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Which Is Better? Dropshipping VS Drop Surfing!!! 

By Sumaiya Simran Last Updated -- Tuesday, 2024-09-24
Dropshipping VS Drop Surfing

Dropshipping or drop surfing has now become one of the trendiest business opportunities in the eCommerce sector. Thinking!!! How can I mention such kinda bold thing?? Here is some proven evidence; based on the researched data by Market Data forecast.com, I have found that by 2025 almost 29% of CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) is forecasted to rise. Moreover, it has also expanded the size of global dropshipping by US$4,195,631M by 2021. 

Dropshipping Market Size (2020 - 2025)

Product courtesy: Market forecast.com

As we can see above, how rapidly eCommerce and dropshipping are increasing and have a bright plus profitable future ahead. Hence, we can indeed say that; an increase in demand for dropshipping business dominantly influences the growth of the e-commerce industry.   

Therefore, if you want to invest your money and sustainable effort in this eCommerce or dropshipping business or drop surfing e-commerce, it would indeed be the best decision for you. 

Drop Surfing Is The Coined Term Of Dropshipping

Dropshipping or Drop surfing has always been a part of the eCommerce industry; just the difference is you don't know that you're doing it. As a result, even though most of us start the eCommerce business with full enthusiasm, we fail to sustain ourselves in the market for a longer-term period. In addition, they even know the "where did they go wrong?", so it's absolutely better and wise if you know all the tactics and gaps of this eCommerce industry. 

The reason behind calling drop surfing the coined term of dropshipping is that drop surfing is similar to the concept of dropshipping. Drop surfing and drop shipping are two different sides of one coin. Drop surfing is a tiny part of the dropshipping business. 

This blog will elaborate on the full concept of drop surfing, how it is different from dropshipping, and the advantage of choosing drop surfing instead of dropshipping business. 

#REMEMBER# 

In the e-commerce industry, it's easy to earn money if you know all the proper terms, strategies, and tactics. But if you only target your focus on the e-commerce industry as a money-making machine and don't put in the essential effort and dedication, you will ultimately face loss.  

Dropshipping Business

What Is Dropshipping Business?

Dropshipping business is another fantastic business model of the e-commerce sector. In dropshipping business, you create an eCommerce platform then fix a particular vendor or supplier who will supply the inventories for your eCommerce business. 

Then you post up the images, or the pictures of the products collected from suppliers and suppliers will also pre-set the price of the products. You can then put your satisfying price tag, which may raise the profit maximization—no hassle of maintaining a warehouse. Then, after you get an order, you let the supplier know about the sale, and that supplier will send that ordered product to the customer's doorstep. 

Dropshipping Business= Impulse Buying+Purchasing Power+ Trendy Product 

Drop Surfing Business Model

What Is Drop Surfing E-commerce?

Drop surfing e-commerce is a lot similar to dropshipping and a fantastic business model of the e-commerce sector. Drop surfing e-commerce is like researching multiple suppliers and fixing that “supplier” who offers the best lowest price. 

Espresso Coffee Maker

Photo Courtesy: eBay 

Let’s explain drop surfing with a fine example: Let’s assume you have sold an “espresso coffee machine” at the price of $800 and also got paid in advance. So now you have started searching for an “espresso coffee machine” on multiple e-commerce marketplaces that offer drop shipping such as Joom, Amazon, Alibaba, Aliexpress, Walmart, eBay, Banggood, or Light in the box, etc. And choose that “e-commerce marketplace” which offers you the best lowest price. 

And after comparing different eCommerce marketplace, consider you have found the “espresso coffee machine” on eBay at $107.67, the lowest price compared to other eCommerce marketplaces. Therefore, you can now easily make an approximate profit of $600-$700 profit

Drop surfing Ecommerce=Dropshipping + Aasorting Product From Multiple Supplier For Lower Price 

A Question May Come To Your Mind!!! 

Why I’m Only Suggesting You Choose The Best Lowest Price Again And Again???

Because; if you choose that supplier who offers the "lowest price," that means you can easily put your satisfied higher price, hence it would seem psychologically correct to every customer. Therefore, it is an easy way to maximize your profit margin. On that account; the more you choose the lowest priced eCommerce marketplace, the higher you can put your satisfied higher price. Consequently, the more you can maximize your profit margin from the dropshipping business.

One of the main drawbacks of drop surfing eCommerce is that you need to have vast market knowledge. Therefore, you always need to keep one fine eye on different eCommerce marketplace and observe or monitor different platforms to gain knowledge on the "latest" and "trendy product" and "price range." By researching different platforms, you need to understand "the price fluctuation," "the overnight trending product," "the highest-priced product," and "the lowest priced product," etc. 

The Vital Difference Between Dropshipping And Drop Surfing

Have you noticed it? I have boldly mentioned “multiple eCommerce marketplaces which offer drop shipping” in the definition part of drop surfingThat’s the vital difference between dropshipping business and drop surfing eCommerce.  

Dropshipping Business

Drop Surfing Business

Fixate with any sole supplier or eCommerce platform

Don't fixate on any particular supplier or eCommerce platform

Fixate with the price range that has been pre-decided by the sole supplier.

Search and compare the price to multiple eCommerce platforms

Low chance of profit maximization 

High chance of profit maximization 

Have no option of choosing any other eCommerce platform.

Choose the eCommerce platform that offers the cheapest price.

Advantage And Disadvantages Of Drop Surfing Ecommerce  

Before you start a drop surfing eCommerce business, it is more than important to consider all the pros and cons of starting your own drop surfing platform. 

Advantage And Disadvantages Of Drop Surfing Ecommerce

Here Is A List Of Advantage Of Drop Surfing With Little Description: 

  • Need Very Low Initial Investment 

This is the essential and important advantage an entrepreneur could ever have; low initial investment and high ROI. Just like any e-commerce marketplace, dropshipping or drop surfing eCommerce also doesn’t need any big-bulk investment. 

In dropshipping or drop surfing eCommerce, the ordered product is being directly sent from the supplier's warehouse to the customer's door. Therefore you absolutely need zero investment in maintaining a warehouse or inventories; you just need to bear the cost of developing your eCommerce platform. 

  • Easily Save Different Overhead Cost

As we all know, the e-commerce sector is a virtual marketplace. You can easily start anything with no or deficient investment management or utilities, or operational expense. You can efficiently run the whole business. 

Unlike eCommerce in drop surfing e-commerce, you don't even have to bear any warehouse maintenance expense, employee maintenance expense, packaging cost, delivery cost, etc.

  • Have Flexibility Of Any Geographical Location

In the drop surfing business, there is no restriction or barrier of geographical location because you don't need to maintain any physical warehouse; you just connect with the third-party supplier of any country of your choice. 

Therefore, with drop surfing, you are creating a more comprehensive online marketplace for everyone, where anyone can order anything from any desired country. 

  • Opportunity To Expand Up The Business Size 

As mentioned in the above point, drop surfing creates the opportunity of building a more comprehensive marketplace since neither you have any fixed supplier from any particular country nor your drop surfing platform is only one country-based. Therefore, you can easily set your aim globally as your target customer. 

  • Chance To Offer Vast Variety Of Product

In drop surfing eCommerce, there is no limitation or even restriction of not selling any product. That's the main profitable advantage of this business model. Moreover, since, in drop-surfing, the product is being directly delivered from supplier to customers' doors, therefore no trouble at the warehouse and apparently no restriction on offering a variety of products.

  • Offer Trendy Products  

As I mentioned above, in drop surfing neither you have to maintain any warehouse nor the cost of related to them. Therefore you can sell any kind of trendy products you want, since by selling trendy products you can easily guarantee a solid income in your pocket.  

Here Is A List Of Disadvantage Of Drop Surfing With Little Description: 

  • Low Share Of Profit Margin

In drop surfing, there are also some major lacking, and low per share is one of the essentials among others. Moreover in drop surfing, you have to research and compare multiple eCommerce platforms and choose the platform that offers the cheapest price. 

But one thing is certain that you have to share your less or equal of total profit margin with the supplier, otherwise, it would be hard for you to survive. On the other hand, it’s difficult to make much profit from any product that sells at such a competitive price.   

  • No control Over Inventories 

Yes, it’s a brutal truth that in the drop surfing eCommerce or dropshipping business, there is no control over any inventories. Since in drop surfing you don't have any warehouse, therefore you face a big gap on keeping any records of “which product is available and which product is not”. Therefore, a huge risk is there, that it might hamper your reputation in the eCommerce marketplace.  

  • Complicated Shipping Process

If I say honestly, yes drop surfing’s shipping process is a little bit more complicated than any dropshipping business. As you are maintaining different suppliers, obviously you aren’t going to keep track of which logistics your supplier is going to use to deliver the product. Therefore there is a huge chance that it might hamper your reputation. 

  • Reputation on the stake  

As I mentioned in the above point, dealing with multiple suppliers might hamper your reputation. Let me elaborate on that point, as you are dealing with multiple third-party suppliers, you don't directly know them nor know the shipping method they use. Therefore, if they by any chance make any kinds of mistakes; regarding shipping, products, cost, or did any kind of unethical behavior, obviously it’s going to hamper your “eCommerce store”.

How To Start Drop Surfing Platform?

In the above section, I have illustrated some of the essential points on drop surfing and also the pros and cons of drop surfing. I hope you have already gathered much knowledge about the important attributes of drop surfing. 

Now I'm going to share the guide, more like a direction to start a drop surfing eCommerce business. 

1. Determining Your Sustainability 

Before entering any kind of business, “determination” is the most important because the more you are determined, the more you can strengthen the base of sustainability in this industry. 

As I have mentioned above, you may need no or low investment in the drop surfing business. Therefore, we can guess that the market has already become saturated with high competition. Hence it would be hard to sustain in the market, as more and more people are opening this kind of e-commerce website and trying to make some quick money.

2. Buy And Build: Drop Surfing Platform

After the determination stage, now comes the second step, “buy and build the drop surfing platform.” Moreover, an eCommerce website is absolutely necessary to do dropshipping or drop surfing business, where you can post all the necessary pictures of the product, detailed information about the product, and price. 

This will be the place; where your customer will visit, choose the product and purchase them. This will be the platform; you are going to build your own brand, your recognition. 

##Suggesting A Tool: By which you can build your own drop surfing platform—my own personal choice Isshue-eCommerce shopping cart software

Isshue, basically an eCommerce shopping cart software by which you can easily maintain or manage your whole eCommerce website. Furthermore, you can also manage inventory, orders, products, invoicing, accounts management, etc. All-in-one solution that is what I like the most about:

Isshue- the best eCommerce shopping cart software in the market. 

Ecommerce Shopping Cart Software

3. Research And Compare Multiple Ecommerce Marketplace

The third part is the hardest part of all, “researching and staying up-to-date” with multiple eCommerce marketplaces. It’s one of the essential parts of drop surfing because searching and keeping up-to-date would help you to find the cheapest price offered in the market. 

Moreover, this process not only assists you to keep updating but also creates the opportunity to compare different eCommerce platforms, especially “which platform the particular product stock is most available” or the “which product in the hot-selling list” or the “cheapest and reliable platform.”  

4. Set The Price And Supplier 

Last but not least “setting the price and the supplier” is another crucial part of drop surfing. Since we already know that we have to search/compare multiple eCommerce platforms when drop surfing to select the best cheapest price. 

For instance, we found the cheapest price of an “espresso coffee maker” at $107 on eBay (compared to other eCommerce platforms). Therefore we can consider eBay as our “supplier,” With $107, we can add your satisfied price (profit maximized price). 

Moreover, some of the sources also suggest that you have to sharpen your hand with dropshipping before you start drop surfing. Because by doing dropshipping business before, you can easily understand the tact ticks of the eCommerce marketplace. Therefore will help a lot in doing drop surfing eCommerce business.

“Thinking Drop Surfing E-commerce Business Is Easier And More Profitable Than Dropshipping Business”.

No, You Are Wrong!!!  Let’s Explain; Why And How You Are Wrong!!!!

In the section below, I'm going to help you decide which you should choose “dropshipping or drop surfing”.

Confused what should you choose

Confused What Should You Choose!!

Drop Surfing Or Dropshipping?

If I have to choose one, I will definitely choose drop surfing” and “why not???”. It’s a much better business model than dropshipping. Moreover, with drop surfing, you can guarantee your profit in the maximized sector.  

Besides, why will you stuck with one supplier when you have the chance to deal with multiple suppliers and find the best cheapest price. The more you choose that supplier who offers the “cheapest price,” the more you are able to maximize your profit. On the other hand, in dropshipping business, you don’t even get the chance to fix the price, as the supplier presets it, hence has no opportunity to put your satisfied price. 

!!CAUTION!! 

Almost 90% Of Drop Surfing Retailer Fail In The Initial Stage  

Yes, it's true that 90% of drop surfing retail fails in the initial stage because people often forget "things that look easy aren't always easy." Like this phrase, drop surfing retailers usually forget that doing business isn't easy. Even though he/she could start drop surfing business that easily (low investment) but doing the business, keeping updated about the latest trends in the market, and finding the cheapest supplier is not always easy. It badly requires enormous hard work, dedication and time, etc. 

Moreover, there are also many drawbacks that badly affect a drop surfer's business. Such as; customers getting poor after-sale service from the vendor's platform, low-quality products, average user experience. Etc. The most frustrating part of "drop stuffing eCommerce business" is that all those problems mentioned above are not in your hand at all. Therefore you only have to face and tolerate all backslashes and bad comments from customers. 

Final Thoughts 

As a beginner in this drop surfing business, you need to understand the dropshipping business first. As in when you start your journey as a drop shipper, you can easily catch up with the whole business model of drop surfing. 

Don’t stay in the misconception; that drop surfing is only a “money-making scheme.” It takes the same amount of complex work and patience; it’s a kind of a full-time job. Always put your 100% best effort into the business; only then you can able to shine.

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