subject: Bulk Wholesale Versus Drop Shipping: Pros And Cons [print this page] Selecting the products that you'll sell in your online store takes research if you truly want to obtain the lowest prices possible. It also requires much thought on your part as to which selling process is better: drop shipping or buying wholesale items in bulk. Whichever method of shipping and selling you choose, providing good customer service ensures that your customers are not forgotten in the mix. However, there are definite advantages and disadvantages to both product supply methods.
Dealing with a "Middleman"
Perhaps the first issue that comes to light when discussing drop shipping versus bulk wholesale purchases is the issue of the "middleman." A middleman is essentially a person that will sell you goods and products for so-called "wholesale" prices, even though this person might not be an authorized distributor and may be marking the wholesale prices up themselves before selling them to you.
When attempting to find companies that drop ship, it's often difficult to distinguish between these middlemen and true authorized distributors and wholesalers of a product. On the other hand, more companies offer bulk wholesale prices than they do drop shipping services. This is an advantage of buying bulk wholesale items as you typically have a larger group of wholesalers to choose from than you would when looking for a drop shipper.
Storage of Items
For many people, using a drop shipping service is a convenient option as it requires no physical space to house goods as buying bulk wholesale items requires. When you use drop ship services, the wholesale supplier uses its own warehouses to store the goods you're selling, which is a clear advantage. If you do decide to buy bulk wholesale items, you have to worry not only about where to store goods but also how to pay for the storage space.
Shipping Practices
One of the reasons that many people love drop shipping is because the company with whom you have an agreement sends your products directly to the customers when orders arrive. You don't need to worry about taking physical goods to a post office as you do when you have to package and then ship bulk wholesale items.
On the other hand, you lose some control over the shipping process. When packaging and shipping your wholesale bulk items, you get to choose the type of packaging. You even get to place your name on the outside of the box in the return-address space. Using a drop shipper usually entails that you get no say in the shipping process or packaging practices.
Inventory Tracking
Finally, inventory tracking can be an issue. Buying in bulk and physically storing your items means that you have complete control over inventory tracking as you can simply count the number of goods you have. With a drop shipping service, however, you don't know how much you have on hand unless you request this information from the distributor. This creates a possible scenario in which the drop shipper is out-of-stock and you inadvertently "sell" this out-of-stock product, which can result in negative feedback and lost sales.
As you can see, there is much to think about when considering buying items in bulk versus using drop shipping services. Each method has its own pro and con list, which needs to be considered before making a final decision for your business.
by: Stu Wiseman
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