Want to spy on your competitors? Wonder how they set lower pricing? ImportYeti got your back!

This completely free tool gives you valuable data about your competitors’ suppliers, relationships, imports, exports, and more! 

Wondering how, or whether ImprotYeti is legit and safe? Let’s find it all out in our in-depth ImportYeti Review!

What Is ImportYeti?

ImportYeti is an innovative online tool that helps you explore the comprehensive US import database and uncover the origins of goods for various retailers. 

This tool is developed by a talented individual, David Applegate, this platform aims to provide ecommerce sellers and dropshippers with easy access to important data. 

The best part? ImportYeti is completely free to use, and the app owner gratefully accepts voluntary donations to support the ongoing maintenance and enhancement of the software.

How Does ImportYeti Work?

First, in the United States, every shipment passing through a port is required to have a bill of lading, which is freely accessible to the public. 

This document contains valuable information, including the date of shipment, factory name and address, retailer name, shipment weight, shipping quantity, country of origin, and other specific shipping details.

With ImportYeti you can easily research a retailer by simply entering their name. In return, ImportYeti provides you with the following information: 

• Total number of sea shipments over time.
• A list of suppliers associated with the retailer.
• Detailed breakdowns of products based on HS Code.
• A list of the top 10 wholesale vendors.
• The top 10 supplier relationships.
• A breakdown of imports by country.
• A list of the most recent sea shipments.

Hence, this information can be immensely helpful in your dropshipping business. Therefore,  by accessing these details, you can connect with the same factories used by your competitors and work with pre-vetted suppliers.

💡 Tip: Read about Data In Dropshipping: The Importance & Characteristics Of Data In Ecommerce.

Is ImportYeti Legit & Safe?

ImportYeti is a completely reliable and secure tool that you can confidently use.

In fact, in the United States, customs data and import records are considered public information. This means that any company involved in importing goods into the US from foreign countries by sea is documented and their records are accessible to the public.

So, Yes, ImportYeti is 100% Legit and Safe.

Plus, users find ImportYeti very helpful as we can see. Thus, 94% of users rated the app with 5 stars, so the overall rating is 4.6/5.👇

Plus, users claim that ImportYeti is a whole different angle of finding dropshipping suppliers, and it helped their dropshipping businesses scale up. 👇

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How To Use Import Yeti To Find Suppliers For Your Dropshipping Store?

Let’s see how to use ImportYeti! First things first, there are some easy steps for creating an account. 

So, once you search for the company name, and try to download any file, you will be redirected to the log/in page. Here you will enter your email and password, and wait for verification mail.👇

After that, ImportYeti requires you to answer a few questions about yourself and the purpose of using the app.👇

Once you finish the questionnaire, you can continue. However, most US companies do not promote themselves with legal names. So, this is one of the things you need to get information on ImportYeti.👇

Therefore, let’s learn how we can get the legal name. 👇

Step 1: Find The Legal Name Of The Company

First, most companies do not use their legal name to build a brand or to sell online. But, if you want to search on Importyeti, you need this. 

For example, we will search for a product on Amazon. Let’s say, we want to buy a cabinet. Thus, here you can see the supplier’s name.👇

However, let’s dig into this seller using ImportYeti. 👇

As you can see, ImportYeti does not give any information, since this is not the legal name of the company. 

Thankfully, every Amazon seller files for the Amazon brand registry. Thus, this means that they do have a trademark.

For that purpose, you can use tools for trademark search, like Justia, and find the company’s legal name.👇

Hence, Justia will give you information like name, type of business, legal entity type, trademark history, etc.

Step 2: Perform A Search On ImportYeti

Once you have the company’s legal name, you can search on ImportYeti using it. Now, you will get the needed results.👇

Here you can see the company name, address, social proof, number of shipments, top suppliers, top relationships, import per country, and more.  

Step 3: Use The Import Records To Research Potential Suppliers

As you scroll down, you can see that there are listed all of the seller’s suppliers. In our case, Sauder Manufacturing suppliers.👇

Examining these data, you can get information about:

• whether their suppliers ship to your country
• how many customers does the supplier have
• the product volumes they ship
• what kind of products do they supply

In other words, you will get all the logistics information about the suppliers, and get prepared before even contacting them.

👉 Check the 21 Best 3PL Companies For Handling Your Dropshipping Logistics.

Step 4: Determine Supplier Fit For Your Company

Last but not least, you can’t always copy a successful competitor. Thus, you must see if the suppliers they use are your fit. 👇

For example, the supplier might not ship to your home country, or might not have the brands you want. 

Thankfully, with the data that ImportYeti provides, you can figure it out easily. You can see if they have MOQ or the sales volume they ship. 

👉 Check out Dropshipping Product Research Tools: How To Find Winning Products In 2024?

How To Use The Import Records To Find And Vet Suppliers?

To sum it all up, thanks to ImportYeti you can leverage a lot in building your dropshipping business strategy. 

👉 Check out Dropshipping Business Plan: Tips for Creating A Short Business Plan

But, what can you accomplish?

You can unlock the gateway to import records of every American company with the power of ImportYeti.

For example, this tool is very useful for Amazon sellers. If you are one of them, you can unveil the mystery behind a competitor’s price undercutting. Thus, you can uncover the competitor’s suppliers and leverage similar pricing strategies.

Plus, you can ensure the authenticity and credibility of a potential new supplier. Hence, by thoroughly vetting them through comprehensive import data.

Furthermore, as a drop shipper, you can harness the knowledge of shipping volumes among fellow customers to gain negotiation leverage and secure better pricing for your business.

👉 Read about Amazon Handmade vs Etsy: Which Is Better For Dropshippers in 2022?

ImportYeti Pros & Cons

ImportYeti is a highly valuable tool that assists you in finding out insights about your competitors and your success. This free service enables us to examine the origins and destinations of imports, as well as locate them online.

Plus, it offers a user-friendly interface, making it easy to access all the necessary data effortlessly.

Additionally, ImportYeti excels in providing insights into the companies that order freight from overseas and the ports where the freight arrives.  However, it does not provide access to information about the forwarders that these companies utilize. 

While reaching out to the company may result in an explanation that they have no visibility on their imports, this is a common occurrence as most companies rely on freight forwarders. 

Thus, it would be beneficial if ImportYeti could include this information.

Moreover, ImportYeti does not provide contact information for suppliers. If this information is needed, it can be obtained through a simple Google search.

ImportYeti Alternatives

Jungle Scout Supplier Database

Jungle Scout Supplier Database helps you navigate through the US import database and unearth your competitors’ suppliers.

In contrast to ImportYeti, JungleScout presents a superior user interface, seamlessly organizing import records for enhanced accessibility. It’s important to note, however, that JungleScout comes with a cost.

However, this research tool is not free. Hence, its pricing starts at $29/month. 

However, if you’re an Amazon seller, it’s highly likely that you already have Jungle Scout to your advantage since it is included with any subscription.

Panjiva

Panjiva offers a comprehensive and easily searchable database for investigating the complete supply chain of any company.

In comparison, ImportYeti provides identical information as Panjiva but without the burden of hefty monthly fees associated with the latter. Thus, Panjiva is not free to use.

Presently, the cost of Panjiva’s tool is not publicly disclosed online, necessitating a request for a free demo to obtain pricing details.

Import Genius

Import Genius is a cutting-edge tool that provides up-to-the-minute shipment records for any US-based company through its user-friendly and easily searchable database. 

But that’s not all – Import Genius also offers comprehensive trade data for an array of countries. 

So, while ImportYeti serves as an equivalent option for accessing US import data, Import Genius takes the lead when it comes to gaining access to this additional wealth of country-specific information. 

Thus, you can get info for: 

• Argentina
• Bolivia
• Chile
• Colombia
• Costa Rica
• Ecuador
• Mexico
• India
• Panama
• Paraguay
• Peru
• Russia, and more.

However, Import Genius is not free. It offers three pricing plans starting at $149/month.

👉 Check out The Best Countries For Dropshipping To Target In 2024.

How To Hide Bill Of Lading And Supplier Data?

Since you know all this information, you probably think that your online business information can be exposed too. Well, they can. But, there’s a way to hide your bill of lading and supplier information as well. Plus, it is legal, no worries!

First, you can use a third-party exporter of record. Essentially, this third-party entity assumes responsibility for managing the entire shipping process on behalf of your company and becomes the designated “supplier of record” for the shipment.

👉 Check out the 12 Best Shopify Spy Tools To Do Competitor Research.

This way, your actual supplier details will not be disclosed on the bill of lading.

Moreover, you can seek confidential treatment for your dropshipping business info. Thus, here’s what you can do.👇

• Complete an automated online application for electronic vessel manifest confidentiality at this location.
• Submit a physical request via mail to: Vessel Manifest Confidentiality 22001 Loudoun County Pkwy Mail Stop #1354 Ashburn, VA 20598-1354
• Submit a request via email to vesselmanifestconfidentiality@cbp.dhs.gov.

💡 Tip: Read about Dropshipping Taxes and Payments – Must-Know Facts.

Conclusion

In conclusion, ImportYeti is a reliable and safe tool for finding your competitor’s suppliers. It provides valuable data about your competitors’ relationships, imports, exports, and more.

Plus, by examining the import records and suppliers listed in ImportYeti, you can gather valuable information about the suppliers, such as whether they ship to their country, the number of customers they have, the product volumes they ship, and more. 

This information allows users to determine if a supplier is a good fit for their company and helps in making informed decisions for your dropshipping business.