Features of drop-shipping

In recent years, affiliate marketing has become a common service amid a wave of information business development. Before the appearance of affiliate marketing method, information promotion specialists actively promoted another option – drop-shipping.

In the basis of drop-shipping, an online store purchases goods only after the customer makes a request. You can create an online store quite quickly, for example, using the Shopify platform and then find a supplier to purchase the goods. The cost of the goods at the supplier is much cheaper than what is sold in the online store. After the goods are shipped to the customer, the price difference is retained by the online store. Mediation acts as the basis in the drop-shipping process, the purchase of goods is made at the expense of the client.

Why commodity affiliate networks are more profitable to use than drop-shipping, read in the article from AffCommunity. They also have on their website all the advantages and disadvantages of drop-shipping.

What pros and cons drop-shipping has

The main advantages of drop-shipping are as follows:

• there is no need to store goods, search for storage facilities, creating conditions for the products being sold;
• you can quickly and significantly expand the assortment;
• no need to buy goods in advance;
• create a catalogue of products offered conveniently from the range of suppliers.

When organizing drop-shipping, it is important to take into account that the greatest demand is for trending goods.

The minuses of drop-shipping are associated with a number of problems that arise. For example, the process of delivery of goods depends on the supplier and there is no possibility to fully control the goods in terms of quality. If the buyer receives defective products, claims will be directed to the seller, not the supplier. Full responsibility for negative feedback and building a favorable image will also lie with the seller.

Funds may be in a prolonged transfer status after payment for the goods. The duration will depend on the speed of delivery. The funds can be received only after the customer has received the goods. Within being between different countries, the crediting process may take a long time.

When using drop-shipping, it is necessary to register an official company, which requires additional costs for taxes, accounting and time. Also, minuses are associated with client disputes, when the seller has no convincing proving facts, the dispute will be resolved in favor of the client.

Another trade option involves connecting to sales in the role of an affiliate. Modern commodity affiliate networks are an alternative option for earning money, when you can focus on promotion, sales. When creating an online store, it is important to study in detail the possibility of connecting to an affiliate program.