With the ease of accessing smartphones and other internet-enabled devices, online shopping continues on an upward trajectory. As such, engaging in the business of dropshipping presents great prospects of making money. In Nigeria where the unemployment rate is high and many unemployed people lack startup funds to start a business, dropshipping which needs no investment upfront comes as an easy way to start earning money. Read this article to the end to learn how to start earning money with dropshipping in Nigeria.
How to start dropshipping business in Nigeria will be discussed below:
- Pick a Niche You Are Conversant With
In the dropshipping business, there is a wide variety of niches to choose to focus on. But to be successful in this business, the niche you choose should be one that you are fully conversant with.
Products that are emotional, inspiring, and unusual are recommended for beginners venturing into the dropshiping business to begin with. This is because such products are capable of motivating potential leads to make impulse purchases. In addition, products that have high demand and low market competition are recommended.
Here are some product types that you would find lucrative to focus on as a newbie in dropshipping:
- Gadgets, devices & accessories
- Accessories for sports & outdoor activities
- Supplies for hobbies & crafts
- Clothes & fashion accessories
- Home gadgets, accessories & decor
- Etc.
-
Carry Out Competitive Research
As you’ve decided the niche you want to focus on, the next step is to perform comprehensive research. You do this by searching for the top dropshippers in your niche, evaluating their strengths and weaknesses, learning their best practices, and monitoring their trends and changes. This stage provides you with the opportunity to get insight on what the dropshipping industry that you plan on venturing in is like.
-
Select a Dropshipping Supplier
The next thing to do after picking a niche to focus on and carrying out competitive research is to choose a dropshipping supplier. In this stage, you need to perform due diligence before you select a supplier. Most times, new dropshippers in Nigeria opt for Chinese suppliers.
Alternatively, leading online retailers like Alibaba and Amazon have lots of potential manufacturers and suppliers that you can reach out to and make enquiries. Ask about their production capabilities to ascertain whether they would be able to handle your orders should your business multiply.
-
Build an E-Commerce Store
The internet presents dropshippers with the opportunity to reach a wider audience so building an e-commerce store is what to do next. In Nigeria, there are online marketplaces such as Konga, Jumia, and Jiji that you can sell on. You may set up e-com stores on multiple online marketplaces and use social media to broadcast and market your products.
As the dropshipping business grows, launching a website is the next thing to do. You may opt for any of the following content management systems for your e-commerce site:
- WordPress
- Shopify
- Squarespace
- Square Online
- Wix
Regardless of the CMS you decide to use for your website, there are some tips to make it top-notch. These tips include:
- Keep the website mobile-responsive
- Put your top products front and centre
- Use a pop-up sign-up sheet on the site to engage potential customers
- Remember SEO best practices
- Use great images
- Simplicity is the key
- Use scannable content
- Be honest about pricing
- Keep the user in mind
- Integrate online payment options
-
Promote Your Dropshipping Business
After you’ve got an e-commerce store or e-commerce site for your website, you would need to promote your dropshipping business so that you can reach out to a greater audience. If you don’t promote your business, you would find it hard to make sales and you wouldn’t want that. Use promotional tools on social media platforms like Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram to get your products in the faces of your potential customers.
-
Get Your Finances in Order
Once you begin getting orders from customers in your dropshipping business, you must learn to take financial management serious. Be diligent in separating what goes to your supplier and what you keep as profit. This will help you avoid financial loopholes that could mar your dropshipping business.
-
Analyze and Improve Your Offerings
After you’ve been in the drop shipping business for some time, you would have to analyze and improve your product offerings. Products that did not enjoy patronage from your customers should be dropped.
In addition, you may need to find more products and suppliers so your customers have a range of products to choose from, which in turn provides greater earning opportunities.
-
What is Dropshipping and How it Works?
Dropshipping is a type of business model that allows you to run a store without ever holding any inventory. The supplier or manufacturer in the dropshipping business model is who has the products while you act as a seller who promotes their products online, either through an e-commerce store or website.
Once a customer places an order from you as a seller, you forward the order to the supplier whose products you sell. Thereafter, the supplier would ship the order to the customer who made the order from you. The seller makes money from the markup on top of the original price of the supplier.
Here is a breakdown of what a typical dropshipping sequence entails:
- Customer orders product from your e-commerce store or website
- The seller receives the order
- The customer receives the order confirmation
- Seller forwards product order to supplier/manufacturer
- Supplier/manufacturer ships the order
- The customer receives their product
-
What are the Pros and Cons of Dropshipping Business in Nigeria?
There are advantages and disadvantages of dropshipping business. Read on to know what the potential pros and cons to consider when weighing whether dropshipping is good for business.
Here are the pros
- Minimal overhead cost
- Minimal startup funds required
- Low-risk business
- Possibility to sell across multiple channels
- Wide range of products to sell
- Independent of location as everything can be facilitated online
Here are the cons:
- Dropshipping business is highly competitive as it requires little investment to get started
- Guaranteeing product quality might be a challenge since you aren’t involved in the order fulfilment process
- Selling at low price to attract customers may eat up into your profit
- Supplier errors may lead to botched orders, low end lacking or missing items