Dropshipping Business Ideas: Start Making Money With Dropshipping

Martin

You can test as many dropshipping business ideas as you’d like, but without guidance, you’ll be just throwing away your money and your time.

Is there a way where you can save both money and valuable time to narrow down the list of ways to be profitable with dropshipping in 2022?

First of all, you never have to worry about if dropshipping is worth it because it won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

Having said that, we’re here to help increase your chances of becoming profitable as quickly as possible in 2022.

Let’s get started and explain some important details about dropshipping. After that, we’ll dive into the list of best dropshipping ideas with huge potential in 2022 and beyond.

What Is Dropshipping?

what is dropshipping

Dropshipping is a business model that lets you sell products online without having to own even one piece of the product. 

Today, platforms like Shopify let you set up your online store in as little as a few hours and start selling.

But, there are also lots of amazing Shopify alternatives that offer even more benefits and ways to earn more money.

Here’s how dropshipping works in a few simple steps:

  • Find a few of the best dropshipping products to sell
  • Find a decent supplier with good prices
  • Create your online store
  • Promote it on social media
  • Buy the product and send it to your customer when they make an order

This is all there is to it. However, it’s just in simple terms, there’s plenty of work to do behind the scenes.

But still, it’s not rocket science, and if you want to know how dropshipping works it won’t take you months to learn the business.

How to Start Dropshipping From Scratch?

In order to explain how to start dropshipping, let’s assume that you are a complete beginner and this is the first time you’ve heard about this business model. 

Here’s what you need to do.

You can choose a product from the ones we recommend and go on AliExpress to find a good supplier. There are other ways to find great suppliers but AliExpress will be good enough for a start.

After that, go to Shopify, create your store, and import your product using an app called Oberlo.

Here’s our ultimate review: Oberlo vs Modalyst Review.

Don’t worry, learning how to set up your first dropshipping store on Shopify is easy and will only take a few hours at most.

Once you’ve done that, your best bet is to go to Facebook and create your first ad. This step may sound intimidating, but it’s not. You can take advantage of our ultimate Facebook ads guide for beginners and go over the process one step at a time.

After that, it’s finally time for those orders to start coming in.

You will learn as you go, and be sure to tweak and make changes if the results aren’t what you expect at first. That’s the best way to learn and find out what works for you.

What You Need to Know Before Dropshipping

dropshipping business checklist

A lot of unsuccessful dropshippers who haven’t taken the time to learn how dropshipping actually works are always going to make ridiculous accusations about this business.

For these people, no dropshipping business ideas will ever work. 

Your job is to listen and learn from the ones who’ve made it, not the ones who have failed.

Here are a few statements about dropshipping that you should engrave deeply in your mind, as they will stay true for a long time.

Dropshipping Is Not a Scam

If dropshipping were a scam, then how come Shopify merchants have generated over $307 billion in global economic impact in 2020 alone.

A vast majority of those sellers are dropshippers. In addition, Shopify has also helped create over 3.6 million jobs for people around the globe.

The next time you hear someone saying “dropshipping is a scam”, keep in mind that the above statistic is for Shopify alone.

Let’s not mention the dozens of other major eCommerce dropshipping platforms helping merchants make money online. 

Dropshipping Isn’t Dead

According to previous growth and research statistics, by 2025 dropshipping is expected to grow into a half a trillion-dollar market. How can such rapid growth and increased potential overtime be dead?

In fact, it’s only getting started, as new dropshipping business ideas are surfacing every single day.

There’s much more earning potential with dropshipping today than there ever was in the past. And as you can see, it will just keep growing.

So, if you’re still asking yourself if dropshipping is dead, make sure to remember these facts and remind yourself that there’s so much potential for anyone to make it in dropshipping.

Best Dropshipping Business Ideas in 2022

It’s finally time to get into it. Let’s explore some of the best dropshipping business ideas in 2022 that can increase your chances of getting more sales.

In addition to revealing which ideas you’re better off focusing on, I’ll also share how to go about the process and which strategies to employ. 

So, if you’re ready then let’s get started.

1. Start a Print-on-Demand Business

start print on demand business

One of the easiest, fastest, and most creative ways to make money online is to start a PoD business.

Print-on-Demand lets you market various clothing designs online and only print them when someone buys a particular product. 

This way, you don’t have inventory sitting in a warehouse and you have almost no upfront costs. Best of all, you can also let customers submit custom designs and charge more for special prints.

There are plenty of online platforms that let you start a PoD business effortlessly.

However, the battle is usually between Printful vs Printify, as these two choices are among the most popular and most worthwhile. 

So, why is Print-on-Demand one of the best dropshipping business ideas in 2022?

Let’s look at some stats to learn from and then examine the pros and cons.

  • PoD Market Size: $10 billion
  • Average Order Value: depends on the product (anywhere between $15 and $100)
  • Competitors to Research: ClassicDad

Print-on-Demand Pros & Cons

✔️ Print-on-Demand is a multi-billion dollar industry

✔️ You don’t have to buy any equipment

✔️ PoD software makes creating new designs easy for everyone

✔️ The profit margins are outstanding

✔️ You don’t have to print anything before the customer makes a purchase

❌ The quality of the product depends entirely on the supplier you choose

❌ Your return policy guidelines need to correspond with your printing partner’s policy

2. Sell Snack Subscription Boxes

dropshipping business ideas - snacks

This is among the most creative and exciting dropshipping business ideas that can ensure success long-term. All you have to do is hook your customers to subscribe and your set.

So, here’s how you should go about selling snacks subscription boxes online. 

First, you need to find dropshipping food suppliers that have a wide variety of different products.

Why? Because you can’t fill the boxes with the same foods every month.

Second, you should create your online store using Shopify or another platform of your choice.

Make sure to include exciting offers for customers and various subscription boxes to choose from. 

You have unlimited choices here. The boxes can be themed based on traditional snacks from certain countries, seasonal snacks, salty snacks, candies, and so on.

Lastly, you should market your subscription boxes at reasonable prices so that customers have no problem paying each month for a unique and exciting box filled with snacks.

On the other hand, there’s a lot to learn when it comes to dropshipping food, especially regarding regulations, geo-restrictions, and similar.

  • Subscription Box Market Size: $18 billion
  • Average Order Value: $10 to $40
  • Competitors to Research: SnackCrate

Snack Boxes Pros & Cons

✔️ Spend less advertising funds on acquiring new customers

✔️ Food products have remarkably low return rates

✔️ You can get super creative with your box contents

✔️ Customers rarely quit after subscribing if you offer valuable deals

❌ There are plenty of restrictions and regulations on selling food

3. Start a One Product Dropshipping Store

one product dropshipping store

The one product dropshipping store business model has always been one of the best dropshipping business ideas, especially for beginners and those who don’t want to put in a lot of work in creating their store.

As the name suggests, this way of doing business involves learning how to find winning dropshipping products and creating a store around every single one of those products. 

So, your store only has one product, one landing page, excellent copy, stunning images, and an amazing offer that entices more and more visitors to buy.

You basically brand this entire store around a single product. 

💡 Tip: Try to find a website domain that is exactly the same or very similar to your product’s name. This builds trust and aids significantly to branding.

  • One Product Dropshipping Market Size: Same as entire dropshipping market ($159 billion)
  • Average Order Value: Varies intensely
  • Competitors to Research: Snooz

One Product Dropshipping Store Pros & Cons

✔️ Extremely easy to create your online store

✔️ Potential for huge profit margins

✔️ Faster way to make more money

✔️ You don’t have to import dozens or hundreds of products

✔️ One product stores usually have higher conversion rates

❌ It can be difficult sometimes to find a winning product

❌ Lots of testing involved

4. Start a Niche Dropshipping Store

dropshipping business ideas

Unlike general dropshipping stores where you’d basically have to compete with AliExpress or Amazon, a niche dropshipping store can make things much easier. 

Niche dropshipping stores allow you to focus heavily on branding and narrow down the list of products you can sell. 

For example, if you choose to start a pet supplies store, you’d only be filling it up with pet products, pet toys, pet grooming tools, and so on.

As a result, you can reach your target audience more easily, get more conversions, and generally do something you love if you pick a niche you’re passionate about.

The main thing you need to focus on here is branding. If you brand your store right and you force people to love it, then it won’t matter if the same products are available on Amazon or anywhere else – because you will be more unique.

  • Niche Dropshipping Store Market Size: $159 billion
  • Average Order Value: Varies
  • Competitors to Research: Meowingtons

Niche Store Pros & Cons

✔️ Higher conversion because of more filtered traffic

✔️ It’s easier to find your target audience

✔️ You can sell something you’re really passionate about

✔️ Niche stores are easier to manage compared to general dropshipping stores

✔️ Niche stores are also much easier to brand

✔️ Stunning cross-selling and upselling potential

✔️ Much easier to rank for specific keywords

❌ Some niches have fewer product options than others

❌ Certain niches have more difficult competitors to deal with

5. Start a General Dropshipping Store

dropshipping idea for ecommerce store

As with all the many other dropshipping business ideas out there, starting a general store may not be for everyone. These stores aren’t the most profitable at the start, and they require a lot of work to set up.

On the other hand, general stores have huge potential.

After you start building relevant traffic, buyers are more prone to buy something from your vast collection of products.

With general dropshipping stores, if you focus on SEO for dropshipping stores and start ranking on Google after a while, you can significantly grow your earnings.

It certainly is a great strategy, however, you must remember that it will take time and resources.

If you have both, then there’s no reason not to focus your energy on this.

  • General Dropshipping Store Market Size: $159 billion
  • Average Order Value: Varies
  • Competitors to Research: InspireUplift

General Dropshipping Store Pros & Cons

✔️ You can sell products for many different target audiences

✔️ You needn’t spend as much time on research or finding winning products

✔️ There are significantly more potential buyers compared to niche stores

✔️ You can outsource a large portion of the work if you have the funds

✔️ You can take extreme advantage of upselling and cross-selling tactics

❌ You will spend a lot of time importing and setting up products

❌ It’s more difficult to market this type of dropshipping store

Conclusion

The five dropshipping business ideas we discussed here are just a small number of ways you can make money with dropshipping.

There are plenty of different ideas to try. Some are less popular, some more, others haven’t even been discovered yet.

Your job is to get creative, learn as much as you can, and just start.

About the Author

Profile picture of Martin
Martin Stoimenov
Co-founder at Dropshipping.com! Talks about Marketing, Business Structure, and Growth Hacking!