What makes a good dropshipping product?
Posted: Mon Dec 23, 2024 6:34 am
The perfect price
Make sure you strongly consider the price point in relation to the level of pre-sale service you'll need to provide. Most people are comfortable placing a $200 order online without speaking to someone on the phone. But what about a $1,500 item that they're not familiar with? Most will likely want to speak directly with a sales rep before making such a large purchase, both to make sure the item is a good fit and to ensure the store is legitimate.
If you plan to sell high-ticket items, make sure you can offer personalized phone support. You'll also want to make sure your margins are high enough to justify the pre-sale support you'll need to offer. Often, the $50-$200 price range is the sweet spot for maximizing revenue without having to provide extensive pre-sale support.
MAP Price
Some manufacturers will set what’s called a minimum advertised price (MAP) for their products and require all resellers to set their prices at or above that level. This price floor prevents the price wars that often break out—especially for products that can be easily dropshipped—and helps ensure that merchants can make a reasonable profit by carrying a manufacturer’s products.
If you can find a niche where manufacturers canada phone number list enforce MAP pricing, it's a huge advantage, especially if you plan to build a high-value, information-rich site. With equal pricing across all competitors, you can compete on the strength of your website and won't have to worry about losing business to less reputable, but cheaper competitors.
Marketing potential
The time to think about how to market an online business is before you launch it, not three months later when you realize that customer acquisition is a nightmare. Can you come up with several ways to promote your store – by writing articles, giving away products, or reaching out to active online communities that use the products you sell? If not, you may want to reconsider your plans.
Additional accessories to sell
As a general rule, in retail, margins on lower-priced accessories are significantly higher than those on high-priced items. While a mobile phone store may only make a 5% margin on the latest smartphone, it will almost certainly make a 100% or 200% margin on the accompanying case, not to mention the cost of any digital products .
As customers, we are much more sensitive to the price of a big-ticket item and care less about the price of smaller accessories. To use the example above, you would probably shop around for the best price on an expensive Apple iPhone. But are you going to call around to find the best price on a $20-$30 case? Probably not. You're likely to buy it at the same store where you bought the phone.
Low rotation
We hope you're convinced that investing in a high-quality, education-rich site will pay big dividends. But if the products you sell change every year, maintaining that site will quickly become a mountain of work. Try to find low-cost products that aren't updated with new models every year—like tools or personal care products. This way, the time and money you invest in an exceptional site will last longer.
Smaller is generally ideal
In a world where free shipping is expected, it can be challenging to sell large, heavy equipment that is expensive to ship. The smaller the items, the easier it is to ship them cheaply to your customers.
Choosing the right products isn't easy and requires you to consider numerous factors. These guidelines should give you a good idea of the types of dropshipping products that perform well. For more information on these attributes, check out this expanded article on how to choose a profitable niche market .
Hard to find locally
Selling a product that is hard to find locally will increase your chances of success, as long as you don't get too specific. Most people who need a garden rake or sprinkler would simply go to the local hardware store. But where would you buy a medieval knight costume or falcon training equipment? You'd probably go to Google and start searching.
Make sure you strongly consider the price point in relation to the level of pre-sale service you'll need to provide. Most people are comfortable placing a $200 order online without speaking to someone on the phone. But what about a $1,500 item that they're not familiar with? Most will likely want to speak directly with a sales rep before making such a large purchase, both to make sure the item is a good fit and to ensure the store is legitimate.
If you plan to sell high-ticket items, make sure you can offer personalized phone support. You'll also want to make sure your margins are high enough to justify the pre-sale support you'll need to offer. Often, the $50-$200 price range is the sweet spot for maximizing revenue without having to provide extensive pre-sale support.
MAP Price
Some manufacturers will set what’s called a minimum advertised price (MAP) for their products and require all resellers to set their prices at or above that level. This price floor prevents the price wars that often break out—especially for products that can be easily dropshipped—and helps ensure that merchants can make a reasonable profit by carrying a manufacturer’s products.
If you can find a niche where manufacturers canada phone number list enforce MAP pricing, it's a huge advantage, especially if you plan to build a high-value, information-rich site. With equal pricing across all competitors, you can compete on the strength of your website and won't have to worry about losing business to less reputable, but cheaper competitors.
Marketing potential
The time to think about how to market an online business is before you launch it, not three months later when you realize that customer acquisition is a nightmare. Can you come up with several ways to promote your store – by writing articles, giving away products, or reaching out to active online communities that use the products you sell? If not, you may want to reconsider your plans.
Additional accessories to sell
As a general rule, in retail, margins on lower-priced accessories are significantly higher than those on high-priced items. While a mobile phone store may only make a 5% margin on the latest smartphone, it will almost certainly make a 100% or 200% margin on the accompanying case, not to mention the cost of any digital products .
As customers, we are much more sensitive to the price of a big-ticket item and care less about the price of smaller accessories. To use the example above, you would probably shop around for the best price on an expensive Apple iPhone. But are you going to call around to find the best price on a $20-$30 case? Probably not. You're likely to buy it at the same store where you bought the phone.
Low rotation
We hope you're convinced that investing in a high-quality, education-rich site will pay big dividends. But if the products you sell change every year, maintaining that site will quickly become a mountain of work. Try to find low-cost products that aren't updated with new models every year—like tools or personal care products. This way, the time and money you invest in an exceptional site will last longer.
Smaller is generally ideal
In a world where free shipping is expected, it can be challenging to sell large, heavy equipment that is expensive to ship. The smaller the items, the easier it is to ship them cheaply to your customers.
Choosing the right products isn't easy and requires you to consider numerous factors. These guidelines should give you a good idea of the types of dropshipping products that perform well. For more information on these attributes, check out this expanded article on how to choose a profitable niche market .
Hard to find locally
Selling a product that is hard to find locally will increase your chances of success, as long as you don't get too specific. Most people who need a garden rake or sprinkler would simply go to the local hardware store. But where would you buy a medieval knight costume or falcon training equipment? You'd probably go to Google and start searching.