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Legitimate Dropshipper
(Dropshipper scams)
Watch the video from SaleHoo now
Over the years the business of
drop shipping
has become very popular as a means of Internet income, so have dropshipper scams. As always
with fame, there is someone trying to scam you out of your money.
Google search for dropshipper or dropshipping and you will find millions of
results.While many
legitimate dropshipper or wholesale
sources can be found online, there is a huge number of sites
developed specifically to scam sellers looking for a good deal. So how
do you tell whether you are dealing with a real wholesale supplier and a legitimate dropshipper?
Well, the answer is that you
can't, but there
are a few tips, things to check for that will reduce your chances of
being the victim of a scam. First, let us discuss a few types of scams
you need to be aware of.
There are several different types
of scammers
around. Some are blatantly just after your cash, others are a bit more
clever. They actually do offer dropship services but the prices are
just too high for you to make any money. These are not legitimate dropshippers, but rather the type of setups
we refer to as "middleman" operations on our page about Dropship
Pitfalls. They just use a dropshipper themselves, don't stock anything
on their own, and tack on a profit in their transaction with you. Other
scammers offer unbelievably cheap prices but they are aways out of
stock when you order. They are just after your signup fee.
If you do find a cheap source for
big name
brands, be careful that you are not falling for another type of
scam--selling fakes. There are several suppliers in China and other
countries selling fakes. They are legitimate dropshippers (just dropshipping fakes), as long as you realize what you are
buying, this is not a problem in itself.
A strong indication of a scam is a
supplier
that does not accept credit cards as a means of payment. Accepting only
Western Union or wire transfer is a good sign of a scam. In fact, if
your supplier only takes PayPal (not just as an option), this may be a
flag that the supplier is not a legitimate dropshipper but a
"middleman" operation. Almost anyone can set up a PayPal account. A
business must be registered to be able to use credit cards.
Other Warning Signs
- Fake address - it doesn't exist.
- No or bad email address
- No or incomplete contact details listed on the
website.
- When you call, the telephone is answered by an
individual who does not identify himself on picking up the phone
- You are not asked for a business or tax
number.
- Your emails are not returned.
- Parts of the text or images on their site are copies
from other websites.
- When you place an order, the company claims they do
not have any stock, but want to receive the money before ordering any
in.
- Your contact becomes shifty when you ask for a
product sample
Tips to Protect
Yourself
The easiest way to avoid being
scammed is to do
your sales through an established dropshipper site such as
DropshipDesign , Shopster, or Wholesale-Portal. These companies will handle much of your necessary effort for
finding and making the dropships for your products. Be aware, though
that you can usually get better prices if you research yourself.
For researching and setting up
your own
accounts with wholesale dropshippers, you can use a a wholesaler
directory service such as SaleHoo (watch the video below)
which also
has feedback on its site from other sellers. Hienote,
Inc is another
wholesale directory that keeps up to date on the newest available
sources. Another good site to use is Aid and Trade
which lists wholesale dropshippers in UK and Canada, as well as US.
The best of
these types of sites is probably Doba as a company of
choice for eBay
sellers. And, of course, the biggest and best known of the directories
is WorldWideBrands. These sites have
membership fees, but are all well
worth the cost in time savings and help in setting up contacts.
If you still want to do your own
searching for
wholesale dropshippers to set up contacts, (perhaps you have a niche
market that the directories don't cover well).
Here are a few tips to help you
protect against scammers:
- Copy and paste some text into Google. If the text is
copied
from another site, it will show up in the search results soon enough..
- Check that the website gives a full business name and
a registration number.
Call them to verify the phone number given is good.
- Send them an email to check if you get a response or
if the address is dead.
- Ask for a photograph of the stock with the company
logo in the background.
- Check out their website ownership. Go to
www.coolwhois.com and search for the name
of the website.
- See who owns the domain and for how long. A
legitimate company should have been in operation for over
a year (or more!) and the expiration date for their domain should be
well out in the future. Most legitimate companies reserve their domain
names for 3-5
years or more at a time.
- Use secure payment methods such as Escrow, Cod and
Paypal Verified whenever possible. Remember that you may have extra
protection when paying by credit card.
- Ask other sellers what their experiences have been
with the company on forums
To see what SaleHoo can do to help you protect
yourself (as well as
other advantages) watch the video below.
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SaleHoo
offers many dropshipper links and has a good series of
Newsletters. |
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