Drop shipping is a form of retail business where the seller takes customer orders but does not keep the sold items in stock. As the name suggests, let others ship for you and you don’t have to bear the risk of inventory investment and stockpiling. That is, whenever you receive an order, you simply place the order directly with the wholesaler on the dropshipping platform and they will help you to forgo the logistics and deliver the goods directly to the consumer.
Unlock 9 drop shipping sourcing tools to easily start selling.
As the name suggests, let others ship for you, and you don’t have to bear the risk of inventory investment and stockpiling.
That is, whenever you receive an order, you can simply place the order directly with the wholesaler on the dropshipping platform and they will help you deliver it. logistics, delivering products directly to consumers. In this process, the third party shipper is not acting as the seller, you are the only seller to the consumer. With the drop shipping model, you can achieve zero warehouse operations.
What are the benefits of drop shipping?
- Less start-up capital required
Startup costs can be greatly reduced, you don’t have to pay for production or warehousing, and you only have to pay the supplier after you sell the product. The extra money saved can be invested in marketing campaigns to help you open sales quickly.
- Less risk when testing new products
Most dropshipping vendors highly recommend their top selling products, which means you already know which products are in high demand.
- Save a lot of time
Product warehousing, warehousing and management Cross-border logistics. It takes a lot of time. By delegating these tasks to a third party, you can focus on product marketing and brand building.
To start a drop shipping business, you need a source website with rich product categories and high quality suppliers as a starting point for purchasing products.
To help you get started quickly, we’ve put together a list of dropshipping websites or tools for you. Let’s see what artifacts are worth knowing about!
9 Tools to Help You Start a Dropshipping Business
All drop shipping sites have the same functionality, but they can vary greatly in terms of fees, products, policies, and ease of use.
As you explore these sites, it’s important to pay attention to the types of products the vendors sell, whether their service charge and shipping cost fits your budget, and whether their delivery time matches the country you’re selling to.
1.AliExpress
In terms of product variety, few sites can compete with AliExpress. Launched in 2010, the business has over 100 million products, meaning that no matter what industry you’re in, you’re more likely to find something to sell.
If you are considering starting an AliExpress shipping business, the DSers app is available on the Shopify website. As part of the free plan, the DSers-AliExpress Dropshipping plugin allows you to browse the vast collection of AliExpress products and add them to your website with just a few clicks.
Its premium plan is still cheaper than the other options, and under this plan, you can use automation to export new orders from your website, ship products to customers, and mark orders as shipped, all at no cost to you. Too much power.
Price: Plans start at $0 for 3,000 products, but we recommend a premium plan ($19.9/month) that includes automation.
Benefits: wide range of products, low cost, easy to sync with Shopify website
Cons: AliExpress is one of the most versatile dropshipping providers, so others can sell your items.
Suggested Targets: New salespeople on a small budget who want to build a brand through product planning.
Does it interact with the Shopify app: Yes. Can use DSers to replicate products and start sales
2. Spocket
Spocket is an order fulfillment service that works primarily with wholesalers in the US and Europe, but also has merchants in Canada, Asia, Australia, Brazil, and more.
With the Spocket plugin, you can view seller items and add them to your Shopify site with just one click. Spocket also automates the entire ordering process to deliver products to your customers at the time of purchase.
One of Spocket’s highlights is the branded invoices feature, which allows you to create custom invoices for your brand and send them along with your products. Branded packaging is of great importance for increasing brand awareness and attracting loyal customers.
Price: 25 product plans start at $24.99 per month after a 14-day trial
Benefit: Spocket includes a branded account that helps create a brand image in the user’s mind.
Cons: Spocket is more expensive. Its signature billing feature is only available on the Pro plan, which has fewer products and higher prices compared to other dropshipping apps.
Recommended Target: Vendors who have little start-up capital and place a high value on the ability to create their own branded products.
Can it interact with the Shopify app: Yes, with the Spocket plugin – US & EU Dropshipping.
3. SaleHoo
SaleHoo is a research tool and supplier directory for dropshippers, wholesalers and e-commerce sites. SaleHoo’s database contains over 8,000 wholesale distributors and dropshipping suppliers with over 1.6 million wholesale items.
Through SaleHoo, sellers can access SaleHoo’s market research page, which provides detailed data and sales information for each product available for sale. This means that sellers can see how the product performs on other websites and third party trading platforms such as eBay and Amazon before adding it to their website.
SaleHoo also allows you to see each product’s sales from other retailers, which means you can consider product competitiveness when building your brand. This is ideal for merchants who want to add their own branded features to products that are known to be in high demand, or take the opportunity to offer exclusivity to products that are hard to come by.
Price: SaleHoo’s dropshipping feature starts at $27/month. You can also access their database for $67 per year (no drop shipping) or a one time payment of $127.
Benefit: SaleHoo provides detailed information about every product available, making it easy to find high-demand items
Cons: SaleHoo’s dropshipping feature is not integrated with Shopify or any other ecommerce platform, so you have to manually import products and orders between Salehoo and Shopify.
Recommended for: SaleHoo doesn’t have an app but has many free API resources. Sellers with custom development experience may be best equipped to take advantage of SaleHoo’s unique features.
Can it interact with the Shopify app: No
4.Wholesale2b
Wholesale2b offers over 1 million items, mostly from wholesalers located in the US and Canada, meaning that if you sell to North American customers, Wholesale2b will be able to connect you with local suppliers and reduce your shipping costs.
Wholesale2b’s Shopify app can pick up an order from your website, send it to a shipper of your choice for fulfillment, and even add tracking information to a package once it’s shipped, all automatically. It also has native integration with Amazon and eBay.
Price: Starting at $29.99 per month after 7-day trial
Advantage: Wholesale2b has a large number of dropshippers in the US and Canada.
Drawback: Products on Wholesale2b tend to be more expensive than on other platforms, so it can be difficult to make big profits without significant markups.
Recommended for: Canadian and US sellers willing to pay a little more for locally made products and faster shipping
Can it interact with the Shopify app: Yes, you can use the Dropshipping Wholesale2b plugin.
5. Modalyst
Modalysts is an automated dropshipping app known for carrying well-known luxury brands like Dolce & Gabbana, DSquare, Calvin Klein and more. Selling a company’s products that customers already love can go a long way toward boosting your brand’s credibility with them.
For U.S.-based merchants, Modalyst offers a directory of U.S. suppliers that can ship domestic U.S. orders anywhere in the world within 6-8 days. Modalyst’s group of wholesale suppliers ships to over 80 countries around the world, even if you’re not in the US. The app also has an API partnership with AliExpress, which means that by using the Modalyst Google Chrome extension, you can reach millions of dropshippers in the marketplace.
Modalyst even curates a range of products made from sustainable materials from eco-friendly suppliers for businesses committed to environmental good. Additionally, you can add your brand logo to your products through the Modalyst private label dropshipping program.
Price: Modalyst’s $0 plan offers all automatic features and up to 25 products. And plans for more than 250 products start at $35/month
Advantage: Modalyst is very low cost. While its free plan has a limit of 25 products, it includes all the automatic features you get on the higher-priced plan. It also has a ton of products, especially if you consider the AliExpress Google Chrome extension
Cons: Products on Modalyst can be in short supply and sell out quickly, especially from well-known brands. A common complaint is that merchants add a product to their website only to find it out of stock soon after
Recommended for: Businesses on a tight budget who are looking for a low-cost way to sell high-end premium branded products
Can it interface with the Shopify app: Yes, you can use the Modalyst ‑ Dropshipping plugin
6. Doba
Doba is a dropshipping platform, mainly provided by suppliers in the United States and China. For merchants in both regions, Doba offers an easy way to sell local products with fast shipping times.
The most unique feature of Doba is its automatic pricing rules. Merchants can create “rules” to price their products at a fixed markup to wholesale price instead of manually pricing them. When the supplier changes the price, the automatic price also changes.
Price: After the 30-day free trial ends, plans start at $24.99/month
Advantages: With Doba, you can also filter products by shipping location, so you can be sure to choose products that ship within a reasonable time frame and manage your shipping costs
Cons: Doba’s dropshippers are integrated within the app, so it tends to have fewer suppliers than other dropshipping options.
Recommended for: Merchants located in the U.S. and China who want to ensure fast shipping of their products
Can it be integrated with the Shopify app: Yes, you can use the Doba ‑ Dropshipping plugin
7. Inventory Source
Inventory Source is a dropshipping platform and order management tool that strengthens the connection between dropshippers and retailers, allowing them to synchronize products and inventory, and automatically synchronize shipping information.
The app connects websites directly with suppliers at no additional cost for products, allowing merchants to develop a more personal relationship with their suppliers and offer products at a lower cost.
Since Inventory Source is primarily an inventory management tool, it’s the only one on this list that allows you to add your own dropshippers, although custom integrations come at extra cost.
Price: Inventory Automation plans start at $99/month
Benefit: Inventory Source provides a great solution for merchants who already have suppliers but cannot sync inventory and order data
Cons: Inventory Source can be more expensive, and since it’s primarily a tool, it’s better for merchants with a little experience working with dropshippers
Recommended for: Merchants who already have a relationship with a supplier or want to build a more personal relationship with a supplier
Can it interface with the Shopify app: Yes, you can use the Inventory Source plugin
8. Wholesale Central
Wholesale Central is not an app, tool or platform, but a directory of dropshippers, suppliers and wholesalers. For buyers and suppliers, Wholesale Central provides an easy way to find a large number of potential business partners.
Store owners can browse products and suppliers on Wholesale Central, or search for products and suppliers by name. When they find a product or a supplier they are interested in working with, they can get the supplier’s contact information.
While Wholesale Central doesn’t offer any inventory management tools, it’s a free and rich resource with tons of dropshippers and suppliers who can supply your site.
Price: Free
Advantage: Wholesale Central is a low-cost way to find a large number of suppliers willing to develop a personal relationship with the retailer
Cons: Wholesale Central doesn’t include any order management tools to help sync orders and products with dropshippers
Recommended for: Merchants who wish to cooperate with wholesalers and develop more personal business relationships
Can it interface with the Shopify app: No
9. Worldwide Brands
Founded in 1999, Worldwide Brands is one of the oldest and most trusted supplier directories for established retailers. Dropshippers on Worldwide Brands must meet a set of standards and established guidelines to help ensure the retention of quality wholesalers.
Like Wholesale Central, Worldwide Brands is a directory of suppliers and dropshippers willing to work with new retailers. While it may not offer much automation, it includes over 16 million certified wholesalers, an extensive wholesale product range, and a dedicated list of certified dropshippers if you’re looking specifically for dropshippers.
Price: One-time payment of $199
Advantage: Worldwide Brands has a strict set of criteria that dropshippers must meet, so it’s a great resource for finding reliable suppliers of a wide variety of quality products
Cons: Worldwide Brands doesn’t offer any automated tools or order management lines, so syncing inventory can be a hassle
Recommended for: Shop owners who want to work with trusted suppliers
Can it interface with the Shopify app: No
Shopify helps you easily build a website and start a drop shipping business
Once the source of goods is found, the next step is to build a website for consumers to shop and consume. When you build a website with Shopify, you will be able to help automate the shipping and dropshipping process of your online business by connecting to a product sourcing application. With dropshipping, third-party companies can directly ship orders from your website, which are then shipped to your customers. The whole process is easy and convenient, saving time and worry!
The next step after the website is established: Drainage
Once your website is live, it’s time to start driving traffic. If you’ve cultivated some following on social media or within an online community, you may have existing customers who can direct them directly to your website. But in most cases, you need to start identifying your target audience, and here are some ways to help you find them:
Find communities interested in what you sell
Develop a social media marketing strategy to build following online
Follow industry news related to your products, so you can stay on top of the latest hot products in your industry
Dropshipping has no inventory cost and no need to invest too much labor cost. It is a low-risk investment that is very suitable for novice entrepreneurs. For new merchants, dropshipping can save a lot of time and money. In the cross-border e-commerce industry, time is money. Novices who want to start cross-border e-commerce at low cost and without pressure, act now!
Recommended for: Store owners who want to work with trusted vendors
Dropshipping Tools To Run A Successful Online Store (2022)
