6 Simple Steps To Start A Dropshipping Business Today [A Guide For Beginners]

I can hardly remember a time when a drop shipping business model was as popular among entrepreneurs as it is now. Browsing the internet and doing research on the popularity of modern business niches I came across drop shipping business opportunities. Since I also have successful experience with dropshipping business, I’d like to share everything you need to know about dropshipping.

So, let’s dive into details about what dropshipping is and how to start a dropshipping business today.

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What is a Drop Shipping Business?

Dropshipping is a retail method when your partner, not you, is keeping the goods in stock. In simple words, it is a business model where you act as an agent between business and customer. Here is the process of how dropshipping works:

1. Find a business niche you are interested in
2. Find a product manufacturer and agree with him on collaboration terms
3. Sell your partner’s products
4. Tell your partner order details and customer information
5. The partner sends his product to a customer
6. You earn your commission

Quite simple! Agree?

So, even if you are not an e-commerce expert, you have all the chances to get success in a short time. And that is the reason why so many entrepreneurs start with a dropshipping business.

What are the benefits of starting a dropshipping business?

• It is safe. You shouldn’t focus on goods in stock and their on-time delivery;
• It is fast to start. You don’t need to have deep knowledge of business, that is why the drop shipping business model is just perfect for starters.
• It is flexible. If you see that your product demand is decreasing, just change the product.
• It is simple to run. You only need to concentrate on promoting your business.

But some tricks impact whether your dropshipping business will be successful or not.

Here is the step-by-step guide that will give you an understanding of how to start a dropshipping business that will allow you to start doing actions today.

How to Start a Drop Shipping Business For Beginners

Step 1. Find a drop shipping business idea

How to find drop shipping business ideas? What I like the most about dropshipping is that you always have a choice.

Start with reviewing the best dropshipping niches!

You can review the article on the best niches for drop shipping or simply go through some high-demand goods.

Make sure people search it on the internet:

• Go to Ebay

Search for the most wanted and most sold items.

• Go to Amazon

Try to search for top-selling items on Amazon.

• Go to Google Keyword Planner

Check trends and search volume for your business niche.

Step 2. Start an LLC for a dropshipping business

Well, forming an LLC for your new dropshipping business in 2024 is a strategic decision. If you are just trying this business model you don’t need to start an LLC. But if you are serious enough about making money with dropshipping, I would recommend using Swyft Filings.

Swyft Filings is a leading provider of business formation services. They offer comprehensive solutions and expertise since its inception in 2015 and could be a perfect fit for dropshipping needs.

• Entity formation
• Registered agent representation
• EIN (Employer Identification Number) acquisition
• Compliance assistance
• DBA (Doing Business As) registration,
• Trademark filing
• Business license research.

Besides, the company has transparent pricing with no hidden fees, making it accessible to entrepreneurs with varying budgets.

Step 3. Find dropshipping suppliers

Do you know what is the best dropshipping business to start? The one when you focus on a strong partnership. So, if you wonder how to start dropshipping today, you should think about finding reliable partners.

Actually, the ability to find the right partners is the key to success in a dropshipping business. Since your future customers don’t care whose fault it is that the shipping is too slow or, for example, too expensive.   

Also, you should know that not everyone is ready to dropship and it may take time to find a partner.

Start with creating a Google spreadsheet to manage the list of manufacturers and suppliers you find, and add the following information there:

• partner’s website
• partner’s product type
• contact details
• date of first contact
• status of communication

Make sure to update the document every time you work with the list.

Best dropshipping suppliers (USA and others)

There are a lot of supplier directories where you can find a partner for the dropshipping business.

Here is the list of the most popular and highly popular directories among the starters:

1. Importify

All-in-one drop shipping solution for your business. Importify is a great fit for starters as well as experienced entrepreneurs. Here is what drop shipping business opportunities you can get:

• Product Research to find winning products for your niche by spying on other successful Shopify stores.
• One-click Product Import from top dropshipping suppliers including AliExpress, Alibaba, Amazon, Etsy, Dhgate, Lazada, Shopee, Banggood, and more.
• Product Customization to customize product details such as title, description, images, variants, and pricing for the imported products.
• Easy Supplier Change to switch product vendors and connect the new supplier to your store with just a click.
• Connect Existing Products already present on Shopify, WooCommerce, or Jumpseller stores through Importify.
• Shopify to Shopify Importer through Firefox extension to easily import and dropship products from other Shopify stores.

Go to Importify

2. AliDropship

The company focuses on AliExpress dropshipping business opportunities. Here are the options you may get with them:

• AI-Powered propshipping store. It starts from US $299 (one-time payment).

• Replicated top-performing store. It starts from US $300 (one-time payment).

• Plugin-based solution for self-management.

Go to Alidropship

3. Wholesalecentral

4. TheWholesaler.co.uk

5. eSources

6. TopTenWholesale

7. Dropship Direct

8. Sunrise Wholesale

9. Salehoo

Step 4. Write a drop-shipping request email

From my personal experience, you can find good manufacturers with beneficial collaboration terms quite easily if you pitch them correctly.

You can also use social media like LinkedIn to connect with decision-makers. Remember you are building win-win relationships and you should show a manufacturer the benefits of working with you.

To tell the truth, manufacturers are more likely to work with big companies that guarantee good sales volume in comparison with a starter who doesn’t have experience, website traffic, and loyal customers.

But it is not as disappointing as it may sound.

A dropshipping business model is very popular among starting entrepreneurs. And it means that this business can give you a good start in building something BIG.

First of all, when writing an email, remember you are contacting a human. Try to sound natural and not spammy.

Your email should be brief and to the point. A person reading your email should understand who you are and why you are contacting them.

Also, it is better to make the final sentence a question.

Here is a simple dropshipping supplier email template:

Once you get a reply, give a prompt response to show your interest in collaboration. In most cases, you’ll be asked to provide information about yourself by completing simple forms.

Step 5. Create an e-commerce website

Starting a Dropshipping business can be a hustle if you do not know the right e-commerce software which is a big part of the business. Dropshipping businesses require a platform that has an e-commerce storefront, high demand for products, and exceptional services. Big Commerce and Shift4Shop both support their users every step of the way and provide the right tools for success. With these two, you can start Dropshipping in a few hours and successfully run an online store. 

Meanwhile, the decision to choose the platform depends on various factors including user experience, payment plans and cost, design and themes, transactions and credit card fees, payment methods, shipping, SEO, and marketing tools. 

When it comes to ease of use and navigation, both are pretty good and provide high-quality services. It is important to know about the services offered before going to make the final decision. Let’s get into detail, and make our decision based on complete and authentic information.

Also, when you decide to Launch a Dropshipping business, keep these three points in consideration;

• Sign up with a marketplace like Amazon to sell products through their site 
• Use platforms like BigCommerce, Shift4shop, or WordPress to set up an independent store 
• Using the basic one, combine both methods

Using a Dropshipping store with ready-made, customizable themes makes it easier and allows handling every aspect of your business.

BigCommerce vs Shift4Shop – what is better for Dropshipping business in 2024?

Shift4Shop review

Shift4Shop is an E-commerce company that develops commerce software for businesses. Its current customers include 200,000 plus with 3.5 billion annual transactions. It’s an industry-leading eCommerce platform with inbuilt features for managing every aspect of the business. It offers various free services including a free domain name, free website themes, and a free SSL certificate. Also, offers the best product page, customer relations, inventory control, and business management. Shift4Shop dropshipping will grow your business! 

Is Shift4Shop legit? Definitely! Shift4Shop has all the features needed to set up Dropshipping business and connect with suppliers. It is a mobile-friendly, search-engine-optimized e-commerce site. It has accurate shipping rates, built-in integration, email notification, and access to top-quality suppliers. 

Though initially it was known as 3Dcart, in 2020 it was rebranded offering an eCommerce website builder. 

Go to Shift4Shop

Key Shift4Shop features

• Unlimited Categories and Smart Categories 
• CMR (Customer Relationship Manager)
• Unlimited Product Images and Zoom 
• 3dfeedback Customer Surveys 
• Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA Module)
• Product Comparison and multiple Ship-To Checkout 
• Visitor IP Blocking and product review 
• Powerful website builder with core themes 
• Automatic integration of Google AMP for product page 
• Optimized code to ensure the importance of page element 
• Easy to view, edit, and save Carts/customer accounts and check out 
• Convenient and flexible payment processing with unlimited end-to-end commerce plan 
• Design customization and built-in features with core template engine 
• Mobile response design
• Phone orders and Manual order processing / Printing labels for popular shipping carriers like USPS, FedEx, UPS, and more 
• Built-in SEO tools/ Built-in Blog 
• Social wish list and Coupons and discounts 
• Promotion Schedulers 

Shift4Shop Pluses

• Shift4Shop provides basic website tools that are easy to use along with a fully optimized dashboard
• It has powerful built-in features and vital marketing tools to empower your business
• Payment processing solutions help avoid a lack of methods 
• It also gives the option to hire professional developers to design a store

Shift4Shop Minuses

• Its features include a huge source of apps which sometimes confuse entrepreneurs to find what exactly needed
• It doesn’t have a wide selection of themes, templates are basic and simple

Try Shift4Shop for free

Shift4Shop Pricing

Though there is no difference in the pricing, however, the features and services differ from BigCommerce. The staff users with the plans differ, as it requires 2 staff for the basic, 5 staff for the plus store, and 15 staff users for the pro store. Having multiple store staff make it easier to manage the store, and lessens the burden of work. Also, there are no transaction fees required in any plan which is similar to the BigCommerce Platform. However, all three plans of Shift4Shop include unlimited products. You can include as many products as you can in your store. All essential features are included for the basic, and for the plus store, it focuses on a complete marketing suite.                                                 

All the pricing plans include:

• No additional transaction fee 
• Domain Registration 
• Shopping Cart 
• Unlimited orders 
• Twenty/four/seven Tech Support 
• Facebook store 
• Secure Web Hosting 
• 50+Mobile-Ready themes 
• Built-in blog 
• Unlimited Bandwidth 
• 100+ Payment providers 
• API Access 

Shift4Shop all three plans Basic, Pro, and Plus are paid monthly. Make your decision considering pricing, customer service and support, marketing features, payment processing, and reliable Drop shipping available.

Start free trial on Shift4Shop

BigCommerce review

BigCommerce has seen tremendous growth in the last few years contributing lifetime opportunities for entrepreneurs including Dropshipping businesses. Dropshipping set is set up in simple steps such as devising your selling strategy, choosing a pricing plan and signing up, creating a BigCommerce Drop-shipping store, choosing a product sourcing App, and starting to make money. With a single click, you can import products from various websites to your store. Such as Aliexpress.

Meanwhile, before jumping on BigCommerce and clicking that ‘’Launch store’’ button, let’s review the services to clear the fog away and help you make a better decision.

Key BigCommerce features 

Big Commerce provides the best sourcing apps, no transaction fees, and global sales. Moreover, offers entirely customizable themes including HTML, CSS, and JavaScript Code.  Also, you can choose either paid or free themes among a variety of collections which includes more than 120 templates. You can use a page builder visual editor with drag-and-drop functionality to frame your pages according to your interests. 

Here are the key BigCommerce features:

• One of the most attractive features is no transaction fee to keep your profit margin higher 
• You can reach out to users all over the world without border restrictions, customers can see prices for the goods in their specific currencies 
• Customer support agent for language translation 
• It offers only a SaaS local development environment and allows you to test your site simultaneously on a tablet, mobile, and desktop. 
• For traffic growth, it provides advanced SEO tools similar to Shopify’s SEO 
• Provides multiple layers of security and super-fast speed. For the prevention of unauthorized access, server-specific firewalls, file integrity scanners, and intrusion detection software are installed
• You can also provide free shipping for specific products by creating a coupon code

BigCommerce Pluses

• BigCommerce plans are very comprehensive and also available at a lower cost for advanced features
• Multiple Currencies option is available
• Real-time shipping calculations are available on any plan
• No transaction fees are charged by BigCommerce, even if you use the third-party payment method
• It has built-in product review functionality.
• Great SEO features with a Short URL creation option, AMP format is available for all templates

BigCommerce Minuses

• BigCommerce in comparison with its competitors charges quite a lot to avail abandoned cart functionality
• Limit on annual online sales, if you reach the limit, you’ll need to upgrade your plan to a more expensive monthly plan
• There is so much similarity among the free themes available
• Also, there are no shipping discounts available on any plan

Bigcommerce Pricing model

Standard ($29.95 a month)

• No additional transaction fees
• Unlimited Product, file storage, and bandwidth
• Unlimited staff accounts 
• Online Storefront, Point of Sale 
• Amazon/eBay/Walmart 
• Facebook/Instagram /Google shopping 
• Mobile responsive website 
• BigCommerce mobile app
• Page Builder 
• Single-page Checkout 
• Apple Pay, Google Pay, Amazon Pay
• Multi-currency 
• Real-time Shipping quotes 
• Professional Reporting Tools 
• Product rating and reviews 
• Tech support (Phone, Chat, Tickets
• Many other services that you can check out 

Plus ($79.95 a month)

 Plus is one of the most popular plans including all the standard services with a monthly cost of $79.95. Additional services include:

• Customer groups and segmentations 
• Abandoned Cart Saver 
• Persistent Cart 
• Stored Credit Cards 

Pro ($299.95 a month)

Similarly, the Pro plan includes all the services provided under the standard and Plus plan with some additional services at a higher cost. Which includes;

• Google customer reviews 
• Product Filtering 
• Customer product filtering 

Additionally, it offers 15 15-day trial to check which plan is right for you. 

Step 6. Promote your website

When you launch a website, it is time to think about marketing and start a promotional campaign.

So, what are the best marketing strategies for promoting a dropshipping business:

• • Social networks. Best for sales and drop-shipping business promotion are Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.
  • Product reviews. Add reviews to your website to make it more trustworthy for new customers.
  • Influencers. Find popular bloggers and influencers to promote your products. This strategy
  • Giveaways. Attract more clients by giving away a product and promoting it on Facebook and Instagram.
  • Start a blog. Write about your business niche, create product reviews, and inform shoppers about new products through your blog. It will help to attract organic traffic and more returning customers.

How much money can you make with dropshipping?

Dropshipping income can vary greatly. On average, some entrepreneurs make a few hundred to a few thousand dollars per month in the beginning. As they refine their strategies and grow their customer base, some reach five or even six-figure monthly. But these figures are just averages, and your results can differ based on effort, market trends, and other factors.

For example, Oberlo started as a dropshipping website and later merged with Shopify. They focused on helping entrepreneurs easily source products and manage their online stores. By providing a user-friendly platform and valuable resources, they attracted a wide audience of budding entrepreneurs. Their success shows how a well-executed dropshipping model, combined with effective marketing and support, can lead to significant growth and impact in the e-commerce industry.

SUM UP

As you can see, starting a drop shipping business is not very complicated. It is easy to start and grow following the steps described above.

Dropshipping is one of the best business models where you don’t need to keep stock. You only take an order and send details to suppliers who then send the goods to your customers. However, low startup costs attract a lot of people creating competitive business space. Therefore, using platforms that can bring more traffic would help cope with the competition.

Shift4Shop benefits users through effective store management, design, and themes. It is user-friendly, and the price plans are similar to different services. Also, the payment methodologies and use of multiple currencies make these apps more favorable for businesses globally.

Make your decision wisely, and make maximum profit out of these opportunities, and we would be happy to bring more informative pieces that would ease the decision-making process.

And remember, you can achieve everything with drop shipping business opportunities!

Time to take the first step and start dropshipping now!