Problems will arise in dropshipping, but that’s true of any business you can think of. Fortunately, dealing with most of these issues is relatively simple.
Shipping Errors
One of the most common problems that may arise is when your dropshipping company screws up. Maybe they fail to ship your customer’s order quickly, or they send the wrong item.
When this happens, it’s important to accept responsibility, apologize to the customer, and try to make it right. For example, you might offer a discount off their next order, or include some sort of freebie for the customer. You could also offer to refund the shipping fee, or offer free expedited shipping on the replacement product.
Yes, this could cause you to make less profit on the order. It might even cause you to lose money on the deal. But remember, this wasn’t the customer’s fault. Ultimately it is your responsibility, because you chose that particular dropshipping company.
You should definitely make sure the dropshipper pays to fix the issue, such as sending a new item to the customer if the wrong item was sent, but you’re probably on your own for any upgrades you give the customer.
Be prepared to switch to a different supplier if the one you choose seems to have problems too often. For this reason, it’s a good idea to find several suppliers before you even open your store in case you need to switch quickly. It’s also a good idea to use multiple suppliers in case one runs out of a particular item so another company can seamlessly pick up the slack.
Inventory Issues
Inventory management is another potential problem. Many suppliers will use companies such as Ordoro or eCommHub to manage their inventory, allowing you to sync your own inventory with theirs, but not every company uses one of these.
If possible, find companies that do use an inventory management program that can easily help you sync your inventory. This won’t completely eliminate inventory issues, but it will help.
Fraud
You may have to deal with fraudulent orders from time to time, but if you’re accepting PayPal, they will generally handle any type of fraud for you. If you ship an item and have proof of delivery, you’ll be protected by their Seller Protection Policy if the customer tries to get their money back. They also have a system that checks for fraud when a customer uses a credit card to pay.
If you suspect fraud, just give the customer a call or email them. Be friendly and courteous, and just tell them you’re calling to verify their order and their shipping address to make sure you have the right one.
If you cannot get in touch with the customer within a reasonable period of time, you might consider canceling their order and issuing a refund. If the customer contacts you after their order was canceled, just explain you attempted to contact them to verify their order and their contact information did not work. Apologize, and tell them they can place their order again.
Always be sure to have tracking information for every package so you can prove it was delivered. You don’t want to give anyone a chance to get their money back on legitimate purchases simply because you can’t prove the item was delivered.