Many freshers in the dropshipping business assume Alibaba and AliExpress to be exactly the same. The Alibaba Group indeed owns both Alibaba and AliExpress. However, there’s a reason why their owner has decided to create two separate business platforms instead of a single one.
Let’s find out the differences between the two and decide which one is better for your dropshipping business.
Why Do Dropshipping Businesses Choose Alibaba?
Alibaba is simply the best in the business. With a wide variety of products and an extensive customer base, Alibaba has expanded quickly and ranks among the best e-commerce brands in the world.
Dropshipping store owners choose Alibaba because it contains an extensive directory where millions of suppliers register themselves to find potential buyers.
The product pricing on Alibaba is very generous. The larger order the businessmen place, the more substantial discounts they get. They end up saving a lot more money in the process.
Alibaba also allows smooth and transparent communication between the buyers and sellers to avoid any future conflict.
While all these features and policies work in favor of large and established dropshipping companies, there are some downsides to Alibaba for smaller businesses.
Downsides Of Alibaba For Smaller Dropshipping Businesses
Alibaba follows the business model of B2B. It means that the platform works on a corporate level, and has nothing to do with the ordinary people.
The sellers registered on Alibaba have a higher business expectation from their buyers and set their MOQs accordingly. If you browse on Alibaba for a product, you will find that most of the sellers refuse to sell in smaller quantities. Some of them who do sell smaller quantities, put up an unreasonably high price for them.
How Can Smaller Dropshipping Businesses Benefit From Alibaba?
If you’re a beginner or run a small dropshipping business, Alibaba is certainly not a feasible platform for you. However, there are other ways in which the platform can benefit you.
Browsing on Alibaba can provide you with excellent business insights. For instance, if you haven’t made up your mind about the product you will sell, you can look for an idea on Alibaba. You can also compare the MOQs and pricings of different sellers of that product and devise your pricing strategy.
Alibaba has another exciting feature. Many sellers are registered both on Alibaba as well as AliExpress, to create a broader customer base for their products. If you find and like a particular seller’s product on Alibaba, you can reach out to them and enquire if they’re on AliExpress, and take your business deal further there.
Reasons Why Dropshipping Businesses Choose AliExpress Over Alibaba
Unlike Alibaba, the platform of AliExpress follows the business model of B2C. The B2C model of AliExpress lends more flexibility to all buyers and makes it ideal for smaller dropshipping businesses.
These are the reasons why dropshipping entrepreneurs prefer AliExpress over Alibaba for their business:
A Better Product Filtering System
Because AliExpress customers also buy products for personal use, the platform has a more-refined filtering system that lets buyers find what they’re looking for more easily.
No MOQs
Following a B2C model, sellers on AliExpress have no MOQs. It means you don’t need to keep stock or take care of the shipping process. You can place an order for your customers directly on AliExpress and let them take care of the shipping.
Lower Prices
Due to the absence of MOQ, the price of the products you buy from AliExpress will not be affected by the quantity of your order. You can easily place orders sized according to your needs.
Smooth Refund Procedure
Since AliExpress also sells to individual customers, they take complete responsibility for returns and refunds in case the package is damaged. You can rest easy.
No Business License Required
AliExpress provides flexibility to its buyers. If you own a dropshipping start-up and have not received a business license yet, you can still buy from AliExpress without a bother.
Summing Up
Both Alibaba and AliExpress are designed for the convenience of businesses like dropshipping in finding the right suppliers anywhere in the world. However, each platform is designed to serve a specific purpose. If you’re a smaller dropshipping business want to avoid maintaining a stock of your own, AliExpress is the right place for you.
