Is Dropshipping Dead?

[jon.a]

It might be. Look who's promoting it...
FREE BOOK!

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Grahamj]

I had a couple stores around 2-3 years ago. One store limped through making a weekly sale and the ad spend would eat profits. My second store would do 1-2 sales daily. The items were manufactured in the US and priced between $200-$450 which left profits around $60-$200 depending on the item and shipping cost. I thought that I was about to ride the gravy train and ramp up my ad spend, but my manufacturers couldn't control their inventory properly. I would constantly be sitting on orders that would not get fulfilled. Once new inventory was in stock it always went to the big box customers first. It was extremely frustrating.

Since then, I made the decision to only sell consumer products that I created, but I think that there still can be money made in drop shipping if you find the right supplier.

 

[Jake]

You can dropship with wholesalers/manufacturers in the US (or whatever country you're in). All the ones I use offer it, but their MOQ is also usually under $500 so I don't see the point.

This. I dropship my products for other people.

I hope it's not dead. They spend on traffic, I collect money and ship my branded products. Quite a good arrangement if you ask me

 

[Ecom man]

I started a dropshipping site in June. The niche I was in is pretty seasonal dependent so I should have started back in April. I did $1500 a month for June & July. All of the items were dropshipped and after advertising and other expenses I broke even. i had zero chargebacks from the customers and a couple people asking about the location of their item but no one was upset with the handling times. (I have the time clearly listed in the shipping policy). If you use epacket most items will arrive in 7-10 days which is acceptable.

Is drop shipping dead? I would say no. Is it as easy as the "gurus" claim? Again, no. It is a business just like any other. It takes time to build a client list, to learn how to properly market to a new niche etc. Personally I think it is a good way to test out a new niche and see how it works.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[hughjasle]

If you use epacket most items will arrive in 7-10 days which is acceptable.

holy.
7-10 days for real?

I don't dropship so I honesty don't know if that's true or not. I did purchase some samples of products from aliexpress and used epacket, but they took more like 3-5 weeks.

 

[Ecom man]

holy.
7-10 days for real?

I don't dropship so I honesty don't know if that's true or not. I did purchase some samples of products from aliexpress and used epacket, but they took more like 3-5 weeks.

It all depends on the sellers. Good sellers who actually use epacket (there are some who say they do but then don't) can get stuff pretty quick. This is a recent order from a supplier on aliexpress. Ordered on Sunday July 30th, it was delivered in the Phoenix Area on the 9th.

 

[laurenaria10]

No....Absolutely drop-shipping is not dead. In fact dropshippers make eCommerce business easy ever before. However there are many middle man type of software are available in the market but these tools are also minimize your profit margin. so it is better to communicate directly to dropshippers instead of getting any tool however further more i read a guide that help me to understand how to chose trusted or validate suppliers on AliExpress, here is that guide; How to Validate Suppliers on AliExpress
but this guide is only base on aliexpress, however it is good to understand the steps of chossing validate suppliers.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[GSF]

It all depends on the sellers. Good sellers who actually use epacket (there are some who say they do but then don't) can get stuff pretty quick. This is a recent order from a supplier on aliexpress. Ordered on Sunday July 30th, it was delivered in the Phoenix Area on the 9th.

Ive got a dropship store I started earlier this year to test a niche out, I've kept it going because it makes money without much effort or any marketing/ ad spend and sales/ traffic are increasing month by month.

just had delivery confirmation of order to Canada which took 12 days which I don't think is too bad, on average I'd say America 10-15 days. I'm upfront about shipping times and have never had a complaint, most my customers are in USA but also get customers across Europe, Asia and South America.

 

[lonewolf28]

Dropshipping could sometimes be a good way to test the market, but you would have to be sure you could then buy the identical product from the real manufacturer rather than from the retailers on Aliexpress, which is the site of choice for dropshipping from China. Otherwise you have to start the sourcing process over again, because buying from suppliers on Aliexpress is a risky business model.

I would prefer to first find a good, genuine manufacturer, then buy a small quantity of your chosen product and test market those. Search for my AMA for some help on the sourcing process.

The way you intend to market physical products is up to you, but there are thousands of people, including quite a few Fastlane members that are selling on Amazon USA although they are not US residents. I have recommended a low cost Amazon course to some of them who are now doing that, but I can't post the link here.

The US market is not only huge, but US citizens are far more likely to buy online than those in most EU countries.

You certainly don't need anywhere near $5K to get started.

Walter

Hey Walter,

About how much would someone usually need to at least test the markets? Some people or "gurus" say $500 some say zero dollars, some say nothing at all.

 

[Walter Hay]

Hey Walter,

About how much would someone usually need to at least test the markets? Some people or "gurus" say $500 some say zero dollars, some say nothing at all.

I don't do any internet marketing. There are very experienced members who do and I'm sure they can answer that for you.

Walter

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[lonewolf28]

I don't do any internet marketing. There are very experienced members who do and I'm sure they can answer that for you.

Walter

Thanks Walter,

Can I PM you for some general questions.

 

[Walter Hay]

Thanks Walter,

Can I PM you for some general questions.

Fire away. But..... I am undergoing major surgery this week and might be a bit slow to respond.

Walter