How to Choose Alibaba Trusted Suppliers & Tips for Minimizing Product Defects

Alibaba Trusted Suppliers

Admittedly, the name “China” will come first when you opt to import anything at the lowest price. To know which supplier is selling your desired product, you usually visit Alibaba’s website and find numerous suppliers, Alibaba trusted suppliers may include but many of you fail to find an authentic supplier and become scammed.

You must know some basic determinants of reliable suppliers and accentuate those while selecting any supplier to be trusted. Alibaba is a hub of any type of manufacturers and good sellers. Some sellers aim for one-time business and such they deliver the lowest quality products with many quality defects, A buyer who desires to buy quality products at the lowest price will fall in their trap. Whereas some other suppliers are providing a quality product at a reasonable price.

Need to mention that Alibaba may not be the best source of branded products. there are lots of things need to do before considering one supplier as a long-term relationship partner, Therefore, if you look for any exclusive goods for your Amazon FBA business, you should go check multi-places where for sourcing such items.

Notwithstanding having a chance of being scammed on Alibaba, it is undoubtedly a vast source of suppliers where you can see a massive number of sellers/manufacturers on one platform and connect to them easily. To be benefited from Alibaba largely, you have to be a strategic and smart buyer. You have to prioritize your requirements and offset the product’s specification against the price.

Number One Factor: Quality

Undeniably, the quality of the product is to be heavily weighted during supplier selection. Some manufacturers in China even Asia may offer you products at a very low price, but their thinking as to how to ensure quality is slightly different from what you are thinking of. In addition, their way of quality control will not match your own. They merely focus on how to produce at a minimal price. They do not bother too much about the durability of the products. Consequently, placing an order without fixing the quality aspects results in a huge unsold inventory.

To resolve such a problem, many buyers set up their office in China to observe the supplier’s production process, quality control activities, make liaison with Chinese manufacturers directly. If you do not have such an option or capability, you can get in touch with a third-party inspection agency like AQI Service which will monitor quality issues on behalf of you. If you have neither of the above, you will be receiving a lot of defective products. Because expecting a defect-free lot from any Chinese vendor in every shipment is not feasible.

Type of defects:

Basically, there are three kinds of manufacturing defects which are described as follow-

1. Minor: This type of defect usually does not affect the product’s functionality and so the buyer can ignore it. Probable minor defects are fingerprint marks, uncut thread ends, small dirt marks, and similar.
2. Major: These defects are visible, but do not hamper the product’s functionality greatly. Some common major defects are as bad packaging, poor assembly, low-quality material, poor painting, etc
3. Critical: This type of defect affects a lot and let the product unsold or returned. These defects are highly visible. Due to these defects, products, as well as businesses, lose their functionality and popularity respectively.

Check more about the Example of Quality Defects  in Different Products

Reason For Defects:

The chance of defect is less for simple products, where it is a high chance for products of complex design. For example; printed tablecloths, wallpaper, or zip bags are so easing to manufacture that percentage of defects is negligible. Reversely, items that are made of different components and assembly require too much attention, have a higher chance of being defective. Defects occur either for the workers who are either producing or assembling the item, or the machine which is not properly functioning.

As defect seems to be intertwined, you cannot expect 100% good products in every shipment. Moreover, you should set an acceptable range of defect percentages.  Here is an example:

• Minor defects – 3~4%
• Major defects – 2~3%
• Critical defects – 0%

No tolerance for critical defects as you cannot sell any product on Amazon, which is critically defective. Though minor defects are not such a big problem, you should concentrate on major defects. Sometimes, it creates a bad impression on the seller and the customer will not repeat his/her buying that deteriorates your growth. Simultaneously, the average rating of such items in Amazon will decline owing to repetitive negative reviews of customers.

Way to Minimize Product Defects:

Let’s discuss how you will overcome these hurdles. Actually, there is not any magical solution as to what to do for getting a 100% defect-free shipment. Here are a few tips you can follow-

1) Supplier selection:

At the outset, you have to select the best suppliers. If you make a comparative statement of quotations you have collected from a different supplier, you can extrapolate what is happening next. You usually should not go with the one whom quote is far below than others if not there is any special condition in their proposal. Buying materials at the cheapest price does not always result in profit; rather it holds a chance of wasting business capital.

2) Sampling Process:

If you ask your Chinese supplier to send some samples of the final product before final delivery, you can reduce the possibility of getting a faulty product at the bit. However, if you see any nonconformity or any kind of defects, inform the supplier immediately. Sample must meet your expectation completely. Until and unless you receive the product as you desired, it will not be a wise decision to place the final order.

3) Arranging a visit:

Sitting with your supplier physically might help you to make them understand what you are actually looking for. Before placing a bulk order, visit their factory premises at least once. It will build rapport and suppliers will be conscious of your requirement. If the situation is not in favor of you for meeting with them, you can assign a third-party inspection agency who will contact your seller directly to make things clear and ensure the quality of the product. If your supplier is from China or any Asian country, AQI Service is, probably, the best choice. They have a qualified and professional inspection team to help you with quality control

In conclusion, product defect is a part of the importing process. Though you cannot stop receiving defective products completely from China, you can be precautious before sending anything to Amazon. Simultaneously, you have to discuss with your supplier when the number of damaged products is inordinate.

Related:

• Defect Sorting Inspection Service (DSS) & Full Inspection
• A Comprehensive Guide to Quality Inspection Costs
• 4 Steps Amazon FBA Seller Should Not Skip When Sourcing in China
• What if You Need to Book Defect Sorting Job: 100% Check
• 5 Types of Different Quality Inspection Services
• What’s Defect Classification in AQL Inspection?

Author: AQI Service as a professional quality control service company in China specialized in providing a complete range of quality inspection and testing certification services in China & Asia for global importers, buyers, retailers, and sellers.