I am offering free q&a to those interested and about starting Dropshipping business.

Software or company support won't be entertained.

Store setup
Payment gateway
Traffic generation
Product sourcing
Branding etc

Above are lists of areas that will be entertained.

Let's get rolling...

what is the minimum amount to start a dropshipping business (without including amount of store setup and advertising; Ave already taken care of that)

what do you do if a customer has already paid for a product but you do not have the money to pay the vendor in naira to start sending the goods to the customer?

I'd be happy to have your reply. these are my challenges

Tell me how the whole business works..... especially traffic generation

vinceyinnovation:
what is the minimum amount to start a dropshipping business (without including amount of store setup and advertising; Ave already taken care of that)

what do you do if a customer has already paid for a product but you do not have the money to pay the vendor in naira to start sending the goods to the customer?

I'd be happy to have your reply. these are my challenges

There are 2 or more scenarios to your question or concern.

1. Your payment gateway does not release your fund on time then you will need your fund to fulfill the orders plus advertisement if you want to go the paid ads route.

2. Payment gateway release funds in 24 to 48 hours so no fund needed to fulfill orders plus your choice of ads (paid or free ads).

I hope am able to answer your question.

For your second question, e get as e be.

Is it that the fund isn't made available by your payment gateway or what?

If the payment gateway didn't make it available until a certain time like flutterwave is 7 days then you will have to look for a means to refund your customer if he or she does not understand that there will be delay.

Onlinebar:
Tell me how the whole business works..... especially traffic generation

You are fulfilling order from a third party and they will make a blind shipment to your customers.

Let me explain.

You develop a store for jewelry so when you get buyers, you will pass the orders to the supplier or manufacturer who then will ship the product to your buyers.

You do not need to store any inventory or ship any product to customer.

dplores:


You are fulfilling order from a third party and they will make a blind shipment to your customers.

Let me explain.

You develop a store for jewelry so when you get buyers, you will pass the orders to the supplier or manufacturer who then will ship the product to your buyers.

You do not need to store any inventory or ship any product to customer.

How much do I need to spend on ads for traffic

1. Apart from Facebook or google ads, what other ad converting platform can we use to bring traffic to our store

2. In building our store, should we focus on one niche or multiple niches? And what's the best niche to focus on

3. What is the overall cost of owning and running this store. Like amount spent on ads, hosting, domain, marketing etc

4. What is the best budget for ads that will guarantee traffic and customers conversion.

Thanks

dplores:



There are 2 or more scenarios to your question or concern.

1. Your payment gateway does not release your fund on time then you will need your fund to fulfill the orders plus advertisement if you want to go the paid ads route.

2. Payment gateway release funds in 24 to 48 hours so no fund needed to fulfill orders plus your choice of ads (paid or free ads).

I hope am able to answer your question.

For your second question, e get as e be.

Is it that the fund isn't made available by your payment gateway or what?

If the payment gateway didn't make it available until a certain time like flutterwave is 7 days then you will have to look for a means to refund your customer if he or she does not understand that there will be delay.

ok.

D second question was actually the challenge of the PayPal delay to release the money the customer paid for, so I can pay the vendor for e.g in AliExpress in order to send the tracking ID of the package to the customer (customer in the USA), knowing that the customer must confirm receiving the package before the releasing of the funds to me.
What is the best way to handle such situation since it will delay the customer to get his/her product?

Is it to refund the money back through PayPal or persuade the customer to have patience?

Thanks a lot for taking time to answer my previous question.

vinceyinnovation:


ok.

D second question was actually the challenge of the PayPal delay to release the money the customer paid for, so I can pay the vendor for e.g in AliExpress in order to send the tracking ID of the package to the customer (customer in the USA), knowing that the customer must confirm receiving the package before the releasing of the funds to me.
What is the best way to handle such situation since it will delay the customer to get his/her product?

Is it to refund the money back through PayPal or persuade the customer to have patience?

Thanks a lot for taking time to answer my previous question.

We have different types of customers.

Persuade the customer to be patient but make provision for such on your homepage as well on the shop page and product page. So whoever is shopping on your store knows there might be delay of delivery

If is the type of customer that does not take persuasion then refund via PayPal is the best route.

obuneme:
1. Apart from Facebook or google ads, what other ad converting platform can we use to bring traffic to our store

2. In building our store, should we focus on one niche or multiple niches? And what's the best niche to focus on

3. What is the overall cost of owning and running this store. Like amount spent on ads, hosting, domain, marketing etc

4. What is the best budget for ads that will guarantee traffic and customers conversion.

Thanks

There are lots of traffic sources

Pinterest
Snapchat
Reddit

But you need to understand how the platform operates

Niche store is the best to start.

There are lots of niche and no niche on planet earth is dead. Find the right audience and feed them what they want.

Domain $8 .com on namecheap.

Hosting (there are lots of hosting out there specifically for e-commerce. Shared hosting is a NO. Here are some wpengine, siteground, kinsta but they are pretty expensive but if you are a technical fellow you should go for Google cloud)

Marketing. You can go the free route or paid route. Whoever is telling you that $200 is enough to get good returns with paid ads that's a big lie.

So my best advice to noobs is to start with free traffic via Pinterest or get influencers on a commission basis.

For the established one, let me ask you. When your phone is old and you are about to change it where do you go first? Definitely google.com

Here is the approach. Whatever paid ads you are running first install Facebook Pixel on your store.

Drive traffic with Google or if you are going the free route using Pinterest or influencer or Instagram or Reddit or which ever

Then retarget on Facebook ads.

dplores:


We have different types of customers.

Persuade the customer to be patient but make provision for such on your homepage as well on the shop page and product page. So whoever is shopping on your store knows there might be delay of delivery

If is the type of customer that does not take persuasion then refund via PayPal is the best route.

Thanks a million!

These were the questions that put my dropshipping business quest to a halt.

vinceyinnovation:


Thanks a million!

These were the questions that put my dropshipping business quest to a halt.

You are welcome.

What's the total cost to start and run the business till break even point. And how long does it take to start seeing results.

dplores:
I am offering free q&a to those interested and about starting Dropshipping business.

Software or company support won't be entertained.

Store setup
Payment gateway
Traffic generation
Product sourcing
Branding etc

Above are lists of areas that will be entertained.

Let's get rolling...

dplores:
I am offering free q&a to those interested and about starting Dropshipping business.

Software or company support won't be entertained.

Store setup
Payment gateway
Traffic generation
Product sourcing
Branding etc

Above are lists of areas that will be entertained.

Let's get rolling...

I have a WordPress store but i lost interest while creating the store. What do you think about shopify.

I feel it has a better and more intuitive design.

Also, please shed light on profitable route and the cost.

I've heard alot about pinterest but all i just see dere is pictures.

Pls is it possible to start shopify dropshipping with 100k ( including the ads and store setup)

AIIyIic:


I have a WordPress store but i lost interest while creating the store. What do you think about shopify.

I feel it has a better and more intuitive design.

Also, please shed light on profitable route and the cost.

I've heard alot about pinterest but all i just see dere is pictures.

Pls is it possible to start shopify dropshipping with 100k ( including the ads and store setup)

WordPress with woocommerce powers most of the powerful store you might think about.

Shopify is easy in terms of design but expensive to manage.

Shopify you pay for almost all the add-ons or plugin you use monthly but WordPress is a one time payment for most of plugins worst case yearly

I prefer WordPress powered stores cos it gives you the freedom of designing whatever you envision.

Before you start purchasing your domain you need to grab your pad and pen to jot down things while doing your research

Ask yourself, do you want to start a niche store or general store? Is it a one product store or general niche store?

When you have answered those questions the next thing is to start research on the actual niche which we have lots to discover but I prefer what is trending.

If your main traffic source is going to be Pinterest open your vpn to a USA location and browse https://trends.pinterest.com

there you have what's trending on Pinterest with it's graph.

Let's say is Facebook which I don't advise to start with, is to find an ad on Facebook pretend you want to buy up to the stage of entering your billing details then close the page.

you will be fed more ads which you should be able to find what's working or not but there are things to look out for when doing dis.

Page likes, the ads engagement itself and other ads on the page and how long have they been running the page or the ads.

Lastly which is my most preferred, go to Google and search Google trends and type buy, discount, free shipping, cheap, those term that shoppers use into the search bar and go

Boom you will see lots of trending angles you can capitalize on and not only that if SEO is done properly then is party after party.

My advise is develop a store with woocommerce easy way is using a theme. If you need recommended woocommerce themes either paid or free do let me know.

There are 2 most important plugins for any serious Drop shipper to boost conversion.

I will also advise starting with free traffic once you are earning $1,000 or more monthly with it then you can build ads on Facebook using custom audience which is the best route.

Here is why, when you want to buy things online your first starting point of planning is Google and the next will be Pinterest. Facebook does not come to mind when you plan to change your sneakers or your iPhone etc

I hope I have answered your questions.

Istan2020:
What's the total cost to start and run the business till break even point. And how long does it take to start seeing results.

I think I have answered similar questions 2ce.

There isn't any actual amount because you can go low or high in terms of cost

1.

Domain $8/yr
Hosting $29/yr unlimited domain on namecheap

Best is to have a cloud hosting for your store because it takes a lot for an ecommerce store. Here are the best hosting for e-commerce store siteground, wpengine, kinsta, cloudways which are expensive but you can get cloud hosting done for cheap if you are technical or can research online

1. Google cloud.
2. AWS amazon

Those are self host solutions.

If WordPress, for lazy developer you might need a theme which you can get free or paid

Free:

Astra themes
Oceanwp themes

Those are the best so far

Paid themes you can get the best from $55 and above although there are cheaper once when you see them you will know why they are cheap

Like I mention in previous answer start with free traffic but have Facebook Pixel on your store so you can retarget your audience and possibly build a lookalike audience on Facebook.

Here are some of the paid themes that i can recommend but there are more which are equally good but these i select based on ease of customizing or development to your preference and it used elementor and gutenberg.

Biagiotti theme for beauty and cosmetics shop
hxxp:/ /bit .ly/ biagiottheme

Stockie multipurpose theme for for kitchen, lightning, home decor and more
hxxp:/ /bit .ly/ stockie

Konte minimal theme for any purpose and best for one product store
hxxp:/ /bit .ly/ kontheme

WoodMart theme can be used for any purpose but best for a general or niche store
hxxps:/ /bit .ly/ woodmartheme

To find trending niche on pinterest

Browse trends.pinterest.com with your VPN on USA location or use epic privacy browser



Select a few related terms to compare and make your final decision


Finding trends on google.

Go to trends.google.com or keywordtool.io/google-trends and type in any of the term buyers use e.g Best, Cheap, Free shipping, Buy, Discount, Purchase, Where to buy etc

You can filter by category, country and cutom time range. There is also interest by states in whichever country you choose.





Here is the other google trend tool

Coffee Mesh Filter

Method: Use instagram/twitter/pinterest/youtube influencers or SEO

Price: $37.99





More to come...

Sling Puck Hockey Game

Method: Use instagram/twitter/pinterest/youtube influencers or SEO or Google Ads

Your Store Price: $42.99 (over 200%)

dplores:


WordPress with woocommerce powers most of the powerful store you might think about.

Shopify is easy in terms of design but expensive to manage.

Shopify you pay for almost all the add-ons or plugin you use monthly but WordPress is a one time payment for most of plugins worst case yearly

I prefer WordPress powered stores cos it gives you the freedom of designing whatever you envision.

Before you start purchasing your domain you need to grab your pad and pen to jot down things while doing your research

Ask yourself, do you want to start a niche store or general store? Is it a one product store or general niche store?

When you have answered those questions the next thing is to start research on the actual niche which we have lots to discover but I prefer what is trending.

If your main traffic source is going to be Pinterest open your vpn to a USA location and browse https://trends.pinterest.com

there you have what's trending on Pinterest with it's graph.

Let's say is Facebook which I don't advise to start with, is to find an ad on Facebook pretend you want to buy up to the stage of entering your billing details then close the page.

you will be fed more ads which you should be able to find what's working or not but there are things to look out for when doing dis.

Page likes, the ads engagement itself and other ads on the page and how long have they been running the page or the ads.

Lastly which is my most preferred, go to Google and search Google trends and type buy, discount, free shipping, cheap, those term that shoppers use into the search bar and go

Boom you will see lots of trending angles you can capitalize on and not only that if SEO is done properly then is party after party.

My advise is develop a store with woocommerce easy way is using a theme. If you need recommended woocommerce themes either paid or free do let me know.

There are 2 most important plugins for any serious Drop shipper to boost conversion.

I will also advise starting with free traffic once you are earning $1,000 or more monthly with it then you can build ads on Facebook using custom audience which is the best route.

Here is why, when you want to buy things online your first starting point of planning is Google and the next will be Pinterest. Facebook does not come to mind when you plan to change your sneakers or your iPhone etc

I hope I have answered your questions.

Wow.
You're loaded.
I really appreciate your detailed response.

AIIyIic:


Wow.
You're loaded.
I really appreciate your detailed response.

Thanks.

Thank you so much for this information. i am interested in dropshipping business.. how can i start ? alutaengine@gmail.com

My WhatsApp in my signature.

Good morning to y'll

I get a lot of complaints that the images aren't showing on mobile and I have to check it as well which is true. Been looking for the perfect solution to get it to show for mobile users and what I will do is I will upload directly instead of using the [img][/img] shortcode.

Stay tuned!

Here are the images not showing.

Pinterest trend

Coffee Mesh Filter

Sling Puck Hockey Game

We thank God for the calmness in the land. May God recover all that has been loss for our nation Nigeria.

Today, I have one tip for those who want to get into dropshiping but the challenges e.g payment gateway, product source etc is putting most off.

Well, I want you to know that you can do local dropshiping if you are okay with few hundreds or thousands as profit.

Step 1.

A. Research Jumia, Konga and the likes for your niche and product

B. You can also look around for local deals example guys making senator wears, footwear etc

Also check how it's performing on Google SEO.

Step 2.

After you have gotten your niche, create a store for just that niche and if is just a specific product do same.

When you make sales, go to Konga or Jumia or Jiji etc to place the order.

N.B: Go for product or niche that isn't easily accessible. What sense will it make if I have a local store near me selling item I need for 3k and I choose to buy online with shipping for 6k.

So find products that isn't easily accessible.

Thank you.

dplores:


There are lots of traffic sources

Pinterest
Snapchat
Reddit

But you need to understand how the platform operates

Niche store is the best to start.

There are lots of niche and no niche on planet earth is dead. Find the right audience and feed them what they want.

Domain $8 .com on namecheap.

Hosting (there are lots of hosting out there specifically for e-commerce. Shared hosting is a NO. Here are some wpengine, siteground, kinsta but they are pretty expensive but if you are a technical fellow you should go for Google cloud)

Marketing. You can go the free route or paid route. Whoever is telling you that $200 is enough to get good returns with paid ads that's a big lie.

So my best advice to noobs is to start with free traffic via Pinterest or get influencers on a commission basis.

For the established one, let me ask you. When your phone is old and you are about to change it where do you go first? Definitely google.com

Here is the approach. Whatever paid ads you are running first install Facebook Pixel on your store.

Drive traffic with Google or if you are going the free route using Pinterest or influencer or Instagram or Reddit or which ever

Then retarget on Facebook ads.

This is very clear. Many thanks

you talk about traffic sources on Pinterest Snapchat Reddit.
how do I use these platforms to drive traffic to my store