The global dropshipping market is valued at $301.11 billion in 2024, 23.7% up from the previous year. With a 24.39% average annual growth rate, the dropshipping market is expected to be worth as much as $476.1 billion in 2026.
Shopify outperforms the expectations of starting a dropshipping business with enormous benefits, including a low barrier to entry, flexibility, easier testing of new products, minimal investment, and global sales.
The popularity of Shopify dropshipping implementation is witnessed by the growth in Shopify dropshipping stores, which reached 12.82% in 2024.
Still, some businesses need clarification on why to dropship through Shopify and wondering how to implement Shopify dropshipping into their e-commerce business.
This blog will cover all the information on Shopify dropshipping and the store setup process. Let’s dive in!
What is Shopify dropshipping?
Similar to the dropshipping concept, Shopify dropshipping is a low-risk investment for starting an e-commerce business. It involves e-commerce stores selling products that are neither manufactured nor stored in a warehouse. Instead, they are provided by partnered third-party dropshippers.
When customers place an order on the Shopify store, the order request is transferred to the wholesaler, and then it’s delivered to the customer’s address. With Shopify dropshipping, there’s no need to store and move inventory, which eliminates inventory upfront costs and other expenses.
Businesses must select the dropshipping platform and set up a Shopify store. The supplier products are chosen to be kept and sold in the store. One can hire Shopify developers with experience to create an online Shopify dropshipping store as well. With Shopify dropshipping, there’s nothing to produce and store, but only businesses sell.
Why do businesses use Shopify dropshipping?
Shopify powers millions of e-commerce stores worldwide, and it has implemented dropshipping to increase sales and ROI. Thankfully, the platform facilitates integrations with various dropshippers, allowing stores to connect with individual suppliers. Analytics plug-ins, dropshipping apps, and payment gateways supercharge Shopify dropshipping. It brings a range of benefits to e-commerce stores.
- Zero product inventory
- Minimal investment
- Easy setup
- Massive product variety
- Automated shipping
- Location independence
How to implement Shopify dropshipping into your E-commerce store?
Hundreds of dropshipping product additions, easy integration, and 24/7 customer support appeal to businesses looking for Shopify dropshipping. Here’s the way to incorporate Shopify dropshipping.
Plan the upfront cost
Shopify dropshipping is a lucrative opportunity that tempts businesses to start a new venture immediately. However, the unawareness of the initial expenses, including Shopify plan cost, paid domain, app purchases, and premium marketing tools access, disappoints them. They can start with a free trial, but after a month, they must pay to keep selling online.
- The upfront costs comprise the following things.
- Shopify’s basic plan starts at 29 USD per month, and when paid yearly, the subscription cost will be reduced. You can upgrade the plan according to business growth.
- The selection of top-level domains and the addition of competitive keywords influence domain purchase costs. However, it ranges between $10 to $40.
- Make sure you need to pay for the product sample.
- Investing in social media ads and premium marketing tools consistently according to your budget also needs to be planned.
Identify your niche market and audience
Research is the necessary homework that every business must do before implementing Shopify dropshipping. Market research helps analyse segments to target and know customer behavior and preferences. There are different ways to identify the target audience and the buying trends.
- Social media networks help reveal potential customers and the channels they use to purchase products. Joining the social media community unveils rich insights regarding product purchases.
- Analytics platforms provide keyword research tools businesses can use to research the niche audience. User search volume, traffic, competition, and keyword trends help create content accordingly.
Choose the domain for the Shopify dropshipping store
A unique business name that’s memorable and brandable is good to keep. Using a brand name generator or researching Shopify stores to get an idea for the Shopify dropshipping store is also good. After selecting the Shopify dropshipping store name, the next step is to identify the available domain name on domain registrars.
Customizing the domain is a good approach to improve SERP as a part of the strategic marketing plan. Shopify provides free sub-domains, but opting for tailored ones gives a professional touch to your business.
Create Shopify account
Businesses can create a Shopify account with a simple registration process followed by authentication and adding Shopify dropshipping store names. After providing personal information, e-commerce experience, and sales channel to sell the product, complete the initial setup process.
After the account creation, businesses can navigate through all the Shopify functionalities from the Shopify admin dashboard. Add payment gateways, define store policies, configure shipping settings, and determine shipping rates to finally allow businesses to launch the store.
Craft meticulous design for the dropshipping store
Undoubtedly, design matters that leave an indelible impression on customers. Ensure the Shopify dropshipping store is easy to navigate, mobile responsive, loads at speed, and enables secure purchases.
Free and paid themes offered by Shopify that can be easily customized to create tailored designs that align with the business’s Shopify dropshipping store needs.
Using AI, the design is created from scratch by answering a few questions. Also, users can upgrade the theme from free to premium when they gain relevant experience and look to stand out from the competition. Shopify’s logo maker and graphic design tools are considered to create a stunning logo.
Add products
When Shopify’s dropshipping store is set up with a unique design, businesses can start listing the products and group them into various categories. It requires partnering with the product suppliers that business owners like the most, and then products are listed. The dropshipper will take care of order processing and shipment.
Businesses can log into their Shopify account, integrate the app they want and then click catalogue to add products they want to list on the Shopify dropshipping store.
Businesses can publish or unpublish the products with easy edits. Also, the product listings are customized with descriptions, categories, and tags. Shopify collections come in two types: automated and manual collection, which are the best ways to group products into different categories.
Promote and sell your offerings
When Shopify dropshipping store is ready with products grouped in different categories, it’s time to go online and start selling. Strategic
marketing campaigns are essential to promote the brand and products, increase user outreach, and build trust. Businesses can consider different marketing approaches to deal with Shopify dropshipping at scale.
- Create accounts on various social channels and promote your offerings to increase sales.
- Start sending personalized emails at various stages of customers’ shopping journey that increase conversion.
- Initiate content marketing using SEO tools that improve online visibility and thus increase purchases.
- Integrate Shopify apps that help create insightful strategic marketing plans which boost marketing results.
Epilogue
When you start an e-commerce business on Shopify, the notable results have urged you to keep upgrading the plan. Similarly, the unprecedented benefits of Shopify dropshipping implementation allow businesses to extend their online business with Shopify dropshipping.
Dropshipping apps make it seamless to launch Shopify dropshipping store. Nail the art of Shopify dropshipping with an effortless implementation explained in the blog. It will let you enjoy the advantages of dropshipping.
Further Reading
Top Shopify Dropshipping Stores
Shopify Dropshipping – 10 Best YouTube Channels You Should Subscribe to for Dropshipping Tips
