The idea of working from home has spread throughout the world. With the invention of the internet came a whole new world of entrepreneurship opportunities, giving many that would not otherwise have the opportunity the ability to work from home. There are tons of people that want to work from home, yet have no idea where to start. Below, we’ll talk about one of the fastest-to-launch, lowest overhead and simple business ideas that have the potential to give you the ability to work from home.
Dropshipping Defined
Dropshipping is a way to launch an eCommerce business with very little overhead expense and investment in time. The idea of dropshipping is that you would either create an online store or sign up with companies like Ebay, Amazon and others to sell other people’s products. From there, you would sell a dropshipping supplier’s products and the dropshipper ships the products directly to your customers.
As with any business idea, there are a few things you can do to improve your chances of success when you launch. Below, you’ll find tips that will help you to become a successful dropshipping entrepreneur.
Tip #1: Product Choice Is Key
In your dropshipping company, the most important factor is going to be your products. At the end of the day, if you’re selling products that consumers don’t want, you’re not going to be very successful. So, it’s very important to take your time and choose products wisely. Finding products to sell from home can be a very daunting task. After all, dropshippers work with various online retailers, and some of the products in these networks have a highly saturated market.
However, there are also many gems that are known for generating high volumes of sales, bringing loads of revenue in for the online retailer selling them. While it is possible to find these products manually, many prefer to use tools like Oberlo to refine their product search and discover products that have been proven to be successful.
Tip #2: Don’t Tie Yourself To Any Single Supplier
In the world of dropshipping, there are a massive amount of suppliers that you can work with. Often times, those that are first getting started like to try to stick with a single dropshipping supplier in an attempt to simplify their business. There’s a big problem with this idea.Very few suppliers have the best deals on every product they sell.
The idea behind dropshipping is to make money, and to make the most money, it’s important that you pay the least amount of upfront money for products. Working with multiple suppliers gives you the ability to check your cost on each product across a wide array of suppliers, ensuring that you get those products for the lowest wholesale price, giving you the opportunity to make the most profit.
Tip #3: Entice People To Buy Your Product With Sales
Consumers want to save money, there’s no doubt about it. That’s why businesses often price products at $3.99 rather than $4.00. That little penny has been proven to be enough to turn some purchasers away from buying a product, and by taking it away, consumers feel like the price has reduced by far more than a penny. If you want to make a lot of sales, then start putting your products on sale.
Simply show your target audience the manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) and make sure that your price is at least 5% lower. This will give your shoppers the feeling that they’re saving money, ultimately making them want to spend more money with you via upselling tactics and repeat buyers.
Tip #4: Don’t Forget Marketing
Success in dropshipping is largely determined by your own marketing efforts. At the end of the day, if the products sold themselves, dropshippers wouldn’t need you to be the middleman that sold the products for them! Considering that most eCommerce stores convert at between 1% and 2%, it’s important to drive as many consumers to your product pages as possible.
Many online retailers find success in cost per click (CPC) and cost per thousand impression (CPM) advertising. It’s a good idea to do your research and work to fine tune a good marketing strategy that will help you make strong sales with your product.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiT8i9NHmHU
Tip #5: Be Detailed In Your Product Listings
One of the biggest reasons that dropshipping newbies fail is that they get the idea that there’s no work involved. When they list products, they list the product title, a single image, and the description provided by the dropshipper. However, those that are successful go about listing products in a very different way. Successful dropshipper entrepreneurs know that their product listing is their opportunity to make an impression on buyers.
They take the time to include multiple pictures, spruce up the description, and provide as much information about the product as possible, giving consumers as many reasons to buy the product as they can within that description. At the end of the day, a good product with a bad listing simply won’t sell, but an OK product with a great listing is likely to see a return.
Final Thoughts
Due to the fact that there’s little overhead involved in dropshipping and so many quick product listing platforms like Amazon and Ebay out there, dropshipping is a business that can be started quickly and highly lucrative. By following the tips above, you’ll give yourself a better chance of success in your dropshipping endeavors.