The Complete Shopify Dropshipping Guide in 2024

Thinking about launching your own Shopify dropshipping business? Well, now is the right time to start. But why consider dropshipping on Shopify?

It’s simple. Shopify is a leading e-commerce platform globally, highly favored by entrepreneurs and dropshippers alike. It’s a lucrative business that’s gaining popularity over time.

But before you dive into the dropshipping business model after binge-watching a couple of YouTube videos, hold up!

Start by mastering the fundamentals of dropshipping from credible sources like Sell The Trend free dropshipping course. Leverage Shopify’s apps to uncover trending products and dive into effective marketing strategies, whether you’re going for free options or splurging on paid ones.

Check out our in-depth guide loaded with expert insights from successful Shopify stores to help you set up your shop and skyrocket your sales!

What is Dropshipping?

Dropshipping is a business model where you sell products online without needing to keep any stock. Instead, when a customer places an order at your online store, you buy the product from a supplier like AliExpress or Cjdropshipping, and they directly ship the order to your customer location.

You can focus on running the store while the supplier handles stock and shipping.

Profit margins vary in dropshipping. Few products may offer a higher profit, while others may not. For example, you can find a personalized dog harness for $2.28 on AliExpress that you can easily sell for $40 in your own dropshipping store.

Keep in mind that your store’s reputation and profits depend highly on choosing the right products and trustworthy suppliers; however, it doesn’t have to be a headache. A dropshipping app can streamline hours of manual research, from hunting a product to creating viral ads.

Most Profitable Dropshipping

If you have a product in mind, great! If not, you might feel overwhelmed by all the choices.

You can create a store based on what you’re passionate about, but it’s best to search for what’s trending. According to market research, some of the most profitable dropshipping niches are:

• Pet supplies
• Men’s and Women’s Fashion
• Swimwear
• Jewelry and watches
• Kitchen accessories
• Sports and Outdoors
• Toys and baby products
• Home security
• Consumer electronics
• Fitness and Gym
• Home improvement tools
• Cameras and cell phones
• Health and beauty care

Types of Shopify Dropshipping Store

Once you pick your niche, the next step is to decide what kind of store you want to create. It could be a general store with hundreds of products or a one-product store that sells a winning product. Decide based on what works best for you and how much income you want to generate within a year.

General Store

If you’re a bit of a risk lover, you can create a general store—but be cautious as you might work with multiple suppliers and keep track of out-of-stock inventories. Think of it as creating your own mini Walmart.

General stores can be complicated to set up, but they can be highly profitable once functional.

Some examples of general dropshipping stores created on Shopify include Brentwood General Store, RoofTop Fruit, Mohawk General Store, and Shaw’s General Store.

Niche Store

A niche store works well when you understand your target audience’s preferences. For instance, if you’re starting with women’s clothing, you could focus on specific items like skirts, tops, or silk dresses.

By narrowing down your offerings, your marketing efforts become more targeted, which can lead to higher profit margins.

Some good examples of niche stores on Shopify are: Be Activewear, Haus, Burga, and Warmly.

One-Product Shopify Store

This is most popular among dropshippers. You list only one highly trending product in your e-commerce store. Finding the right product can be complicated as your store’s profit depends solely on one product.

For inspiration, take a look at these one-product dropshipping stores: Cookie Chips, Fybelle, Wave Beam Pro, Kulala Land, and My State of Kind.

How To Find a Winning Product

This is where most e-commerce store owners struggle. In order to create a sustainable dropshipping business, you need to find a product that sells. While there are many product research methods available, we’ve narrowed it down to the most effective and widely used option for your store.

Manual Product Hunting Method

You can start by scrolling on social media platforms like TikTok, Pinterest, Instagram, eBay, and Facebook MarketPlace to spot emerging trends.

These platforms are great for discovering what’s currently popular, as viral content can give insights into what people are interested in buying.

Once you have identified a trending product or category, you can use platforms like AliExpress to further research its potential.

On AliExpress, you can check for product popularity by looking at the number of orders, reviews, and ratings. This helps you gauge demand and customer satisfaction.

Alternatively, you can also use tools like Semrush for conducting keyword research. Focus on transactional intent and set keyword difficulty between 0 and 30%. This will help you find keywords with high search volume.

Additionally, analyze competitors by reviewing the Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) for the keywords you’ve selected.

Large retailers dominate the top results, suggesting high competition. Look for niches where fewer brands compete to find opportunities to stand out and attract traffic.

Quick Product Research Method

Finding a winning product through manual methods can be a real-time sink, leading you to endless scrolling and frustration. One misstep could leave you with a product that nobody wants.

The easiest way to start dropshipping on Shopify is to use an app to find a winning product. With just a few clicks, you’ll quickly access a list of hot, sellable products, making your life much easier!

Sell The Trend is a comprehensive product research tool that pulls data from platforms like AliExpress, Amazon, and numerous Shopify stores, making it easier to find trending items.

It stands out from other product research tools and apps due to its impressive features offered at a reasonable price.

Why You Should Use Sell The Trend

• Sell The Trend simplifies the search for profitable products by utilizing the Nexus Research tool, which analyzes 26 data points, including sales history and trends.
• The tool connects you with reliable, top-rated suppliers, ensuring low-cost and fast shipping for higher profit margins.
• It seamlessly integrates with Shopify, allowing users to quickly create optimized product pages with images, videos, and descriptions.
• Sell The Trend provides tools for launching ready-to-go Facebook ads and offers targeted ad interest lists, making advertising straightforward.
• You can spy on competitor ads through the ad library tool and analyze competitors’ stores, gaining valuable insights into their strategies.
• The tool allows easy customization of product details, including pricing and inventory management.

Check out our video to see how easily you can conduct product research using Sell The Trend.

Setting Up Your Shopify Dropshipping Store

After selecting the right niche and going through the product-hunting phase, you can move on to creating your very own Shopify dropshipping store. Just follow these simple steps, and the store will be up and running in no time.

Creating a Shopify Account

Step #1 — Sign-up for Shopify

• Go to Shopify’s website to create your account. Enter your email to start the free trial and skip the unnecessary questions during the signup process.

• Select a location for your business. Make sure to enter accurate information; otherwise, you may encounter payment issues, shipping issues, tax and duty obligations, language and currency problems, and will no longer be available to avail of Shopify benefits.
• Check your email for a confirmation link from Shopify, click it, and return to the dashboard.

• Enter a strong password that you can easily remember.

Step #2 —Accessing Your Dashboard

• Upon creating your account, you’ll access the Shopify dashboard and be able to utilize various features such as product listing, store designing, analytics, and marketing.

• First, head to the settings and update your store’s name from the default “My Store.” Choose a name that reflects your business goals.

• The next step is to set up your store’s currency. Choose USD if you’re selling globally, Euro for Europe, or GBP for the UK.

Step #3 — Choose a Plan

• Shopify offers four different plans, with the basic one being sufficient for most dropshippers. Each plan has different transaction fees, so pick one that fits your requirements.
• You can choose monthly or yearly billing, but for the first 3 months, you’ll only pay $1 per month. This seems highly appealing if you’re on a tight budget.

• After selecting a plan, add your billing details (company or personal). You can cancel anytime. Subscribe to activate your Shopify store.

Designing Your Online Store

With all the beautiful Shopify dropshipping stores in your competition, it’s easy to get intimidated by their amazing looks.

Even if you’re not the most tech-savvy person around, you can still design an amazing e-commerce store with a few drag-and-drop options.

Shopify features dozens of free and paid themes for you to choose from. Simply go to the main dashboard and click “Customize your store”.

If you’re just starting out and don’t want to spend much on a fancy dropshipping store, you can try one of the free themes like “The Dawn,”  which is more than enough to create a decent-looking store. However, if you have a specific idea in mind, you can explore Shopify’s theme library.

After you click the customize option, you’ll be taken to the Shopify store editor, where you can add a logo and customize various pages, including the homepage, product page, and collection page.

Customization can be done in desktop, mobile, or full-screen views to ensure it looks good on all devices. Choose a responsive, mobile-friendly theme to boost your conversion rates.

 

• The layout consists of header, footer, and content areas. Start by adding elements such as a logo, banner, and announcement bar. You can use these to highlight key offers such as FREE SHIPPING. Don’t feel overwhelmed at the thought of designing a logo. With a few software programs like Canva, Hatchful, or Zarla, you can design amazing logos for free. After building the homepage, save your work and preview the site on both mobile and desktop modes. You can also leverage ChatGPT to craft attention-grabbing hero sections that captivate your visitors instantly. It handles the writing and idea generation, ensuring your brand makes a memorable first impression. Once the design is complete, the next step involves setting up your store’s domain, shipping options, and payment methods.

Domain Purchase and Setup

Begin by brainstorming a unique name for your dropshipping business. Visit websites like Lean Domain Search to find available domain names that align with your brand’s vision.

After picking a suitable domain name, you can purchase it from domain providers like HostGator, BlueHost, NameCheap, and Hostinger.

A branded domain (like yourstore.com) is crucial for a polished, trustworthy image of your dropshipping store. After buying the domain, you will verify ownership through an email link, ensuring the domain is properly connected to your store.

Domain providers also provide a professional email for your Shopify dropshipping store, like [email protected], to boost customer credibility in customer communication.

Shipping Settings

Setting up shipping zones and rates is essential for dropshipping businesses. By clearly defining these zones, you can set competitive shipping rates that appeal to your target audience. Go to Settings > Shipping and Delivery to set up shipping zones, and rates, and manage other shipping options for your e-commerce store.

Offering free worldwide shipping is a smart way to draw customers and encourage more purchases. If your suppliers, like AliExpress, already provide free shipping, you can incorporate those costs into your product prices to keep things simple.

Payment Setup

Setting up payment methods is important for a smooth checkout experience. Shopify Payments allows customers to pay using different options, like credit cards, Google Pay, and Apple Pay, which adds convenience.

However, it’s available only in certain regions, so that might limit some businesses.

Customers widely trust PayPal, and adding it alongside Shopify Payments in your dropshipping store can help you reach a broader audience while improving the shopping experience for many.

Legal Policies

Shopify makes it super-easy to create essential store policies like refunds, privacy, and terms of service pages. Having these policies is crucial for building credibility and ensuring transparency with customers.

To create policies for your dropshipping business, navigate to Settings > Policies in your Shopify dashboard.

You have two options: You can customize Shopify’s pre-made templates with your store’s specific details, such as contact information and email address. Alternatively, you can manually write your own policies from scratch.

If a product arrives damaged, ask the customer to send photos and then contact the supplier to request a replacement.

Many suppliers will send a new product at no extra cost, which helps simplify the process and avoid dealing with returns or exchanges.

Importing and Optimizing Products

Importing products and adding them to your store can be tricky. By automating competitive pricing and downloading images directly from the original fulfillment store to your Shopify store, you can save a lot of time compared to doing it all manually.

Sell The Trend offers a streamlined solution for importing products and managing inventory. With the new Chrome extension, you can import products straight from AliExpress with just a click, automatically adding them to your import list.

Once you’ve got your dropship products, you can customize everything—from images to descriptions and fulfillment options (like ePacket)—before sending them to your Shopify dropshipping store.

If a product already exists in the Sell The Trend system, you can access valuable market research data, such as trends, competitor prices, and marketing strategies from other successful dropshipping stores.

Additionally, you’ll have the flexibility to choose from multiple dropshipping suppliers, allowing you to compare shipping costs and check out their delivery times.

This ensures you can find reliable suppliers and keep your customers satisfied with excellent shipping options.

Watch our video on “Super Fast Dropshipping Product Import Method” to learn just how effortless it is to import products into your Shopify store.

How to Find The Right Supplier for Your Shopify Dropshipping Store

There are certain characteristics you should look for while selecting a supplier to avoid potential customer complaints.

Shipping Times

Look for dropshipping suppliers that offer the fastest shipping. Customers HATE waiting days after placing an order to receive their package.

Inventory Level

Running out of stock can damage your store’s reputation and discourage customers from buying again. Therefore, always choose a dropshipping supplier who maintains a consistent stock level. If you’re using a Shopify dropshipping app like Sell The Trend, keep track of notifications for inventory changes.

Shipping Cost

Select a supplier with reasonable shipping rates. You don’t want a dropshipping supplier who eats half your profit margin.

Communication

This is the deal-breaker. Stay away from a supplier who is unresponsive and difficult to reach, as a dropshipping store requires timely communication related to orders, stock levels, and refunds.

Reviews and Testimonials

Check out what other businesses say about a particular supplier. Their feedback can give you some helpful insights for making the right choice for your online store.

Returns and Refund Policy

Suppliers often lack a return policy, so it’s crucial to partner with a dropshipping supplier that guarantees product quality and offers refunds or exchanges for damaged goods.

Top Dropshipping Suppliers for Shopify

You can find a whole list of thousands of dropshipping suppliers across different niches in the following directories.

AliExpress

AliExpress is a favorite among dropshippers, offering thousands of products in almost every niche. You can find numerous dropshipping suppliers on their website. This gives you a broader selection to choose from, making it easier to find the right product for your Shopify dropshipping store.

You can use Sell The Trend to import products straight from AliExpress to your store with just one click, making Shopify dropshipping simple and easy.

CJdropshipping

Similar to AliExpress, it has a vast collection of products offered by different dropshipping suppliers. But what sets CJdropshipping apart is its faster shipping options, as they have warehouses in multiple countries, including the U.S. and Europe.

Dropshipping Supplier Selection: Red Flags to Consider

When you’re on the hunt for dropshipping suppliers, watch out for these signs that may signal trouble for your online store.

• Lack of transparency and poor communication
• High minimum order quantities
• No product samples are available.
• Negative reviews
• Unprofessional website
• Too-good-to-be-true prices
• Limited contact information
• Be hasty in starting a contract without letting you review the terms properly.

Promoting Your Shopify Dropshipping Store

You must learn some basic marketing techniques to get your store up and running smoothly. Let’s explore several ways you can promote your Shopify store.

Leverage Social Media

Focus on the platforms where your audience hangs out the most. Share content that’s valuable, entertaining, or educational. Don’t be shy—highlight your product features and explain how they’ve helped you solve specific problems.

This way, you’ll attract more viewers to check out your product. Expand your reach with relevant hashtags and use insights to adjust your strategies for boosting traffic to your Shopify dropshipping store.

Utilize SMS and Email Marketing

Email and SMS marketing are cost-effective ways to communicate directly with your customers. Here’s how you can make the most of it:

• Use sign-up forms to gather visitors’ contact information.
• Customize your messages according to demographics and behavior.
• Don’t just stop at names—recommend products based on their previous purchases.

Start a Blog

Another way to level up your Shopify dropshipping store in SERPs is to create a blog section on your website. Create guides and tutorials that answer customer questions while showcasing your products with detailed reviews.

Paid Advertisement

If you’re not on a tight budget, consider investing in paid ads. Unlike the organic methods discussed above, which can take time to gain traction, paid ads can give your e-commerce business immediate visibility.

Scale Your Dropshipping Business

Using Shopify Dropshipping Automation Software

By using the dropshipping tool Sell The Trend, you can effectively automate your Shopify dropshipping business and simplify your daily operations.

These tools offer features like product research tools, automated order fulfillment, and inventory management, allowing you to focus on your product catalog, test new products, and scale your business efficiently.

Working with Multiple Suppliers

Teaming up with multiple suppliers lets you offer more products and grow your business. With dropshipping apps like Sell The Trend, you can easily find trustworthy suppliers and multiple fulfillment centers, making it easier to meet customer needs.

Providing Excellent Customer Service

To build customer loyalty, increase retention, and create a positive brand reputation, you must provide excellent customer service. When customers feel valued and supported, they are more likely to leave positive reviews, enhancing overall customer satisfaction.

Shopify Dropshipping FAQs

1. Is dropshipping on Shopify worth it?

Yes, Shopify dropshipping is a perfect choice for starting an online business. Compared to other platforms, Shopify features many impressive tools to help you scale your business. But remember, your results will also depend highly on product selection, marketing, and customer service.

2. Can I start Shopify dropshipping with $100?

Yes, but it will be a bit challenging. The basic Shopify plan costs around $19 monthly, but it charges $1 for the first 3 months, giving you enough time to set up and market your store. You can use organic marketing methods to cut costs.

3. How much does Shopify dropshipping cost?

Costs vary, with Shopify subscriptions ranging from $19 to $299 per month. Additional expenses include apps, themes, and marketing. Overall, starting costs range from a few hundred to a couple of thousand dollars, depending on your business size.

4. Is dropshipping allowed on Shopify?

Shopify is the No. 1 platform for creating a dropshipping store. With automation tools like Sell The Trend, you can easily find winning products and connect with reliable dropshipping suppliers.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Shopify offers a flexible and accessible solution to launch your dropshipping business. With minimal starting costs and the advantage of not having to manage inventory, it’s an attractive option for aspiring entrepreneurs.

By implementing the right strategies and utilizing Shopify dropshipping apps like Sell The Trend, you can smoothly handle the challenges of a dropshipping business and create a profitable store in no time.