B2B portals
Buying in bulk is usually done through B2B sites. B2B = Business to Business. As the name suggests, it is a trade between two or more companies. Today, in the global world, international trade is unthinkable without B2B portals. The company's presence on the B2B portal is of crucial importance for its business. We present to you the 10 most popular and significant B2B sites:
The statistics were downloaded in 2015. from B2B sites a parameters for comparison are:
B2B Site Ranking = Website Ranks + Google Pages Indexed + SocioMeter (Facebook Like, Twitter, Google+, Etc) + Search Backlinks
As you can see in the first 10 sites, 6 are from China, and Alibaba is certainly the most interesting to us. All the Chinese sites listed above are similar in principle and have a display of companies and their products and services, and some also display offers and demands. We will not analyze the other sites in depth. We will only feature Alibaba.com as it is the world's leading B2B commerce site.
As you know one of the most important things in trading with an unknown partner is trust.
In order to start considering trade with a potential supplier, it is necessary to be WELL informed about him.
How, read on the page network of trust.
How do you know if there is even a company you want to do business with?
We know that a company website, especially if it is only a presentation on one of the larger websites, is absolutely not enough.
The company you want to cooperate with simply has to have its own unique website.
That is why on our site on the page Chinese companies there are only companies with a personal presentation.
We found the vast majority of companies precisely on Alibaba, but today a large number of those sites do not work.
In the past period, that is, since the website Import from China was created, we have noticed that many links to companies have disappeared, even though they were correct when we set them up!
We will not delete them so that you can see the extent of fraud on the Internet.
Links to companies disappear for a number of reasons: the carelessness of the company that allows their domain to expire, the company's lack of interest in the website, a change of site, the collapse of the company, but often it is a question of companies dealing with fraud.
Fraudulent companies open a site, deceive a few visitors and close the site.
That is why we introduced the term Year, which indicates how long a link to a company has been on our site.
In this way, you can see how long a company has had an active website, which is a good indicator of its seriousness. and whether you can trust a company you've only seen on the internet.
Alibaba
Alibaba is a portal where companies can register and present their products. So, the company within Alibaba has its own website - its own internet presentation. Membership can be free (Free Membership) or you can be a Gold Member (Gold Supplier Membership). As a Gold member you have 3 packages basic, standard and premium. Membership fees for these packages change over time, but these are roughly the prices:
- US$1,899 = 1 year Gold Supplier Basic Membership (US $1,399) + US $500 Extra Inquiries Package
- US$3,499 = 1 year Gold Supplier Standard Membership (US $2,999) + US $500 Extra Inquiries Package
- US$6,499 = 1 year Gold Supplier Premium Membership (US $5,999) + US $500 Extra Inquiries Package
Of course, with a larger package, you also have greater opportunities, the advantage of placing products in more visible places, the influx of a greater number of requests for the purchase of goods, etc. Companies marked Assessed Suppliers have been verified by a third party and have the following label:
Which means that someone was with them in the factory in and discovered their existence and business.
The main question for us as a customer is whether all Gold Members are reliable partners with whom you can trade freely?
Of course not!!!
Alibaba only registers that the company exists as a legal entity registered by the competent authorities (and that's all). That is why they advise you that when you do business through Alibaba, you make the payment through Alibaba (Alibaba.com Secure Payment formerly Escrow) or according to you the most secure way.
Another form of buyer protection is Trade Assurance. This is a service created by Alibaba that serves to create trust between the seller and the buyer. With the help of this service, your purchase is protected in case the products are not sent on time as defined by the contract or if the quality of the product does not meet the standards defined by the contract.
All services thatprovided by Alibaba can be found on the page Services.
Abbreviations and their meaning
The use of generally accepted abbreviations in international trade is common, and we present you with the most common terms.
OEM - (Original Design Manufacturer) means that you, the customer, determine how the product will look. So the product is made according to your idea, project and the like. In practice, it is usually your logo or brand that is glued, drawn or printed on the product.
ODM - (Original Design Manufacturer) another case is if you want the company you work with to come up with the specification and design of your product. Then you need companies that provide ODM services.
FOB,EXW... Price - Price of the product. The terms next to the price indicate the place of sale, e.g. EXW - ex-works price, FOB - Free Ship (...contracted port of shipment) etc. More about the abbreviations found with the price on the page Transport of goods
MOQ - (Minimum Order Quantity) is the minimum quantity that the seller supplies.
FOB Price 8.99 - 18.99 - It can be confusing when you see two prices like in this example. Here the price is directly related to the quantity you order and for MOQ a higher price is taken. Therefore, a higher price is always taken for the minimum quantity delivered by the seller. The bigger your order, the price per piece drops to the lowest price it can't go below.
Important note: The product prices shown on Alibaba are often not correct, but are deliberately lowered in order for sellers to attract buyers!
Supply Ability - Ability to supply, i.e. how much of the appropriate product the seller is able to produce in a unit of time (day, week, month, year)
Port - The port from which the goods would be shipped
DHL,UPS,FEDEX,EMS - method of sending the goods if they are sent by air. Only express mails are listed here, which are significantly more expensive than sending packages by regular mail. It is true that a package sent by classic mail travels longer. More about sending goods on the page Transport of goods
Payment Terms: T/T, Western union, Paypal, MoneyGram, L/C - payment types accepted by the seller
1. L/C's - Letters of Credit
Letter of credit is a letter of credit. A letter of credit is a method of payment to a supplier, and the bank considers it an off-balance sheet placement.
Most commonly refers to an irrevocable documentary letter of credit.
It is most often used when the buyer and supplier do not trust each other. So the buyer, when he opens a letter of credit in his bank, the supplier is sure that the goods delivered to him will be paid for, and in the letter of credit, the buyer puts conditions according to the agreement with the supplier and assures himself that he will get what he asked for.
It means mandatory conditions: invoice, delivery note and bill of lading or bill of lading (depending on how the delivery is made)
additional conditions: certificate of quantity, certificate of quality, record of receipt of goods, etc.
By opening the buyer's letter of credit with its bank, it sends the supplier's bank a message (swift) that the letter of credit has been opened and delivery can start.
In most cases, letters of credit are arranged with a payment delay of 60, 90, 120 days from the date of the invoice or the date of delivery (which is usually identical) or upon seeing the documents.
The point is that the buyer and the supplier agree on the terms of delivery and the necessary documents for payment, and banks work only on instructions.
Upon maturity of the letter of credit for collection (depending on the agreed delay in payment), the buyer must deposit the money into the account at his Bank, because otherwise the Bank must pay the supplier from its funds.
With a letter of credit, both the buyer and the supplier ensure that everything will go according to agreement, and banks charge a commission for their services, each to their client. There are several types of letters of credit, and the most common are revocable and irrevocable (whether the buyer can or cannot cancel payment), confirmed or unconfirmed (guarantee of the bank that issued the letter of credit), at sight (fulfillment of the terms of the letter of credit), etc.
For more, ask your bank
2. T/T - Bank to Bank Wire Transfer
1) What is T/T?
T/T is what we call bank transfer.
It is a normal transfer of money from your bank account to any bank anywhere in the world.
2) What is required to transfer money via T / T
Financial information of the recipient
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User's bank name
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Name Account Owner (User)
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Account number
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Swift Code of the payee's bank
Usual data for international transfer!
3) What is SWIFT CODE?
It represents a closed telecommunications network that connects banks and various other financial organizations, primarily with the aim of ensuring fast and safe money transfers. In our country, the term SWIFT is also used for the confirmation of sending money that is obtained from the bank, which is actually a copy of the SWIFT message.
For more, ask your bank!
3. PayPal - Ebay owned payment system
PayPal is nothing more than a company that handles transactions between buyers and sellers (receiving and sending money). PayPal undertakes the money transaction and charges a commission for this service. As such, he assumes all responsibility regarding the security and confidentiality of the identity of the user of the service.
4. Western Union, xoom, Money Bookers - Wire transfer option payment person to person
Western Union money order service is the fastest way to transfer money to/from abroad. Money can be sent in this way to/from over 200 countries in the world.
The post office offers Western Union services exclusively in local currency. The conversion of foreign currencies is done according to the Western Union exchange rate.
The post office provides the Western Union (WU) money order service, in the national currency throughout the territory of the Republic of Serbia, and thus enables users of postal services to transfer money in international traffic.< br />The fee for the services performed is calculated according to the Western Union price list and is paid exclusively by the sender.
WU referral services:
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Receipt of money - Payment of Western Union money order
The Money Receipt service enables the payment of money in dinars at post office counters sent from any Western Union location from over 200 countries. Money is available within minutes after sending. Payment is made only when a valid identity document is presented. If the recipient does not have a valid personal document, you should recommend him to contact the sender to change the name and surname of the recipient. In order for the recipient to withdraw the money sent, he needs to know the expected amount to be paid, the name and surname of the sender and the country from which the money was sent.
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Sending money - Western Union money order payment
The Money Sending service enables the payment of money in national currency at post office counters that can be picked up at any Western Union location in over 200 countries. To send money out of the country, it is enough to go to one of the post offices that provide Western Union services. The sender submits a valid personal document, communicates the name and surname of the recipient and the country to which he is sending the money. The sender sends money in the local currency, while the recipient can withdraw money in the currency available in the country to which the money is sent. The sender can fix the transfer by requiring payment to be made in a specific amount and currency (eg $1,000.00). In that case, the recipient can withdraw money only in the currency indicated. This way, sending is not affected by exchange rate changes. After the transfer has been made, the sender should inform the recipient about the amount he sent, the exact name and surname of the person who sent the money, the country from which the money was sent as well as the control number of the transaction. Please note that there are daily and monthly limits per person for sending money via Western Union.
Business with Chinese companies is the most risky when the seller requests payment exclusively through Western Union. Such a seller must be avoided!!!
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Home delivery works in some countries of the region!!!
Home delivery is an additional service that enables payment of money to the recipient's address. When sending money from abroad to Serbia, the sender can choose to have the payment made at the recipient's address. This service is offered only by Post.