3 Biggest Lessons From Building a 7 Figure Ecommerce Company With Alibaba.com

I created my very first eCommerce company when I was 21 years old using Alibaba.com. In this post, I want to share a couple of amazing things I learned from that journey in case you would like to do the same!

When I was 21, I was making $27,000 a year from working at a call center. I began to ponder the idea of making money online instead of working a boring 9 to 5. Upon researching, I stumbled across Alibaba.

Alibaba is a great place to source products because there are millions on their site. It really opens your eyes to hundreds of business opportunities! That being said, here is what I learned from creating a 7 figure business with Alibaba!

1. Interview the Manufacturer

When researching which products to sell from Alibaba, it is important to interview the manufacturer. You must build a relationship with your seller because, at the end of the day, they are real people too! Say you start selling a whole bunch of their product. If you have a strong relationship with them, they may help make you a deal. Introduce yourself, share your goals, and build a real relationship with your manufacturer!

2. Order a Prototype

Before ordering a large quantity of anything, always order a prototype! Every single seller on Alibaba has a prototype option on their store. This allows you to test the product, provide feedback, and ensure quality. Some manufacturers will even send the prototype for free and only have you pay for the shipping.

The only time you don’t want to order a prototype is when you are marketing on a time-sensitive trend. Note that this is risky and should be avoided if at all possible.

3. Start With the Minimum Quantity

Don’t order 100,000 units right out the gate! Unless you’ve presold that many units, order a small quantity to begin. One mistake I made early on was ordering way too much inventory! I didn’t have a good measure of the demand and ended up not selling most of it. Now I order the minimum amount of bulk, see how long it takes to…