Now you have your niche, the next thing to do is to pick an actual product. From here, you can then find the manufacturer to help you provide that. The important thing here is that there should always be a clear synergy between your branding, your ethos and your product. That is to say that you should have a real affinity with the product and be selling it as an extension of your mission statement.
What you mustn’t do, is to simply find whatever the first product is that you can sell within your niche. An example might be to create a fitness website, build an audience and then try and sell a really basic protein shake that is already well-known.Can this work? Sure. But why would people bother to buy from you when there are countless other sites where they can find the same thing? Or when they can even buy it from their local high street?
Likewise, if you are selling a product that is obviously not your own and that is so generic then it can actually hurt your trustworthiness. It’s clear you’re trying to make money – which isn’t a bad thing in itself – but you’re not offering any unique value in return.You’re just saying ‘oh yeah, and why not buy this generic product while you’re here?’.
On the other hand, if you can find a product that is somewhat new, somewhat different and that mirrors your personal approach to fitness, to business or to whatever your niche is, then you can sell something that you really believe in and can get excited about. And this is something that will come across and make itself apparent for your visitors too.
This is one reason why it can be so great to have a hand in helping designing the product – as with a supplement for example where you get to choose the ingredients. Similarly, you can make money from selling a product that is a little lesser known and that you find particularly interesting and exciting.
The best brands will be the ones that can grow with you: find a company that is doing something new and exciting and express that you’d like to work with them. From there, you can then focus on growing and building your business and this will help you to form a real relationship that’s mutually beneficial and that your customers can appreciate too.
More Factors to Consider
Of course there are many smaller considerations to keep in mind when selling your products. Should you sell a consumable, or should you sell something that will last a long time? Should you sell a product that is very expensive? Or one that is very affordable?
But suffice to say that it can make a lot of sense to sell multiple products in future, as that way, you’ll be able to benefit from multiple different types of business model and you’ll be able to draw in a wider range of buyers. Having a range of prices means that you can cater to people with all kinds of budgets and build some loyal customers that might increase their average spend with you over time.
For example, a cheap consumable has the distinct advantage of being something that will keep your visitors coming back. If you sell protein shake for instance, then your buyers will probably want this about once every month. If your provide a reliable service and appealing prices, then this is an excellent way to get repeat business and to have a recurring income – which in turn will be highly convenient by letting you make more concrete plans for your budgeting etc.
Another option is to run a ‘box’ business. These are businesses that sell selections of products on a recurring basis. Someone will subscribe to your business for instance and then you will send them a package containing a set number of products each month. This could be a range of different items, or it could be one thing.
Loot Crate for example, is a business that sends pop culture merchandise to comicbook and games fans. Part of the fun of this service is that they never know exactly what they’re going to get, but it will always be something interesting and exciting. Then again, you also get men’s grooming services that send the same selection of consumable razors, shaving foams etc. each month.
This is a different way to create your dropshipping business and one that allows you to add some real extra value and also to promote the products of your partners in an exciting way. There are many other ways you can add value too – whether it’s providing freebies (like some kind of PDF), offering the best discounts, or somehow upgrading the product you’re offering before it reaches the customer.
Whatever you decide, the big question to ask yourself is: what value are you providing? What are you offering on top of the products themselves? How are you providing value not only for the customers but also for the suppliers? What advantage to they get by coming to you instead of going to Amazon?
Finally, you of course need to ask yourself what types of products will sell well. And this is particularly important when you first start out and perhaps only have one item to begin with. If you’re going to begin your store with just one item, then it is highly important that this one item be something that will sell well and get your business off to the best start.
And the best way to do this is to pick something that has a very clear function and that is easy to explain. Solve a problem that your visitors have. What is it that people in this niche need? And how can you solve that issue for them? If you can answer this, then you should have no problem selling your first item as long as it is well made and as long as you’re persuasive enough to make it sound amazing.