Learn how to trade on alibaba Alibaba is an online business-to-business marketplace with 50 million users in over 240 countries. The site allows importers and exporters from all over the world to trade and sell products using company profiles and product listings as well as integrated business management software. This article will teach you how to trade on Alibaba.com.
Your first visit to Alibaba can be a little intimidating. You’ve probably heard stories of people being scammed on the website and are probably wondering if it could happen to you.
Here’s the truth:
Shopping from Alibaba is relatively safe if you know where to shop from. There are good and honest suppliers on Alibaba, but there are also a few undesirables lurking on the platform. That’s a usual sight in any marketplace.
So let’s get started;
LEARN HOW TO TRADE ON ALIBABA
Trade Assurance Can Save You Money
So there you are, ready to search for your next business supplier.
You will now be presented with a filter underneath the search box- make sure you tick all three of them, especially ‘Trade Assurance’. These three boxes are pretty much the first steps to finding good suppliers on Alibaba.
Trade Assurance can be considered escrow protection as the money you send will go directly to the supplier’s bank account, but if something goes wrong you’ll have some form of protection.
Finding Products on Alibaba
To Search for products on Alibaba.com, you can do so by typing in the name of the product in the search bar or you can use the categories section by the left of the homepage to find your desired product and compare amongst all sellers for the best price and best supplier. When you have settled for a product, you can click on “Chat Now” or “leave messages” to chat with the supplier in order to get specific details about the product or you can ask the supplier to make some customizations to your product by informing the supplier through those mediums provided.
If the supplier is online you will get a response immediately or you can wait until the supplier responds to your message.
Shopping Safely on Alibaba
To ensure you do not get scammed on Alibaba it is advisable to buy from suppliers that are tagged as gold suppliers with a couple of years and suppliers that respond to any request or details. Every product has a badge stating if the supplier is a gold supplier or not.
Select the product if you are satisfied with your choice and click on the “Contact Supplier” button to specify the quantity needed and to also send a message to the supplier. This message should include any questions you might have about the products as well as your purchase request.
Finally, you should click on the “Send” Button to complete the process.
Any response by the supplier would be sent to your Alibaba Message inbox.
From there you can continue with the deal further by negotiating with the supplier to conclude on the form of payment and shipping process for your product
LEARN HOW TO TRADE ON ALIBABA
How to Sell Your Products on Alibaba
Follow these steps to start selling your products on alibaba:
- Create an alibaba account to get started
- Click “Join Now” to become a member for free.
- Enter your location, contact information, email address, and create a password in the registration form.
- Click “Create My Account”
- Enter a product name and product keyword.
- Select a product category to help Alibaba categorize your product, making it easier for potential customers to find it.
- Enter a brief description that will help users find and better understand what your product is. This will be used as a short listing description when users are browsing for products.
- Click “Next”.
- Add product details by selecting the relevant checkboxes next to “Product Status”, “Application”, and “Type”
- Enter your product’s brand name, model number, and place of origin, if any.
- Upload an image of your product by select “Browse” to choose an image from your computer or click “Select from Photo Bank” to get a previously uploaded image stored on Alibaba.
- Enter a detailed description that will provide potential customers with all of the relevant information they may want when considering purchasing your product.
- Select the payment and shipping terms that best suit your needs. This is where you will select how customers will be able to pay for your product, the minimum order quantity, and the price per product.
- Select the production capacity, estimated delivery time requirements, and packaging details. This will help buyers get an idea of your delivery services and whether or not you can meet their requirements.
- Click “Submit”.
- Create a Company Profile by entering your Company Name and Company Address.
- Select a Business Type and fill in what Products/Services you sell.
- Create a Member Profile by entering your Gender and Contact Address.
- Click “Submit” to submit your product listing to the Alibaba approval process.
Make Sure That There Has Been a Supplier Assessment
Here is the third of those three magical checkboxes and quite possibly the most important one out of the three.
Some say that the onsite check is alright, but if you really want that added layer of trust, it won’t hurt to only select suppliers that have had a Supplier Assessment.
A Supplier Assessment basically means that a third party has checked out the company and their factory. Getting this assessment is difficult, but you can sleep better at night knowing that you’re dealing with a business that has gone over and beyond to be recognized for their export prowess.
LEARN HOW TO TRADE ON ALIBABA
Order a Sample Before You Go All Out
Don’t be part of the statistic. We know a lot of people who’ll find a great deal from a legitimate supplier and just start ordering 100,000 units without even having a first evaluation. It doesn’t work like that.
Ever bought a suit or a dress without trying it on? Nope. Everyone has an “it looked different online” story and you don’t want one, especially in any large-scale business deal.
It’s the same thing, you’ll want to be a good business owner and part of that process is verifying that your product lives up to your standards. Failure to do so is a recipe for an early loss of revenue.
If you need more information or would like to book a consulting session with us, you can call us on 08105636015 or 08076359735. Alternatively, you can send a mail to dayohub@gmail.com
(B.Agric, MBA)
08105636015, 08076359735
Serial Entrepreneur - International Business Planning Consultant - Speaker - Trainer - Author - Blogger - Network Marketing professional.
- 2018 SME Business Trainer and Coaching Advisor at GIZ for SME Loop.
- 2018 YALI RLC Online Cohort 9
- 2017 Fellow, Inspire Africa Train-the-Trainer Entrepreneurship programme sponsored by US Consulate Lagos and the Dickey Center, U.S.A.
- 2016 Fellow, Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme
- 2015 Top 50 Innovative Entrepreneurs, BET5 by Diamond Bank and EDC, PAU.
He is an alumnus of Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of the Lagos Business School (LBS), Pan-Atlantic University (PAU). Through his training, mentoring, speaking and coaching programmes, he has empowered many young people over the years to start and grow their own business, build wealth, create multiple streams of income and achieve financial independence.
- He is a Certified Trainer in Design Thinking by the U.S Consulate, Lagos and the inspire Africa Entrepreneurship Institute.
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