Alibaba Sourcing Guide: Step-by-Step & Transcript

[00:02] e-commerce: getting a successful product at a successful price. If you're interested in e-commerce and want to delve into the process of importing from China and get products at half or even a quarter of the cost, in this video I'll explain to you step by step, practically, how to

[00:17] order products from China at the lowest possible price without encountering any problems. More importantly, I'll show you how to choose a successful product and a successful supplier, and how to reduce shipping costs. Because a merchant who gets their products at a lower cost than their competitors has a significant competitive advantage and a

[00:32] major advantage in the market. Consequently, they'll have a very high profit margin compared to their competitors, allowing them to run stronger ads and withstand even tougher competition. Whenever someone consults me about a store and tells me they don't have high sales, I look at their

[00:46] products and find that their prices are very high compared to the market and to the competitors' prices, and there's no additional feature in their product to justify this increase. Regarding price, when I tell him to lower his price and see how others are selling, their prices might be better than his product

[00:58] even though his price is higher, he replies that the product cost him is very high, around 80 or 100 riyals. So, I know the problem here isn't with marketing, or even the store, or even management. The problem is that he doesn't know how to source his products at a

[01:13] reasonable cost, so it will be very difficult for him to sell, and even if he does, the profit margin might not be large. That's why it's essential to learn how to import correctly because the price difference is enormous. If you get your product at such an incredible cost, it will greatly enhance your success

[01:28] in the electronics industry. Today, we'll take a practical and real-life example of purchasing from the Chinese website Alibaba and how the process went. First, let's talk about why we chose Alibaba specifically. There are five main reasons. The first is that you can literally do anything, any product you have

[01:44] in mind that you want to make. You can order your laptop from the Chinese website Alibaba. That's why I know many people who buy a specific product from a competitor, for example, and don't even ship it to China or describe it to the supplier on Alibaba. They just tell them, "I want the

[01:59] exact same product, but with my logo," and they might modify some internal aspects like components, packaging, color, etc. Literally anything you want, you can find on Alibaba. Secondly, Alibaba itself guarantees these suppliers and factories, so you don't have to worry about being scammed

[02:13] or anything like that. Thirdly, you can also order any quantity you want, even just one unit. Of course, you'll have to pay for shipping, but the larger the quantity, the lower the cost and shipping fees will be. Also, prices and costs at

[02:27] Chinese factories are considered the lowest compared to all other countries in most sectors. Fifthly, and lastly, in some shipping policies, you can let the supplier handle the shipping. Shipping costs, customs clearance fees, taxes, and anything else are covered by the buyer.

[02:41] else are covered by the buyer. On the contrary, you'll receive the goods until you reach them. Before we go to the Alibaba website and make the purchase, and consider how the process will work and how to negotiate with the supplier, we must first identify a successful product. Don't rely on

[02:54] selecting successful products from within the Alibaba website. Always focus on specialized tools designed n't designed to tell you which products have been successful, which are best-selling, which have high profitability, or anything like that. To choose a successful product, you have two

[03:09] main methods: one free and one paid. I'll tell you what I suggest. I have a rule for choosing successful products. To know if a product will be successful or not, it must meet a key condition to ensure, God willing, that it will yield results and succeed.

[03:24] The rule is: never reinvent the wheel. We all know this proverb. What does it new idea or a new product like this, you don't... You can check if there's a market for this product, if

[03:36] people actually want it, if there's demand for it. If you pursue this approach, you'll need huge budgets to create demand and generate need for the product, even if it's already successful. But most of us aren't investment companies or billionaires with massive budgets to cover

[03:51] all these costs. The best approach is to look at a successful product that has worked for one, two, or three competitors and replicate it, making only minor changes to gain market share. You won't be reinventing the wheel; you'll be taking something that others have already tried and succeeded with.

[04:06] You'll capture a market share and refine the product. This method, as you've seen, is one of the best ways to succeed. Choosing a successful product, you can be confident that others have already succeeded with it. You do the same, perhaps modifying some aspects or addressing

[04:21] negative feedback from competitors. You then leverage this to your advantage. The free way to obtain successful products is through On social media, let's start with TikTok. For example, if you search for "TikTok Made Me By," you'll find tons of videos. Some have gone

[04:34] viral, some have millions of views, and some have hundreds of thousands. A large percentage of these videos were created in the last six months. Therefore, these products that went viral and garnered high views and comments indicate that there's demand

[04:47] and interest in them. Similarly, if you search for "Amazon Vines" on TikTok, you'll find other successful products, some of which have also gone viral. This gives the impression that a product that went viral means there's a market for it and people need it,

[05:01] so you can enter and compete in that market. You can do the same thing on Facebook and other social media platforms. There's also the paid method, which saves you time and effort and gives you information and data not even available on social media. This involves using paid tools, the best of which is the

[05:14] niche scraper tool. This tool will give you successful products with numbers, show you their cost, provide sources from suppliers, and show you examples of competitors advertising the same

[05:28] product. You can then see the effectiveness of each ad, such as increased followers, high reach, or whether the video went viral. You can also filter by country or category, or choose the best categories to target and succeed in. Ultimately, your

[05:42] decisions will be based on real data from people who have entered this field and achieved positive results with this product. Now that we know how to choose a successful product, let's look at a practical example on Alibaba. How can we order a product from Alibaba? How do we choose a

[05:56] supplier? How do we negotiate with them? On Alibaba, anything we want to search for is described here, for example, storage containers or storage bags (the bags used to store clothes). Okay, so we got all these products. I can

[06:10] filter them in several ways. First, and most importantly, I must filter by Trade Assurance. This means that Alibaba will guarantee these suppliers, and if, God forbid, they cheat you or bring you the wrong product or anything like that, they will compensate you and give you your full rights. They won't transfer the money to the supplier until

[06:24] you agree and everything is in order, which takes about 60 days. So, we need to specify this in a satisfactory way. Trade Assurance is essential. Okay, that's good. Second, it's also best to specify the Verified Supplier. This means that Alibaba has inspected this factory or company and actually visited them

[06:38] personally. They saw the factory, checked all the paperwork, and they trust them more than other factories, freelancers, brokers, or all that stuff. So, it's also preferable to do the Verified Supplier filter. I don't always have to do it, but sometimes it's the most important thing. Trade Assurance is

[06:51] For example, if there are more than four reviews, I'll never let them be less than four. So, here, all our suppliers are listed, and they have these products for sale. Here, they'll give you the price per unit and tell you the minimum quantity is 100 units. They'll give you all the details here. Of course, you can negotiate for 50

[07:05] units; it's not a big deal. You can even ask for 10; you can negotiate. It's really good to negotiate on AliExpress. Let's take any product, let's take a few products to learn more about them. Okay, let's put this product

[07:17] here, and this one. Okay, we've taken three product examples. We'll look at some of the products in videos, showing them in different colors. Of course, if you want other colors, the supplier can provide them; no problem. Above, you 'll find the supplier's name: Enzo Tenzo

[07:31] Fit & Craft. The most important thing to focus on here is the number of years. I always prefer at least five years. It shouldn't be a new factory or something like that. That's why. Because if it's a new factory, its costs will likely be high, and it will offer you something at a high price. But if it's an old factory, it

[07:43] means no. This one produces in large quantities and has been around for a while, so its price will be lower than that of new factories. Another important point is the term " manufacturer." This is very important. It means that it should be a factory, not a supplier. If they are a supplier, what does that mean? It means

[07:59] they will deal with another factory; they will be an intermediary, and therefore they will take their commission, right? That's why we don't want anyone to be an intermediary between us. We contact the factory directly. So, this factory is okay. This one is doing well. Let's look at some details. Good. Okay, everything is

[08:13] good. Okay, put this one aside. For example, let's look at another one. Okay, this one is also a factory that's five years old. Okay, excellent. Let's look at it too. Let's get an idea of ​​its price and specifications. Good. This one is also a factory that's been around for eight years, thank God. They're good, and things are going well for them. Everything is

[08:28] fine with these three factories or companies. So, it's essential to contact them before placing an order, even if you like the price. For example, they might say that if you order 1000 pieces, each piece costs 8 riyals. Even if you like the price, you have to negotiate with them. Negotiate the materials, the quality,

[08:41] everything. Let's take an example of a product I bought recently: a medical pillow. This pillow is like a medical pillow; it's good, comfortable for sleeping, and everything is recently. As we saw, it was a factory that's been around for 14 years, and it's verified and doing well. It was also a popular product. So, the first

[08:57] factory that's been around for 14 years, and it's verified and doing well. It was also a popular product. So, the first contact the same supplier. I contacted them and, for example, created a chat now (see here). Okay, I asked him, "Peace be upon you," and gave him the company name. Aner Base Retail

[09:11] Company, always try to present yourself as a big company when dealing with Chinese customers, even if you're just an individual. Don't tell them you're a big name or a big name, because that's how they'll pay attention to you. They won't look at you like you're just an individual, and they won't buy much or give you their full attention; they'll probably just ignore you. So, I have some questions. I told

[09:25] him I want to confirm about the logo. Can you make a logo? What's the minimum order quantity (MOQ) if I want to customize something? I don't want to take the exact same product; I don't want to change the color, shape, or size. And how

[09:39] much does a sample cost? How much will it take to get it to me? I really need to check the sample before placing a large order. I told him I also want to see the outer packaging. How much does it cost? I told him my name is Prison Manager, I'm the purchasing manager. So, try to present yourself as a real company and like you

[09:52] want to communicate with a large number of managers and such. One of the administrators answered all my inquiries. She asked me what my purpose was, whether I was a retailer. I wanted to buy to resell later. She explained that she was a retailer, so I took these details and she answered every question. She said

[10:06] yes, we can customize the product. We can make this product in a custom size and with the logo you want. Everything is fine. The minimum quantity is 500 pieces. If you want to place a special order with a color change and a change in size, you need at least 500 pieces. She told me it would take about two to

[10:20] three days and would cost $35 including shipping. So I would get the sample product with the charger for $35. Then she also gave me details about the outer packaging, its size, the material it would contain, and so on. The final price per piece would be between $6.60

[10:35] and $7.50, so it would be in that range. She gave me some pictures of the product's outer packaging, showing what it would look like. Okay? Things were going well, so I asked her, "Okay, I'll order, say, 300 pieces." I told her, and she took all the details. We negotiated the

[10:49] price, the quality, the materials, everything. If everything was going well, we had to order a sample before placing the large order. Because when you receive the product, you see it and inspect it yourself. Believe me, you 'll get a lot of ideas and things. I also said, "It's

[11:04] good that you thought of that now so you don't mess up with 500 pieces later. You don't buy 500 pieces and then, when you receive them, you're surprised that the material is n't good, or something isn't nice, or something you wished you had fixed, like making the strap double. These things have to be done early, and

[11:18] we have to take a sample so we can make our decisions and the final decision for the large product or the large quantity." So I continued with her, and everything was going well. She gave me a sample, of course. I took a sample from more than one supplier. Also, always try to get samples from more than one supplier and

[11:32] don't let the same supplier ship the order to your country, whether it's Saudi Arabia or anywhere else. Try to find a specialized shipping company. For example, go to the Alibaba website and type "Shipping to Saudi Alibaba website and type "Shipping to Saudi Arabia." These companies are cheaper and easier to handle

[11:46] shipping, customs, and all that. They have the experience, and their costs are much lower. You'll find that the cost of specialized shipping companies is much lower than the supplier's cost because the supplier will ultimately deal with a shipping company, and you don't want to be in the middle at all. You

[11:59] try to reach the last person and the last party to reduce their costs. So, what's the plan? Go to these two companies or these two producers and ask them to ship within China to the supplier's location. This supplier gives you their location or address, which you send to the two other suppliers, telling them to

[12:14] ship the goods to this address. Then they take the product. Of course, the shipping cost within China is almost negligible now; they might even give it to you for free. After that, this supplier takes the three products. This is shipped to you once to Saudi Arabia. You don't need to ship it three times,

[12:27] paying 30 dirhams here, 30 dirhams there, and 30 dirhams again. It's all done in one go, 30 dirhams at once, and everything is fine. After you receive the samples from the shipping company, you choose the best one in terms of quality and material. You make suggestions: change the color, change the material, make it

[12:41] transparent, or whatever else comes to mind. There are many options. After that, you place the final order and tell the supplier, "Okay, I've decided to buy this product in 500 units." You agree on the price and say, "In the name of God." But there's something important here: when shipping a large quantity of products, they have

[12:57] specific shipping policies. They have EXW, OPPD, and DDP. The two most important ones that will benefit you are EXW and DDP. EXW means that the supplier is only responsible for the goods until they leave their factory. This means you need to hire a

[13:13] forwarder. They call it a third-party shipping company, for example, that receives the goods from the supplier's factory, and that's it. The supplier has no further involvement. If the goods are lost or whatever happens to them, they have absolutely no responsibility—not for taxes, customs, or anything else. This can sometimes be cheaper, especially if you have a forwarder

[13:28] or intermediary who can get the goods for you, or a dedicated shipping company that can bring them directly. However, it carries some risk and problems, which are more frequent. So, I don't recommend this at all unless you have someone you trust and know you have a good relationship with in China who can sort it out for you. The

[13:43] second important type is DDP, which means the supplier is responsible for the goods until they reach your warehouse, whether you ship them to an Amazon warehouse, bring them to your home, or your business warehouse. They handle the shipping— sea freight, air freight, customs clearance, and

[13:57] all related matters. You'll also notice that DDP is more expensive than EXW. Why? Taxes and customs duties will also apply, Taxes and customs duties will also apply,

[14:11] in America, or anywhere else, so you don't want to risk having someone pick it up from the factory in China and bring it to you. You put that risk in the hands of the supplier through Alibaba. Alibaba guarantees that they'll deliver the

[14:26] goods to you. And one very important point: if you're shipping these goods to another country, like America or Europe, and you're selling on Amazon or something similar—not to your own country—you must have the products inspected before they leave China and even before you pay the

[14:41] final amount. These are specialized companies that inspect the goods and provide you with all the details: weight, size, material, and even photos. They check for any defects or problems with the products—everything is checked in the end. They give you a full report detailing the results of their inspection. After that,

[14:57] for example, a part is defective or broken, and they will compensate you immediately. This way, you don't risk shipping goods you haven't inspected, which could end up on Amazon, where you sell them to customers, causing problems and Amazon, where you sell them to customers, causing problems and

[15:12] Alibaba. Search for "inspection" on the Alibaba website, and it will open all the websites or companies. Choose the one that suits you, provide them with the quantity and size of the products, and the factory address. To help you avoid any problems or scams on

[15:26] Alibaba, I'll give you three very important tips that you must focus on. First, avoid communicating outside of Alibaba. When you communicate outside of Alibaba, Alibaba won't know what conversations or agreements took place, so they will disclaim any responsibility for

[15:40] protection. Be careful, as you might even encounter Chinese companies—men and women—who approach you. For example, on WhatsApp, they might send you pictures of the product, and you'll see what it is. They send you pictures, exchange information, and so on, in a friendly manner via WhatsApp, little by little, to make all communication happen outside of

[15:54] Alibaba. Consequently, you lose Alibaba's protection. Secondly, never pay outside of Alibaba for the same reason: Alibaba guarantees to hold the money for approximately 60 or 30 days. After that, there are no problems; you're fine, you've received the goods, everything is good, and then they

[16:09] transfer it to the final supplier. Even if you make a bank transfer, make it to the same account listed on the Alibaba website and attach the receipt there as well. You'll also encounter some Chinese people who will ask you to transfer to this bank or a different method, perhaps adding a 5% discount. So be careful not to

[16:24] do this. If you transfer to Alibaba, they will completely withdraw from the process. Thirdly, and very importantly, you must order samples before placing a large order. We personally know people who go to China to see the goods. They saw it for themselves, but you can

[16:38] do all of this from home. Even if you see 20 suppliers, you can ask each one for a sample. If your product is inexpensive, some might give it to you for free or for a nominal fee. Then, if you place a large order, they'll deduct the cost of the sample

[16:51] you bought. All these samples, as we mentioned, are sent to a specialized shipping company and shipped to your country in one go, so the price is the same. Finally, if you're ready to start your journey to making money online and have a small amount of capital, I'll post a video here about selling on Amazon. It's one of the best

[17:05] current projects in e-commerce, and you can start from anywhere in the world. As always, help everyone, and I would be very happy if you supported me with a like and subscribed to the channel. Thank you, thank you, thank you for watching, and I'll see you in the next video.