Before you commit to a drop ship deal or spend a lot of cash on eBay listing fees with the idea of drop shipping goods, you have to know some basic drop ship info. What are the cons and the pros? You should go into this knowing the downside and upside of drop shipping.

Drop Shipping Cons

• It can be costly.

• You need to pay for the cost of materials and the labor involved in drop shipping. Usually this is between 2 dollars and 5 dollars per item. Many new merchants find that the extra costs of drop shipping greatly diminish their income margins and sometimes invalidate the entire operation. This is the major reason why this system is not a feasible alternative for some sellers.

• You are still liable for any drop shipping troubles. The item might arrived with damaged or there might have a shipping delay and you will be the one to get the flak for everything that goes wrong with the shipping although it is in principle out of your control.

• Hard to locate a dispenser who will do it and do it fine.

• Many dispensers will not drop ship because of the additional paperwork involved. Then there is the stuff of checking up on quality standards to ensure your goods are being packed properly.

• Low store levels may cause sad customers.

• Your drop ship provider will not necessarily inform you when they are running low on supply. If they run out and need to do a back order, you might end up expending a great deal of time pacifying a bunch of sad and annoyed clients.

• This system is a very interesting prospect for many merchants; but it is not always a practical one. In spite of the hassle, "doing it yourself" can usually be a more sensible alternative financially, especially for new industries.

Drop Shipping Pros

• No storage space required.

• You don't need to fill up your living space with stock and packing materials. This is generally useful if you're marketing big items such as sporting goods, furniture, kit-sets and so on.

• Drop shipping means you do not need to pay a transporter to bring stock from the dispenser to your own storage space, which can mean great savings in the long term.

• Expend more time on the other areas of your trade.

• You do not need to organize the postage and packing system, nor do you have to go to the post office everyday to post your packages. This gives you a large increase in time to spend on the other jobs such as communicating with clients and marketing.

• No wrapping required.

• You save cash by not having to order and stock packaging materials.