Whether you’ve been sourcing for years or just starting out, having a bit of assurance along the way can help make things easier. Until very recently, small to medium size businesses have not had the privilege of working directly with overseas manufacturers and that has mainly been the domain for the big guys. However, thanks to websites like Alibaba.com, almost anyone today can find and work directly with manufacturers from all over the world.
Alibaba.com started in 1999 with the simple philosophy of making it easy to do business anywhere. It was also one of the first platforms to include a large selection of Chinese manufacturers, making it convenient for business buyers to connect directly with manufacturers online. Today Alibaba.com is taking the initiative to further change the way small businesses source. In efforts of taking a leap in reducing friction in global trade, Alibaba.com launched Trade Assurance a couple years back and it still remains the first of its kind solution in B2B.
Trade Assurance counters some of the biggest concerns often associated with global trade and enables businesses of all sizes to trade confidently with overseas manufacturers. Product quality and on-time shipments are usually some of the top concerns of small business buyers who are getting ready to work with a new supplier. Trade Assurance addresses these concerns by protecting the buyer from the moment they initiate their payment until the product is delivered to them.
Through a supplier credit rating system, buyers on Alibaba.com are able to ensure they select and communicate only with suppliers that have a sufficient amount of coverage. Buyers are able to work with their chosen suppliers directly through Alibaba.com from filling out the purchase order form to initiating payment to their chosen supplier. Using Trade Assurance also gives buyers a range of payment options including: Telegraphic Transfer (T/T), Credit Cards and Bank Transfers through CitiBank. And the best part is that the Trade Assurance process helps navigate you through all the required fields needed to complete your order.
And you’re protected in two ways, first if the quality of the products delivered do not meet the standards as set in your purchase order. And second, if your supplier fails to ship your orders on-time. In either case the buyer can file a dispute with Alibaba.com and get their money back. And Trade Assurance does not cost anything, as a buyer you just have to make sure that you filter your supplier selection on Alibaba to only include Trade Assurance suppliers. And although the bulk of participating supplier are only in China today, Alibaba.com is working on expanding the service to include suppliers in other countries across Southeast Asia.
So whether you’re looking to source products from overseas for the first time or you’re a seasoned pro, having a bit of assurance is always a good thing.
Learn more about Trade Assurance at: http://tradeassurance.alibaba.com/
