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Dropshipping delivery time dilemma

by supereek
8 replies
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So I found a great product with a lot of potential and litteraly no competition in local market (Netherlands). I know this product can sell easily with some social media boost as I have seen it explode in US facebook community fairly quickly.

My problem is..delivery time of the dropshipper is nearly a month. And most (if not all) dutch webshops offer next day delivery, I can't compete with that ofc.

I don't have the budget to buy a whole inventory in bulk to send out straight from here so I am bound to dropship.

What shall I do? Put tiny delivery time disclaimer in the website and play the "you signed the conditions" card when customers start complaining? Or simply don't do it at all ?
#delivery #dilemma #dropshipping #time
  • Profile picture of the author Richard Ellis
    In my opinion, I think you should stock an amount of products in advance. Big companies always have so-called AP (anticipate purchase). Then balance the delivery time from the 1st purchase to the 1st order. For example: if your delivery time is 7 days means you can shorten the gap of delivery time from the dropshippers and so on. You can gradually extend the number of stocks depending on the market feedback and your capital as well. Hope it helps.
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  • Profile picture of the author supereek
    @Richard

    thanks this might be an option..perhaps a small stock indeed and re-purchase to refill the stock..
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  • Profile picture of the author Leon Hamper
    Hi supereek, I also agree with Richard that you should stock some with you on hand. This is also to test if your statement of this 'product can sell easily'. In your first selling and this item will sell like hotcakes, then stock more.
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  • Profile picture of the author AngelaLuo
    Originally Posted by supereek View Post

    So I found a great product with a lot of potential and litteraly no competition in local market (Netherlands). I know this product can sell easily with some social media boost as I have seen it explode in US facebook community fairly quickly.

    My problem is..delivery time of the dropshipper is nearly a month. And most (if not all) dutch webshops offer next day delivery, I can't compete with that ofc.

    I don't have the budget to buy a whole inventory in bulk to send out straight from here so I am bound to dropship.

    What shall I do? Put tiny delivery time disclaimer in the website and play the "you signed the conditions" card when customers start complaining? Or simply don't do it at all ?
    I agree with Richard that you should stock some at first. The one month delivery of dropshipper should be economy post service. If you receive big orders later on, maybe you can try express company like DHL,UPS,FedEx, delivery time will be much faster.
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  • Profile picture of the author Trey Sullivan
    I have been looking into alot of free plus shipping offers, If you offer it like that maybe customers would be more understanding delivery time would be extended as you are giving the product away for "free" and would have "massive" amounts of orders since it was "free"
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    • Profile picture of the author supereek
      Originally Posted by Trey Sullivan View Post

      I have been looking into alot of free plus shipping offers, If you offer it like that maybe customers would be more understanding delivery time would be extended as you are giving the product away for "free" and would have "massive" amounts of orders since it was "free"
      my product costs 17$ per unit from supplier, i can't offer that for free. I was planning on selling it for about 25-30$ as i have no competition but want to keep it affordable.
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  • Profile picture of the author Leon Hamper
    Hi supereek,

    You can consider buying a number of product you will sell. You can use these on hand items as 'test' if which items would really sell fast. After a week or two of experimenting, you can order larger quantity from your supplier depending on the buying persona of your market.

    Furthermore, you can also have an option to place few products (especially expensive ones) under pre order. Online customers can understand that they need to wait for a certain days/week before they can receive their items. You just have to be honest from the start. Personally, I place the disclaimer on the title or on the product description.
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  • Profile picture of the author seodeveloping
    I think you should absolutely bring a bulk of your product in and have it stored at a fulfillment center pending shipment. Yes it will cost a little more, but the long run is 2-3 day delivery times rather than 30 days. That is a major plus!
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