What is dropshipping? Dropshipping is an arrangement between a wholesaler and their customer where the company agrees to ship their products direct to the resellers customer. The reseller will list the dropshippers products on auction sites or their website etc., collects payment from their customer and places the order with the dropshipper. The dropshipper then sends the order directly to end user.
Why use a dropshipper? Dropshipping allows almost anyone to start their own company without needing to buy large amounts of stock upfront. This eliminates the need for them to rent storage space and cuts their overheads signifcantly. The reseller only needs to order products once they receive an order from their customer. This is fantastic for cashflow as you will never have money tied up in stock that you can't sell. If you're a busy person then you don't need to worry about fulfilling orders becase all you need to do is forward your customers details to the dropshipper and they should do the rest.
What to sell? Most people will tell you that you need a product that is high in demand. Other people will tell you that you need to be interested in what you're selling. This makes sense as why would you want to sell knitting material when you're not into knitting? Whatever you choose, you need to make sure you find a good company who stocks everything you need and has good customer services. Check out other articles on the dropship forum for FREE links to companies who offer dropshipping services. Make sure you don't pay for lists that contain dropshippers as these tend just to be a list of companies that you can find for free anyway.
I've found a dropshipper - now what? The next step is to find places to advertise the products for sale. I would recommend setting up a website rather than just posting on Ebay. If the dropshipper has many customers then chances are there will be others selling the same products on Ebay and there's too much competition. Even if you use a website to refer your Ebay customers to then you may have a great chance for repeat orders. If you've never built a website before then this could be the time where you stumble. It's wise to invest in a good website if you think the products will sell well or try oscommerce which has lots of features and is fairly easy to get up and running. Some dropshippers also offer websites pre-made for you such as DevilWear who offers branded clothing and sunglasses.
Thousands of people all over the world are using dropshipping as a source of income so chances are you or someone you know have bought something from a website who uses dropshipping.
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