Choosing the best ecommerce supplier is an integral step towards increasing the success of your dropshipping business. Many ecommerce suppliers are available, but it takes some consideration to pick the perfect choice for your business.
Working with the wrong supplier for online business interests might cause several unwanted issues and derail your short/long-term goals. Incessant delays, constant complaints, defective products, and other negatives can negatively affect your bottom line.
That’s why this article provides details to help dropshippers choose the best suppliers to maintain a reliable supply chain.
Table of Contents
Vital Factors for Selecting the Best Ecommerce Supplier
1. Product Quality
Confirming the product quality from a particular supplier should be a vital element to consider before choosing. In most cases, successful dropshippers don’t sell what they can’t use or vouch for.
To confirm the quality of products from your preferred supplier, place an order and check it out first-hand. Unboxing items before becoming a dropshipper is a smart way to verify a supplier’s products anonymously.
If you can’t use the product you plan to sell, consider getting more information about it before contacting its supplier.
2. Staff Experience
An ecommerce supplier is only as good as its staff. Efficient communication is a vital aspect of choosing the best supplier for online business ventures. Staff at your preferred ecommerce supplier must be able to:
- Convey orders correctly and quickly
- Maintain inventory information properly and initiate restocking
- Initiate discussions about possible delays to customer fulfillment
- Suggestions about how to deal with shipping delays
- Management and resolution of payment disputes
- Prompt handling of customer complaints (replacements for defectives, refunds, etc.)
Suppliers with experienced staff will prove helpful to handle large orders and make customer fulfillment easy. Some experienced suppliers, like Sellvia for instance, possess the staff strength to support old and new ecommerce businesses.
3. Pricing
Your preferred ecommerce suppliers should offer a price advantage over competitors. Bringing in more profits is the ultimate goal of any dropshipping venture, and low-priced products will always increase your profits.
However, seeking low-priced products from a supplier shouldn’t push you to inferior competitors. Strike a balance between quality and product pricing to avoid consumer complaints that may ruin your venture.
Also, note that suppliers will complete major parts of the work to ensure customer fulfillment. Stock keeping, inventory management, shipping, and other vital activity are the responsibilities of your supplier. Some suppliers might charge an exorbitant per-order fee to attempt ripping off dropshippers.
That’s why it’s very essential to choose best ecommerce suppliers who charge fair per-order fees for the extra work. And it’s a wise option to choose suppliers that don’t charge any hidden fees for customer fulfillment too.
4. Lead Time
When it comes to successful dropshipping ventures, time is everything. The best ecommerce supplier should have the capacity to deliver products on time to consumers.
Dropshipping is a hyper-competitive industry, and most consumers expect their orders to get fulfilled within a day. Your ideal supplier of products for dropshipping should guarantee customer fulfillment within 24hrs or sooner.
Even if large orders might take a bit longer than a full day, it’s vital to choose a time-conscious supplier. Most importantly, look to work suppliers that can deliver ordered items much quicker than your competitors. It’s crucial to remain in business.
5. Suitable Return Policies
Customers might return shipped products due to defects or for no reason at all. Some customers might feel inclined to return products directly to suppliers, but this may not suit your business model.
It’s better to work with suppliers that allow you receive returned products for inspection, that’s for defective items.
Inspecting returned items first makes it easy to fulfill a customer’s request. Confirming defects before sending returned items to your supplier also helps build a better relationship with your consumers.
6. Manufacturing/Supply Capacity
You must confirm whether your preferred ecommerce suppliers have the capacity to handle large orders. Proper organization of your dropshipping venture could generate massive leads in record time, and supply shortages could be a disaster.
The best ecommerce supplier will have the manpower and equipment to scale easily towards accommodating larger orders.
7. Technology Incorporation
Professional ecommerce suppliers invest in tech to make customer fulfillment easy. Suppliers who know the benefits of adopting tech for commerce make goods transfer easy for dropshippers and consumers.
The best supplier for online business ventures should have these features to support dropshippers:
- Flexible order receipt channels – dropshippers can send emails to place orders. With this addition, dropshipping clients do not need to call orders in or place shipping requests through the website.
- Searchable order history – makes order tracking, referencing, and other activities easy to complete. Also gives dropshippers access to all data on total transactions with a particular supplier.
- Inventory feed – automatic updates for inventory data in real time to support easy product listing. An efficient tool to allow dropshippers check for available products before receiving or placing orders.
Automation is a vital part of any successful business venture, so suppliers must leverage technology to support your business model.
Select the Best Ecommerce Supplier to Support Your Business with Ease!
Selecting a best ecommerce supplier is just one decision amongst many you need to make in dropshipping. However, selecting a supplier without considering vital factors could spell the end of any dropshipping venture.
It’s important to get essential details on your shortlisted suppliers, their products, return/shipping policies, and pricing. Also, take out time to look at your preferred suppliers’ industry experience, customer reviews, and other information.
The reputation of your preferred ecommerce supplier could determine how successful your dropshipping business becomes. Work with suppliers that guarantee quality, efficiency, and speed throughout their operations.
Make a careful choice, and your business will thrive without hassle!
