Dropshipping - what works and what doesn't?

Hello everyone!

I joined alittle less than a week ago and I really enjoy reading everyone post.

Just a little about myself... my name is Heather and I recently scammed on craiglist selling items on ebay. I had someone I thought i trusted but turns out I ended up having to refund over $2000! I read alot about drop shipping and thinks its something I can do! I know I will not get rich doing this but I need some kinda of additional income to help get ebay off my back!

At this point im desperate! I do have a full time job, so i am working but looking to help pay off my debt. I have experience with the kcup coffee machines and those always sell so well! I was selling the SD Kingston cards and those sold like crazy but thats how I got scammed... the person never sent the items and took my money!

So id love to hear from everyone else!!! What worked... what didnt and I welcome ideas! I know you cant tell me what to sell but if I had ideas of what does well I can finally sleep at night lol :)

thanks everyone and keep up the great work!!

Hi heatlynn,

Welcome to our site! :) Sorry to hear about your experience. We’re glad that you’re on board so we can assist you in getting out of such problem and finally help you get into the fun part of productive online selling!

As you have stated, we may not be able to directly state what product will work for you, the one that will be perfect for you to sell, however we can help you arrive to that decision. :)

For a start, as a general rule you need to avoid the trendy and popular products, as they tend to be over-saturated on eBay and the only sellers who are able to sell these items successfully are those who can invest in getting them by the truckload, and under price everyone else. :) To know which products these are, you can check on pulse.ebay.com. I’ve been selling Korean dresses/clothing and girl stuffs primarily because fashion is my interest, and that although there is tough competition right now, in my place, in this trend, I try to find ways to offer these items at a competitive price. And yes, I can say it doesn’t rest solely on what to sell, but on how to sell it. I try to keep communication with my target market and provide good service.:)

To come up with creative ideas on what to sell at eBay, there are steps you will surely find useful from this Education resource - Link hidden: Login to view

Cheers! :)

Hi Heather,

Thanks for deciding to stick it out with SaleHoo :) What happened to you is quite unfortunate but you definitely have the right attitude! Good for you :)

Irene has given you pretty solid tips and like she said we would be delighted to help you in any way we can!

Another thing you have to do especially when you decide to deal with suppliers that you find outside our directory is to do a thorough background research, this way you avoid being scammed. If you need help with this aspect, just let us know.

You can also try doing a completed listings search on eBay to help you determine which products might be good to sell.

I would suggest you try to set aside time even on the weekends, seeing you have a full-time job, to do some sort of market research - for me this is the best way to determine what products will sell best. Remember, how receptive your market will be will depend on a number of factors like your location, the season (if you're selling seasonal products), the type of products if they are actually wanted by your market and how you are as a seller.

If you haven't taken advantage of our Research Lab, I suggest you do! It's a really easy and fast way to finding profitable niches - Link hidden: Login to view

And in case you haven't please check out this thread Link hidden: Login to view I'm sure you'll find the advice given by some of our more experienced members quite helpful.

Once you have decided on a product, let us know and we would love to help you search for suitable suppliers :)

All the best!

i thinking maybe sports souvenirs? like mlb, nhl, nfl... etc!

I found a place but it seems like i would have to provide tax id... im not interested in doing that.

Can you help me out with that?

Hi Heather,

Thanks for adding a picture to your profile :) Pretty!

Anyway, I did a search and found 2 dropshippers for sports souvenirs that do not require customers to provide a tax ID -

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I also found wholesalers that specialize in sports memorabilia, the one's listed below do NOT require their customers to have a tax ID -

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The first three, also do not have a required MOQ. You might want to try and contact these suppliers if they would be willing to dropship their products for you, some suppliers readily accommodate requests for dropshipping :)

I was also wondering, why you're not keen on using suppliers that require a tax ID, is it because you don't have one at the moment? It's relatively easy to get a tax ID, you can try Googling it – Most states have an online form on their website these days. Most states also charge a small fee. This varies from state to state, but it's usually around $50.

If you can’t find any information online on how to get a seller permit, then just contact or visit your local County Clerk Office.

Hope this helps, please let us know how you get on :)

Thanks Ricelle!!!

I am kind of looking more along the lines of things with team logos...make sense?

Not so much interested in autographs and cards....

thanks!!

Hi Heather,

Sorry been a bit caught up with our Link hidden: Login to view launch.

But I think these dropshippers have the products you are looking for -

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I tried searching for those that do not require sales tax ID's but your options would be too little.

Kindly check out the suppliers suggested above and let me know what you think.

All the best! :)