DROPSHIPPING 104: What Are The Cons Of Dropshipping?
[Image is from Canva and was designed by me]
Hey everyone! If you're reading this, I want to believe that you've also seen the BUSINESS 101: What Is Dropshipping? video, the BUSINESS 102: How Do You Find The Best Supplier For Your Business? And, the Business 103: What Are The Pros Of Dropshipping? episodes. If you haven't seen the videos or read the article, kindly do so.
In my previous posts, I spoke extensively about dropshipping, how to find your ideal drop shipper and the pros of dropshipping. Today's focus is the downsides of drop-shipping.
I disagree with some who claim that drop shipping is a get-rich-quick gimmick. It is hard work. It is consistency and effort.
Before we go further, I want you to understand that drop shipping is no walk in the park. Furthermore, there are no advantages without disadvantages.
You Do Not Exactly Have Complete Control
Pricing, packaging, and delivery methods are all out of your control. When dealing with suppliers, you do not have control over how much you intend to sell a certain item and whether or not you intend to give a specific discount.
Dealing with my suppliers has taught me that even if I see lower prices for the same shoes on social media, I won't be able to sell my shoes as cheaply as I'd like because I'm also trying to make a profit.
Your inventory
Another element over which you have no control is your stock. When your supplier is out of stock, you are out of stock as well. Consider my case. I received roughly five requests for a certain pair of heels that my supplier had just shipped a few days before.
I was ecstatic, so I raced to my supplier to see whether the shoes were still available so that I could make the payments on behalf of my clients.
Source Unfortunately, the shoes were out of stock. The fact that she was out of stock had a negative impact on my business since I could have made a significant amount of money by selling that item to five different customers in one day.
Presentation
Packaging is another issue over which you have little control because all of the products your consumers will get do not come from you. Personally, for my shoe business, @shoesbyraye on Instagram, I have a fancy bag in mind that I'd want to package with, but I can't use any of my branded bags because most of my things flow directly from the supplier to the buyer.
I know I'd do a much better job if I handled the packaging myself. I'd also like to leave small remarks to thank them for their patronage.
Delivery
This is another critical point to remember. I noticed that my suppliers' dispatchers were not delivering to my clients as quickly as I would have liked. So I went out and hired a dispatcher, one who knows not to joke with my customers' orders.
Quality.
You might never see the things until your supplier sends them to your customer, depending on the type of drop shipper you are. The majority of folks encounter issues like these. You are unable to determine whether the delivered goods are exactly what your customer bought or whether they meet the specifications.
Like many others, @hopestylist shared a story about a friend who purchased products from a drop shipper just to find out they weren't what she had requested. And for this reason, I advise drop shippers to begin their business relationships with suppliers who have physical locations, making it easier to return defective goods.
You May Struggle With Prompt Customer Service Delivery
Every single time a customer comes to make an inquiry, you have to quickly run to your supplier to ask those same questions just so you are in the know. You're continuously enquiring about what to do next; what shoe sizes are available; what items are available for sale; and how many they have in stock.
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