Introduction
There is something incredibly exciting and rewarding about starting your own business. You have spent time researching everything from target markets and products to eCommerce platforms and marketing strategies. Everything is in place; all that is left is to find the right supplier.
You can have the best product ideas and a winning marketing strategy, but when it comes down to it, none of that will matter if your supplier isn’t up to scratch. Ultimately, your dropshipping business’s success depends on selecting the best supplier for your store, and with an estimated 100 0000 plus suppliers out there, picking the perfect one can be a challenge.
Your supplier is responsible for packaging your products, providing quality checks, and shipping them directly to your customers. Another way to look at it is that you are outsourcing a major part of your business to a third party. You have absolutely no control over this part of the process, and if anything goes wrong, your customer’s relationship is with you, not your supplier. Yes, you are responsible for resolving any issues related to their order.
It can be tempting to go with the cheapest supplier, but you may end up paying a lot more than you ever intended due to their service. So before we go into our top picks, let’s look at what you need to consider before making that all-important choice.
Customer satisfaction and your supplier choice
If you think about what your customer wants, it’s easy to see how your supplier can impact your business. Your customer’s needs are really very simple; they want a quality product securely packaged and delivered quickly. Cover those three aspects, and you will have a happy and satisfied customer!
Customer service is vital to any business. As mentioned earlier, with dropshipping, you are, unfortunately, outsourcing a large component of your business that significantly impacts your customer service. Building your brand and reputation takes time but can easily be destroyed through negative customer experiences.
In a previous article on How to effectively run your dropshipping store, we spoke about the impact of customer service. As we said, to really appreciate the impact on your business, you need to look at the statistics:
- 89% of customers who experienced poor service will not be back.
- Customers are 2 times more likely to share their bad experiences than they are to talk about their positive experiences
- It takes 12 positive customer experiences to make up for one negative experience
- 55% of customers would pay more for a better customer experience
- A customer is 4 times more likely to buy from a competitor after experiencing a service-related issue than a price or product-related issue.
- A 10% increase in customer retention levels results in a 30% increase in perceived company value.
- It costs 6 to 7 times more to attract a new customer than to retain an old one.
What criteria should you focus on when choosing your supplier?
There are a number of factors that you need to take into account when selecting your supplier. Although we cannot stress enough how important the quality of your products is, it is not the only factor you need to consider. But predictably, we’re going to start off there.
Quality products
The rationale behind selling a quality product is fairly obvious. And yes, it may be tempting to go with a cheaper supplier, but a high-margin low-quality product strategy is not sustainable, well, not if you want your business to have any form of longevity.
Your margins may be lower, but on the upside, you won’t be dealing with customer complaints, returns, reimbursements, and bad reviews. These will cost you far more in the long run! And remember, your reputation and credibility are at stake!
Shipping
Competition in the dropshipping market is fierce, and you don’t want to lose your customer because of a lengthy delivery process. No one wants to wait to receive an order or have to pay excessive fees for a priority delivery.
Finding a supplier that is able to ship your products quickly can provide you with a competitive edge. It is crucial to understand their shipping process and timelines. If it is going to take a few weeks to deliver your products, then they probably aren’t the best choice for your business.
Fee structure
There are various fees that can negatively impact your margins if you are unaware of them. And after spending all that time and effort making a sale, you don’t want to get caught by surprise with an unexpected fee.
For example, most suppliers will charge a per-order fee which is paid each time you place an order with them. Other fees like shipping rates and even monthly subscription costs all need to be taken into account.
When comparing suppliers, make sure that you understand what fees are being charged so that you can make an informed decision.
Customer Support
Just as the service you provide your customer is critical, it is just as important that the supplier you choose offers outstanding customer service for your business. You need to establish upfront how their support team works and what their turnaround times are like.
The quality of support and service they provide you will dictate the type of service and support you can provide your customers.
What is your supplier responsible for?
This is something that is often overlooked purely due to assumptions and can land up causing you endless problems. Therefore, you must ensure that you have a contract with your supplier that stipulates their responsibilities. It is worth asking some of the following questions: although you may assume that your supplier will handle everything, it is not always the case!
- Who is responsible for packaging the products when a customer places an order?
- Can they customise the packaging and invoice to reflect your brand?
- Who is responsible for shipping the products to your customers?
- Who will provide the tracking information?
- What is their return policy?
- Who will handle returns and/or replacements?
- Who is responsible for products that are damaged or go missing during the shipping process?
Automation and technology
When selecting a supplier, you also want to think of the future, especially regarding automation and scalability.
Ideally, you want to automate as many processes as possible, which will help reduce your operational risks, such as placing orders, managing inventory levels, etc. It is, therefore, best to choose suppliers that can integrate with your eCommerce platform.
Top 5 dropshipping suppliers
As with any aspect of your business, research is key, and with those 100 000 plus suppliers out there, you will have your work cut out for you.
When it comes to starting a dropshipping store, Shopify is one of the most popular platforms around, and we love the endless supply of useful resources. The below information was taken from their article on dropshipping suppliers published earlier this year. We have included the top 5 of their list of 13.
AliExpress
AliExpress is an international wholesale and dropshipping platform that connects ecommerce platforms to dropshipping providers and products. The majority of merchants selling through AliExpress are based in China and source their products from the region. It’s open to people around the world for free.
Locations and shipping information: AliExpress ships to 254 countries around the world, including the US. Packages sent with standard shipping can take between 15 and 45 working days to arrive. If you pay for premium shipping, the estimated delivery time is between seven and 15 working days.
Product types: There are over 100 million products on AliExpress, in categories such as fashion, toys, consumer electronics, skin care products, jewelry, furniture, and even cars and motorcycles.
Recommended for: Both beginners and veteran dropshippers can use AliExpress to find trending products, do market research, build relationships with vendors, and order wholesale.
Alibaba
Alibaba is a B2B marketplace that connects buyers and sellers. The platform is more for wholesalers than single sellers, and facilitates transactions directly with manufacturers. Suppliers provide bulk items and can fulfill orders for your dropshipping store.
Locations and shipping information: Alibaba dropshipping can take time, depending on where you live. You can expect to wait up to six weeks for deliveries. To cut back on costs, you can choose to ship by freight or air. However, you should do your research and plan accordingly.
Product types: Alibaba has more than 2.8 million suppliers and more than 5,900 categories.
Recommended for: Advanced dropshippers who prefer private label manufacturing and want to buy bulk goods at the distribution level to sell as consumer items.
SaleHoo
The SaleHoo supplier directory lists more than 8,000 wholesalers that offer dropshipping, and seems to cater heavily to merchants using eBay and Amazon dropshipping. Although we’ve never used SaleHoo to source products, its $67 annual price is one of the most compelling values among supplier directories and includes a 60-day money-back guarantee.
Locations and shipping information: SaleHoo serves the US, UK, and Australian markets.
Product types: SaleHoo’s inventory source is AliExpress. You can find pre-vetted dropshipping providers from a variety of trending and profitable niches, then import items directly to your Shopify store.
Recommended for: If you’re comfortable paying an annual membership—or only need to use a directory and research tool temporarily—SaleHoo might be worth a look.
Worldwide Brands
Worldwide Brands, established in 1999, is one of the oldest and best-known supplier directories. It advertises that it only includes suppliers that meet a set of guidelines, ensuring legitimate, quality wholesalers. We’ve used the vendor dropshipping directory in the past to find legitimate wholesalers and to brainstorm niche ideas and found it useful.
Location and shipping options: Worldwide Brands serves retailers around the world. The company is a supplier directory, so shipping costs and locations depend on the dropshipping wholesale supplier you find through the platform.
Product types: Though the directory is missing some vendors for dropshipping we’ve worked with, it does include a large wholesale dropshippers list of legitimate options. There are over 16 million certified wholesale products to choose from in niches like pet supplies, jewelry and watches, consumer electronics, home décor, apparel, and more.
Recommended for: If you want lifetime access to a quality wholesale supplier directory and are comfortable with a larger one-time payment, Worldwide Brands is a safe bet.
Doba
Instead of simply listing dropshipping vendors, Doba integrates with suppliers (hence why it only has 165 suppliers), allowing you to place orders with multiple warehouses using its centralized interface. Membership also includes a Push-to-Marketplace tool that automates the process of listing items on eBay.
Doba’s centralized system offers more convenience than the other dropshipping websites, which we imagine is why the $60 per month fee is significantly higher than other directories. If you place a high value on convenience and can find the products you want among their suppliers, Doba’s interface may be worth the cost.
Locations and shipping information: Ships globally; rates depend on individual dropshipping wholesalers and the prices you set.
Product types: Over two million products with decent profit margins.
Recommended for: If you can identify quality product suppliers for dropshipping on your own and don’t mind working with them directly, you’ll be able to save around $700 per year. If there are only a few key suppliers in your niche—reducing the number of parties you have to coordinate with—Doba may be the way to go.
Zendrop
We couldn’t resist adding a 6th supplier, as Zendrop is definitely worth considering. Zendrop was created with dropshipping in mind, as they say, “made for dropshippers by dropshippers” and they pride themselves on providing the lowest pricing, fastest shipping options, and the best customer service in the dropshipping space.
They seamlessly integrate with platforms like Shopify, Woocommerce, and CommerceHQ and have great features like their detailed real-time analytics, automated fulfilment capabilities, and custom branding options.
Zendrop also offers many free resources to help you improve your eCommerce skills, and you can start for free and scale up to paid options as your business grows
Locations and shipping information: Ships globally
Product types: With over a million products and you’re bound to find the perfect one, and if you can’t find what you need, they are happy to source it for you!
Recommended for: One of the big advantages of Zendrop is that no matter the size of your business or level of experience, Zendrop has you covered. Zendrop’s customer service is highly rated, which is exactly what you need, especially if you are new to the dropshipping market.
Conclusion
It is always worthwhile taking the time to research all aspects of your business, and when it comes to dropshipping, your supplier choice can either make or break your business.
Remember, as we said, your customer’s needs are very simple; they want a quality product securely packaged and delivered quickly. And the most effective way to ensure that you are meeting those requirements is to test them for yourself.
Order samples to double-check the quality and, if possible, place a test order to ensure you can provide the service you are promising.
As with any business, you will learn along the way, but if you consider the above before choosing a supplier, you will have significantly reduced your “cost” of learning. We wish you lots of success with your dropshipping store!!!
