How to Know a Wholesale Supplier is Legitimate
One of the scariest things about doing business online is trying to figure out which businesses are legitimate and which are not. We have all heard the horror stories about people losing lots of money or getting their identity stolen online. How can you avoid such a fate? Fortunately, there are many precautions that you can take to avoid becoming a victim of these companies. Here are a few tips for figuring out the wholesale DNA of the various wholesale suppliers that you may come across in your online dealings. As always, keep that old adage close to you at all times: if something appears to be too good to be true, well, it probably is.
1. Check out the wholesale supplier’s web site.
Ask yourself: does the web site look professional? Or is it rather primitive looking? Does it look like a web site that is updated frequently, or does it look like nobody has touched the site since sometime in 1998? Does it have someone you can contact? If it does, make it a point to send an email or call the number listed on the web site. If nobody ever returns your email or you can’t get in touch with someone over the phone, avoid doing business with the company. You want to do business with a wholesale supplier that you can get in touch with when you need to.
2. Check the domain registration history.
One easy way to find out if their might be something iffy about one of the wholesale supplier’s that you are thinking of doing business with is to check out their domain registration history. This means that you should find out how long the supplier has had a web site on the World Wide Web, and when their domain is set to expire (if ever). For instance, let us say that you found a wholesale supplier that appears to be promising. They offer just the right kind of products that you have been looking for at the right price. But you have never heard of the company before, there’s not much information about it online, and you can’t seem to contact anyone from the company to speak to them directly. And their web site looks kind of bare bones. What should you do? Should you take the risk and place a small order? Or, should you forget that particular wholesale supplier and move on to a more established company? One way to find out more about a wholesale supplier is to check their domain record. If they have only recently registered their domain name online, and it is set to expire within the year, this may be a sign that the site is not completely legitimate. They may be just setting up temporary shop in order to swindle unsuspecting clients.
3. Deal only with registered and well-established wholesale suppliers.
As you begin to enter the world of wholesaling, it is wise to deal only with those suppliers with already-established reputations. There is nothing worse than being swindled out of your hard-earned investment cash just as you are starting up your own business. To find reputable wholesale suppliers, contact your local industry trade organization. They have registered members who are in good standing.
4. Watch out for fraudsters who use the name of reputable dealers.
There are many unsavory characters out there that may use the name of well-known wholesale suppliers to send out fake emails with payment instructions and other falsified information. If you notice anything suspicious about these types of emails, contact the company right away to make sure that the email is from them.
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