Dropshipping Concept
A method of selling an item whereby an individual retailer will advertise, sell, and collect the money for it, then contact a larger merchant or warehouse where the item is actually stored and have them ship the item to the consumer for a percentage of the profit. The consumer usually does not know that the larger merchant or warehouse is involved in the process at all. A great way of starting a home-based internet business. 

How Dropshipping Work? 
Drop Shippers send the product directly to your buyer from their warehouse, so that you as the retailer do not have to store stock on your premises or prepare and package it for shipping. There are thousands of pre-verified, scam-free wholesalers who have already agreed to work with Home-Based EBiz owners. Dropshippers send products one at a time directly to your customer from the warehouse. No inventory investment! Millions of brand name products.

Drop shipping is a fantastic option for sellers who don’t have room to store merchandise on site. Another benefit of this option is that drop shippers generally have no minimum orders, so you only pay for the stock that you sell. You can choose to create any dropship businesses from category as below,

Antiques & Collectables
Baby Gear
Books & Magazines
Business & Industrial
Cameras & Photo
Cell Phones & PDAs
Clothing & Fashion
Computers & Software
Consumer Electronics
DVDs & Movies
Health & Beauty
Home & Garden Supplies
Jewelry & Watches
Shoes & Fashion
Sporting Goods & Entertainment
Toys & Games
Video Gaming
Pets & Accesories
and many more..

How to Find a Good Dropshipper
There are a lot of very good drop shippers on the Internet, but there are also a lot of scammers! Just as with any other source that you find online, you need to take precautions:

• Do they have any ‘extra’ fees? Genuine dropshippers should only charge you for the items you sell. Avoid companies that require a monthly subscription fee or something similar.
• Check the age of the site. Online dropshippers and wholesalers go out of business all the time either (a) because it’s a hard business to be successful in, or (b) because they are fraudulent. For these reasons, be very wary of dealing with new sites.
• Customer service is very important – especially in moments of crisis! - but sadly it is all too often neglected. Sending a test email will tell you a lot about the quality of service you and your customers are likely to receive from the company.
• Ask about warranties, guarantees, shipping policies and return policies. Everyone gets returns at some point so you need to make sure that you won’t have to foot the bill. Be sure to get in writing and signed!

There are several ways you can find dropshippers:

1. Searching Online – This is risky, but perseverance may pay off with hidden gems. Searching with keywords such as your product name ‘+ dropshipper’ is a good way to start. Just remember the best sites aren’t always on the first few pages of results.
2. Ring the product manufacturer – You can usually find the manufacturer’s name on the item packaging. Manufacturer’s often have preferred distributors and should be able to give recommendations. You can always use email if the manufacturer is located in a non-English speaking country and you are concerned about communication difficulties.
3. Trade magazines: Distributors and manufacturers pay to advertise in these magazines so it’s an excellent way of finding current contact details. An easy way to find trade magazines in your area is to search Yahoo’s Business directory.
4. ThomasNet - If you are looking for components – anything from boot heels and microwave components to seals and gaskets! - then you will find the excellent online list of distributors and manufacturers on ThomasNet useful. The global register Thomas Global is also worth checking out.
5. Paid Directories - SaleHoo has an extensive list of drop shippers as does Worldwide Brands. But be careful – many paid directories are scams. It’s not uncommon for users to pay for access only to find outdated links or links to sites asking for more money.
6. Trade shows - Tradeshows are an excellent place to find dropshippers, although they are usually only for established retailers, so you’ll need to be able to show sales figures (unless your business has just started), business cards and a tax ID. However, nothing beats talking to suppliers face to face.

When it comes down to it, there is no getting around the hours that good research requires. Taking shortcuts with your research only means you are more likely to lose out in the end – either because of a scam or because you haven’t found the best prices and are not making enough profit.

Managing your drop shipper for best results
Your drop shipper is taking a lot of responsibility off your hands, but the fact is, you can never fully trust anyone other than yourself to do the job properly. For that reason, a large part of successfully using a drop shipper involves good management skills.

• Email or phone the dropshipper twice weekly to check up on stock levels. A drop shipper may not necessarily tell you if supplies are getting a bit low.
• Keep 2-3 ‘buffer’ items on hand in case you have orders that can’t be fulfilled through sudden stock shortages. This gives you more control over the ability to provide solid customer service.
• If the drop shipper is located internationally, then make sure you specify in your listing description that items will take 1-2 weeks to ship after payment. Honesty is the best policy - don’t try to hide anything from your buyers, this will only increase their mistrust of you if things do go wrong.
• Include your policy on returns in your listing description.
• If possible, use a dropshipper who is willing to add your brandname to the packages. For example, Msome let you upload your logo to their website where they will print it onto all your packages. They will also put your address as the return address, rather than their own company name.
• Consider enhancing personalization by giving your drop shipper hand-written thank-you notes to include in the packages. Not all drop shippers will be agreeable to this, but you can always try.
• Note that eBay has a new policy that requires you to list the location of the goods at the time of listing. If you are using a drop shipper, this means you must list China, Hong Kong, or wherever they are located. Some buyers may find this off-putting so I highly recommend including an explanation for the location in your FAQ or description. Explain the benefits to your customer – they are receiving unique goods at a much more affordable price than they could otherwise get! Don’t forget to offer a full guarantee and refund/returns policy to allay any fears over quality.
• Very Important!Follow-up every sale with a customer satisfaction survey. It is critical that you keep tabs on how well your dropshipper is performing. There’s no doubt you’ll be the first to know if the service is extremely bad, but you are less likely to hear if service is mediocre, even though it may still be bad enough to discourage customers from returning. Remember that eBay buyers are now able to give feedback on different aspects of the sale, so it’s now doubly important to ensure every stage of the sales process is excellent.