Selling your own brand on Amazon is profitable, whether you are an ambitious self-starter who wants to do it on your own or you want to delegate and use the services of others. You can choose to handle the shipping, customer service duties, and other roles yourself or sign up for Amazon FBA and let the Amazon team handle all of the finer details of the sale.
If you don’t already know about Amazon FBA, you should look into it as this option makes it even easier to sell on Amazon. Fulfillment by Amazon lets you hand off the duties to a knowledgeable team. To keep shipping costs down,
FBA stands for “Fulfillment by Amazon” which means Amazon will store your products in the Amazon inventory, fulfill your orders, and offer customer service. If you want to use the Amazon FBA service, you have to create an Amazon seller account and add FBA to your account. It’s important that you set your business up in compliance with the guidelines on the website.
Create your product listings and inventory or integrate your inventory data into the Amazon platform. Prepare the products to be delivered, and send your products into Amazon warehouse. When the customer places orders, Amazon FBA will fulfill the orders and send all necessary shipping and tracking info to the customers. 24/7 customer service is available for both sellers and customers.
One of the most common and easier ways to sell on Amazon is by buying products from Alibaba and selling them on Amazon FBA. Like many nascent businesses, you might be contemplating the idea of importing products from Alibaba to sell on Amazon. If so, this post is for you.
Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce company is providing many sourcing options for all types of businesses. If you want to source your products, this e-commerce giant from the East is one of the best options available. Alibaba is a viable option for retailers who are just starting on Amazon and those who are willing to expand their portfolio and diversify their avenues on Amazon. While it is lucrative, sourcing from Alibaba does not come without risks and you need to be careful at every step of the process.
With the proper due diligence, customers can ensure that they have a secure e-commerce experience with Alibaba. There are tons of reputable manufacturers and suppliers (by specific product category) who have been in the industry for years and Alibaba has established a positive reputation and credibility for itself as a known marketplace.
When sourcing products from Alibaba, you can help maintain security by only trading with gold suppliers, the company’s premium suppliers. These suppliers pay Alibaba to appear higher up in the search results. Despite deals or factory certifications that non-gold suppliers may have, buying only from gold suppliers will help you avoid scams and bad suppliers. To find out if they are reliable, ask them how many products they have supplied, if they can customize the product to your specifications, if they have a minimum order quantity, and what their lead time for production is.
Next, with Alibaba’s trade assurance program, your orders are protected. It mitigates risk by guaranteeing money back if a supplier fails to meet the terms of your order contract, such as with delivery delays, quality and quantity discrepancies, or other processing issues. If you have a problem with a supplier, you can submit a claim to Alibaba. The company will then review it and if they agree that the factory has in fact made a mistake, you can get your money back. Keep in mind that any step in the process that can cause a potential roadblock (quality control, lead times, etc.) need to be documented in the sales agreement.
Additionally, when buying on Alibaba to sell on Amazon FBA, you should avoid branded products. Alibaba’s marketplace is not a legitimate source for branded products and is instead meant for generic goods. If something is on Alibaba as a branded item, it is likely that it belongs to a national brand. Selling it would be illegal, as you would not be an authorized seller.
