Posts Tagged finding a drop shipper
Drop Ship – Tips to Improve Your competitive Edge
Posted by Bob in Bulk Drop Shipping, Drop Shipping, Home Based Business on June 24th, 2009
One of the harsh realities of having a drop shipping business is that there will be competitors that offer the same or similar products at a lower price. If you’re selling a product, for example, that can be found in a Wal-Mart store, you’re going to have a hard time trying to compete with their price. Even online vendors, such as Amazon, will probably be able to sell products at a lower price because they buy in huge volumes from their wholesale suppliers.
Fortunately, there are some things you can do in your drop ship business to counteract situations where a competitor has a lower price.
First of all, you can concentrate on your product descriptions. Write your product descriptions in a more persuasive and compelling way than your competition. It can even be worth hiring a sales copywriting professional to help you along this process.
Don’t underestimate the power of a good photo, either. High quality photos are one of the key secrets to a sale, especially online. Because your customer can’t handle the item, she relies on your pictures to convince her to buy the product. Use a good camera, and make sure you get all sorts of detailed pictures if you’re taking the pictures yourself. Consider ordering one of the products from your supplier and taking the picture yourself to add an element of uniqueness.
Another thing you can do to compete with low prices is to offer a bonus. The bonus you offer can be a tangible product, or it can be something that has little cost. For example, you could write an ebook on how to install toilet repair parts and include it as a free gift whenever someone orders toilet repair parts from your website.
You can also use product reviews and comparisons. This helps to give your website additional content, but it also helps your customer to make a decision while they’re on your website. From there, it’s just a click for them to buy the product.
You should also use your sales process to upsell. Have your order process recommend an additional product to your customer. Once your customer receives their purchase, send them a special offer for buying another product.
While these tactics won’t guarantee you will beat the competition every time, they will increase your sales and help take some sales away from the lower priced competition.
Choosing A Virtual Storefront
Posted by Bob in Home Based Business, eBusiness on June 19th, 2009
If you’re running a drop ship business, choosing the right virtual storefront is critical to your success. Knowing what options are available to you lets you make the best decision for your particular business and for your situation.
Option 1: Wholesaler-Provided
Some drop ship businesses may have the option to purchase a virtual storefront directly from their drop ship wholesaler. This type of arrangement has several benefits, but it also has some very specific disadvantages. One of the obvious benefits is that the system is, ideally, tied directly into the supplier’s inventory database. That means that if a supplier is out of a certain product, your customers won’t be able to order the product. You’ll never have to worry about refunding a purchase because the product is not in stock.
On the other hand, wholesaler-provided virtual storefronts have some risks. First of all, you can bet that there are indeed other retailers who are utilizing this service from the wholesaler. This means that there is very little that will truly identify your storefront and make it stand out from all of the others. You’re limited to using the design elements that the wholesaler offers.
Option 2: Third-Party Provided
Many companies, including Ebay, Yahoo and Google offer virtual storefronts to small businesses. These storefronts have one massive advantage in that they naturally pull in some of the traffic that would otherwise land on these sites. Third party virtual storefronts can, in some cases, give you much more direct access to your market.
Here again, this type of virtual storefront has some downsides. For example, you are still limited to whatever design elements the third party provides to you. In addition, it’s possible (and likely, in some cases) that there are other virtual storefronts on the site selling the same products that you are.
Option 3: Self-Designed
A self-designed virtual storefront offers you the most opportunity for customization. You can use whatever design elements you want, and are only limited by whatever software you choose to use. You also have full control over whether the site is performing well or not.
A self-designed site, on the other hand, also requires the most time and knowledge. If you don’t have at least a rudimentary grasp of web programming languages like html or php, you’re going to have a tough time of putting up a self-designed virtual storefront.
Ultimately, the type of virtual storefront you choose depends on the technical resources you have, the particular market you’re dealing in, and your own personal preferences.
What To Avoid In A Wholesaler
Posted by Bob in Wholesale, Wholesale Sources on June 19th, 2009
Working with a drop ship wholesaler is a great way to make money. You can put your sales and marketing skills to use, while relying on your wholesaler to handle things like inventory and shipping. This leads to more sales and increased profits, which is something every business wants. Drop ship wholesalers can be a tremendous boon to your business, and to your bottom line.
Unfortunately, not all wholesalers are equal. Like with most things in life, there are some good ones and there are some bad ones. Knowing what to avoid when looking for a wholesaler is nearly as important as knowing what to look for.
One thing to avoid in a wholesaler is a supplier that requires a minimum order. Suppliers that require minimum orders are better suited to larger retail establishments, and not really ideal for the drop ship business. In fact, very few drop ship wholesalers will every demand that you have a specific volume of orders to work with them.
You may also be wary of wholesalers that require you to pay them in order to get access to their product lines. This is a common practice of some suppliers who are only out to prey on naïve or unsuspecting drop ship business owners. Chances are good that, if a supplier’s products don’t stand on their own, the supplier may feel the need to charge for access to the line.
You also want a wholesaler who won’t refuse to coordinate delivery time with the seller. If a supplier won’t provide you with delivery time, it may indicate that they have a problem getting their product delivered in a timely manner. Remember that it is your reputation that your customer is looking at, and a late product delivery reflects on you, not on your supplier. Make sure you know the supplier’s dropshipping policies ahead of time, before you ever begin to sell their product.
Finally, you should avoid a wholesaler who won’t provide information about their business. For example, if they can’t provide information about their business license, or won’t provide you with a street address for their company, it is possibly they’re not even a wholesaler at all, but rather a scam artist who is intend on separating you from your money. This means that, even if you find the wholesaler online, you should get a phone number and address where the company can be contacted.
Found a New Wholesale Source? Proceed With Caution!
Posted by Andrea in Bulk Drop Shipping, Home Based Business, Wholesale, Wholesale Sources, eBusiness on June 12th, 2009
There are thousands of wholesalers on the internet. They all promise to deliver great quality wholesale goods for a great price so that you can resell them. While many of the wholesalers out there are legitimate businesses there are some that are scams. In order for your business to get off the ground you need to be able to spot a legitimate business and a scam or “cover” business.
A legitimate business will offer contact information and will answer the phone when you call. Before you call check the number with a reverse directory. A legitimate business will have a business line and you should be able to get the companies name when you check a reverse directory. If the reverse directory suggests the number is a cellular phone number you should begin to worry. Try calling during regular business hours. If you receive a voice mail message you can leave a message. If you don’t receive a call back it should raise a red flag.
Legitimate businesses should also be willing to send you samples of the product you are interested in for you to take a look. A company that is a true wholesaler will have products in stock and is almost always more than willing to send out a sample product. If the company says they can not send a sample of the product you are looking at you should look for another wholesaler.
A true wholesaler will always ask for your business tax ID number or your reseller’s license. They are in the business of doing business with real businesses not random consumers. A company that does not ask for the information is likely not on the up-and-up.
Finally legitimate wholesalers will almost always accept credit cards. If a wholesaler is asking for a wire transfer instead of a credit card payment you should dig very deeply into the company. Wire transfers are commonly used by scammers because once the money goes it is gone for good and tracing the person is difficult.
While there may be a few exceptions to the rule a wholesaler that is truly in the business of wholesale goods will behave like any legitimate business. Remember to trust your instincts. If you feel that a business is shady do your research and dig around about them. You have a right to know what is going on.
Ecommerce Wholesale Drop Ship Suppliers - Are They Reliable?
Posted by Andrea in Bulk Drop Shipping, Drop Shipping, Home Based Business, Wholesale Sources, eBusiness on June 11th, 2009
The internet is packed to the brim with horrid tales of drop shipping problems. Looking around quickly on some forums I found several people who have made the mistake of trusting a drop shipper who was only interested in getting their money and less than enthusiastic when it came to customer service. Sadly these stories are not the exception, they are the rule. The problem that many of these people are facing has to do with the size of their account. A small business owner is considered “small potatoes” to a drop shipper and thus they do not receive the same customer service that a large account holder would.
Large accounts (those that order a large volume of product) will find that drop shippers will bend over backwards to help them. In the end a drop shipper is getting paid more from large accounts and thus they are more willing to do good business with them than they are with small-time buyers. It’s sad and disgusting, I know, but it is the truth.
The drop shippers out there that do want to do business with a smaller operation and offer service are often fly by night companies that have a short life spans. Many drop shippers begin their operation without a solid business plan in place and thus are gone in six to eighteen months. While you might get several good months of service from the company you will have to find another shipper when they fall out of the shipping race.
So how do you find a good drop shipper as a small business? Well, that is sort of like the riddle of the Sphinx. You have to call around a lot and repeatedly call back to ask questions. If you have found a business that is willing to answer questions more than once you are onto a pretty good shipper.
Next you need to take to the internet and read up on the company. You can often find out if a company is registered with the BBB and how long they have been in business online quickly. If there is information about the company dating back 5 or more years you are onto a really solid prospect? If you have a company that has only been in business for a year or who has only been using their acquired name for one year you might want to walk away. Don’t get me wrong, not all shippers who are new are out to get your money and kill your business and livelihood but with the army of bad drop shippers out there you are better off looking for an older company. You wouldn’t gamble away your entire life savings on a long shot horse at the races so there is no need to do it with a drop shipper.
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