Dropshipping from eBay to Shopify: The Ultimate Guide

Dropshipping from eBay to Shopify offers a unique opportunity for entrepreneurs to expand their online business with minimal upfront investment. In this article, we will show you how to go through the process of dropshipping via eBay step by step, to seamlessly integrate it to your Shopify store.

From setting up your eBay seller account to selecting the best products to sell, to handling your orders, we will be covering every essential that you need to launch and continue a money-making dropshipping business.

Overview of eBay dropshipping

eBay was the first online trading platform to be created, and even though there are many others, it is one of the most used all over the world. Apart from the flash sales options, it also is a very helpful channel for dropshipping.

eBay dropshipping represents an eBay-based fulfillment strategy by merchants on eBay who only need to market goods without having to stock them. This third-party supplier transfers the goods bought by the buyer directly to the buyer by guiding the supplier to do so. To explain simply, the operation is still dropshipping in the context.

Shoe-string start-ups are currently befriending dropshipping through its low barriers of entry. You do not have to commit your personal space to stocking inventory or having physical contact with the merchandise you are selling. Such a dropshipping supplier obtains your order data and accepts the responsibility to choose, package, and deliver the item to your eBay customer.

You may find practically anything on eBay’s online marketplace. Think about products in the following common categories when choosing a product to dropship: Video games, headphones, men’s scents, throwaway face masks and cellphones.

Related topic: Shopify Dropshipping for Beginners: 15 Important Steps to Start

Things to know before dropshipping on eBay

Orders from a wholesale supplier must be fulfilled directly by you, not by another retailer

Dropshippers can source goods only from off-eBay wholesalers or suppliers with verified trade accounts on the marketplace—not by other retailers. You may be suspended from the site for disregarding these rules.

You have to adhere to delivery and shipping requirements

Among all the things you need to take into consideration as a dropshipper via eBay, you are still responsible for following strictly the latest eBay policies and guidelines.

This comprises:

• ensuring the consumer is completely satisfied with their purchase,
• delivering the things to them in a timely and safe way (within 30 days).

eBay dropshipping charges

Additionally, while dropshipping through the marketplace, you’ll have to pay eBay fees, which include:

• Eliminate fees: Receive 200 complimentary listings each month. It’s 35¢ per listing after that.
• Final value fees: eBay charges 30¢ for every order in addition to 12.9% of the final price up to $7,500 if an item is sold. (This may change based on the type of goods.)
• Store fees: $250 free listings for $4.95 a month. Plans begin at $21.95 per month for drop shippers that offer more than 1,000 listings each month.

How to Dropshipping from eBay to Shopify

Step 1: Register an eBay Seller Account

To get started with eBay dropshipping and start earning money, first create an eBay seller account. This step should be skipped if you already have one.

Go to eBay.com, then select Register. Visit the eBay Registration page instead.

You can register as a company seller or as an individual here; select the one that best suits your requirements.

• A personal account is suitable if you are selling items on eBay as a pastime rather than for profit. Your account is ready once you enter your name and email address. You may also register by logging into an existing Apple, Facebook, or Google account.
• Choose a business account if your goal is to create a reputable, long-lasting brand name that sells a lot of products at high volume sales. After entering your location, email address, and business name, click “Create account.”

Important advice: Avoid picking an arbitrary username for your company. The username should be something short and easy to remember, have an internal products connection and be your business symbol at a glance.

Then, write down the information concerning the default of your dropshipping company including commonplace firm information, your name and bank account details, as well as the identity of the main account holders and position in the dropshipping company.

Choose one of the following eBay shop options to subscribe to: Starter, Basic, Premium, Anchor, or Enterprise. When you make sales, link your checking account to be paid.

Give further information like the name of the shop, the shipping guidelines, the payment options, etc.

Step 2: Find profitable products to sell

It’s time to look into and find lucrative products to offer on your eBay store if you don’t already have an inventory strategy in place. Look through eBay’s bestsellers list to see whether dropshipping websites like Alibaba or AliExpress can help you find comparable products for less than the suggested retail price.

You may choose the ideal items for your eBay dropshipping business by conducting in-depth product research to understand the market demand, trends, competition, and profit margins for each product category.

The following characteristics should be present in the best items to dropship on eBay:

• Popular and in great demand
• Simple to use and transport
• Good profit margins
• Less competition
• Low return rate 
• High quality
• Products that individuals buy regularly.

Step 3: Locate a trustworthy dropshipping provider

Look for a provider that can supply you with the item at a price lower than retail once you’ve located a product on eBay to dropship. Even if there are many authorized and genuine dropshipping suppliers for eBay, you still need to filter through them and choose the best one that can guarantee prompt and effective delivery of high-quality products while giving you a fair bargain on bulk purchases.

Think about the following elements when you narrow down your selection of the top dropshipping providers for your company:

• Local warehouses in the market you’re targeting,
• Numerous excellent items are available at reasonable costs,
• Prompt and trustworthy delivery,
• Explicit shipping, return, and payment guidelines,
• Good feedback and prompt customer support.

Websites like DSers, Spocket, and Doba facilitate the connection between eBay store owners and wholesalers through dropshipping.

Choosing a supplier among many is certainly very central when you drop ship items there. Once the shopper makes a purchase, brands must ensure that products reach buyers within 30 days with the help of the marketplace.

As vendors are managed through multiple parties, efforts to save time and money in the long run can be realized, but there is more work to be done. Before making a selection, get in touch with four to five suppliers in advance and ask to acquire product samples so you can evaluate the quality and delivery schedule of each.

Examine each dropshipping supplier’s seller rating, past customer feedback, delivery schedules, and costs before choosing one. 

Step 4:  Price your product

Nothing makes it more lucrative than dropshipping to be in business. However, as profitable as the business is, most of its profitability lies in its pricing, therefore if your product prices are not correctly set then you are only making money.

An approach to pricing implementing both maintaining reasonable profits and ensuring competitiveness is the right way for your company. The price of your product should be high enough to generate substantial profits while yet giving you a competitive edge over rivals.

When choosing the pricing points for your items, take into account the following factors:

• Product expenses (the price you pay suppliers)
• Business expenses (taxes, marketing expenses, shipping fees, eBay fees, etc.)
• Pricing strategy of competitors (the cost at which your rivals are offering similar goods)
• The anticipated profit margin

Pricing is not about following a set profit formula; rather, it is about testing and fine-tuning. Only by repeatedly experimenting with various pricing methods and diligently monitoring and collecting data during the process can you determine the best course of action for your company.

Step 5: List your products on eBay

Make an eBay listing for every product you’re dropshipping.

Keep a close eye on the following details, especially the terms that your ideal client searches for. It will affect the likelihood that the algorithm will display your product listing to prospective customers:

• A product title that is engaging, succinct, and contains keywords
• A well-written, thorough product description that focuses on its key aspects
• Superior product pictures and videos
• Reviews and ratings from customers
• Product categories and tags that are important
• Information about shipping and prices is given clearly.
• Policies for returns and refunds

Step 6: Send vendors the details of your orders

All eBay users may now view your items. It is only a question of time until you get the first order if you take the proper steps to prepare and employ effective marketing techniques.

After a sale, get in touch with your supplier and provide them with the order information. They will handle the item’s picking, packing, and shipping to your clients.

When your sales are likely to pile up, the daunting process of individual contact and update may prove too much to handle. Use dropshipping applications such as DSers or AutoDS. These software programs seamlessly carry out the following tasks: sending orders to your supplier, giving up-to-date information on the status of your order delivery process, and providing your customers with the tracking numbers of their shipments.

The benefits and drawbacks of dropshipping from eBay to Shopify

Benefits

Drawbacks

Not only may items be sent quickly inside the US. eBay US, UK, DE, FR, and IT are supported by AutoDS, so users selling from those marketplaces to their target audience may take advantage of quick domestic delivery times. eBay has very strict standards for its merchants. Excellent customer service and customer assistance are therefore offered since seller metrics are monitored. eBay is really big. Any area or specialty you’re wanting to sell in, you can almost certainly find what you’re searching for on eBay because you can find almost everything there. The most imitated and duplicated technique in the industry for assisting customers in determining which vendors to believe and which merchants to steer clear of is eBay’s feedback system.

eBay vendors reserve the right to abruptly discontinue products or raise prices. This may result in a product being sold on Shopify that is either too cheaply priced or not accessible on eBay. Unhappy consumers may result from eBay sellers that take longer to deliver or utilize slower shipping alternatives. Customers may receive things that are of poorer quality or do not match the description since you never handle the product personally. Since the merchandise must be returned to the eBay seller and not to you, handling returns can be challenging. If you just use eBay, you will be subject to any modifications they make to their policies, prices, or platform.

Advice for successful dropshipping on eBay

Dropshipping on eBay can be highly profitable with the right strategy. Here are essential tips for success:

• Research the Market: Identify low-competition niches and products with high demand.
• Select Reliable Suppliers: Pick suppliers who enjoy positive popularity for quality products and delivery on time. For instance, exploring AliExpress as a venue to source from may be a good idea.
• Optimize Product Listings: Show clear, informative images and add text descriptions with details.
• Ensure Customer Service Excellence: Promptly reply to requests and swiftly deal with issues to provide the best customer service possible.
• Manage Inventory Smartly: Maintain inventory level and timely update listings to avoid selling the already sold items or out-of-stock products.
• Use eBay’s Tools: Make use of eBay’s promoting tools as well as analytics to finesse the listings and sales strategy.
• Stay Compliant with eBay Policies: Get and comply with eBay’s dropshipping policies in a way that the suspension or termination of your sales account is avoided.
• Regularly Review Performance: Keep inquiring about sales data and customer feedback to revise your strategy and products perpetually towards perfection.

Shopify eBay integration apps

Codisto

Codisto is a powerful Shopify app that allows you to seamlessly integrate with eBay (and Amazon). It provides real-time synchronization of inventory, pricing, and product details between Shopify and eBay. 

Features include:

• Native eBay listing creation from Shopify.
• Real-time sync of inventory and orders.
• Global expansion support with multi-account, multi-site, multi-currency, and multi-language capabilities.
• Rule-based control over listings for pricing, shipping, and more.

CedCommerce

With the help of CedCommerce, owners of Shopify stores can effectively handle their inventory and sales for both their online store and the eBay marketplace. 

Features include:

• Utilize the free plan to add up to 50 goods each month.
• To automate workflow, make use of the bulk product upload capability.
• Real-time inventory syncing between Shopify and eBay
• To add listings quickly, create and use templates.
• Link many eBay accounts to the application.

eBay LINK

eBay LINK is created to give ease of selling on eBay and connectivity to Shopify stores which enable the two platforms to operate in harmony. It is about replacing most of the activities done by online businesses.

Features include:

• Automatic product listing directly from your Shopify store to eBay.
• Stock level synchronization to prevent overselling.
• Order import from eBay into Shopify for centralized management.
• Shipping and tracking updates are sent automatically to eBay to keep customers informed.

Wrap-up

Successfully dropshipping from eBay to Shopify can significantly expand your e-commerce operations, giving you access to a broader market and the flexibility of managing products without inventory. By carefully following the steps outlined—from setting up an eBay seller account and finding profitable products, to integrating with Shopify through reliable apps like Codisto, CedCommerce, and eBay LINK—you can streamline your process for maximum efficiency. 

Remember, the key to success lies in meticulous management of listings, inventory, and customer relations. Embrace these strategies to harness the full potential of drop shipping across both platforms and drive your business growth.