do you go about buying from Alibaba and selling on Amazon?
We’ve outlined all the steps below to make it as easy for you as possible:
Before you can buy anything on Alibaba, you’ll need to sign up for an account with them. To do this, simply go to Alibaba.com and click the “Join Free” button at the top of the page.
On the next page, fill out the form. You’ll be asked to enter your country, email address, name, phone number, and company name. If you do not have your own company, just enter your name as your company name.
You’ll also have to indicate whether you’re registering as a buyer, seller, or both. Again, make sure to select “Buyer.”
Once all your information is entered, click “Agree and Register” at the bottom. You’ll be sent an email to verify your email address. Click the link in the email to verify it, and then you’re ready to get started.
You can also search for suppliers on Alibaba. Enter the name of the product you’re looking for in the search field at the top of the page to see all the suppliers that carry that product. In most cases, there will be hundreds of different suppliers available, so you’ll have to do your research to find the one that’s right for you. Here are some things to look for:
When searching for products on Alibaba, you can use the filters on the left side of the screen to search for suppliers based on the criteria listed above.
When you find a supplier that interests you, you don’t just go ahead and place an order. You will want to talk to them first to discuss your order and make sure they can meet your expectations.
When looking at a product, page click “Contact Supplier” to send them a message. Here are some questions to ask them:
Only collaborate with vendors who satisfy all of your requirements. If anything about their reply raises a red flag, go on to a different vendor.
Before you place your order, you’ll need to decide how you’re going to get your items shipped to you once they’re ready. Most suppliers will be able to coordinate this for you and usually include the shipping price in the total cost of your order.
There are two ways to have your products shipped to you:
If your order is under 200 kgs, air freight will usually be the wisest choice. If it’s more than that, it’ll most likely be more worth the price if sent by boat. The provider you choose will know how to price the choices for you correctly, and then you select the one that accordingly complies with your schedule and budget.
Train freight may even be accessible if you are located in India as well as Europe. This may be a good middle ground among air as well as marine freight.
If you’re a home-based merchant, you’ll almost certainly use Amazon’s Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) service. You may even want to use an FBA forwarder instead of sending it directly to Amazon from China.
You’ll ship all of your inventory to Amazon, and they’ll store it in one of their warehouses. Then, when someone buys one of your products, they’ll package and ship it for you.
You’ll have to pay an additional fee for this, but the convenience is more than worth it, as individuals rarely have the space to store inventory or have the time and resources to ship orders to customers.
It might be more beneficial to have your carrier send your product straight to Amazon after you’ve dealt with them for a bit and trust them. Nevertheless, for your products to be approved, they must be packaged in a particular manner, so it’s better to have them delivered to you first so you can examine them before submitting them to Amazon.
You’ll need to go to your Seller Central account and create a shipping plan to begin. After that, Amazon will know the following:
It’s important to make sure your goods are correctly packaged based on Amazon’s specifications and deliver them to the specified address.
If the steps above are considered, you will unquestionably become a pro seller. However, there are additional tips that should be noted before getting started.
The following are a few more ideas as well as methods to aid you along your journey as a seller:
Merchandise with your emblem or marketed by your trademark are known as private-label goods. Although this method requires a bit more effort at first, it also provides plenty of advantages:
Almost every provider will assure you that they can fulfill your needs and deliver a high-quality product. However, you should try it for yourself before investing in it to be certain.
Most vendors will gladly provide you with a trial of your goods (if they don’t, move on to another vendor). You’ll have to pay a charge, but it’ll be well worth it. It’s difficult to get a true sense of anything from a photograph. To ensure that everything is as it should be, you must take it in your hand and inspect it in person.
Once you’ve received a satisfactory sample, you may order with faith in your provider’s ability to deliver on their commitments.
Even though Alibaba is a respectable merchant, it sells a broad range of fake products and low-cost knockoffs of major brand goods.
Be wary of this if you’re seeking to market everyday items or brands. Alibaba isn’t the place to go if you’re looking for brand-name or legally licensed merchandise. For such kinds of products, you’re better off working with local vendors as well as merchants.
Selling fake goods may result in a slew of legal issues for both you as well as Amazon, so if you’re caught doing it, your profile can get suspended, and you won’t be allowed to sell on the site again. Because the danger isn’t worth the benefit, stay away from these items entirely.
When purchasing items on Alibaba, you have various payment options, some of which are safer than others. However, in the majority of instances, you’ll have five choices:
Remember to do your research and select a form of payment that best fits your comfort.
At first glance, sourcing items from China may appear complex. However, as you can see, Alibaba makes the procedure simpler as well as more pleasant. Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to everything, but the advantages far exceed the disadvantages.
