Business Tips

How to start your drop shipping business without inventory

By Christy Bella | March 14, 2020

Running an online business is nothing similar to running a physical store, especially when you don’t consider the dropshipping option. The challenges that come with it are enough to prevent you from ever-expanding. For instance, instead of focusing on the competition market, you’ll always be concerned about not letting the warehouse to run dry. Moreover, keeping a stock inventory wastes much of your time that would otherwise be used somewhere else. Once you go online, it is better to do it digitally.

For example, you can look up to prominent multinational corporations such as Uber and Alibaba, which have already carved successful dropshipping entities. The best thing is that they don’t control any stock; neither do they have the pressure of fulfilling orders. All you need to do is get credible suppliers like Printful.com and link them to your online store. Moreover, when a customer places an order, a notification is sent to your supplier, and they start working on the order immediately. Before you know it, you’ll have already met the customer’s needs and satisfied them as well!

So, how can you start your dropshipping business without inventory? Well, the tips include but not limited to, the following:

Launch an affiliate store

Since you are launching an online store with zero investment and no inventory, it would be best if you also had another source of passive income to sustain the small expenses such as internet services and SEO. In fact, most companies, including large corporations such as Facebook, are actually doing it. However, you must also note that the profit margins involved are so small, and so you’ll have to do it massively to attract sustainable commissions. You can use your website and social media platforms, but you have to be keen and use the methods that are only allowed by the businesses. For instance, you may be tempted to use email marketing, but some enterprises prohibit the same, especially for affiliates.

Print-on-demand services

As mentioned earlier, when starting an online dropshipping business without inventory, the first product that you can always have a lock on is print-on-demand services such as mugs, t-shirts, hoodies, and even bags. The best thing about print-on-demand services is that you can get to build your own brand without straining or without any initial capital from your pocket. Remember, in dropshipping, you only get to handle the orders as they are and get your payment. For instance, if a customer places an order, they pay you at retail price, but you pay the supplier at wholesale price. Print-on-demand services can be a good starting point before you move to other products.

Try out digital products and providing services

Not everyone understands the importance or the know-how of digital marketing, and you can just take advantage of that. There are various products and services that you can sell online without having an inventory and still succeed. For instance, you can engage in selling copywriting, legal services, IT consultations, and SEO services. All in one end, dropshipping businesses are about converting your time and internet usage into real-time money. There are also no limitations to growth and expansion. Start today, with your laptop even from home, and you’ll not regret even a single bit! This might just be a getaway ticket to a billionaire space!