DROPSHIPPING FOR BEGINNERS
Since this pandemic happened, tons of people started to look for ways to earn online. Top searches so far are phrases like “how to make money online”, “online jobs”, or “online businesses”. Whenever you search “online businesses”, you’ll always find the word “Dropshopping” linked to it. In short, Dropshipping is a trending way of making money online – and with good reason.
But what is dropshipping anyway?
DROPSHIPPING EXPLAINED
For newbies out there, “Dropshipping” is a type of business model whereby an online seller can operate without the need of maintaining inventory, owning a warehouse, or having to ship products. It’s a business system where a retailer partners up with a dropship supplier who then ships the products directly to the retailer’s customer.
So you sell real, physical products, but you can do it digitally without handling any inventory or stock.
In dropshipping, there are usually three parties involved.
- The Retailer,
- The Dropship Supplier, and
- The Customer
The Retailer establishes his or her online shop and partners up with a Dropship Supplier while the Dropship Supplier manufactures the product and ships the product directly to the Customers. The Customer is the person who buys the products online through the Retailer’s online shop.
Dropshipping makes it easier for each of the parties involved to master their craft. Retailers can focus on selling the products, engaging with customers, and improving their online stores. On the other hand, Dropship Suppliers can concentrate on ways to perfect and innovate their products. Dropship Suppliers won’t need to stress about advertising or reaching out to customers – this will be the main job of the Retailer.
If you’re not into manufacturing products, it’s best to be a Retailer. In fact, when just entering into e-commerce, it’s recommended to start as a retailer or online seller. Starting up as a retailer is easier and less of a financial risk. You just have to be willing to learn and discover new things online.
This allows you to focus on simply marketing a product – and presenting the features and benefits – rather than dealing with the myriad of other problems you have in creating a physical product. It also allows you to quickly test-market a product and see how it performs – before investing more time and effort. And this is one of the key reasons that dropshipping has really taken off in 2020: you're not tied to a single product or idea. You can test which products sell best and maximize your time to focus on selling the best products with the best profit margins.
TIPS ON HOW TO START EARNING AS A RETAILER
Retailers or online sellers don’t have to invest heavily in starting their business. They just need to create an awesome online shop and connect with the best dropship suppliers out there.
Starting your online shop is as simple as setting up an account with Facebook. You can visit web platforms such as Shopify, Weebly, or WooCommerce. These sites can help you build and manage your online shop. You can even set up shop through Instagram or WordPress. This depends on your preference on how you will be marketing your online shop.
The key to making this all work, and the most difficult part is finding good dropship suppliers who are accessible to your target customers. What you’re looking for are dropship suppliers who can supply your customers with quality products that go with the whole theme of your shop. But there’s no need to worry, all you need to solve this problem is Spocket.
SO…WHAT IS SPOCKET?
Spocket is an application that gives you access to thousands of products in the US, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. With Spocket, you’ll be able to connect with dropship suppliers who can provide you with a variety of products from apparel and footwear to tech and pet accessories.
To gain access to Spocket, all you need to do is sign up using your Google Account or Facebook Account. You’ll be able to create an account for free. After signing up, you then integrate your Spocket Account to your Shopify or WooCommerce store. Next, you start looking for products to feature in your online store. Search for products using their filter with the following categories: product categories, price, and location. Add the products to your store by clicking “Add to Import List”.
Take note that this free account will only allow you to:
- Add up to 25 Spocket products to your online store;
- Monitor your products through Spocket’s Real-time inventory updates;
- Allow you to order for an unlimited number, the products you add to your store; and
- Track your shipments
But, the key to making money with dropshipping is sourcing the best products that you can find have a need in the marketplace. And Sprocket allows you to filter through the mediocre choices and find the best, most profitable ones to start with.
If you want to add more products to your online store, simply subscribe to a paid Spocket Plan. Spocket has several plans available, each depends mainly on your budget and business size. Start your business right by connecting with the right people. Have access to the best dropship suppliers and visit Spocket.com right now.
Key Metrics for Dropshipping:
The key metrics to focus on in e-commerce or a Dropshipping business are:
- CLV (Customer Lifetime Value)
- AOV (Average order value as some customers may order more than one item from your store.)
- Cost Per AddToCart
- Cost Per Optin
- Acceptable CPA after COGS (Cost of Goods sold)
Let me explain that last one with an example. If the product you are dropshipping has a hard cost to you of $15 and you sell it for $35, you can spend $20 on ads to break even.
The Importance of Choosing The Right Source For Your Products:
Lastly, consider that where your products get shipped to your customers from can be a crucial factor in your success. If you dropship from China, customers will regularly be waiting for up to a month or more for delivery – and will get their products in a “less than impressive” package when it finally does arrive. This will cause you to deal with refund requests, disputes and chargebacks.
One of the most powerful things about Sprocket is that it lists sources in the US and Europe, so you can focus on sales rather than dealing with customer support nightmares and putting out little fires all the time. In fact, 60% of the products are sourced from the US or Europe.
So if you want to give Dropshipping a try, the best place to start is to open a free account with Sprocket and start looking at some of the potential products you can start profiting from today!
Hey, I'm Andrew. I moved to Lisbon, Portugal from Canada. Follow my journey here.
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