Ebay drop shipping

arshavin · #1 05-06-2010

I am currently trying to fathom a way to make a living on the net and ebay and i am looking over many different methods and products. One thing i have found is that lots of electrical goods are sent to the US and europe from asia.

This has made me think about possible drop shipping. Is this a good way to start selling items or would you guys say its a bad idea? If any of you guys use this method what profit margin % do you aim for? Absolutely any advice would be greatly appreciated.

#2 05-06-2010

My opinion is that you should not begin as a drop ship seller. Too many other things will occupy your concentration and drop shipping has many problems all by itself. You should get familiar with regular selling first, then maybe consider drop ship selling later.

If you really need income soon and don't have enough funds to get started any other way... well we all do what we gotta do. If that is your situation, my suggestion is to observe every minute detail and track each drop shipped item all the way to each buyer's doorstep. Do not pay your supplier from the same paypal account that your buyers pay you through.

It is best if you pay your supplier from a genuine credit card. If your supplier turns out to be a scammer, you will likely be able to recover your funds. It just takes 60 days or so....

If Paypal finds out you are buying inventory from a drop shipper and that you don't already have your inventory in-stock prior to listing on ebay, they will come down on you hard and heavy.

arshavin · #3 05-06-2010

Thanks for the speedy reply.

I have lots of experience of selling goods on ebay but have fell out of touch with it over the last 2 years. The 2 reasons i am considering drop shipping is that i dont have any trusted suppliers at the moment so i can test the water and i can go down this route cheaply.

That is great advice regarding making payment with the credit card thank you. You said that paypal will not tolerate sellers drop shipping goods. Does this mean that this method is rare on ebay?

If anyone does dropship on the forum can you please give me some advice please. I am sorry if these questions are lame i am just in a pickle at the moment and i'm trying to put a fix to it.

GreenBean · #4 05-06-2010

My .2p, dont do it

arshavin · #5 05-06-2010

Thanks GB, could you tell me why not please?

GreenBean · #6 05-06-2010

Not enough coffee drunk yet

Drop shipping is like dominoes

Drop shipping is only as successful as the money you have besides you to cover the items that you are supplying to the buyers. Despite it appearing lucrative, if there is a hold up with delivery after payment and the buyer needs a refund where does that come from? You may not have any money... what does the buyer do? Go to ebay/paypal and complain... see dominoes starting to fall

Many of the users here I've helped who have drop-shipped have had problems. It's a matter of supply,demand and you can not supply which equals lost accounts

#7 05-06-2010

Ok, considering you have prior experience, drop shipping is more feasible in your case.

Considering your motive for doing so, it's a solid reason.

Do consider the credit card to pay your supplier.

Drop shipping is not rare on ebay, but only those who are meticulous will likely be successful.

You questions aren't lame at all. It's good that you ask about what you don't know before making errors. Planning and research contributes a lot toward success.

I've done some drop shipping and I have sold things that others are holding in their inventory. I list and sell, they ship. Very much the same as drop shipping with a standard supplier except I trust people who I am familiar with moreso than I trust an anonymous supplier.

Drop shipping leave you wide open for buyers to complain about shipping time in transit, undelivered items, and wrong items received. So extra care is necessary.

Those are the best tips I can give you right now. Others will probably add to this. I might think of something else significant. If so, I'll come back and add to this thread.

Good luck and be careful.

Quote:

Originally Posted by arshavin

Thanks for the speedy reply.

I have lots of experience of selling goods on ebay but have fell out of touch with it over the last 2 years. The 2 reasons i am considering drop shipping is that i dont have any trusted suppliers at the moment so i can test the water and i can go down this route cheaply.

That is great advice regarding making payment with the credit card thank you. You said that paypal will not tolerate sellers drop shipping goods. Does this mean that this method is rare on ebay?

If anyone does dropship on the forum can you please give me some advice please. I am sorry if these questions are lame i am just in a pickle at the moment and i'm trying to put a fix to it.

arshavin · #8 05-06-2010

Thanks Vic for this great advice.

riversnew · #9 05-06-2010

I check sellers' shipping time DSR. If they are low, I know they drop ship, hence I avoid them like a plague.

slapped · #10 05-07-2010

Remember that Paypal has its 21 Money Hold on new accounts, This could make Dropshipping DANGEROUS. You MUST Consider this Carefully along with Everyting else. If you plan to Dropship Electronics as you stated above.

Picture yourself selling 2 46 inch LCD TV sets that will cost you say $2,000, well now because of the 21 Day hold YOU Must come up with the $2,000 in order to process the order.

Even if you are selling $10 Items you can get in trouble. Picture Selling 200 $10 Items in a say a 2 week period of time (14 Days) You still have to lay out the money for EVERY one of those items because Paypal still has a hold on the money from the Very FIRST Item that you sold.

Another thing is Profit Margins they are NEVER as good as when you are Buying and selling Conventionally, ESPECIALLY with Electronics!!!

Also you Mentioned Not having "Trusted Suppliers" That is even MORE IMPORTANT when using Dropshippers, They could run out of items that you sold before they advise you, Ship late, Ship incorrectly, Damaged Goods, CHANGE PRICES without notice (Some Dropshippers are Famous for that, Especially durring the Holiday season with HOT products) ect,etc

At least with Conventional Buying and Selling YOU Personally recieve and Inspect the Items that you bought from the Supplier BEFORE They go to YOUR Customers, not to mention the fact that you will ship them so you know that a proper item was indeed shipped out in a TIMLEY and Proper manner.

I personally Think that Dropshipping requires More Start up Capital and is MORE Problematic than Conventional Buying and selling, and another thing, I am quite sure that your "Trusted Dropshipper" can also sell you Bulk items at Bulk Pricing making him a "Trusted Supplier"

Consider all this before you start Dropshipping, Because of this Paypal 21 day hold I truly believe that money is NOT That big of a Factor as it once was.

#11 05-09-2010

Also,

When you send money to the drop shipper, he now has been paid. It would be important to you that the item be shipped quickly so that your funds become available instead of remain on hold. The drop shipper is not so concerned unless he/she truly wants your repeat business. If the item does not ship from your supplier in a timely manner, your reputation suffers and your funds are not yet released to you. Yet your supplier has your funds already available, thus shipping time does not matter - in an objective sense...

The supplier could send an empty box or a very shoddy product 3 weeks late.

Ordering an item to inspect is no guarantee. Suppliers have been know to provide YOU a nice sample, yet ship crap to your customers. The only way you have of monitoring quality control is for you to pay the supplier for items and you give an address to your sister-in-law or a cousin. Then ask your sister-in-law or cousin how long it took for the item to arrive, then ask them to send the item to you so that you can determine if it matches the quality of the original sample. Obviously you don't inform the supplier that the addressees are your sister-in-law and your cousin.

The previously mentioned method eats up profit and is still not fool-proof.

Screen your drop ship suppliers well and thoroughly. Try to use suppliers that have a good reputation with your other associates.

arshavin · #12 05-09-2010

Thanks again guys, great stuff again.

wilburnet · #13 05-09-2010

Arshavin dropshipping is so good at making a quick profit . Find a niche item on ebay , list it at less than a competitor and if your account is not new and past the 21 day hold then you can make a fairly quick profit .

arshavin · #14 05-09-2010

My paypal account is past the 21 day hold. Hopefully i will find that niche item and turn a profit. Thanks wilb.

arsgunner77 · #15 05-09-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by arshavin

My paypal account is past the 21 day hold. Hopefully i will find that niche item and turn a profit. Thanks wilb.

nice goal today andre

jeffweico · #16 05-09-2010

Another thing to consider is risk vs reward. Someone mentioned selling a big screen tv for $1,000. Let's say your cost is $800. eBay/PayPal fees would be $81.50. That leaves you a profit of $118.50.

For the potential gain of $118.50, you have $1,000 at risk. What if the buyer decides he does not want it? Or claims it is damaged or defective?

Will the drop-shipper pay for the return shipping, or do you have to pay? Paying another shipping fee could instantly put you at a loss.

Or worse, the buyer does a chargeback without sending back the merchandise? Now you have no money and no merchandise. It happens sometimes.

Now, just to make up the loss, you have to sell 10 more of these. Now you have $10k ar risk.

That is an awful lot to risk for such a small profit. That is why I stay far away from electronics.

Find an item with a high profit margin (easier said than done, I know). That way a loss will not be devestating.

arsgunner77 · #17 05-09-2010

dropshipping is stupid for a variety of reasons,i know there are a few pros but i think way too many cons,this day in age,people want there stuff now,they do not like to wait dayssss, i hate dropshippers if there selling the same products as me,but they dont last long..so oh well

jamblix · #18 05-10-2010

Ah drop shipping, let me tell you my story. I first got into all of this through researching drop shipping. I went into wholesale forums, signed up for some drop ship companies mainly uniqebe.com and devilwear.co.uk and I can tell you from research that it is not worth all the work. Some items you sell may even make you lose money let alone make you money.

Well this is coming from the items that I personally researched which summed to a little over 100 roughly. The highest profit yielding item I found that if I decided to sell and drop ship, minus all the eBay and PayPal fees, came to a profit of $12. And that was the highest, on average you're looking at making around $5-$8 each sale you make drop shipping.

Plus don't forget that you'd have to actually find a legit and reliable drop shipping company which might possibly be the hardest part. Forget all those drop shipping companies that have useless merchandise like chess sets and bonzai tree kits you won't sell nearly enough to make a living.

Best advice that I wish someone would have given me at that time would have been to save up some money and buy your own products wholesale. In my opinion this is the best way.

zhuwh · #19 05-10-2010

first drop shipping is a current now,because of the economic crisis.If you want do drop shipping first please check what is your particular products of individuation.Or do you have a access to the business??