Welcome to the Insider Q&A series, where we shine a spotlight on the individuals who make our organization thrive and pick their brains to learn about how businesses can flourish on Alibaba.com.
In this series, we delve into the perspectives our staff members have gathered from years of personal experience and observation to find the various threads that connect successful USA-based sellers on Alibaba.com. Through the Insider Q&A, we invite you to meet the people working behind the scene, discover the wealth of knowledge they possess, and gain a deeper understanding of how wholesalers, small-business owners, and manufacturers continue to prosper on Alibaba.com.
In today’s Insider Q&A, we interview Eric Cross, Head of Sales at Alibaba.com North America. In his 8 years at Alibaba.com, Eric worked as a category manager in our China headquarters before joining the North American customer success team in 2021. He currently leads the North American sales team tasked with developing the domestic supply base.
Question #1
Alibaba.com: What elevates sellers to become more successful on Alibaba.com?
Eric: Punctual and consistent engagement is a cornerstone to success on Aliababa.com. We’ve found that successful sellers invest enough time and resources to maintain high activity, lending to better customer service and more sales opportunities.
Question #2
Alibaba.com: What value do USA-based sellers provide that’s unique on Alibaba.com?
Eric: “Made in USA” is a particularly strong differentiator in dozens of categories ranging from medical equipment to skincare products. Typically, industries sensitive to after-sales service or in- and on-the-body products are highly competitive in the global marketplace.
Question #3
Alibaba.com: What can businesses do offline to support their success on Alibaba.com?
Eric: Alibaba.com is a powerful tool to help businesses with competitive value propositions grow and reach new segments and markets. Merchants who harness competitive capabilities in their industry, whether it be price, lead time, design, communication, etc., tend to find more success interacting with the professional buyer base on our platform.
Question #4
Alibaba.com: What should sellers expect in their first year of selling on Alibaba.com?
Eric: Sellers who are committed to an aggressive rollout of their Alibaba.com storefront, attend the Alibaba.com Seller Training E-course (ASTE), and maintain a close cadence with their account executive will tend to enjoy a shorter setup stage and a longer growth stage in their first year. While there are no guarantees, there’s potential to win business within weeks of starting out.
Question #5
Alibaba.com: What is the value of having a USA-based local support team on Alibaba.com?
Eric: Given Alibaba.com’s vast network abroad, maintaining strong local support within the USA gives our customers great confidence in the present and future of our domestic operations and our ability to support their unique needs. We’re also keenly aware of the high cost of skilled ecommerce operators and how that can present a barrier to entry for SMBs to participate in global trade. Therefore, our local service team is critical to the success of our USA-based suppliers on Alibaba.com.
