Sourcing products from China to sell on Amazon is one of the most common and profitable business models for ecommerce sellers. With Chinese manufacturers being more cost-efficient than those in the U.S or EU, this option is a no-brainer for overseas importers.
But Amazon has strict standards for the products they allow to be sold on their marketplace, and customers have high standards of their own. To be successful in such a competitive business, importers need to take specific steps to ensure they are getting a quality product from their supplier.
These three tips for sourcing products from China to sell on Amazon will help importers and Amazon FBA sellers establish and maintain quality control for their products.
1. Find the Right Supplier
You must conduct due diligence on your target supplier to determine whether they can supply products that meet Amazon standards. Conducting a supplier audit is the most reliable way of ensuring that your suppliers meet Amazon's expectations.
Some of the reasons why you should conduct a supplier audit include:
- Reducing risks such as safety risks, quality risks, non-compliance risks, and cost volatility
- Nurturing your supplier-seller relationship if you're products comply with your specifications
- Guaranteeing customer satisfaction with your product
Partnering with a neutral third-party FBA inspection company to perform the audit is an easy and reliable solution when your company is overseas and you can’t visit the factory yourself
2. Ask for Samples
You should always request a sample of your product before agreeing to do business with any supplier. This allows you to test the product and determine whether it meets the minimum standards needed for your target market. It also helps you test the product's design and your supplier's ability to produce good products before placing an order.
There are three types of samples you can request from your supplier. These samples include:
- Factory sample: This is a ready-made product that isn't manufactured according to your specification. It's suitable for assessing the manufacturer's production capability.
- Custom-Made Product Samples: A pre-production sample is a sample used to verify a manufacturer's ability to produce a product according to your specification
- Production Sample: This type of sample is collected from mass-produced goods. They are used for laboratory testing, functional tests, and quality control. It's recommendable to order the production sample from a third party to ensure it is from a batch of the target products.
3. Establish Quality Control
Amazon has set strict standards for sellers who want to sell using their FBA service. In that case, sellers should consider a third-party inspection service to ensure that their products meet their quality. A third-party inspection service guarantees that your product meets Amazon FBA standards.
With an FBA inspection, your products will be checked to ensure that they meet the quality and safety levels before being sent to a China-based Amazon warehouse.
Otherwise, if you fail to consider an inspection, your products may fail to meet certain levels and quality ratings. Therefore, you might end up receiving too many complaints about your product's quality and might have it banned from selling on Amazon.
Apart from ensuring that your product meets Amazon quality and safety levels, establishing quality control can help you in the following ways:
- Attract high customer review and high return rates once you guarantee high-quality products to your customers
- Prevents the supply of poor quality products from unethical suppliers who are more concerned with making money rather than delivering quality products
- It prevents huge mess that might result from errors in the labeling or packaging of your products. For instance, using the wrong barcode can have your products shipped to a different destination. This might be too costly in the long run when you try to reverse the error
Source Your Products from China with Asia Quality Focus
Sourcing products from China and selling them on Amazon offers an excellent opportunity for your online business. However, it would be best to use the proper measures to guarantee the best products for your clients. Partnering with a quality control service provider will ensure that your product meets the highest standards for Amazon and your customers.
At Asia Quality Focus, we provide the best quality assurance services to sellers aiming to outsource their products globally. Contact us today and learn more about our services.
