How To Sell On Alibaba To Maximize Your Sales & Profit (2024)

Running a WooCommerce store can be quite challenging, especially if you are a wholesale business. The main challenge is to start getting regular visits from potential clients that are ready to purchase in bulk.

In fact, even if your online store is up and running for a while, you may still find it difficult to get regular traffic without running Paid Ads (which can be quite expensive).

However, there is a way to get traffic from potential business clients other than paid ads. The solution is to list your products on popular online marketplaces for wholesalers. And if you operate in Europe or Japan, then one of the best options for you is to sell on Alibaba.

Alibaba is one of the largest online marketplaces in the world, where you can easily list your WooCommerce wholesale products and get regular sales with much less effort.

With over 800 million active buyers, Alibaba marketplace is a valuable platform for wholesale businesses looking to expand their reach.

And today, you will get a guide on how you can start taking advantage of selling on Alibaba.

In this article, you will learn,

Why you should sell on Alibaba,
The right Alibaba membership for you
How to list your products on Alibaba marketplaces

And eventually, you will learn how you can easily list your WooCommerce products on Alibaba and start getting more sales.

So let’s begin.

Why Sell on Alibaba?

As mentioned earlier, Alibaba currently has over 800 million active buyers. This means if you list your products there from Europe, Japan or any other country, you have 10 times more chance to get potential buyers there than you normally would via Paid Ads.

In fact, Alibaba provides robust marketing tools and services which can attract new customers and increase your brand visibility.

alibaba marketplace — Type caption (optional)

For example, depending on your membership, Alibaba allows you to define your target audience based on Interests, buying behaviours, and customer demographics so that your products are displayed to the right audience.

This gives you a chance to narrow down who you want to reach and increase your chances of conversions.

How To Start Selling On Alibaba?

First of all, the Alibaba marketplace is not free. You have to pay over $1999 per year to actively use their platform. However, considering you are a wholesaler, the ROI is huge (unless you are a startup business).

Normally, you can go for the two usual plans, Basic or Plus, or you may speak with a consultant for customized plans for a higher focus on the Ads budget for your Alibaba store.

Once you become a member, you can then design your store for the Alibaba platform and upload your products there using a CSV.

What Product Data is Needed to Sell on Alibaba?

To list your products on Alibaba, it’s important to ensure that you provide all the necessary product data with keyword-optimized content so that you can get maximum exposure.

The information in your product feed depends on your product category.

For every Alibaba product feed, there are 8 important pieces of information that you need to consider:

1. Basic information

In the basic information, you’ll add product type, product name and the product keyword.

2. Product Details

The product photo and videos will go to the product details. If you want, you can add a custom description here.

3. General Product Details

General product details depend on the category you are selling. The details are basically material, variety, size, colour, pattern etc category-specific attributes.

4. Product Features

This section will include all product features you have.

5. Customize Features

Here you’ll add more details of your product features.

6. Variable Pricing

You’ll add the product unit and quantity-based pricing in this attribute.

7. Trade Information

This is simply the trade information of your products. You can also receive the options trade alerts for your product.

8. Acceptable Payment

Here, you’ll add the payment option for your products

When your product data is ready, next you need to focus on uploading the products on the Alibaba platform.

But, it’s really tough and time-consuming if you try to upload them all manually. But, there is a solution to that. Keep reading to explore that.

How to Bulk Upload Your Products on Alibaba

Uploading your products on Alibaba can be a time-consuming process, especially if you have a large number of products to list.

Fortunately, Alibaba provides a bulk upload feature that allows you to upload multiple products at once.

Here’s how to use it:

Prepare your product data
Before you can upload your products in bulk, you need to prepare your product data in a CSV (comma-separated values) file format. You can use a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets to create your CSV file.
Navigate to the “Product” tab
Once you have your CSV file ready, log in to your Alibaba account and navigate to the “Product” tab.
Select “Bulk Upload”
Click on the “Bulk Upload” button and select “CSV File Upload” from the dropdown menu.
Upload your CSV file
Select your CSV file from your computer and upload it to Alibaba. Make sure to review your file to ensure that all of the product data is accurate and complete.
Map your product data
After uploading your CSV file, map your product data to the corresponding fields on Alibaba. It ensures that your product data is correctly aligned with Alibaba’s product data requirements.
Submit your products
Once you’ve mapped your product data, you can submit your products to Alibaba. Alibaba will review your products and let you know if there are any issues. So, you can fix them before you publish your products.

This bulk upload feature can save you time. And, you can efficiently upload multiple products to the marketplace.

Now, let’s find out how you can make this process easier with a reliable plugin.

How To Easily Promote Your WooCommerce Products on Alibaba

If you are a WooCommerce store owner and looking to promote on Alibaba, then we have a solution!

You can use the plugin Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce.

With the plugin, you can easily promote your WooCommerce products on 170+ online marketplaces. This plugin provides you pre-built merchant template so you don’t need to worry about merchant specifications and get your products accepted.

It also has a custom feed option, so you can customize your feed to get your expected exposure.

Here’s how you can easily promote your WooCommerce products on Alibaba using a Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce:

Step -1: Create a product feed

Once you have installed and activated the plugin, create a product feed for your WooCommerce products.

Follow the simple steps:

Go to Add New Feed
Set a feed title
Select the Custom option from the merchant drop-down
Set feed file type

Below this, you will see an attribute already listed which is the Product ID.

Now, you will add your preferred attributes which you need to sell on Alibaba.

Once you do that, your product feed will be ready.

Step-2: Export your product feed

Once your product feed is ready, you can export it in the required format for Alibaba. Product feed manager supports CSV, TXT, and XML formats, which are all compatible with Alibaba.

Click on the Publish button and your feed will be automatically downloaded.

edit alibaba product data — Type caption (optional)

Step-3: Upload your product feed to Alibaba

Now, it’s time to upload your product feed to Alibaba.

Follow the steps to upload your product feed to Alibaba:

Login to your Alibaba account
Firstly, log in to your Alibaba account. You need to create one if you haven’t already.
Go to “My Alibaba”
Once you log in, click on “My Alibaba”. It is located in the upper-right corner of the homepage.
Navigate to “Product Posting Management”
From the dropdown menu, select “Product Posting Management.”
Choose your product category
Choose the product category that best suits your product.
Click “Bulk Upload”
Under the “Product Management” section, click on “Bulk Upload”. After that, select “CSV” as the file format.
Upload your CSV file
Upload your CSV file by clicking on the “Upload File” button. You can either drag and drop your file or select it from your computer.
Map your product attributes
Alibaba provides a product attribute mapping feature. It allows you to match the product attributes in your CSV file to the attributes required by Alibaba. This step ensures that your product data is correctly formatted for Alibaba.
Preview and submit
Preview your product information to ensure that it is accurate and complete. If everything looks good, click “Submit” to publish your products on Alibaba.

Now, After listing your products successfully on Alibaba next step for you is to promote your product.

Step-4: Promote Your Products on Alibaba

To successfully promote your products on Alibaba and enhance sales for your WooCommerce store you can do the following:-

Utilize Alibaba Advertising
Consider using Alibaba’s advertising options to increase product visibility.
Offer Competitive Pricing
Set competitive prices and run promotions to attract buyers.
Highlight Unique Selling Points
Emphasize what sets your products apart from competitors.
Provide Excellent Customer Service
Respond promptly to inquiries and address customer concerns professionally.
Use Alibaba’s Social Media Channels
Engage with customers and share product updates on Alibaba’s social platforms.
Participate in Promotional Events
Join Alibaba’s sales campaigns for increased exposure.
Use Data Analytics
Analyze customer behaviour and product performance to optimize your strategies.
Encourage Reviews and Ratings
Positive feedback builds credibility and trust.
Monitor and Adjust
Regularly assess your performance and adapt your approach accordingly.

By following these steps, you can effectively promote your products on Alibaba and drive sales for your WooCommerce store. So, cheers!

Wrapping Up

As you can see, selling on Alibaba can help you expand your business to a larger international audience and take your WooCommerce wholesale business to the next level.

If you have the budget and are able to handle more orders, then it’s time you start promoting on Alibaba.

Since you now know how to generate the product data file from your WooCommerce store in just a few clicks, it should be quite easy for you to take advantage of this popular online wholesale marketplace.

Get Product Feed Manager for WooCommerce now.

It’s high time you take a step forward in growing your revenue significantly.

Cheers.

How To Sell On Alibaba To Maximize Your WooCommerce Wholesale Business [2024]