Guest Post by: Michelle Perrigo

Drop shipping is a profitable means of retailing for small businesses or work-from-home companies. Retailers sell products from a showroom, online catalogue or website, but the wholesale supplier stores the inventory. Customers purchase products from the retailer, who submits orders to the wholesaler.  The wholesaler directly ships the completed order to the customer, leaving the retailer to handle only the purchase transactions. Retailers profit from the difference between the retail and wholesale costs.

You can maximize a drop shipping business with effective networking and marketing. To make your drop shipping business more successful, consider the following tips:

1. Build partnerships with multiple wholesalers or manufacturers.Suppliers are your key partners in a drop shipping business. Get to know the wholesale companies you want to work with. Meet owners and learn their company values. Discuss their specialty products or top selling items and set up a network of business partnerships.

2. Ask about private label shipping. Manufacturers can set-up customized labels as the return address for shipping products so customers don’t refuse a package from an unknown source. Work with your manufacturers to use your retail information as the return addresses to ensure customer confidence.

3. Keep up with product quantities in stock. Back orders can reflect poorly on you as a retailer. Communicate with your manufacturer about available item quantities and potential delays in order fulfillment. You are responsible to know product availability changes to communicate with your customers.

4. Test the drop shipping delivery time and quality. Before you publicly launch your website and products, test the ordering process. Pay a trusted friend or colleague to order products from your site as a sample order. Place the manufacturer order and note the expected delivery time. Have your friend tell you when the products arrive. Personally inspect their quality.

5. Know your products inside and out. Eat, sleep and breathe the product catalogues. Learn everything you can about the details and functions of your products so that you can effectively answer customer questions. Get familiar with all the manufacturer’s items, so that you can expand your product line at regular intervals as your business builds.

6. Visit your manufacturer’s As a means of continuing the business partnership, confirming quality or expanding your product line, set up a factory visit with your suppliers. If they are too far to visit, ask about a virtual tour.

7.Market your products consistently and expansively. Everywhere you can – with paid ads, or free on Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, creatively market your products. The more people viewing your website and products, the more sales you will earn.

8. Establish a customer-friendly website for easy ordering. Make your website easy for customers to view products, find specs and place orders. A complete, effective shopping encounter will bring return customers.

9. Regularly communicate with your suppliers. Again, to keep up relationship and stay aware of products, have regular communication check points with your manufacturer or wholesalers.

10. Track your orders relentlessly. Establish a process that clearly organizes your order intake, customer payments, manufacturer orders, payment to manufacturers and ship dates of merchandise. Set up automatic reminders, payments and email notices if possible.

11. Provide excellent customer service. Just do it. Take good care of customers by effective products and addressing concerns. Good ratings help your e-reputation as a quality business.

12. Maintain positive cash-flow. Distribute every customer payment into your business accounts. Pay your bills promptly so you always know where your bottom line stands.

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Ray Walters rlwalters3@gmail.com Skype: rarayfb3

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• Advertising, Opt-in Leads, Email Marketing service helps small businesses market their products more effectively. We provide everything you need, http://www.madviral.com Phone: 256-778-8350 (9am-5pm CST M-F) MadViral Enterprises, LLC 171 Early Rd. Hartselle, Al. 35640

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• Advertising, Opt-in Leads, Email Marketing service helps small businesses market their products more effectively. We provide everything you need, http://www.madviral.com Phone: 256-778-8350 (9am-5pm CST M-F) MadViral Enterprises, LLC 171 Early Rd. Hartselle, Al. 35640