Drop shippers are a useful bunch. There are a lot of positives that come along with using reliable drop shippers. This is especially true for new merchants who lack the space (and money) to store products and the manpower to carry out packing and shipping arrangements. Some more established ecommerce web hosting shopping cart names already develop integration with at least one drop shipper. multi vendor shopping cart integration is unusual, though. One important thing to be aware of though, is that the shopping cart cost is usually abstracted from the fees for the drop shipping service.
A couple of things you should think about before deciding a drop shipper. These problem should be addressed early in order to avoid problems later…
If you are going to utilize the services of drop shippers, you have to realize that they are the supply chain to your business. You can either source your own drop shipper(s) or opt for one that is integrated with your ecommerce web hosting shopping cart provider. Therefore, the drop shipper you decide on should not only be reliable but relatively competitive and trustworthy as well. Along with these 3 characteristics, here are some elements that you would do well to think about:
Inventory
A product needs to be in stock in order for you to make a sale. Needless to say, healthy and stable inventory levels are essential. This means, stock information needs to be up-to-date (real-time) and specific.
Speaking of information, product information given by drop shippers (to be displayed on the product page) should be sufficient and actual. It’s because you do not have access to the physical products and so will not be privy to any information save that which is presented by the drop shipper. Commonly requested information: availability of alternative colors, dimensions and weight, material used.
Price
A competitive drop ship price (very close to wholesale, preferably) is the key to selling at higher margins. Keep in mind, you need to take into account competitors’ pricing before you can decide on your own. You should also include in possible future discounts into your pricing calculations.
Just like inventory levels, product prices should be consistent.
Variety
It sounds cliched but variety is the spice of life. A perfect drop shipper should have a potential database of drop ship products. A person may only buy one T-shirt if a variety of sizes are available, but he/she may buy more if the T-shirt comes in multiple colors as well. Psychologically speaking, it also helps a buyer decide by doing a quick comparison.
Return Policy
You have to understand that your drop shipper’s return policy automatically becomes your return policy. Have a very closer look at your drop shippers’ return policies and make sure they are reliable before you select to adopt them. If you agree to their policies, make sure you seemingly express these return policies to your customers on your Terms & Conditions, Shipping or Return Policy or FAQ pages.
Customer Support
A professional drop shippers get back to you within 1 business day, 2 at the most. In certain cases things do go wrong, even with the best drop shippers, such as an item being delivered in the wrong quantity, or perhaps in the wrong color. When something like this happens, it is essential that the situation be fixed in as short a time as possible. A speedy response time is vital. The faster you hear back from your drop shipper, the quicker you can interact the latest situation to your customer in turn.
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