Nowadays, customers do not only see the product online from every angle imaginable but they can interact with it through augmented reality. If you can see how, let’s say, a jersey would fit you, there is no need to go to a store and try it on. Not having to store container loads of boxes full of products in the back store or a warehouse is every retailer’s dream come true.
That’s why more and more brick and mortar businesses are using dropshipping to cater to the needs of their customers. However, not every product is the same and some cannot be sold online. The trick to getting the best out of dropshipping is to select just the right products that promise the highest return rate.
Seasonal goods are not profitable
One of the most important rules of dropshipping is that products have to be able to sell well all year round. This means that the seasonal goods just aren’t profitable in the long run. Sure, a Santa costume will sell nicely in December but try to retail one in the middle of July. The trouble with seasonal goods is that they sell well only during a specific period of the year and you need a constant income if you want the dropshipping supply chain model to work.
Products that become outdated
The topicality of the products you sell is not only reflected through the time of the year they are used the most. In fact, retailing electronics can become a nightmare because of the speed technology is advancing. Just look at the home entertainment industry and how it shifted from the VHS format popular during the 80s and the 90s to modern digital formats in under 30 years.
We are not arguing that a USB memory still will become outdated by the time you sell it but it will most definitely lose value after a couple of months. This might not seem like a long period but even a slight drop in the retail price means that your profit margin shrinks exponentially.
Downsizing for cheaper shipping costs
Once you know what’ll go in the boxes, make sure the packaging is not too large. The product should not take too much physical space because it will be cheaper to ship them in bulk. Ideally, it would be best if you could fit the item inside a container no larger than a shoebox. Don’t worry about marketing, as small items actually sell really well online.
When it comes to shipping, if the products are small enough, more of them can fit inside a crate that will then go on a cargo ship or an airplane. The more produce you can fit in or on one of these, the lower your shipping costs will be. If you really wish to save money, then hiring cargo charters via quality companies such as Air Charter Network will make for a sound business investment.
Ultimately, it all depends on the volume of goods you wish to ship but if you need a couple of dozen crates shipped from Australia to Europe, then a cargo charter is a cost-effective transport method. After all, Qantas just introduced the longest nonstop flight from Sydney to London so if such long hauls are possible in civil aviation why should cargo air transport lag behind.
A fragile business
Speaking of shipping costa and issue, we feel obliged to state the obvious: avoid selling bulky or fragile items. Like we’re argued in the previous paragraph, the items you sell online should be small in size but by no means fragile. Selling wine glass sets is nice and it could be profitable but do you really think that each and every glass can survive the journey to the customer? Of course not!
We presume you’re a conscientious person that would handle fragile shipments with care but the companies you team up and socially the courier service, have their own business policies that are rougher, to put it like that. That’s why it’s smart to abandon retailing fragile items from the very start unless you want your customers’ relations department to be swamped with complaints due to goods damaged during shipping.
Avoid candy-like products
This might seem like a silly question to ask but does candy solve any problems? The answer is, of course, no, as we eat candy when we feel like it. The last three words are crucial since you need stability in the demand for the product you dropship. Candy feels nice in the mouth but it is more of a whim of the customer than a real need.
Another example of a product that had its five minutes of glory never to be popular again is the fidget spinner. The craze about them a few years back diminished in just a couple of months so wholesalers and retailers who filed their storage facilities with box-load of spinners were in for big financial trouble. Avoiding items that are presently in high demand but which sales could plummet at any moment is one of the soundest advice you’ll ever read about dropshipping.
All in all, dropshipping has some pretty big perks if you use this supply chain management method in the correct manner. The biggest wisdom is properly selecting the actual products you are going to dropship. They shouldn’t be large in size nor fragile and they have to meet a real need so their demand remains high throughout the year.
