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Shopify-Going to give it a go, but have some questions about it.

by mikeb222
9 replies
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I've been studying Shopify and I think it's a great way to earn money.

But I'm confused about some of the procedures, can someone help me please?

1. When your setting up your store and using the app Oberlo, how does Oberlo know what your AliExpress account is (I haven't actually gone to AliExpress yet to set up an account)

2. Refunds-Is there a way around having refunds sent to your own address?
Do they allow for a PO box or something like that?

3. Using Aliexpress/Oberlo products, how do you know what price to set?

4. Most people seem to be using Facebook ads. I haven't got a Facebook account. Can you have an anonymous account with them? If not, How do you go about advertising with them, without saying your real name?

Any other advice would be appreciated.
Thanks Guys
#give #questions #shopifygoing
  • Profile picture of the author ShopifyMaster
    1. When your setting up your store and using the app Oberlo, how does Oberlo know what your AliExpress account is (I haven't actually gone to AliExpress yet to set up an account)

    Oberlo works somewhat like a browser, it will navigate through your aliexpress account and place the orders and fulfill them automatically. You should go ahead and create an account with Aliexpress, since you gonna need it anyway.

    2. Refunds-Is there a way around having refunds sent to your own address?
    Do they allow for a PO box or something like that?

    I think you mean Returns and not Refunds right? And yes you can have Returns sent to your address instead.

    3. Using Aliexpress/Oberlo products, how do you know what price to set?

    Just set it to be whatever profit margin you want. I usually recommend a profit or $10 or more. Oh and even though Oberlo has certain algorithms in place that allows them to markup prices automatically for you, i really recommend that you do it manually, as it can be waaaay off sometimes.

    4. Most people seem to be using Facebook ads. I haven't got a Facebook account. Can you have an anonymous account with them? If not, How do you go about advertising with them, without saying your real name?

    You can setup a business facebook account no problem. And even if you have to setup a personal account, you can always set your profile to private.
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    • Profile picture of the author mikeb222
      I've read on here that the profit margin should be $10 or so.

      So I advertise my $10 product on my shopify site, for $20.
      My customer wants the product but Googles it anyway and finds it's $10 on AliExpress, so simply buys it from them directly.

      I thought Aliexpress was like a wholesaler, who didn't sell to the general public, but only sold to IM's?

      Obviously not though, as I just Googled some products myself and I wouldn't buy from me.

      Am I missing something here?
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      • Profile picture of the author jorgesil
        Originally Posted by mikeb222 View Post


        Am I missing something here?
        Yes,you are.
        Aliexpress is a Business 2 Customers website and not a manufacturer/wholesaler.

        Find a manufacturer for the products you intend to sell and buy from them.
        This way you will have more room to be competitive on prices and to make a profit.
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      • Profile picture of the author dropshipisland
        This is exactly why it's a bad idea. Aliexpress is the retail side of Alibaba. They sell to anyone and everyone. They are not a wholesaler, they are a chinese retail website, similar to ebay.

        If you wanted the real wholesale prices, you would have to buy in bulk from Alibaba.
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        • Profile picture of the author Importexport
          Originally Posted by dropshipisland View Post

          This is exactly why it's a bad idea. Aliexpress is the retail side of Alibaba. They sell to anyone and everyone. They are not a wholesaler, they are a chinese retail website, similar to ebay.

          If you wanted the real wholesale prices, you would have to buy in bulk from Alibaba.
          Yes Aliexpress is a retail site.

          If you want the lowest prices you won't buy from wholesalers on Alibaba. Instead you need to learn how to work out which ones claiming to be manufacturers really are, or are they, like most of them just traders.

          Wholesalers and traders buy from manufacturers, add a big mark up, then sell to you at "wholesale". That's a lot more than you will pay if you buy direct from a genuine manufacturer.

          As for "bulk" don't be fooled into thinking that you have to place large orders to buy direct at ex-factory prices. I have taught hundreds how to buy a lot less than the big Minimum Order Quantities quoted on Alibaba.

          Walter Hay.
          Provenchinasourcing
          Signature
          Use emotions and perceptions to build a great brand. Ask me about my book LabelsThatExploit. For safe sourcing and easy importing from 41 countries globally, see https://provenglobalsourcing.com
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  • Profile picture of the author mikeb222
    so is it fair to say that using the Aliexpress method doesn't work anymore because customers simply search for your product and see it's real price on Aliexpress.
    As I said, that's what I did with one of my own products.
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  • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
    Originally Posted by mikeb222 View Post

    I've been studying Shopify and I think it's a great way to earn money.

    But I'm confused about some of the procedures, can someone help me please?

    1. When your setting up your store and using the app Oberlo, how does Oberlo know what your AliExpress account is (I haven't actually gone to AliExpress yet to set up an account)

    2. Refunds-Is there a way around having refunds sent to your own address?
    Do they allow for a PO box or something like that?

    3. Using Aliexpress/Oberlo products, how do you know what price to set?

    4. Most people seem to be using Facebook ads. I haven't got a Facebook account. Can you have an anonymous account with them? If not, How do you go about advertising with them, without saying your real name?

    Any other advice would be appreciated.
    Thanks Guys


    1. You link it to your account.

    2. There is absolutely NO way around refunds unless you want to get your PayPal/credit card providers ban you, but you can for sure avoid that people send it back. Just let them keep the item and refund their money.

    3. Depends on you. There is no table of "good prices" that you should charge. It depends on how much you pay, if you pay shipping, what kind of image your brand has or you aim for etc. Of course you can hardly charge a ton of money if your store looks super cheap and you have zero popularity. The average dropshipper has relatively thin margins.

    4. Its hard. Its a business and businesses require real names, addresses etc., same as with PayPal. If you start seeking workarounds everywhere it might backfire sooner or later as well. But for now, why can't you just make an account? You want a valid billing address for tax reasons anyway.

    Nonetheless there are a ton of other traffic sources though.

    Please check my video that helped a ton of people clearifying their views about starting with dropshipping:


    Good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author malonewolf
    2. Returns - Returns can be sent anywhere you want. Be forewarned, there isn't a built-in way to send customers a prepaid shipping label. We typically create a new Order with the destination as our return center and mail it to them or provide it in their package.

    4. Good question! IIRC, Facebook for business either doesn't require a personal account or if it does, create a personal account you'll never use and just set it to private.
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  • Profile picture of the author timexer
    Here are two links on dropshipping that you might find interesting:

    The Ultimate Guide to AliExpress Dropshipping (January, 2017)

    https://www.oberlo.com/blog/aliexpre...hipping-guide/

    The Definitive Guide to Dropshipping with AliExpress

    https://www.shopify.com/blog/1176071...ith-aliexpress

    Hope you find it useful. Good luck!

    Timothy
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