Within the last decade, dropshipping has become a leading business venture for entrepreneurs and investors across the globe. It involves a unique order fulfillment method where sellers purchase directly from manufacturers and deliver to customers (or retailers).
In dropshipping, the seller accepts orders from the customers, receives payment, and delivers goods without keeping (or having) the goods in stock. Instead, the seller passes the product ordered to the third-party supplier, who then ships the order to the customer.
The model holds a considerable part of its success to modern technological advancements, which backs the internet and other communication channels. For example, AliExpress dropshipping provides a seamless platform for eCommerce – where sellers do not have to worry about inventory or shipping.
Does Dropshipping Work in South Africa?
South Africa is one of the top countries in the African continent in terms of technological advancement. So yes, dropshipping works in South Africa.
In South Africa, dropshipping is even a more affordable and lucrative business venture than wholesale. The startup capital and risk involved is low compared to other business models because, as a seller, you do not need to buy any stock from your supplier until a customer has ordered and paid you for it.
Much like Shopify dropshipping, it doesn’t require an active business to keep products in stock. Instead, the order is passed to a third-party supplier, who ships it to the customer, after payment has been validated.
How to Start Dropshipping in South Africa
Although you do not need a professional business plan and extensive prior experience to start a dropshipping business in South Africa, there are certain steps you should consider before starting.
To start a successful dropshipping business in South Africa, you should:
- Research a Product Niche: There are a lot of products available on the eCommerce market. Regardless of your conviction, it would be best to extensively research the product niche before adopting that product for your business.
- Create a Site or Store: Dropshipping is a form of eCommerce, and so you will need a website or online store where you can display your products and receive orders. You should create a small eCommerce website or online store of your own to enable you to track orders effectively.
- Get a Dropshipping Tool: It is very important that you get a dropshipping tool before venturing actively into the dropshipping business. One high-performing tool we recommend is DSers – it is used by a large majority of successful people who engage in dropshipping across the globe. Meanwhile, DSers provides dropshippers a blog here to get tips, steps and strategies for your dropshipping business.
- Add a Payment Gateway: Now you have your dropshipping store and your dropshipping tool, the next thing is to get a Payment gateway since you need to receive payment from your customers. There are many ways you can choose from like PayPal, Stripe, etc. My recommendation is PayPal as DSers provides you with PayPal Order Tracking Service to keep you notified with all your order tracking information. Then, you can update the order information for your customers easily.
- Marketing: Like in every business venture, marketing is essential for dropshipping. As a seller, you need to carry out extensive online marketing of your products to potential customers.
- Analysis & Optimization: When done right, Analysis and Optimization helps the seller carry out marketing campaigns to a target audience interested in the products on display. The analysis helps identify the right demography of people to be targeted for optimized results.
Conclusion
The successes of the founders of Ali Baba Group and Amazon are a few attestations of the potential of eCommerce Dropshipping will continue to be a leading business destination for entrepreneurs and investors across the globe. According to current statistical projections, it is on track to be one of the most successful business models, not just in South Africa, but across the globe.