Ready to decode the language of Alibaba.com and elevate your business knowledge?
Let’s dive into the alphabet defining the B2B landscape and uncover strategies to elevate your business game. Whether you’re seeking information on the Alibaba.com AM Service, Gold Supplier status, or Trade Assurance, this glossary serves as your compass in the vast world of Alibaba.com.
Account Management (AM) Service
Direct help and expertise from a team of professionals without intermediaries. Our USA-based account management (AM) team gives sellers the 1:1 support, knowledge, and guidance they need to take them through the entire seller journey.
Business Verification (BV)
Business verification (BV) is a necessary process for any new seller before selling on Alibaba.com. To pass BV, sellers must submit documentation verifying that their business is legitimate. It’s a critical component of an Alibaba.com seller membership as it establishes the validity of the company’s status and authorized contact person.
Categories
Sellers can list their products in a plethora of categories and sub-categories on Alibaba.com, ranging from electronics and industrial machinery to fashion and home decor.
Data analytics
Alibaba.com offers a comprehensive set of tools to help sellers get more data about buyer habits. With functions like Recent Trends, Keywords Searched by Buyers, and Synonyms, sellers can see which keywords have been trending over the past seven or 30 days, keywords searched by buyers before and after searching target keywords, and synonyms of target keywords to capture more search results.
Enterprise plans
For businesses ready to scale, we offer two memberships at the enterprise level: Premium and Verified Supplier. All enterprise plans set a seller’s business up for success with features like the premium AM service and $2,000 KWA credit.
Flexible payment plans
For both the Basic and Standard plans, sellers have the option to pay quarterly or annually. Sellers can keep their cash flow flexible with quarterly payments or maximize their membership by saving 15% with annual payments.
Gold Supplier
Gold Supplier is the way we’ve referred to all sellers on Alibaba.com for more than 20 years. Gold represents good quality and a great reputation. Once approved, Gold Supplier members are authorized to display the Gold Supplier icon to demonstrate that their business has been verified as a legally registered business.
Hassel-free store launch service
The launch service is a one-time aid for Alibaba.com Standard, Premium, and Verified Supplier Seller memberships. After passing BV, our AM team will start the service to help businesses start selling quickly. Sellers prepare the photos and descriptions, we do the rest.
Inquiry
On Alibaba.com, an inquiry refers to a request for information or clarification about a product from a company. It’s the initial stage of interest where a potential buyer seeks more details to make an informed decision. Buyers can initiate inquiries directly to any seller. Different from other e-commerce platforms, Alibaba.com lets sellers own the relationship with customers and conduct transactions through the platform of their choosing. Inquiries responded to within four hours have 30% more follow-up responses from potential buyers, so the My Alibaba seller workbench and the AliSupplier mobile app are available to ensure they’re able to respond quickly.
Just-in-time production
Just-in-time production is an inventory management technique that can be tricky but works well for small businesses with limited cash on hand. This inventory management technique details ordering and receiving products just before they need to be shipped. This technique is also ideal for businesses with limited storage or warehouse space. When sellers have minimal inventory on hand and order it as soon as a customer makes a sale, they reduce the risk associated with storage and pre-ordering high stock levels that tie up their cash flow.
Keyword Advertising (KWA)
Keyword Advertising (KWA) is a competitive advertising strategy based on product keywords. Alibaba.com offers multiple touchpoints to reach buyers through their purchasing journey with KWA. Sellers can target strategically chosen keywords to increase qualified traffic and boost sales.
Lead generation
As a world-leading B2B e-commerce platform with over 40 million buyers, Alibaba.com provides several tools and features to help sellers generate more leads and effectively connect with potential buyers.
Minimum order quantity (MOQ)
Minimum order quantity (MOQ) is the lowest number of units a wholesale seller allows buyers to purchase at one time. Sellers put this restriction in place so that they are not wasting time and resources on orders that would deliver very little profit. This concept is very straightforward and is used by wholesalers around the world.
New York Pavilion
Our newest pavilion, the New York Pavilion, is a section of Alibaba.com that exclusively hosts products from New York-based companies. Similar to the New York Pavilion, the California Pavilion exclusively hosts products from California-based companies.
Organic traffic
Organic traffic refers to the visitors that come to a website through unpaid means. Examples of organic traffic sources include word of mouth, social media, and search engines.
Product Showcase
Product showcase is a tool that allows Alibaba.com sellers to boost their product listings so they appear at the top of the marketplace’s search engine result pages.
Quotation
In B2B, buyers typically have special requests for each order. A quotation, also referred to as a quote, is a formal document or communication provided by a seller to a potential buyer. The purpose of a quotation is to outline the terms and conditions of a proposed transaction, including the pricing details for the products or services offered. Buyers and sellers alike can utilize the Alibaba.com Request for Quotation marketplace to seek new business opportunities.
Request for Quotation (RFQ)
The Alibaba.com Request for Quotation (RFQ) marketplace allows sellers to take the initiative to connect with buyers. Prospective buyers post descriptions of products they need and sellers respond with a quote for the request. Every day, over 20,000 new requests are posted on the Alibaba.com RFQ market across myriad unique industries and categories. Each paid membership comes with a fixed monthly quotation credit to respond to buyers’ RFQs at no extra cost.
Storefront
Storefront, also known as Minisite, is an Alibaba.com online multi-page store dedicated entirely to each seller’s business, where sellers can create a unique digital identity to help their brand stand out and showcase their goods. A storefront is easy to set up, with no coding or design skills necessary. The storefront is a powerful asset because customers from anywhere in the world can find it and see a seller’s brand and products in 17 different languages auto-translated by Alibaba.com.
Trade Assurance
Trade assurance is a transaction protection program to secure all payments made through Alibaba.com. We provide buyers on Alibaba.com with secure ways to conduct payments; protect against unforeseen circumstances, such as product or shipping issues; and mediate between buyers and sellers to resolve any issues related to the purchase. Built to protect sellers and buyers alike, this program can shorten the selling cycle, especially for first-time orders.
Unlimited product listings
From 100 product listings to 1,000 and beyond, sellers can create as many product listings for their Alibaba.com storefront as they desire. The bulk upload feature allows sellers to create a more efficient workflow.
Verified Supplier (VS)
Verified Supplier (VS) is the top membership tier offered by Alibaba.com, which aims to enhance business exposure and establish trust by verifying and showcasing supply capabilities and advantages. Exclusive features include a highly limited search filter, maximum traffic booster, third-party facility inspection and verifications, and more.
Wholesale
Alibaba.com is primarily a wholesale platform, allowing sellers to connect with buyers looking to purchase products in bulk.
Alibaba.com x partners
From content creators, channel partners, and associations to financial institutions, trade show organizers, and trade promotion agencies, we work with partners to mutually expand our business horizons.
Yield
On the sales side of B2B, yield can refer to the revenue generated from a specific sales effort or campaign. It is a measure of the effectiveness of a sales strategy or initiative. Successful sellers on Alibaba.com often focus on optimizing their listings, providing excellent customer service, and adapting to market trends to create a positive yield.
0% sales commission
There is 0% sales commission on any and all sales on Alibaba.com. Sellers keep what they earn.
Are you ready to dive into the world of online B2B sales? View our membership options to learn which best fits your business’s needs.
