Step-by-Step Guide: How to Find High-Quality Suppliers on Alibaba
Hey there!
It’s Brian, twin number two, and today, I want to discuss an overlooked yet crucial component of growing your Amazon business: finding quality suppliers. But before I reveal the three foolproof ways to identify high-quality suppliers, let me introduce myself.
Arek, my twin brother, and I are executive Amazon coaches with specialized expertise in scaling profitable businesses. Arek’s analytical skills, alongside my outside-of-the-box business ideas, have helped over 150 students worldwide grow successful brands and find financial freedom. Through our well-crafted coaching program, insightful YouTube videos, and in-depth blog posts, we facilitate new sellers and veterans in finding business opportunities to capitalize on.
Each second, retailers sell over $4,728 products on Amazon, and each hour, this averages to over $17 million items sold! Most of these products come from Alibaba, the top manufacturer and supplier source for most Amazon sellers.
If you’re one of the 1,824 new sellers joining the platform, chances are you’re wondering how to find high-quality, reliable suppliers on Alibaba. To help you out, I’ve created a step-by-step guide to sourcing trustworthy manufacturers.
Below I’ll discuss the top three hacks to hunt the best suppliers and tips to remember when getting started. I’ll also share several benefits of choosing Alibaba and critical factors to analyze to ensure you pick the ideal supplier. You can also watch my tutorial on ways to buy top-notch products to sell on Amazon.
How to Actually Find the Best Suppliers on Alibaba
Research shows that up to two-thirds (74%) of Amazon sellers fear competitiveness and rank it as the number one challenge. To overcome your competition, every retailer needs two things:
- A killer product idea
- A high-quality supplier
If you’ve already crafted a unique product idea, it’s time to find a reliable manufacturer. One problem: how do you find a supplier that promises quick turnaround times, 100% reliability, and fantastic customer service? Easy, you use Alibaba!
Thanks to Alibaba, sellers can surf through a massive database to choose manufacturers and suppliers that match their needs. However, you’ll need to learn a few strategies and tricks to find a reliable supplier. That’s where I step in!
In this article, I’ve listed three different yet equally valuable tips to pinpoint the best Alibaba supplier. Besides this, I’ll discuss five things you must analyze to ensure you pick reliable retailers on Alibaba. Let’s jump right in!
P.S. If reading isn’t your strongest suit, you can skip this by watching the article’s video edition here.
A Quick Glance at Alibaba
Alibaba, dubbed the “Chinese Amazon,” is a massive business-to-business e-commerce platform. Since 1999, this global marketplace has helped sellers and brands connect with merchants and manufacturers.
Unlike traditional e-commerce marketplaces like Amazon or e-Bay, where customers make one-off purchases, Alibaba is a platform where retailers and businesses purchase bulk products to resell online or in a brick-and-mortar. The e-commerce marketplace connects you with suppliers worldwide to source high-quality products at low cost.
Alibaba is perfect for Amazon sellers who want to create a private-label product unique to their brand. With suppliers on Alibaba, you can create custom logos or design specs for a particular product.
Why Choose Alibaba to Sell Products on Amazon?
There are countless reasons Amazon sellers flock to Amazon to find high-quality products. Here’s a closer look at a few common ones:
Reliable and Trustworthy
It’s natural to be skeptical when spending money online, especially if it’s thousands of dollars. Alibaba eases the stress by offering a secure payment portal, Trade Assurance, and product inspection services.
The platform ensures you feel confident in your purchase and are safe from online scams.
Millions of Products
Alibaba boasts millions of products and over 5900 categories serving 190 countries worldwide. Thus, the platform eases finding the perfect first product.
This flexibility also allows you to differentiate and stand out on Amazon.
Tools for Global Sourcing
Alibaba is perfect for businesses that want to go global. The platform offers countless valuable tools like automatic translations and currency conversions to promote cross-border trade.
High-Quality Products at Low Costs
Not only does Alibaba offer you instant access to innumerable global suppliers, but it also allows you to find products at low wholesale pricing. Thus, Amazon sellers can buy supplies at rock-bottom prices and increase profitability by selling at premium retail prices.
Ease of Use
Another key advantage of using Alibaba is the platform organizes products and categories to ease finding the perfect product quickly and effectively.
With the platform’s filters, you can narrow your options further.
Three Proven Ways to Find Reliable Amazon Suppliers on Alibaba
Here are three strategies to find high-quality suppliers on Alibaba:
Method # 1: Applying Available Filters
You'll have to do some digging to weed out the quality suppliers from the bad. Start by filtering your search by using Alibaba’s features, including:
- Trade Assurance
“Trade Assurance” is a free and fantastic service designed to bridge the gap between buyers and suppliers. For people with this service, Alibaba covers products that don’t arrive on time or fail to meet quality standards.
Thus, using Trade Assurance helps minimize the risk of scams and provides you with full refunds.
- Verified Supplier
Like Trade Assurance, “Verified Supplier” is a valuable filter added by Alibaba to differentiate suppliers that the platform guarantees are reliable and trustworthy.
Suppliers verified by Alibaba appear with a tiny “verified” under their brand name.
Applying these filters narrows your supplier’s search results, allowing you to pinpoint trustworthy and experienced manufacturers. Furthermore, setting these parameters mitigates the risk of scams while enabling you to make the most of your money.
Method # 2: Doing Your Homework
Most people will recommend you find Alibaba suppliers with at least five years of experience. Here’s a secret they won’t tell you: their experience on Alibaba does not equal their expertise in the industry!
So, instead of surfing through Alibaba’s search results, click on a few seller profiles to determine how long they’ve been in the industry. For instance, while searching for a high-quality garlic press, I noticed a supplier, “Jieyang Fangyuan Stainless Steel Products Co., Ltd.” boasting three years of experience on Alibaba.
Upon clicking on the link, Alibaba shows us the brand was founded in 2009 and had been selling since 2016. It indicates over 13 years of experience! Thus, you’ll miss many qualified suppliers if you don’t research appropriately.
Method # 3: Picking ISO-Compliant Companies
Another fantastic way to filter high-quality Alibaba suppliers is using the ISO feature. Click on the “ISO” filter to weed out certified and reliable merchants and nufacturers.
Picking ISO-compliant companies offers an additional layer of safety, protecting you from scams and legal repercussions, and providing peace of mind.
Top Five Things to Analyze for Buying Safely on Alibaba
While searching for reliable suppliers for Amazon, look out for the following things:
Do They Have The Verified Supplier and Trade Assurance Signs?
Purchase high-quality products and lower the risk of scams by ensuring your desired supplier or manufacturer features the Trade Assurance tag.
Furthermore, ensure the seller you collaborate with is Alibaba-verified.
Where Are They Located?
Every industry in China has its province, city, and district, meaning you can verify the authenticity of a merchant by analyzing its location.
How Many Years of Experience Does The Supplier Have?
Weed out the best suppliers and manufacturers by checking their years of experience. As we discussed, remember to click on the seller’s profile to identify how long they’ve been in the industry, not on Alibaba.
Are They ISO, BSCI, or WRAP Certified?
Improve your customer experience by ensuring your seller or manufacturer complies with stringent industry codes. Ask the company for a copy of its ISO, BSCI, or other certifications.
What Does Their Product Catalog Look Like?
You can find the best suppliers on Amazon by checking the relevance of the products in their listings. If it comprises a various random materials, it’s likely fake.
The Bottom Line
Finding the best Alibaba suppliers is tricky if you make it that way. If you follow the tips above, keep your transactions and communication on the platform, and use the right strategies, you’ll find it easy to find the right vendors.
So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to find the perfect product and set up a supply chain to get high-quality products. Book a free call with Arek and me if you need help finding the ideal product to source from Alibaba. Or you can check out similar blogs or YouTube videos where we discuss tips and tactics to hunt winning Amazon products.
References
http://urlgeni.us/facebook/FBASU
https://talk.thefbastartup.com/meet
https://watch.thefbastartup.com/optin-538850511652392142067
https://www.clientpoint.net/blog/alibaba-com-business-use
https://www.salehoo.com/blog/how-to-find-the-best-suppliers-on-alibaba
https://seller.alibaba.com/businessblogs/px65f6s8-how-to-buy-and-source-from-alibaba#3
https://leelinesourcing.com/alibaba-suppliers/#Key_Points_to_Analyze_in_Alibaba_Factories
