3 Things to Consider before Choosing Product Suppliers for your Dropshipping Business

Still wondering why product suppliers are called the ‘backbones of the dropshipping economy’? Here is a list of the very important things that suppliers do:

• Product suppliers are sometimes the manufacturers of the product they suppliers, i.e., they sometimes double as manufacturers.
• Product suppliers handle the cost of inventory and warehousing. This significantly decimate your cost of doing business.
• Product suppliers also handle product delivery. They ensure that your customers get the right products as at when agreed.

Going by these, there is no arguing the fact product suppliers are central to the success of your dropshipping business. However, anonymity and distance are ‘worrying’ features of dropshipping. Though suppliers go the extra mile to ensure that customers don’t even get to know that their orders are dropshipped (they ensure that your address appears on the invoice and return label), it doesn’t rule out the fact that things could go wrong. The wrong order may be delivered, products could go out of stock (and you wouldn’t be notified in time), orders could go ‘missing’ in transit, and the worst of all, you could get scammed by non-existing suppliers.

It is, therefore, important that you carefully choose your product suppliers and sometimes a Google search is never enough. Here are 3 things to consider before striking deals with suppliers:

#1

Authenticity of suppliers

Without the option of having one-on-one meetings with suppliers at tradeshows or local events, verifying the authenticity of product suppliers could get quite dicey. Finding the right ones isn’t made any easier by the number of fake suppliers who are out there to scam innocent dropshippers.

One way to ensure you never fall victim is to get familiar with the standard rules within the dropshipping industry. While it is okay for suppliers to charge pre-order fees, demands for monthly membership fees or even a lifelong fee should raise suspicion. Another mark of ‘fake suppliers’ is the offer of products to the general public at ‘wholesale’ prices. However, low the prices may seem, it is most likely that the wholesale prices are actually inflated prices.

Authentic suppliers will have a proven system of verifying the legitimacy of dropshippers. They offer legal credentials to validate their authenticity. If they are manufacturers, they may also send in a list of their approved distributors, alongside verified reviews of existing dropshipper-clients.

An alternative to ‘manually’ searching for suppliers is to make use of product sourcing tools like DropshipMe. DropshipMe is a product sourcing plugin that curates thousands of bestselling products from the best suppliers. With their list of suppliers being vetted via 23 criteria, you can rest easy that your customers will get the right order within the agreed time frame.

Also Read: DropshipMe : The Hottest Trending Dropshipping Tool For 2018

#2

Profit margin

Everyone is basically in business to rake in a healthy profit. Therefore, suppliers arrive at the wholesale prices by adding the cost of production, inventory, warehousing, and delivery. Once they are done, your profit margin is equivalent to the difference between what customers pay and what suppliers charge.

So, to ensure that you always end up with a healthy profit margin, ensure you compare the prices of different suppliers before finally sending in order details. Should you have a hard time making a choice, you can easily make use of the pricing markup feature of DropshipMe. Pricing markup has been carefully researched to ensure that you enjoy maximum price advantage, just like the suppliers’ list, t

#3

Effective dropshipper-client support and communication channels

From changes in prices to running out of stock and delivery-problems, many things could go wrong with a dropshipping business. To avoid losing valuable customers, it is very important that your ‘chosen’ suppliers offer top notch dropshipper-client support and have effective channels through which they respond to clients’ questions and complaints.

Find out: Does this supplier really respond to emails within 2 – 3 hours? What is this suppliers’ return policy, etc. Knowing this will help you respond to customers’ questions and complaints

Remember, choosing a supplier is somewhat similar to gambling. It could be an excellent choice; it could be the worst choice ever. Regardless your experience, there is no hard and fast rule about choosing a lifelong supplier. Simply take note of every issue discussed above, make use of automated solutions like DropshipMe, and keep upgrading your verification process.

Have a profitable business day!

Also Read: How to start your successful DROPSHIPPING BUSINESS with AliExpress