The Ultimate Guide to Selling on Temu
Since airing their Super Bowl ad, Temu has risen as one of the most talked-about e-commerce marketplaces despite only launching in late 2022.
It’s already become the number one downloaded app in both the United States and Canada. With over 100 million active users in the United States alone, it’s no surprise why Amazon sellers have been intrigued with selling on the platform.
Read on in this article to learn everything there is to know about selling on Temu and how it can work wonders for your business.
Temu (pronounced as tee-moo) is a one-stop, international, B2C e-commerce marketplace that launched back in September 2022. It is a subsidiary of its parent company, PDD Holdings, Inc., which also owns Pinduoduo, another recognized e-commerce retailer that focuses on agricultural products.
While most of its vendors are based in China (leading people to believe it’s Chinese-owned), Temu is a company based in Boston, Massachusetts. The platform offers a wide range of items in at least 29 main categories and 250 subcategories. This includes clothes, beauty products, shoes, electronics, and even small home appliances.
To set itself apart from mainstream ecommerce platforms, Temu uses cutting-edge technology and a massive logistics network to operate in several nations across Asia, Europe, Africa, and America.
Similar to other online marketplaces, it offers standard e-commerce services, including product search, price comparison, and seller ratings.
How to Sign Up as a New Seller on Temu
To start selling on Temu, there are two ways to enter the marketplace. You can either join as a verified seller on Temu or its parent company, Pinduoduo Inc.
Join as a Verified Pinduoduo Seller
If you’re already a seller on Pinduoduo, then signing up on Temu as a registered seller is super easy.
However, if you’re new to the platform entirely, you can sign up as a cross-border B2C merchant by visiting their website.
Once there, create your account and enter the verification code sent to you via mobile.
Next, log into your account and complete the merchant sign up process. Some important requirements to have ready when signing up as a seller on Pinduoduo are the following:
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- ID of the store manager
- Overseas company registration certificate
- ID of the legal representative of the company (validity for at least 3 months)
Lastly, submit your application and wait to be approved. For more information, you can also check out Pinduoduo’s YouTube video below on how to sign up as a foreign merchant.
Join as a New Seller in Temu
If you opt to join through Temu, all you need to do is follow these simple steps:
Sign Up on Temu
The first thing you’ll need to do is to create an account on the Seller’s Center page. You’ll need to first send an email to seller@temu.com to receive an invite code.
Once you’ve finished creating your account, you’ll be asked to log in to the website and confirm your account by entering the verification code sent to your registered email.
Complete the Merchant Registration Process
Now that you’ve signed up and confirmed your account, you must then complete the merchant registration process. To do so, you’ll need to select your store type and the kind of business you’ll run
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- Flagship store
- Department flagship store
- Exclusive seller
- Authorized retailer
From there, you’ll need to supply the necessary information about your business by filling out the qualification form. You’ll need to have the following documents ready to register on Temu
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- Valid ID of the store manager
- Distribution or logistics documentation (e.g., proof of warehouse partners)
- Documentation of brand qualification, (e.g., trademarks, authorization letters)
- Legal representative's ID (e.g., passport, driver's license)
- International proof of your business and registration (e.g., business license)
All of the documents above are necessary to complete your registration. Failure to submit any of the documents will result in a rejection of your application.
Once all of the documents have been uploaded, you will be asked to input additional information about your store such as the name and logo. After you’ve filled out all the information needed, Temu will start the verification process for your store which typically takes about 3 business days.
How Much Does It Cost to Sell on Temu?
The great thing about selling on Temu is that they don’t charge any fees for listing a product.
However, whenever you make a sale on the website, Temu will charge a commission fee ranging around 2-5% for each transaction, depending on the category of the product sold.
Take note that this fee only applies to successful sales. So, if your product gets returned, you won’t be charged Temu’s commission fee.
What Can You Sell on Temu?
Temu offers a wide variety of products sold on their site that sellers can list from. Some examples include women’s and men’s clothing, accessories, beauty products, electronics, and even pet supplies.
That being said, it is also important for sellers to meet certain standards when it comes to the quality of their products and customer service to make sure that a positive shopping experience is instilled in the minds of every buyer.
Restrictions to Selling on Temu
The app categorizes its levels of bans into three categories on the Temu seller center. Each seller must be aware of these crucial pointers to know what could get them banned from the platform.
Categories of Bans
Level 1
These restrictions are imposed on sellers who commit less significant violations. When Level 1 restrictions are imposed, the seller is required to remove and forbid the selling of the affected products. Furthermore, sellers may be required to remove store advertisements from the platform.
Level 2
These restrictions are mid-soft bans that will lead to the removal of a product, add prohibitions, and remove store advertisements from the marketplace. A seller with level 2 restrictions will almost certainly be required to remove old listings and will be unable to submit any new product listings.
Level 3
These restrictions are permanent bans that can ultimately limit a merchant’s store. Temu will not allow an online merchant who receives level 3 restrictions to list any new products. Above all, Temu will also remove the seller’s previously listed products.
Prohibited Items
Like any other platform, Temu has a list of items that are banned from being listed on the platform. Prohibited items that cannot be sold on the site include animal products, counterfeit products, false advertising, and many more.
Temu reserves the right to issue warnings, limit access, or remove listings of sellers who violate and sell any of the listed prohibited items on the website.
To view the full list of prohibited products, go check out Temu’s Prohibited product list.
Withdrawing Money from Temu Sales Center
To withdraw your hard earned sales from Temu, you can navigate to the account funds category found within the Temu Seller Center tool.
Once you’ve accessed your account funds section, you can select to withdraw funds from your sales, which will then start the payment process. Temu will remit the funds to the seller as defined in the Seller Agreement. Sellers must ensure they have made sales before they can be allowed to withdraw any/all funds from their account.
Follow these few steps to withdraw your funds from the Temu app:
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- First, link your card/bank account to the Temu App
- Go to the account funds category
- Select “Funds Center”
- Select the amount you want to withdraw
- Tap on “Withdraw” to confirm
- Your payment will then be deposited into the selected account
Which Countries Can Temu Ship To?
For the first few years, Temu only shipped products to the United States. It wasn’t until 2023 that the platform began to expand in other countries to compete with the likes of Shein and Amazon.
These are the list of countries Temu can serve its customers:
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- Australia
- Belgium
- Canada
- Czech Republic
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Italy
- Japan
- Malaysia
- Mexico
- New Zealand
- Netherlands
- Philippines
- Portugal
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sweden
- United Kingdom
- USA
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How Does Temu Differ From Amazon?
Temu has quite a number of similarities with some of its main competitors like eBay, Wish, and Amazon. However, certain aspects make the platform stand out.
Between Temu and Amazon, there are three glaring differences. For sellers, you’ll be glad to know that Temu is simply a marketplace, which means they don’t resell products or sell them as their own private label brand like Amazon. On the other hand, if you plan to start a dropshipping business, Temu is the wrong place to go. The platform prohibits dropshipping since it operates exclusively as B2C.
The second difference is fulfilling orders. Since most customers expect to be buying products from Chinese sellers in Temu, shipping will take longer (typically around 7 to 20 business days), leading to cheaper prices to combat slower shipping.
Meanwhile, Amazon’s shipping allows customers to receive products in days through its FBA program.
Third is their return policies. Temu has a slightly better return policy, offering 90-day free return shipping, whereas Amazon offers 30-day returns (with buyers usually paying for the cost of return shipping).
Why Have Shoppers Shifted to Using Temu?
Aside from its ad in the Super Bowl, one of Temu's biggest selling points is its low prices.
Since most of their products are sourced directly from suppliers, the added fees from drop shippers or middlemen are removed. Furthermore, shoppers are enticed with discounted goods and strategies to earn extra credits.
For example, Temu will offer random coupons if you simply open the app, spin a wheel, or refer a friend ($20 for every two people referred on the platform).
Some buyers reportedly don’t even have to spend a dime on products since Temu will send one directly if you can refer a certain number of people. One customer said she was even given $200 worth of items from Temu for free!
However, there are also areas of concern. As per Time Magazine, Temu has started to develop a reputation for missing packages, random charges, sending incorrect orders, and unresponsive customer service.
In fact, Temu has been subject to more than 30 complaints to the Better Business Bureau, and has a C rating on the BBB and a customer rating of less than 1.5 stars.
How Can You Contact Temu’s Customer Service?
There are many ways to contact Temu. The easiest way is to go to their website and head over to the Contact Us page at the bottom of the screen. The disadvantage here is that you will only be in contact with them through chat whether it’s by clicking Need Help or by leaving a message on one of their social media apps.
If you prefer to talk to them on the phone, what Temu suggests is to request a phone call with one of their customer service representatives via chat and then leave your contact number.
You should expect to receive a phone call during their office hours between 7 am and 11 pm EST. Another way to contact Temu on the phone is by calling (888) 495-8368 which is the number reflected on their profile from the Better Business Bureau.
Another way you can also get in touch with Temu is by sending an email to help@temu.com.
Final Thoughts
Temu is quickly gaining popularity on a global scale as a top e-commerce selling platform due to its low prices for buyers and commission fees for sellers.
While it is still too early to tell if Temu can match up to other big name e-commerce websites like Amazon, the fact that another platform has risen to compete with Amazon is a good sign for sellers as it can lead to potentially lower fees to stay competitive.
Do you think Temu is just a fad or can it stick around? Let us know in the comments below.
