Start your business with CJdropshipping
All-in-one dropshipping solution provider: product supplies, global logistics, free sourcing, POD, video shooting, and other dropshipping-related services.
Most dropshippers fall into two categories: print on demand vs General Products dropshipping. Print on demand is when you sell your own custom designs on products like mugs, t-shirts, and phone cases. General Products dropshipping allows you to choose from millions of products to sell. In both cases, the supplier ships products directly to your customers on your behalf.
As a person who’s run both types of businesses, this article will share some of my personal experiences to help you make a better decision for your entrepreneurial ventures.
What is Print On Demand?
Print on Demand is when you sell your own custom designs on various different types of products. You can find print on demand t-shirts, shirts, books, and many other items. A print on demand business, just like every other business model, has its own set of pros and cons that are discussed in detail below.
Print On Demand Vs General Products Dropshipping: Similarities
While print on demand and General Products dropshipping have several defining differences, they also share a lot in common. Here are a few examples:
- They both involve dropshipping. No bulk inventory to carry. The supplier packages and ships products out directly to your customer.
- Order processing is mostly automated. When a customer places an order, all you need to do is click a button to send customer product details to your supplier.
- A print on demand business and General Products dropshipping are both low-risk models. You don’t need to buy inventory upfront and only pay once a customer places an order on your store.
- Both require a similar skill set to achieve great results. A print on demand business requires stronger graphic design skills. However, both require marketing, customer service, and advertising skills.
You’ll Have Your Own Custom Products: It can be a pretty cool feeling to have someone buy a product that you designed yourself. Most prints on demand suppliers allow you to design your own clothing like print on demand t-shirts, dresses, and leggings. They might also have products like phone cases, tote bags, and canvas. Not just this but the print on demand books also exist. If you’re a graphic designer or a creative type, designing your own products can be a fun experience. Dropshipping is a great business model for new entrepreneurs.
Here are a few dropshipping benefits:
Easier to Predict What the Best Sellers Are This is probably one of the main reasons why I continued to use General Products for dropshipping, instead of returning to print on demand. I’m able to easily find the best products based on order volume, seller ratings, and customer reviews. With print on demand services, my guesses for what I thought would be a bestseller were always wrong. Always. But with General Products dropshipping, products with higher order volume and high customer reviews have the data behind it to justify adding it to your store. If a product has sold well then all you need to do is figure out how to market it for it to succeed. Unlike print on demand, you don’t have to worry about whether or not the product is the problem because you immediately know that it isn’t. It’s clear to see which products have high demand. By building your store around the best sellers, you give yourself a fighting chance to succeed in dropshipping.
Millions of Products to Choose From Product diversity is huge. With General Products dropshipping, you can basically sell any type of popular item. Want to jump onto the fidget spinner trend early? Just import it from app.cjdropshipping.com Want to find dresses of different styles and materials? Try out General Products dropshipping. Want to create a general store that has a little bit of everything? You’ll be able to find a diverse collection of products on General Products. You’re not limited to selling graphic tees or leggings of the same fabric. You’re also not limited to your own style of design. With General Products dropshipping, you can have different types of designs to appeal to a wider audience. Having a singular focus can be great for defining your niche but it can also be limiting.
Can Scale Quickly My personal experience with General Products dropshipping has been that I’ve generated much higher profits than I did with a print on demand business. As a result, I was able to re-invest my earnings back into ads. As a result, our store's sales drastically outperformed my print on demand store. In my first month as a General Products dropshipper, my store made double the revenue my print on demand store made in 6 months. By having enough profit to reinvest back into ads, our store's sales quickly grew each month.
Shipping Costs are Low With General Products dropshipping, shipping rates are super low. I always use ePacket which means our shipping tends to either be free or under $5. Having transitioned from print on demand into General Products dropshipping, this was probably what made the biggest impact when it came to profit. My business was able to absorb the costs of shipping to offer customers free shipping. With print on demand, most of my best sellers ended up being mugs which had a higher shipping fee than the product value. Considering most people buy mugs for under $8, this business wasn’t sustainable long-term. I either had to charge more for my product or charge a shipping fee with print on demand. If you prefer selling low-cost goods, General Products dropshipping is your best bet.
Less Hard Labour With General Products dropshipping, it’s pretty easy to run your business. You add products, write descriptions, maybe edit a few photos, market your products, process orders, manage customer support, and make improvements to your store. This becomes your general cycle of the routine. With print on demand, there’s an added layer. You’re the product designer. Designing products can take a lot of time for someone with limited design skills. However, even the best designers will take their time to ensure their product designs are just right. After the design is done, you need to create mockups of the products or take your own product photos. So for instance, if you have a print on demand t-shirt store, you’ll not only have to invest time in the designing of the t-shirts but also to market them. The most important part of running an online store is making sure your marketing game is strong. If you have the best product designs, no one is going to find them on their own. You need to put yourself out there. General Products dropshipping gives you more time to just focus on what really matters: marketing, experimentation, and customer support.
Less Risky Business Model In the battle between the print on demand business vs General Products dropshipping, dropshipping General Products is the less risky option. Both are print on demand making the business models great for new entrepreneurs. However, there’s more data behind General Products to help ensure you have great products. Some designers spend a lot of time designing their own products. However, customers might not resonate with their designs. If you’re a first-time store owner, it’d be silly to take a risk importing a product no one has ever purchased before. Figuring out which products will make an impact can be hard. It’s hard for me and I’ve been running online stores for four years. I’m completely dependent on data. And that’s why General Products has proven to be a better business model for me. I can clearly see which products are worth importing based on order volume, seller ratings, and customer reviews.
The good - Pros of POD
- Low startup costs. Unlike traditional retailers, there’s no need to invest thousands of dollars into your idea before you even start selling. $100 is enough to begin. You’ll get your domain name, Shopify subscription (for the first few months) or even a nice WordPress theme with a few premium plugins. You don’t need to store anything and you still have a complete catalog of products.
- Quick to set up. The time of needing to hire a web designer is over. With all the available themes, guides, plugins and templates, you can have your store up and run in no time.
- No need for inventory space. Your supplier takes care of order fulfillment, while you can focus on selling.
- Easy to experiment with product designs. Whenever you’re up to something new, you only need to arrange it with your print partner and add it to your store.
- Access to international markets. Your store will be able to ship goods wherever your manufacturer can ship goods. And most manufacturers deliver internationally.
- Scale and test new products without financial risk. You can see which designs sell well and which don’t, so you can easily make adjustments on the go.
- Ability to customize and sell YOUR unique designs. If you’re a graphic designer, artist or someone who knows people that produce beautiful visual content, POD presents a chance to make money by creating your own unique brand.
- Products are hard to copy for competition. Unlike most dropshipping businesses, no one can have the same products as you do.
- By selling unique products, you are building your own brand, community and repeat customers...which is more beneficial in the long run.
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