Hi,
Alibaba is the most important business-to-business online portal. It is a question of a website that connects wholesalers and manufacturing companies - especially China - with entrepreneurs from all over the world.
In particular, you can subscribe for free to the site to import goods from China at a very affordable price.
E ', however, important to understand from the beginning that the companies that are on Alibaba generally require that you purchase a minimum quantity of goods. It is not that of a portal for those who intend to buy very small numbers of goods.
To understand this, if you want to buy five mobile phones to resell retail Alibaba probably not for you. For minimum orders (even of one to ten pieces) you should visit Aliexpress, also owned dell'Alibaba Group but more suitable for retail sale.
To purchase on AliExpress must first register on the page. E 'can also log in with Facebook. If you already have an account with Alibaba.com, you can use it without having to re-record. They will be asked a series of data, including the default shipping address.
Some sellers will accept only the address indicated at registration.
After you have registered and have entered all your data, you can begin to turn to the site for the product that you like. Items are organized by categories and subcategories, you can also filter objects according to characteristics
Search products
Probably you will find it easier to search for an article keyword. If you want to save the products ordered from the cheapest choosing "Price (Lowest First)". If you prefer to see the first products purchased from other users, select "Number of Orders". If you are interested in the reliability of the seller set "Seller's Ratings". In AliExpress every seller has a score that depends on how long and sells from the feedback we received for the orders placed, a bit 'as in eBay.
Products can be sold individually or in batch. If you need just a piece, check the box "Only 1 Piece". If you want the prices include shipping costs, click on "Free Shipping". Most of the time this combination allows for results easily comparable with each other because the delivery is already included in the price. Products with Free Shipping are almost always delivered by China Post.
Product features
Clicking on the name of a product you can view the detailed information sheet, with photos and descriptions. Be careful: in some cases the vendor will write in the title features other than those described to attract more visitors. Always read in detail all the information to avoid surprises. Use common sense: a flashlight that works with a stack stylus can not be as powerful as a beacon of a car;) Check the size, colors, capacities, speed, features, whatever. Better a doubt more than a purchase unhappy!
You'll definitely find identical products in various stores. This is because the real producers are few, most of the sellers on AliExpress.com are wholesalers and retailers. Certain products are now so common that they have become a de facto standard and the features are almost identical everywhere. Also in China the concepts of copyright and brand are very mild: often companies have no qualms to copy from each other successful models.
On AliExpress are both products no-brand / no-logo branded products. It will happen to you also to see products like those of famous brands. Not always copy: please note that the majority of electronic gadgets is Made in China and Made in USA. Some companies that produce on behalf of the big names, selling a share without brand outside the usual channels of commerce to which the article is intended.
Contact the seller
If you have any questions, please write to the head sending him a message or via chat AliExpress.com. The chat is called TradeManager and is also used in Alibaba.com. It 'very convenient and fast, but if you need to have a written record on paper of the information given to you is better to use the messages. The lingua franca is English here; if you do not know I suggest you get help from someone. If you often shop on AliExpress, you can install TradeManager PC.
Reliability of the seller
Take a look at the score of reliability of the seller is good that is above 95% and having a number of orders placed high enough. Check the feedback and opinions left by those who have bought this product before you. You can tell if the item is of good quality or if it is poor, and if the store has a historical positive and inspires confidence in customers.
Wish List
If you have found a product you like, you can add it to your Wish List, or the list of objects that look. Periodically sellers apply the discounts and if something in your wish list is cheaper than when you've added, you will be notified. AliExpress will send you a newsletter with suggestions of items similar to those on your list. If there is helpful, you can unsubscribe without interfering with your registration.
I noticed that if you add an item not in promotion (at full price) on the wish list instead of buy it now, after a few hours AliExpress will make you a discount to convince you to buy.
Opinions of buyers
Double check the opinions left by those who have bought this article before you. If there are many orders it is generally a positive thing, but not a total security. Any seller has to start from scratch, so it is normal that at first had few customers. Pay attention to the opinions of 100% positive, might be "fake", although it is unlikely. Even negative ratings may be unwarranted criticism from dissatisfied customers. If the package does not arrive, it may be the fault of the carrier or the post office, not necessarily the fault of the manufacturer. We will see later that through Escrow, payment system AliExpress, buyers is very protected and reimbursed in almost all disputes.
Purchase Process
To buy an item on Aliexpress, go to the main screen of the article, carefully selected variants (color, power, etc.) and the amount. To update the price click on the icon shaped calculator. Then click on the "Buy Now".
The next screen will prompt you to confirm your shipping address or enter a new one. Many sellers will ship the goods only at the main you have indicated in your account AliExpress. You can change one last time the required amount and choose the delivery method. For shipping free it is usually the chinese air mail (China Post Air Mail or CPAM). In the box you can leave a message to the seller. If you are buying a product available in various colors, you can specify the color you want. When everything is OK click on the Place Order in the lower right corner.
Secure payment on AliExpress
Now you have to pay for your order. AliExpress does not accept payments from PayPal account, but accepts all major credit cards, including prepaid. The important thing is that they use circuits MasterCard or Visa / Visa Electron.
Many wonder: AliExpress is safe? AliExpress is reliable? From the point of view of the electronic transaction, security is equal to any other platform. If some hacker were to intercept the data of your card and make purchases without your permission, you have to report to the Police. You'll know why card statement there will be no movement made by you, usually on online gambling sites or poker. The bank will respond of illegal use and will give you back the money. As regards the safety of the purchase, AliExpress uses a payment platform call Escrow. Basically when you buy something, AliExpress ago as a "mediator". It holds the money until you confirm that you have received the item intact, functioning, and especially as described by the seller. If everything is in place, Escrow will pay the seller. If your package does not arrive or the object is different than promised, the money will be returned.
Feedback and complaints
When your item has arrived at your destination, try and check it to make sure it functions well and that is what you ordered. If everything is fine, go to the "My Orders", click on the order, select the check box and click the "Confirm Order Received".
On the next page you will have to leave a first generic feedback, give a short review and then evaluated separately description, communication and speed of delivery of the order. Shipping speed indicates how long it took to send the seller, not the time of delivery of the Post Office.
If you want to open a dispute click "Open Dispute" tab of your order, but remember to do so within 60 days from the date of purchase. You will be asked to provide further information on the reason for your complaint. If the seller does not respond, after 10 days, you can report the dispute to AliExpress that will assess the case and will be the judge.
If you are running out 60 days of purchase and you have not received your purchase because there were delays in shipping or transport and the package is taking longer than expected to arrive, you can ask the seller to extend the period of protection entering the order page and clicking on "Request to extend the Purchase Protection". If the seller refuses to extend the period of protection, you can open a dispute stating that you have not received your purchase.
Recommendations and advice
My opinions on AliExpress and my recommendations on purchases are dictated by experience and common sense, and can also be applied to other online retailers:
Do not buy if you need assistance or a guarantee: you may have difficulty in finding the seller and to assert your reasons. Many sellers offer 6 months or 1 year warranty, other do not offer any kind of warranty.
Check how much it costs the same object in local stores or on eBay. Online sales should account for expenses and transportation that the traditional business can write off differently.
Do not buy if customs charges cost as you do in the store
Please note that in case of a failure under warranty, some sellers will send you a replacement product without making a fuss. Others may require you to return the defective product. Shipping charges are your responsibility and may be greater than the value of the object.
Alibaba is reliable?
Alibaba does not act as guarantor or as regards the quality of the goods purchased nor for honest supplier. Moreover, unlike sites like eBay, there is no way to know the opinion of previous customers directly on the website.
Most of the companies work on Alibaba, however, it is made up of medium and large manufacturing companies, which are normally more "series" of retailers. So, paradoxically, there are more chances of being fooled on Aliexpress or Ebay on Alibaba.
To minimize the risk of fraud (always present in the field of international trade), I recommend a little 'common sense and respect of some basic rules. Here they are:
Gold Supplier:
90% of suppliers ousted by Alibaba.com due to scams perpetuated buyers do not have the status of Gold Supplier (called the Golden Supplier of Alibaba in the Italian version). So I recommend contacting only suppliers "gold".
But what is a supplier of gold?
If an exporting company wants to be part of the list of suppliers of gold to pay a monthly subscription (the subscription fee is the main source of income of the portal). Once paid, an employee of Alibaba will verify that the company owns a company duly registered. Also investigate other key information such as the operating address, the name of the legal representative and the share capital of the company.
If this information does not correspond to those provided by the company (company profile and visible on the website) or if the company is owned by a company legally registered, the status of the supplier of gold will be denied.
It is clear that this check does not ensure that the company is honest. But at least it protects you from contact companies not serious (or only amateur fraudsters would dream of export from China without even having a company legally registered).
In fact, the results speak for themselves: 90% of companies that have caused problems in the past had failed, or had not even tried to join the list of suppliers of gold.
How to recognize a supplier of gold?
It is not difficult. You simply have to visit the site hosting the profile of the export company in question and check the box in the top right called "details of the supplier."
If it is a verified supplier we find a rosette yellow gold flanked by the words "Gold Supplier [year X]," where the number "X" indicates how many years this has been part of the provider list.
In principle a supplier who has ten years experience as a gold supplier is believed to be more reliable than one that has just passed the audit.
Check personally supplier
I think I've convinced to discard all providers that do not own the rosette of suppliers of gold. Here is a series of additional information that will allow you to assess the honesty and the ability of a given manufacturer.
If the supplier responds vaguely to your email - evading your question about prices, certification standards or quality etc. - And / or pressure makes you to receive the payment as soon as possible it's time to abandon him to his fate.
If the supplier does not possess any website and / or owns a small capital it is probably an amateur or a company so small that, in case something goes wrong, will not have the resources to reimburse.
If the vendor refuses to get in touch with its past customers there are two possibilities: either never had or foreign customers, and do not know which is worse, knows for sure that his previous clients will speak ill of him.
If the supplier claims to be paid into a bank account that is payable to the company name of the supplier (as attested by the profile page of Alibaba.com), run! If I paid on a different bank account (whether it be a private account in China or an offshore account, such as in Hong Kong) the company's supplier could deny having received the payment, and therefore refuse to send you the goods for which you have already paid.
The forum Alibaba
The site houses the Alibaba Trade Forum, a free forum where you can ask for advice from importers more experienced than you or employees of Alibaba.
Another way to exploit the forum to your advantage is to do a search for the topic on which you would like to get clarification and read past threads.
If it's too good to be true ...
... Then it probably is a scam. Commercial agents with whom you will be dealing on Alibaba have a fixed salary lowest (less than 200 Euro) and earn mainly on commission. Their purpose is therefore to make sure the customer. To do that you will promise amazing prices, certificates which are not able to comply (see below if you do not know what a certificate and why it matters), product specifications which can not guarantee, production time and so that even Flash Gordon on.
All this will end in a tremendous waste of time (in case the supplier rimangi the promises made at the time of signing the sales agreement) or a rip-off (if you are naive enough to pay the entire sum agreed in advance and / or not to sign an agreement of sale to the supplier).
Countries "dangerous"
It seems that the suppliers that have caused the greatest number of disputes on Alibaba are Indonesia, Cameroon and Finland. If you decide to buy from suppliers from one of these countries then you will need more attention.
I hope to be helpful, I have dwelt, but I think I have done a good explanation.
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