How To Start Amazon Dropshipping For Free: Tips and Tricks

Amazon dropshipping is a popular way to earn money online, but many people believe that it requires a lot of upfront investment. However, with the right tips and tricks, you can start a profitable Amazon dropshipping business for free!

What is Amazon dropshipping?

Dropshipping on Amazon is the practice of putting things for sale on Amazon’s website without actually owning the inventory. When a customer orders something, the dropshipper buys it from a supplier and asks the supplier to send it straight to the customer. The necessity for storage is eliminated, and the fulfillment process is streamlined.

Amazon dropshipping has numerous significant benefits over typical dropshipping. To begin with, Amazon has a vast client base that provides unequaled exposure for your items. Amazon’s reputation and brand familiarity also create confidence in prospective purchasers, boosting the possibility of purchases.

Furthermore, Amazon’s excellent fulfillment and shipping operations guarantee that items reach consumers quickly, improving the buying experience overall. Finally, by using Amazon’s Prime program, dropshippers may get access to a large pool of loyal and fast-shipping clients.

How does dropshipping compare to other methods of selling on Amazon?

Dropshipping is only one of several ways to get started on Amazon. Wholesale, private label, retail arbitrage, online arbitrage, handcrafted, and bookselling are all popular — and potentially more profitable — means of selling things on Amazon.

Wholesaling is when you buy goods in bulk from a supplier to resell to another retailer or distribute as your own, arbitrage is when you buy discounted goods from other retail stores and resell them on Amazon, and private label is when you manufacture your own products to sell on Amazon. However, dropshipping on Amazon offers some benefits over wholesaling and private label.

Low start-up costs

Dropshipping, unlike other popular e-commerce strategies such as private label and wholesaling, does not need the ownership of your own inventory. Instead, when the customer pays you for the transaction, you simply utilize a part of the profits to purchase the goods from the supplier and have it sent to your buyer.

Quick to set up

Dropshipping on Amazon is fast and simple to start up since you don’t have to possess your own inventory. You don’t have to wait for your merchandise to be made and/or sent to the fulfillment site, after all. It’s all set to go. All you need is a sale!

Completely automated business

There are several programs and plugins available online that enable you to completely automate Amazon dropshipping. As a result, you may (nearly) totally delegate your dropshipping company.

Amazon allows dropshipping

Dropshipping, according to Amazon’s dropshipping policy, “is generally acceptable.” Simply ensure that you adhere to Amazon’s dropshipping policies.

To dropship on Amazon, you must first acquire from the supplier or manufacturer. Buying from another store is absolutely forbidden.

Easy to research

Dropshipping on Amazon entails selling already manufactured items. As a result, you may use tools like Jungle Scout — an all-in-one Amazon selling platform — to examine how well other sellers of that same product are doing on Amazon. This provides you a competitive advantage when starting your dropshipping e-commerce firm.

What are the drawbacks of Amazon dropshipping?

Naturally, as appealing as it seems in terms of benefits, dropshipping has certain drawbacks to consider.

Competition

Because the obstacles to entry for dropshipping are so low, competition may be fierce. Furthermore, although there is some uniqueness with the things you are selling, nothing prevents other Amazon sellers from offering similar products. As a result, pricing is one of the few levers you have to pull to differentiate yourself from the competition, which may lead to a “race to the bottom.”

Delivery timeframes are lengthy

Dropshipped products on Amazon are often shipped from suppliers and manufacturers — and those vendors are frequently located abroad. As a result, shipping times from international vendors might take several weeks to reach the end customer.

Inadequate quality control

You have no control over the quality of the goods since it is transported straight from the producer to the consumer. When you think that things may travel 10,000 miles or more to their ultimate destination, it’s simple to understand how they may be harmed.

Amazon dropshipping policy

Hey there! Just wanted to give you a heads-up about Amazon’s dropshipping policy so you can avoid any hiccups while selling in their store.

Let me break it down for you in simple terms:

• Make sure you clearly identify yourself as the seller on invoices, packing slips, and any other stuff that comes with the product. We want everyone to know it’s you, the awesome seller!
• Oh, and here’s a fun twist! Don’t mention any wholesalers, suppliers, or manufacturers in your product packaging or descriptions on Amazon. It’s all about showcasing your own brand, my friend.
• When it comes to returns, the ball’s in your court. You’ll be responsible for accepting and handling them. Just be on your game and give your customers a smooth return experience.
• Last but not least, play by the rules. Amazon’s got its Terms of Service, and you gotta comply with them. Don’t worry, they’ll fill you in on all the nitty-gritty details when you sign up.

How to dropship on amazon without money

Now that you know a little bit more about Amazon dropshipping and how it works, here’s how you can get started as a dropshipper.

Step 1: Set up an Amazon seller account first.

Step 2: Find a high-demand/low-competition product

The next step is to identify a product to sell on Amazon. This may be accomplished by utilizing a technology such as Jungle Scout’s Opportunity Finder to identify high-demand/low-competition product prospects. And, although you may have your own criteria for locating such things, I propose beginning with the following:

• Each month, 100-300 units are sold.
• Set the level of competition to “very low” to “low”.
• Set the average monthly price between $20 and $70.
• Set the niche score to 7 or above.

This should provide you with a large number of product options to choose from across all categories. In addition, when first starting out, I suggest keeping things basic. Housewares, sports & outdoors, patio, and home & garden are all excellent starting categories due to their minimal upkeep.

Step 3: Find a Supplier

Once you’ve come up with some product ideas, you’ll need to identify a supplier. Aliexpress is the most important link to dropshipping items. It’s a business-to-business platform that connects e-commerce entrepreneurs with suppliers that want to dropship their products.

Simply enter the search parameters for the goods you want to sell, and a range of items will appear, much like on Amazon.

When you click on one, you’ll be sent to a page with further information. In the above example, the notebook/agenda planner costs $3.22 with free delivery to the United States.

The vendor also provides a 60-day buyer protection guarantee on the merchandise. This seems fantastic, however keep in mind that the delivery time is more than a month out!

When utilizing Aliexpress to complete dropshipping orders, be sure to contact the supplier ahead of time to guarantee they will not send items with their business information – this is against Amazon’s policies.

Step 4: Create an Amazon listing

Step 4: Create an Amazon listing first. You will need to establish an Amazon product listing after you have a product concept and a supplier to deliver that product.

Go to Inventory > Add a product from your Seller Central account. Click “Inventory > Add a Product” when the Add a Product screen appears. When the Add a Product page appears, choose “Create a new product listing.”

To begin, you must choose a product category. After that, you’ll need to fill out the details for the listing itself.

When determining the pricing of your dropshipped goods, keep Amazon’s costs in mind. Professional sellers will pay a referral fee ranging from 8-15% depending on the category. Individual sellers must also pay an extra $1.00 each sale.

More information regarding Amazon’s fees per category may be found on their Selling on Amazon fee schedule. Finally, when you’re ready, you may post your listing and begin selling.

Tips for a successful Dropshipping on Amazon

Still looks rather straightforward, doesn’t it? That’s exactly what it is!

Creating a dropshipping company on Amazon is, of course, simple. However, success with dropshipping on Amazon requires a bit more effort. In any case, here are five pointers to help you succeed with dropshipping.

1. Promote your listing

You must attract visitors to your product listing in order to optimize sales. This may be accomplished in a variety of ways.

Amazon Pay-Per-Click (PPC) is Amazon’s internal sponsorship scheme. PPC allows you to build advertising for your items that show higher in Amazon’s search results for keywords that you provide.

Following that, you may generate traffic to your Amazon product listing using third-party tactics such as Facebook advertisements, social media, blogging, email marketing, and so on. While this strategy is more difficult to use if your business does not already have a following, it may help you distinguish your goods from rivals.

2. Concentrate on the client

Dropshipping on Amazon takes a lot of the difficult components of becoming an entrepreneur off the table. You are not required to produce or ship your goods. All you have to do is ensure that the consumer gets it and is satisfied.

As a result, with dropshipping, you can devote your time to customer support rather than operating your company.

Furthermore, excellent customer service contributes to positive product ratings, and positive product reviews may make or break your items on Amazon.

3. Focus on your brand

As previously said, the main downside of dropshipping is that you will be selling a product over which you will have no control over the creation or design. Furthermore, other merchants will be able to access the same source.

As a result, you have very little competitive edge. As a result, it is critical that you concentrate on the brand.

Even though your product is similar to that of your competition, it does not have to be the “same.” YETI, for example, offers 40 oz stainless steel tumblers for $40 apiece. RTIC, on the other hand, offers the identical stainless steel tumblers for less than $20. YETI, on the other hand, continues to dominate in that product area.

The explanation is straightforward: customers want to purchase the YETI brand and the image it represents.

4. Take samples

Make sure you understand what you’re selling before listing it. Take the plunge and pre-order a unit. Even better if you can accomplish it without the provider knowing you’re a possible dropshipper.

Inspect the sample once it comes. What did it look like when it arrived? How much time did it take? Were the items exactly as described?

All of these little factors will assist you in predicting how your consumers will get the goods once you begin dropshipping on Amazon.

5. Cast a broad net

Dropshipping allows you to cast a wider net since there are no start-up fees. In other words, you may list many goods at once.

Some will fall short. Others will be successful. Simply double down on what works and eliminate what doesn’t.

This method is perfectly legal as long as you follow Amazon’s regulations. Just remember to remain organized and to keep Tips #2 and #3 in mind.

Conclusion: Is Amazon Dropshipping profitable?

The average dropshipper earns 10% to 30% on each sale. If they dropship via Amazon, their top-line income will be decreased by around 15%.

If you sell a product on Amazon with a 30% margin, your net profit will be 15%. This is fantastic, particularly considering the vast audience you will be able to contact.

Though it is a very competitive market and should not be your first objective, winning the Amazon Buy Box might enhance your Amazon dropshipping profits.