Getting the Product to Your Customers - Ebay Dropshipping!

Ebay Products From Wholesale Trade Platform
If you hope to own an eBay business, and make a full time living at it, you can easily make that dream come true ?even if you don't have a product of your own to sell. eBay provides many people who want to quit their corporate nine-to-five jobs with a way to make a good living, without having to put up a lot of start up capital. This is made possible with the help of drop shippers. Drop shippers send merchandise to the customers of business owners. If you have an eBay business, you are a business owner. This will allow you to offer a wide variety of stock in your eBay store, without having the need to warehouseall of those products!
All you have to do is set up your auction, and sell the product. You then pass the customer's information on to the drop shipping company. The drop shipper does the rest, and they will even use your company information, as well as your company logo if you have provided it to them. When the product arrives at your customer home, they will have no idea that your company didn't send it. The drop shipper will package, label, and ship the products that you sell, allowing you more time to set up even more auctions, for greater profits.
You must establish a relationship with several drop shipping companies in order to become successful.In the beginning, most companies will require you to pay for the items that your customers order before they are shipped. You need to fill orders in a timely manner, so you should pay for the items with a credit card for speedy service. Eventually, you will be able to have the drop shipper fill your orders, and then bill you for them later.
When you set up your eBay auctions, make sure that your reserve price is set higher than the price that the drop shipper will be charging you for the item. The idea, of course, is to earn a profit! Depending on the item you are selling, a markup of about 10% should be about right, but you should do some research to see if the item is selling for a lower price in another eBay auction, or through other online sources.
By starting an eBay business using the drop shipping method, there is essentially no financial riskinvolved. The product will be sold before you pay the drop shipper for the item. This is one of the few businesses where you can actually turn a profit before you have expenditures!

How to Source Wholesale Products

If you’re starting a retail business and looking for products to sell, you’ll need to find reliable wholesale suppliers. Sourcing wholesale products can be challenging, and there are certainly lots of pitfalls that business owners need to look out for. This serves as a guide with some helpful tips for finding the right wholesale product sources for your business.


Decide what you’re going to sell. There are many ways to go about this. You want to choose products that are going to sell well, but that the market isn’t completely flooded with. In that case, you would need to be ultra-competitive in order to get sales. Perhaps you make your own items to sell (like handmade jewelry or crafts), or you want to sell fashion accessories or clothing. To determine what kind of items are selling well, you’ll need to look at trends. If you’re opening up a physical store in your area, you’ll need to do some research into local trends. If online selling is your game, then your potential for sales will increase exponentially. You can use one or more of the many online tools available to check out selling trends. eBay Seller Tools, for instance, are very robust and easy to use and allow you see product trends over a period time.
Choose your supplier type. Depending on what kind of business you’re starting (online vs. brick and mortar), you’ll need to decide on the type of wholesale supplier you want to use. Here are the types to consider:
Manufacturers: Most times buying direct means a high minimum order. Usually manufacturers will have smaller retailers buy their product through one of their local distributors. You can find this information either on the manufacturer's website or by contacting them directly.
Distributors: Usually distributors tend to carry a large variety of products in a certain category (say pet products) from several manufacturers. Their prices are slightly higher than buying direct, but minimum quantities are usually low and you have the convenience of purchasing products from different manufacturers on one purchase order.
Liquidators: If you are flexible about your product needs, this is a fantastic way to get a real break on price. Many times you can purchase a bulk load of product for up to 75% off the original wholesale price. Consider your purchases carefully because once a product is sold out it's usually gone for good.
Importers: If you plan to sell specialty products from another country, you’ll likely have to go through an importer to get them.
Drop Shippers: If you have an online business, drop shipping is one of the best ways to supply products for your business without worrying about manufacturing processes or warehousing costs. Drop shippers are basically distributors in that they buy from manufacturers or other distributors, but they will ship orders directly to your customers for you, as orders are placed.
Where to look. The most common place to look is online. You can use general search engines like Google and Yahoo, or you can use wholesale-specific search engines, like goWholesale, Top Ten Wholesale, or Wholesale Central. There are also trade lead sites like Alibaba, trade.meritline and Global Sources, which allow you find suppliers all over the world. However you can also check print publications (such as The Closeout News and Retailers Forum), print directories and attend trade shows (where vendors get together to showcase and demonstrate their products).
Do your research. This cannot be stressed enough. There are many scams, fakes and just plain bad businesses to watch out for. There are a ton of resources available for free, so use them! The first place you can check is the supplier’s website. Check out all of their policies (returns, damages, backorders), and make sure they have their contact information and physical address posted on their site (not just a contact form – this is a big red flag). Your best source of information is the supplier themselves – call or email them and ask questions about their products, policies, and terms. You may even be able to ask them for customer references. Don’t forget to use online forums—they are a great place to get references and ask questions, but beware of members who are simply trying to self promote. You can also check your suppliers out through the Better Business Bureau, Hoover’s Online, and even the FBI.
Contact the vendor and place your order. Many vendors have online payment systems set up, but beware of suppliers who aren’t giving you true wholesale pricing. Real wholesale suppliers normally deal with businesses only (not the general public) and require tax IDs to do business. While requirements vary from state to state, here is a list of things that may be necessary for you to have before beginning to buy and sell products:
Local Business License: Typically, the city or county where you are operating your business will require that you have a local business license. Just call or visit your city hall to find out what the requirement is in your jurisdiction.
State Business License: Unless you are selling products such as alcohol or cigarettes, you probably won't be required to have this license. You can find out your state's requirements by simply calling your local government offices.
Sales Tax License:If you live in a state that collects sales tax, you will most likely need this license. Having it will allow you to legally charge sales tax to customers purchasing your items. By calling your State Franchise Tax Board you can find out how to get this license.
Federal License:This license really only applies to a very small portion of businesses that are selling products or services that are highly regulated by government agencies (i.e., if you are selling firearms or offering investment advice). If you think your business falls into that category, you can call your state government offices for more information. However, if your business is required to have this type of license, it may be best to hire an attorney to make sure you are complying with every law and have all the necessary licenses, permits and documentation.
Seller's Permit (also referred to as a reseller's permit or sales tax permit):This permit is typically required for businesses that are purchasing wholesale products for resale. Usually your State Franchise Tax Board is the agency that grants this permit.You can also set up payment terms and arrange credit with your suppliers, so make sure to ask them what kind of options they can offer you.
Develop and maintain a positive relationship with the wholesale supplier if all goes well so far. You can have more than one supplier, especially if you sell a wide range of products. This can be beneficial, because you’ll have more product options, possibly better prices, and lower risk in case something happens with one or more of your other suppliers.

How to Find a Supplier in China

Suppose you come up with a product idea or think you have market channels for certain products, and you want to find a supplier in China because of the low product development cost and low production cost there. If you Google the product name or concept, you will find tons of China suppliers/manufacturers. However, you still think you have not got one, because you want to find a capable and reliable one that would satisfy your specific needs and have a strong desire to do business with you. Many people get frustrated because they have been communicating with suppliers in China for months, but fail to move forward. The reason, most likely, is that they did not find the suitable one at the beginning. To successfully find a suitable China supplier, you need a strategy. This strategy will consist of awareness, knowledge and a good amount of homework. Below are some practical steps to find a suitable Chinese supplier for you.

STEPS
Understand what you need. You need to first know what is available and have a way to categorize the information. Here are some categories to help you think about Chinese suppliers: manufacturer vs. 3rd-party supplier; Big corporation vs. small family-owned; 3rd-party supplier with in-house product development capability vs. 3rd-party supplier that just buys-in and sells-out; vertically integrated manufacturer vs. assembly-based manufacturer; etc. Properly categorizing the suppliers will help you understand what you need. For example, if you need to import products in a narrow range, you may choose a manufacturer other than a 3rd-party supplier. If you are a small business and need dedicated attention, you may want to develop a good relationship with a small family-owned business.
Do some preliminary Internet research to further develop your category system towards your specific needs. Create a data table to help you record the search result, so the job can be done more efficiently and effectively. The table should include columns like company name, contact information, business scale and scope, category check boxes (important), and notes.
Use search engines to search information related to your product name. The first 100 results would be the most relevant websites related to the product of your concern. You can also find your competitors' information and develop a better sense of market segment and marketing channels.
Use popular business directory websites to obtain very structured information for Chinese suppliers. The directory websites are also excellent resource to obtain industrial knowledge.
Narrow down the the list of suppliers you want to work with to a manageable amount. At this stage, you may already know what your real needs are and what is available. Initiate contact with the suppliers you want to work with, and further develop relationships with them. Eventually, you will find the one. The process can be fun and a friendly experience.

TIPS
Analyzing the types of suppliers has strategic importance. It will help you to understand where you are, what kind of results to expect, and what are the things you need to take care of in the mutual cooperation. You may want to have an experienced person help you to analyze the information. In your strategy, you will also need to include the consideration of the future contracting and operation. You may seek advice from Chinese professionals who understand the Chinese mentality, culture and business practices. You may get the incorrect interpretation if you visit the supplier's English website, or you could omit data that contains key information.
Just because a site is ranked higher in Google search listing, this does not necessarily mean it is a more serious business. Some very good Chinese suppliers are not well-versed in having their website listed highly, while some other Internet guys can have their website listed very highly. Use your industrial judgment.
Information comes from seemly insignificant data, for example, the email addresses may reveal useful information about Chinese suppliers. However, do not judge an address too quickly. You never know where good information can come from.
Be aware that while the decision-maker may not speak any English, establishing good relationship (guanxi) with the top management is crucial for long-term success.
Email is good for exchanging product specifications, catalogue and price list. To establish a deeper relationship, a phone call is 10 times better than email. A personal meeting is 100 times better than a phone call. Many people want to start a business, so you have to show you are more serious. As long as your contact person uses English, you can just go ahead and give that person a phone call. It does not matter how much you and that person can understand each other; you can always follow up with an email.
Work with suppliers that have already exported their products to Europe or the US. Pay attention to the agent relationship. Many manufacturers may have their products exported to the US in good quantity through a third party supplier without an exclusive supply agreement. They may want to have direct channels to the US, and that might mean more business for you.
Consider accessing the U.S. customs records for your supplier to get an independently verified list of their shipments to the U.S. This will tell you who their customers are, how loyal those customers are, as well as the volume capabilities of your factory. Import Genius offers these hard-to-find customs records at affordable rates.
A visit to your supplier production site in China is the only reliable way to truly know its capabilities, to check that the data you have collected on the company is 100% correct, and that ISO & Quality principles are applied: Check the factory organization, its process flows, the quality of goods produced, the packaging, the workers' training level, the overall working conditions, equipment maintenance, etc. This will give you an indication of how the company is managed. A face-to-face meeting with the supplier's management team will also give you an idea of their experience and willingness to embark on your project. You will also be able to create a friendly relationship, which is crucial for your project!

B2B Becomes Serious Business to Retailers

Retailers are embracing the business-to-business (B2B) boom. A desire to own a stake of an exchange is even prompting collaboration among unlikely partners. Having a stake in the exchange seems to be a turning point for many retailers.
Retailers are joining forces for B2B exchanges now, even if it may take some time to get their marketplaces up and running. Group investments by retail's heavy bats are creating large marketplaces capable of generating a lot of activity very quickly once they are live.
Uninterested in lining their competitor's pockets unless they will be getting a piece of the pie too, the big retailers don't just want to join, they are looking to own a stake in their B2B marketplaces. Lured by the prospect of transaction fees from the activity of B2B marketplaces, most of the major retailers in the U.S. and Europe have already hooked up as equity partners in one of the two largest exchanges announced to date.
Sears' and Carrefour's GlobalNetXchange and the big eleven's WorldWide Retail Exchange, are prompting many retailers from a variety of retail categories come on board. The savings expected from the first few years of the WorldWide Retail Exchange are expected to be approximately $100 million (USD) and to quickly exceed the cost of creating the exchange.
Retailers have jumped on B2B exchanges and created their own because it is in their best interests. Better than participating in a marketplace run by a consortium of vendors or even a neutral third party, being part owner gives the retailers more of a say in the workings and ultimately more cost savings. Collaborating with other retailers can drive vendor prices down. The savings involved has been a crucial point for getting rivals to work together.
The retail industry looking to become more efficient has just finished a cycle of narrowing suppliers. Business-to-business marketplaces can reopen the retail market to vendors who have been shut out over the last decade because they didn't use EDI. Consolidating through an exchange also allows a retailer to work with more vendors without losing the efficiency gained from having less suppliers.
B2B marketplaces have tremendous potential to change the way most buyers do their jobs in both large and smaller companies. It is easy to see a half dozen large retailer led exchanges with smaller retailers belonging to multiple B2B sites while the large retailers stick to the one where they have an equity stake.
In time, we may also see a division in retail B2B sites along category lines, with specialized segments having unique smaller exchanges. While retailers who sell hardware and those that sell childrenswear can both use a site like GlobalNetXchange, that covers a gamut, the smaller retailers may eventually find more personalized service and enjoy collaboration features in B2B marketplaces dedicated to their specialty.
Some head-butting is inevitable as the B2B market grows. Buyer operated exchanges like GlobalNetXchange and WorldWide Retail Exchange are growing placing seller operated exchanges in direct competition. The retail and grocery industry marketplace launched via the Grocery Manufacturers of America brought together fifty of the world's largest food, beverage, and consumer goods manufacturers, suppliers for many of the members of the two large retailer-led exchanges. Of course the manufacturers may be willing to hook up with the retailers' exchanges and vice versa, but this does not have the efficiencies of a single point for all transactions.
The future of business-to-business on the Internet is likely to result in a series of interconnected exchanges. Transactions will take place inside the "home" exchange if possible, then if not, the exchange of the future will likely route through other connected exchanges until the transaction can be completed. Collaboration between exchanges is also likely to become commonplace. Retailer and vendor led marketplaces working together are also less likely to run into the antitrust issues than a collection one or the other would when trying to influence pricing.
Whatever the future, gaining a stake in the marketplace insures the retailer a good seat at the table whatever may happen later on.