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Ecommerce and dropshipping are not the same thing. Let’s talk about it 
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Ecommerce in a nutshell is the act of selling products online.
Once the product is sold, it needs to reach your customer (shipping). This is FULFILLMENT, dropshipping is a fulfillment method.
A thread:
Ecommerce in a nutshell is the act of selling products online.
Once the product is sold, it needs to reach your customer (shipping). This is FULFILLMENT, dropshipping is a fulfillment method.
A thread:
What is dropshipping?
Your customer purchases something on your website (this is ecommerce)— but how do they get it? Who ships it to them? Dropshipping is when the supplier houses the inventory and ships the item directly to your customer, you never touch or deal with it.
Your customer purchases something on your website (this is ecommerce)— but how do they get it? Who ships it to them? Dropshipping is when the supplier houses the inventory and ships the item directly to your customer, you never touch or deal with it.
Let’s talk about some of the pros and cons of dropshipping, why I’m not a fan, and what the alternative fulfillment options are.
The biggest upsides are the lower costs of entry and operation. You don’t have to pay for inventory upfront nor do you have to pay to store it. You don’t have to pay employees to package and ship your orders. You save time because you only have to worry about marketing.
Sounds good right?
But there are downsides. Dropshippers are all over the world, but many (most) are in China. Shipping takes ~3 weeks and in a world of Amazon Prime’s free next day shipping, 3 weeks is FOREVER.
But there are downsides. Dropshippers are all over the world, but many (most) are in China. Shipping takes ~3 weeks and in a world of Amazon Prime’s free next day shipping, 3 weeks is FOREVER.
There are dropshippers in the US (and other countries) as well, and you *can* find them on and off of AliExpress, however the more readily available ones are based in China.
(By “dropshippers” I mean suppliers that will ship directly to your customer)
(By “dropshippers” I mean suppliers that will ship directly to your customer)
What’s the biggest downside to dropshipping, in my opinion?
None of your outgoing packages are customizable. 1 product inside 1 box, that’s it.
I’m a big fan of giving my customers an unboxing experience— doesn’t have to be over the top or extravagant to be memorable.
None of your outgoing packages are customizable. 1 product inside 1 box, that’s it.
I’m a big fan of giving my customers an unboxing experience— doesn’t have to be over the top or extravagant to be memorable.
Read these tweets: https://twitter.com/cvrlne/status/1233489269446062081?s=21
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Your customers wait 3 weeks to receive something basic. Great https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="😕" title="Verwirrtes Gesicht" aria-label="Emoji: Verwirrtes Gesicht"> They waited forever for their order and it’s not even cute with a Chinese address on it.
It’s really hard to build a fan base and an unforgettable brand like that. Fan base + unforgettable brand is how you grow
It’s really hard to build a fan base and an unforgettable brand like that. Fan base + unforgettable brand is how you grow
When you dropship, your customers may receive multiple packages if they order multiple products. With different addresses on them too if you use different suppliers.
It’s just awkward to order three things during a buy 2 get 1 free promotion and get them at different times.
It’s just awkward to order three things during a buy 2 get 1 free promotion and get them at different times.
Even if you’re dropshipping, you should still order samples of every product and actually test it. Don’t just look at pictures to approve products for your brand.
This is so important because many times the quality doesn’t match what is perceived in the photos
This is so important because many times the quality doesn’t match what is perceived in the photos
What are the options if you don’t want to dropship?
You can dedicate a room or corner of your house as your fulfillment area (or rent an office/warehouse)
Buy everything you need from http://uline.com"> http://uline.com and dollar stores for bins to organize and label your products.
You can dedicate a room or corner of your house as your fulfillment area (or rent an office/warehouse)
Buy everything you need from http://uline.com"> http://uline.com and dollar stores for bins to organize and label your products.
Shopify has a built in shipping program, you can choose which mail carriers you want to work with and get accurate shipping prices based on size, weight, and destination of the package.
You can buy a label printer or sticker paper and a paper cutter and use a standard printer.
You can buy a label printer or sticker paper and a paper cutter and use a standard printer.
You buy your inventory in bulk and ship it yourself from your house/office/warehouse.
You’ll pay a higher cost but with a lower cost per unit than if it were dropshipped.
There’s an alternative to buying your inventory up front, a dropshipping hack I guess you could call ithttps://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="⬇️" title="Pfeil nach unten" aria-label="Emoji: Pfeil nach unten">
You’ll pay a higher cost but with a lower cost per unit than if it were dropshipped.
There’s an alternative to buying your inventory up front, a dropshipping hack I guess you could call it
To start, instead of ordering 100 units of X product from a supplier in bulk, you can dropship 25 units of each product to your house.
Every time someone places an order for that product, you ship it to them from your initial supply and dropship another one to your house.
Every time someone places an order for that product, you ship it to them from your initial supply and dropship another one to your house.
Now you have an initial supply of your products and the money you saved to buy nice packaging, labeling, box inserts, and stuff to make your packages appealing https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🤩" title="Vom Star geblendet" aria-label="Emoji: Vom Star geblendet">
It’s not a good long term strategy because it costs more, but it’s a good stepping stone.
It’s not a good long term strategy because it costs more, but it’s a good stepping stone.
Another fulfillment option if you don’t want to do it yourself is utilizing a third party fulfillment center.
Similar to selling on Amazon, you send your merchandise to their warehouse and they package and send it off for you. They support multiple products and box inserts.
Similar to selling on Amazon, you send your merchandise to their warehouse and they package and send it off for you. They support multiple products and box inserts.
Some 3PL companies even offer 2-day shipping that we as customers love so much.
This is a great option if you want to be hands-on selling and hands-off shipping.
You generally pay per order/item fulfilled and for storage space. Anything in the box is a small extra fee.
This is a great option if you want to be hands-on selling and hands-off shipping.
You generally pay per order/item fulfilled and for storage space. Anything in the box is a small extra fee.
So in conclusion https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🤓" title="Nerd-Gesicht" aria-label="Emoji: Nerd-Gesicht"> Ecommerce and dropshipping are not the same thing.
Dropshipping is a good way to prove a concept but once profitable, it’s cheaper to buy the products in bulk.
Dropshipping is a good way to prove a concept but once profitable, it’s cheaper to buy the products in bulk.
If you enjoyed this thread, you may also find these useful:
• Zero to Launch ecommerce guide for beginners >> http://bit.ly/3a95pOP
•">https://bit.ly/3a95pOP&q... Growth strategy guide for existing ecommerce brands >> http://bit.ly/2XHiKsO
•">https://bit.ly/2XHiKsO&q... Schedule a call with me >> http://bit.ly/2XIPQsj ">https://bit.ly/2XIPQsj&q...
• Zero to Launch ecommerce guide for beginners >> http://bit.ly/3a95pOP
•">https://bit.ly/3a95pOP&q... Growth strategy guide for existing ecommerce brands >> http://bit.ly/2XHiKsO
•">https://bit.ly/2XHiKsO&q... Schedule a call with me >> http://bit.ly/2XIPQsj ">https://bit.ly/2XIPQsj&q...
