Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams
The concept of dropshipping is quite simple: You list an item for sale, then when someone buys it you place an order with the dropshipping company and have it sent to the customer directly.
As you can see, dropshipping cuts out seller handling. You can sell a wide range of stocks and not have to store it anywhere yourself. It also means no trips to the post office, and eliminates the problem of having bought goods that nobody wants. You only buy the goods when they've been sold.
While all this sounds perfect, the reality can sometimes be quite different. For a start, dropshipping companies can sometimes be unreliable. If the customer doesn't receive their order, or it's not as described, guess who will get the blame? You will! Even though it may not be your fault.
Another potential problem with dropshipping is the higher prices charged by the suppliers. While a dropshipping fee of a couple of dollars may not seem like much, it can dramatically eat into your profit margins. Remember that eBay buyers demand low prices from you.
There is also the issue of not being able to answer customer questions so easily. If you don't have the product right in front of you to see, how can you accurately answer a question someone is asking?
Also think about customer returns. How easy will it be to return an item to the dropshipper if someone requests a refund from you? How will communication with the dropshipper work?
So having looked at both sides of the coin, can dropshipping work on eBay? The answer to that is YES it can, BUT the key is to seek out a reliable supplier. If you're sure that a dropshipping company is reliable and will offer a suitable level of customer satisfaction while providing a good profit margin, then go for it.
Dropshipping could be the ideal setup for an eBay business. Just be careful of the rogue companies out there, and make sure you plan out the operation and consider every eventuality. Many new eBay sellers hear fascinating stories about how "thousands of people are getting rich selling products they don't have to see, store, or even pay for..." Sound familiar? Well if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.
So you might be starting to think that I don't believe in the existence of good and reliable dropshippers. Well, you couldn't be further from the truth. I would like to suggest you put a new spin on dropshipping. Did you ever play the game "6 Degrees Of Kevin Bacon?" It's the one where you start with any actor and you have to link him to other co-stars until you reach a movie that the actor Kevin Bacon was in... well what in the world does that have to do with dropshipping you must be wondering?
No matter who you are, I'm sure you know somebody who knows somebody else and etc. until you reach a point where you might just a have a friend who would be interested in helping you out. Use your connections to your advantage and always try to deal with people you trust. You would be surprised to find that you might just know someone in your own network of family, friends, and local neighborhood shops who is not quite as eBay savvy as you - and would love to provide you with dropshipping services if you would help them setup an eBay campaign. This is just one suggestion on how to find a reliable dropshipper that you can actually depend on... I can't find a dropshipper for you, but I can help you think outside of the box. Give these techniques a test drive and you might just surprise yourself.
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