According to Statista, the e-commerce industry is expected to grow to $6.54 trillion by 2023. Therefore, now is the ideal time for Amazon FBA sellers to source reliable Chinese product. To find reliable products in China, sellers should consider the following tips.

Before selling any product on Amazon, a seller should ensure that the cost of sourcing and shipping the product is lower than the selling price.

A rule of three can help sellers determine if a product is profitable. A sales transaction can be divided into three components: fees, landed costs, and profit. If a product sells for $21, Amazon FBA sellers should expect a $7 profit margin.

Landed cost refers to the costs associated with manufacturing and shipping your product to the warehouse, which include:

• Cost of inventory
• Customs duties and taxes
• Shipping
• Inspection fees

Amazon charges a referral fee (or commision) for every item sold on its e-commerce platform. Hence, a typical Amazon fee is 15 percent of the product’s selling price. Professional Amazon sellers pay $39.99 a month for their selling plan, while individual sellers pay $0.99 a month for their selling plan.

The fulfillment fee covers Amazon FBA’s packaging and shipping costs. The cost depends on the volume or weight of the products. Furthermore, FBA sellers pay a storage fee. The fee can be a long-term storage fee or a monthly payment.

• Retail price: Most Amazon sellers recommend finding a product that’s $25 or less and not more than $50 USD. This price range lets sellers recover direct costs, including Amazon fees and advertising costs. If a product costs more than $50, the conversion rate and number of customers who view and buy it might drop.
• Low seasonality: On Amazon, you should choose reliable products that aren’t seasonal. Selecting products that sell throughout the year will allow you to maximize your profits.
• Product reviews: Top sellers have fewer than 100 reviews, while the best product niches have fewer than 200 reviews.

If you’re looking for reliable products from China, lightweight and small products are easier to ship, less likely to get damaged in transit, and are cheaper. The products are also easier to ship via air freight, so they get to the warehouse faster, allowing you to start selling them right away. Shipping heavy or bulky products by ocean freight is usually necessary if you’re shipping large volumes. This can cause a delay in shipments, as well as damage to products due to weather/humidity fluctuations.

Sellers on Amazon should reconsider their choice if they source high-quality products from China but do not receive favorable feedback from their customers. As a result, these products may not be able to be modified by the Chinese manufacturer. Based on user reviews, sellers must select improved products. The product reviews listed by sellers’ competitors in the niche can provide with an idea of what products are easy to modify or improve upon.

Electronics, glass, or extremely complex products can be challenging to manufacture and require technical expertise. Therefore, these products may have manufacturing or quality control issues. Ideally, retailers should avoid such products when starting out as an Amazon seller.

Demand is the key to selling a reliable product on Amazon. To determine what product to sell on Amazon, sellers need to determine if there is a demand for it on Amazon. Hence, this is prior to developing a China sourcing strategy.

Sellers should research whether buyers are looking for the product on Amazon and determine if it is in high demand from customers. Using Amazon’s sales figures can help you determine which products are in demand.
Among the most popular products on Amazon are the following:

• Home and kitchen
• Toys and games
• Sports and the outdoors
• Beauty and personal care products
• Baby care
• Household and health care
• Clothing, jewelry, and shoes
• Home improvement
• Garden equipment
• Tools

Amazon sellers have access to a variety of search tools that can assist them in finding the best-selling, most reliable products on Amazon. A good example of such a tool is Jungle Scout.

For Google Chrome users, Jungle Scout is available as a chrome extension. Jungle Scout is also available as a web application for users who don’t have Chrome. Amazon sellers can use Jungle Scout’s data and analytics tools to find the best products to sell on Amazon and refine their keyword strategy. With the Sales Analytics tool, sellers can also organize and track sales, expenses, revenue, and other Amazon FBA metrics. In addition, they can view historical performance.

Using the extension, you can check whether a product concept is in demand and how well it sells on Amazon. You can also get a sneak peak at your competitor’s keyword strategy while finding high-converting keywords for your product listing. It also shows you the historical keyword performance trends over the last two years, as well as quarterly and monthly data, so you can see how popular your product is.

While Jungle Scout gives you a lot of info about products that do well on Amazon, the tool doesn’t tell you whether these are the right products to source from China. An experienced China sourcing agent can help you choose products that sell well on Amazon and are made by reliable Chinese suppliers.

Before you start looking for Chinese products, find out if there are any standards in the U.S. or EU your product must meet. There are safety standards, patent conflicts, quality benchmarks, and any other legal requirements in the country where you’re selling.

If you’re selling electronics, there may be specific safety and technical requirements that the manufacturer has to meet. These can be hard to test in China, so you’ll need experience and expertise.

If you’ve done your research on the best-selling, profitable, and reliable products on Amazon, you can shortlist them. Next, you’ll need to find a reliable Chinese manufacturer.

Some of the places you can begin your search include:

Most Amazon sellers start their search on Alibaba, the Amazon of the east. There are thousands of sellers and traders on Alibaba, China’s biggest marketplace.

Creating an account at Alibaba.com is the first step to starting your search. The next step is to enter your product’s keyword, click on “Suppliers” from the drop down menu, and then click “Search”.

Alibaba shows thousands of results, but many aren’t relevant to your category. Also, know the difference between manufacturers, resellers, and traders. It’s important to ask whether the supplier is a reseller or a manufacturer since traders and resellers can pose as manufacturers. You can also look at their product portfolio and ask about their factory or the specs. Manufacturers can answer all your questions about product technicalities, factory layouts and processes, but resellers may avoid the question or take their time.

You can also fill out Alibaba’s form and let Chinese suppliers contact you about your product.

When choosing reliable suppliers in China, look for ‘Gold membership’ status on Alibaba. A Gold membership status is available to suppliers who pay an annual membership fee and go through basic vetting. The quality of the supplier isn’t indicative of its reliability or quality, but it’s a useful criterion to consider.

If you find a supplier you think might meet your needs, read their company profile carefully. Find out when the company was founded, what product categories they specialize in, what certifications, licenses and business registrations they have. It’s easy to shortlist the suppliers that meet your criteria on Alibaba and add them to your favorites.

Global Sources is another good place to find reliable suppliers. Hong Kong’s marketplace is similar to Alibaba but is generally regarded as more reliable. The marketplace vets suppliers more strictly and offers services like supplier capability assessments and credit checks. As well as product quality, production capabilities, and company status, you can find out here.

One of the most effective ways of finding a reliable supplier in China is to visit trade fairs in person and interact with suppliers. This is significant as all business transactions in China involve establishing ‘Guanxi’ or a personal rapport. There are a lot of suppliers of different product categories at the Canton Fair, the biggest trade fair in Guangzhou twice a year.  Every year, the East China Fair takes place in Shanghai with a lot of exhibits and traders.

When you visit the trade fair, you can also find out if the supplier is reliable by checking the samples, visiting the factory and verifying their credentials.

• Reliable suppliers have these qualities:
• Product niche experience
• Capacity to make your product in the quantities you need
• Standards and certifications like ISO 9001
• Interested in partnering up
• Provides all relevant certificates, licenses, and registrations
• Gets you a great deal
• Would love to send you some samples
• Willing to let you inspect the place

There are several red flags that should be considered:

• Not been in business for long
• Lack of experience in your product niche
• Very low pricing
• Not responsive
• Cannot produce certificates or licenses
• Not okay with factory inspection

For most Amazon sellers, going to trade fairs is expensive and hard. Communication is another big challenge. Sales reps or manufacturers in China may know transactional English but may not be fluent. This can cause problems when conveying product specs and other details, especially since Western countries and China have different measurements and units. Guanxi can also be hard to establish if you have communication problems.

Partnering with an experienced and reputable China sourcing agent can help Amazon sellers overcome these challenges.

Make sure your sourcing agent has years of experience helping Amazon sellers source from China and has a physical presence there. Ideally, the agent will have a manufacturer network so you can find a reliable supplier faster instead of hunting down Chinese manufacturers yourself.

An experienced sourcing agent can help you find the right products to source from Amazon and negotiate with suppliers for a great deal. In addition, they visit the factory and inspect the goods. By creating a backup plan, they can also suggest another supplier in case something goes wrong with the first one.  Additionally, sourcing agents know all about shipping and transporting from China to Amazon FBA. To avoid any shipping delays, they guide you on the various documents and certifications you have to produce at customs.

The process of sourcing and selling a reliable product on Amazon can be challenging. However, partnering with the right China sourcing agent can provide the solution to these challenges.