Pros and Cons of Dropshipping for Student E-commerce Businesses
Starting a side hustle is a worthwhile endeavor for college students, especially those with щт tight budget. One of the best ways to make money, whether a full-time student or not, is to get into dropshipping.
Dropshipping is an e-commerce model where you sell products to customers without actually keeping any inventory. You partner with suppliers or manufacturers, list their products on your online store or marketplaces like Amazon and pass on the order fulfillment duties to the manufacturer once you make a sale. You make money by selling the products at a higher price than what you pay the supplier.
While starting an e-commerce business can generate good money to meet your needs in college, it can take time and effort to run, especially when pursuing a demanding course with a heavy workload. Fortunately, an essay writing service can help with your essays and research papers whenever you feel overworked. That way, you can make money while crushing your academic goals.
If you want to start dropshipping as a side hustle in uni, consider the benefits and drawbacks first.
Pros of Dropshipping for Student E-commerce Businesses
Below are the positives of setting up a dropshipping business.
Scalable and Flexible
You can add or remove products from your virtual storefront depending on whether they bring sales or don’t meet your customers' needs. Furthermore, you only need a laptop and internet to run your dropshipping business from anywhere, at any time. Complete control of where and when to run your new venture is a plus; you can balance it with classes and thrive in both.
You Can Run The Business on Autopilot
Dropshipping is a passive income source, thus ideal for you as a college student. However, you must put more work upfront to ensure you make money without working daily in the future. Once you set up your virtual store and establish stable traffic, you can run your business on autopilot.
If you’re starting your business at a time in the semester when you have many assessments, projects, and exams to read for, getting academic assistance will help you clear up more time for your venture. Check out the best write my essay services to find professional writers to handle your academic workload. After ensuring your projects are in safe hands, you can focus more on your virtual shop so it generates money to support your needs.
It Requires Minimal Capital to Start
The perfect side hustle for a university student should have low startup capital, as you’ll likely be squeezing your upkeep money. Dropshipping is more appealing as it requires little capital to start. Since you only need to look for customers, a simple website to list the products and a few dollars for marketing is enough.
For a business website, you’ll need a domain name that can cost less than $20 yearly. Next, you’ll need an e-commerce platform to set up your online store. The leading ones include:
- PrestaShop
- Shopify
- BigCommerce
- WooCommerce
- Adobe Commerce
- Wix
- Squarespace
You might need a web designer to help design your store before starting operations. Afterward, post your products on social media pages to get traffic. You can also get more customers offline if you have the right salesperson skills to entice them to buy. Unlike other e-commerce businesses, dropshipping is cheaper and easier to start.
You Don't Have to Manage Inventory
Traditional e-commerce business operators must hold and manage inventory. While managing inventory provides total control over your products, you don’t need it when dropshipping. As a seller, you won't have access to the products you’re advertising. You don’t have to keep and manage them in a physical store.
Once you receive orders, you’ll forward the customer shipping details to the manufacturer for fulfillment. Concurrently, you won't need the capital to manage an inventory, which is a big deal if you’re a university student.
Cons of Dropshipping for Student E-Commerce Businesses
While dropshipping is a good business venture for college learners, it has drawbacks.
You’ll Need Extra Money for Marketing
While it's easy to get into dropshipping because of the low startup cost, getting customers can be a nightmare. First, you’ll set up your online store on an e-commerce platform. But, to make sales, you need customers; to get these customers, you have to get your products seen.
Free traffic sources need more effort and time to be fruitful. Thus, you should invest in paid traffic, such as running Facebook and Instagram ads or using influencers to market your products. If you’re starting your e-commerce on a lower budget, be more consistent by posting often and sharing your product links with your network.
It’s Highly Competitive
Dropshipping requires little capital to start and run, making many people flood this new business model. Thus, funneling quality traffic to your products to drive sales can take more work than usual. As companies with similar products invest more in online ads, cutting through the competition can be more challenging if you’re entirely dependent on unpaid sources.
There Are Customer Service Challenges
Dropshipping can be hectic if you’re dealing with non-reputable suppliers. Being a dropshipper means you cannot control shipment and fulfillment once you forward order details to the supplier. However, you handle customer service and after-sales support.
If customers experience delays, receive defective products, or want to initiate a return, you’ll have a challenging time correcting the mess. That’s why it's vital to thoroughly research the products and suppliers to run a successful business. If possible, take samples of the products and test them before selling them to your customers.
Conclusion
It’s possible to make money dropshipping as a college student. The most critical step is balancing your studies and new ventures. Setting up your business well can generate sales and turn it into a full-time hustle. But, before doing so, carefully weigh the pros and cons of this business model and dedicate yourself to it if it’s worth your time.
