Wednesday, November 12, 2008

How to Find Dropship Merchandise

If you are planning on selling on eBay or opening your own e-commerce store, you may have heard about dropshipping. Using the services of a dropshipper is an excellent way for anyone to get started selling online. This setup requires little in the way of upfront resources and can put you in business quickly. In this article, we will talk about how to find dropship merchandise and how to choose the right dropshipper to work with.

Dropshipping is a simple enough concept. A dropshipper provides you with access to their inventory at a discount or wholesale rate and ships the products directly to your customer on your behalf. You only pay for an item once you receive payment from your buyer, so you don't have any upfront product costs or inventory to manage. This is why dropshipping is a popular way for new sellers to get their start.

There are many dropshippers online that provide this service. Some of these dropshippers are nothing more than resellers themselves while others are legitimate businesses that you can make a real profit with. The trick is finding out which is which.

In order to find the good dropshippers that you can build a solid business relationship with, you will have to do a little legwork. You should try out the customer service of the company you are considering to make sure that they respond in a helpful and timely manner. Remember that you will have to relay on their service in the event of any problems so you want to make sure that the support is there if you need it.

You will also want to ask about their company policies regarding shipping, returns, warranties and the like. Returns are a part of doing business, so it is particularly important that you know how they are handled. Shipping is also critical because you want to make sure that your end customer gets their stuff on time and in good condition. If possible, run a test order with the company and try it out yourself to make sure all goes smoothly.

Now that you know how to weed out the good from the bad, heres how you can find sellers of dropship merchandise in the first place...

1) Look Online

This is more of a trial and error approach, but if you know what you want to sell, you can search and scout potential dropshippers with a bit of research and follow up.

2) Use a Dropship Directory

Invest in a quality dropship directory and let someone else do all the research for finding the best prospects. This method will save you considerable time plus you may see things you might otherwise not have noticed.

3) Contact Manufacturers

Using a site like the Thomas Register or Alibaba to find manufactures of the products that you wish to sell could pay off if you are willing to contact them and see if they are willing to do dropshipping for you. While they may not advertise it, there are arrangements like this made every day behind the scenes.

However you find a source, just be sure to do your research before settling on one. Assuming that this is a business for profit, you will want to make sure that you can make money with the dropshipper you choose.

You can search eBay auctions to get an idea of the current and past sales price for any item and compare that to your wholesale cost and any fees. Hopefully, there will be room for you to make a profit. If not, try checking another product. Many otherwise good dropshippers have better prices on some items than others. If none of the products can turn a profit, don't be afraid to move on to another dropshipper.

Looking for a legitimate dropshipper to supply your merchandise? Click Here Now to learn which one I recommend.

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