Best Home Based Businesses for Drop Shipping and How to Be Successful

Dropshipping has become the trendiest business model that almost everybody can see through during their downtime. One of the best things about dropshipping is that it doesn’t require tying a lot of capital on merchandise. Essentially, as a dropshipper, you’re the go-to guy (or gal) for when people need a certain product – the middle-man (or woman) between the end user and a wholesaler/manufacturer.

To become a successful dropshipper, there are three things to take keep in mind. First of all, the harder the product is to find, the bigger the potential for you to dropship it. Although most products are most likely available online, if you can find a product in high demand from a good supplier that’s fairly unknown, then it’ll be easy for you to middle-man the product.

Secondly, although you’re not tying a lot of capital on merchandise just sitting in a warehouse (or living room), you’ll still need to dedicate a few hundred – or even thousands – of dollars as credit to wholesalers/manufacturers. As a dropshipper, you’ll most likely be selling units in ones and twos, meanwhile wholesalers and manufacturers distribute their products in bulk, meaning that in order to get a working contract with them, you need to prove your dedication by prepaying for the products even before you make your first sale. In addition, make sure the difference between MSRP and wholesale price still offers comfortable margins to keep you dedicated to your growing business.

Third, your business is only as good as your supplier. This means that the quality of the products and their after-sales services will define your business in the end. Additionally, it’s wise to limit the number of suppliers you keep. For each product you dropship, make sure you have at least two suppliers on speed dial. This ensures that in the case that your main supplier can’t provide the good, you’ll have a backup to rely on. If your business experiences any downtime because a supplier can’t fulfill an order, your customers will flock to another retailer – there’s hardly any brand or company loyalty anymore.

These are just the top three things to consider when establishing your own dropshipping business from home. We hope we didn’t give you the wrong impression about the business because there are numerous dropshipping success stories. In reality, it’s really a lot easier than it sounds. Just like any business, it requires a little bit of time to research, both the business and the products you wish to retail. In the end, you can expect to earn what you put in.

The only question left to answer is what type of products should you sell? One of the drawbacks of dropshipping is that the products are easily traceable to their wholesaler/manufacturer (if you can find them, so can end-users). Dropshipping begins with finding the right product that people are into and finding the right supplier to fit that demand. Ultimately, as a dropshipper, you’re also a supplier, though one of the final links of the chain, meaning the products will have added value. With that being said, here are some of the best products to begin dropshipping from the comfort of your home.

Pet Products

In almost every country, pets are an integral part of the family. In developed countries, it’s hard to find a family that doesn’t have at least one pet (dog, cat, hamster, snake, etc.) so it’s easy to imagine how large the market for pet products is.

The good thing about pet products is that at a wholesale price, they’re relatively inexpensive, and they come in a wide variety of products with huge upselling potential. For example, as a pet product dropshipper, it’s completely possible to sell self-cleaning little boxes, water bowls, automated feeders, and even robot pet-hair vacuum cleaners all in a single order. As long as you build a reputation for being a reliable shipper, running a pet product online store promises huge margins.

Space-Saving Furniture

Everybody loves space-saving furniture. With the increasing number of YouTube how-to tutorials on foldable furniture in combination with the construction of space-efficient homes, it’s easy to believe that space-saving furniture isn’t going anywhere in the near future.

Your business can get ahead in the game with retailing these products online. It’d be nice if you could get a working contract with large manufacturers of this type of furniture, but if you can get your hands on local makers with little exposure and a limited online presence, that’d be even better. The best thing about this product is that due to its relatively small size and collapsible feature, it’s much easier to ship.

Grooming Products for Men

Beards are in, and maintaining a full-bodied face bush requires a number of different tools and products. Not to mention the massive potential of the market which is estimated to surpass the $60 billion mark by early 2020.

The large number and wide variety of products make the business inherently upsell-able. You can begin by offering grooming kits, deodorants, and facial and body washes, and work your way up from there (beard combs, pomade and gels, etc). In addition, there is an infinite number of unknown men’s toiletry manufacturers out there – both local and overseas.

Sourcing these products isn’t difficult to do, though to make your business stand out among the sea of grooming dropshippers, it’s best to find a white-label provider and market the products as your own brand.

Smart Devices for the Home

This is another expanding market that’s expected to grow beyond $50 billion by 2020. This niche is filled with different products, including security devices, interconnected home appliances, and smart lights.

China is home to the largest number of wholesalers of smart devices. Although purchasing these products now requires a healthy wallet, it promises huge returns in the long-run. Because of upselling, you should establish working contracts with several suppliers for each individual product you plan on selling.

One potential barrier to entry is the large shipping costs associated with transporting Chinese-made products to other countries. Of course, there are free shipping couriers, though they require that you wait up to 2 months for delivery. If possible, from a single or limited number of suppliers, make your place orders to your suppliers only after you’ve received a certain number of orders from customers.