Dropshipping is entertaining, and it appears to be a simple way to launch an online business in a matter of hours. But actually doing it can be a time-consuming chore, especially for newcomers.
For this reason, we have compiled this concise guide, which contains detailed information on a dropshipping store check list.
Everything on this list is essential, whether you’re starting a Shopify dropshipping store, a Woocommerce store, or any other kind of online store.
Okay, so let’s get going.
1. Getting Started
A website is the foundation of any conventional dropshipping business model. When discussing electronic commerce, this website is frequently referred to as an online store. The following items are necessary for opening a shop.
Domain Name
This is what customers and guests will see when they visit your site. Owning a domain name that is both memorable and relevant to your company is essential. Whether your domain ends in.com,.net,.org, etc. is up to you.
In any case, you should pick a name for your dropshipping business that reflects the general category to which your products belong. For a generic retail establishment, any name will do.
Create a memorable domain name that is also short enough to be easily remembered by your visitors and customers.
The domain names can be bought from any of the major domain name registrars like GoDaddy, Namecheap, Bluehost, etc.
Hosting
Web hosting is a service that allows your website to be viewed online and for your online files like product descriptions and images to remain accessible to customers.
WordPress (Woocommerce) stores require dedicated hosting in order to function properly. Bluehost, HostGator, Hostinger, etc., are just a few of the many hosting providers from which you can purchase hosting services.
Shopify takes care of hosting for you, so you can focus on building your store. The Shopify monthly fee includes these extras at no extra cost.
2. Setting Up Your Store
You can begin setting up your dropshipping store once you have a domain name and web hosting. As such, it is imperative that you have access to the following dropshipping store list.
Theme
Your website’s design will take form based on the theme you choose. It determines the overall style of your website, down to the tiniest detail. Whether you use Shopify or Woocommerce for your dropshipping business, you will need to install a theme on your website.
The good news is that a number of themes are freely available for use on both systems. There are also paid themes, which require either monetary investment or a one-time fee for use.
Some premium themes also include additional functionality. A theme may include many useful tools, such as a countdown timer and a widget that displays the total number of online shoppers.
You shouldn’t be too concerned with themes that include these capabilities, as you can get them by downloading apps.
Settings
Before releasing your website to the public, you will likely want to make a few adjustments. The icons, location, and even the order in which your products appear on your site are all examples of settings.
For instance, you’ll need to determine where on your site the “Checkout” button should appear to attract the most customers. You may also specify the frequency with which the “Checkout” button appears on the product page.
Logo
A professional logo is essential for a successful dropshipping store. DIY logos are possible with the help of tools like Canva. You can hire a freelancer from a site like Fiverr, Upwork, etc. if you don’t feel like designing the logo yourself.
A logo isn’t something that needs much thought. Choose a logo design that is both easy to remember and visually appealing, as this will serve to best represent your company.
As an illustration only, the arrow in the Amazon logo does a great job of explaining that the company sells everything from a to z.
Favicon
When you have several tabs open in your browser at once, you’ve probably noticed favicons. A favicon is the small icon that appears in the top left corner of a browser window, representing your site in the shortest possible visual form.
It is recommended that your favicon be derived from your company logo. To make a good impression, a favicon is essential for any website, whether it’s brand new or well established.
3. Must-have Pages
You can count on a few key pages to be present on any competent and credible website. In order to provide some context for your company, these pages are essential. You hope to come across as legitimate and competent by including these pages.
You need these pages in particular if you plan on making money through search engines like Google. You’ll find the following on these page:
Homepage
When someone visits your website, they will first land on your homepage.
If your domain name is xyz.com, for instance, any user who types just that into a web browser will be taken directly to your site’s index page.
Since it is the first thing visitors will see, your homepage’s design deserves careful attention.
Every one of your most important offerings can be displayed prominently on your home page, alongside links to their individual product pages and any current discounts or sales.
About Us Page
You should make a “About us” page for your dropshipping website so that people can find out more about you and your company. It’s for this reason that “Who We Are,” “Know About Us,” and similar titles have been given to this page.
Since 86% of consumers value authenticity, it’s important that this page comes across as genuine and professional as possible.
Warning: honesty is always appreciated, but so is maintaining a polished image. You can make a good impression on potential customers even if you’re the only employee of your dropshipping company by making your homepage read like it belongs to a legitimate business.
Contact Us Page
The purpose of this page is to facilitate communication between your business and its customers. The quality and promptness of a response from the website’s administration can win over skeptical visitors.
Customers can get a sense of whether or not their questions will be answered and whether or not they will be supported after the sale is complete.
A contact us page for Woocommerce dropshipping can be made with one of the many available free plugins for WordPress. The Shopify app store is where you will look for features like the “contact us” page. This page can be added manually if you’d rather not use an app.
Policy Pages
Your company’s policies are outlined on this page. Even if you don’t have firm policies in place, it’s always a good idea to at least address issues like “the origin of the products” and who you source from.
Privacy Policy
Visitors will be required to provide contact information (name, address, phone number, and email address) if they wish to purchase goods from your website.
You must assure your site’s visitors and buyers that their data is secure with you. In particular, when entering sensitive financial information like a credit card number, your customers must have peace of mind.
That’s why it’s so important to spell out in black and white that none of the data entered by your customers will ever be sold or given to anyone who has no business having it.
Return & Refund Policy
You, the dropshipper, would be in the dark regarding the product’s actual form and condition. For the simple reason that you wouldn’t legally be able to sell something that you don’t actually have.
One helpful hint is to model your return and refund policy after that of the product’s official supplier.
You shouldn’t offer a refund policy unless you have a ton of capital to back it up, especially if the actual supplier doesn’t have one.
Shipping Policy
The expected delivery time of the products your customers have ordered can be detailed on a page dedicated to shipping policies.
Your expected shipping date, the number of days after shipment, and whether or not you will provide tracking information for the products are also included.
Include a detailed shipping policy with estimated delivery times on this page.
As a best practice, you should check the original website for all products mentioned in your store to see the exact shipping information that will be used. Give a range of days where delivery of the goods is guaranteed at least, and no more than, the specified date.
Optional Pages
You can expand your website with additional pages. If you want to start a blog about your company, you can do so on a standalone page, or you can create sub-pages under the main page, as in the example below.
In addition to having a page specifically for user-generated content like a Q&A or frequently asked questions section, you can also have a page to showcase your best product reviews.
4. Important Apps
Apps are programs that enhance the functionality of a website. You can use these apps to streamline your dropshipping operations.
Shopify and Woocommerce both offer a wide variety of useful apps that can streamline your workflow and increase your efficiency. As an illustration, with just one click, you can import an item’s details from AliExpress into your dropshipping store.
In addition to giving your shop a polished appearance, many other apps can help you make more sales. There is no need to rely solely on your own efforts to launch your business, thanks to the Shopify tools available to you.
You can use the best review app for Shopify to display customer feedback on your products, for instance. Woocommerce dropshipping, an alternative to Shopify, has a plethora of plugins and themes available for WordPress.
5. Extensions
Browser extensions are a type of software that can be added to your browser to improve its functionality.
When it comes to dropshipping, Google Chrome is your best bet because of the plethora of helpful extensions you can add to the browser.
You can use extensions, like the one we discussed in the p of apps, to get product reviews on your Shopify store without actually selling any products. Browse one of the following product review import extensions.
Yes! You can get visual and written testimonials for the products you’re reselling in your online shop. The review app is installed on your Shopify store, and the desired customer reviews are fetched from the source website via an extension.
6. Payment Gateways
In order to open a dropshipping store, a secure payment processor is required. That’s because you’ll need to arrange for a means on your site for customers to pay for the products they order and for you to receive payment.
The good news is that you can choose from a wide variety of payment gateways to use with your web store. Payments through Shopify, PayPal, Google Pay, AliPay, Apple Pay, Stripe, etc., are among the most well-known options.
Expert Tip: Before committing to one of these payment processors, make sure it operates in your country. If there isn’t one available in your country, pick one so that you can quickly and easily receive payments into a bank account of your choice.
7. Analytics
Insightful data on your site’s traffic and user behavior can be gleaned with the help of a website analytics tool.
If you want to keep up with the latest events and user behavior on your site and accurately assess its success, you need to install a reliable analytics tool.
While Shopify’s dashboard does provide some information, you’ll still need a good analytics tool to get a full picture of your online store’s health.
The Google Analytics tool is a fantastic resource for keeping tabs on your website’s data.
Your site can be added to Google Analytics. One of the best features of this tool is that it can be used to compare information from different online shops and dropshipping providers.
8. Social Media Links
So that customers can follow you on social media, you should include links to your profiles in your shop.
As an added bonus, you should enable them to easily promote the products through their social media channels. Customer growth is guaranteed through such efforts.
The social media icons should be placed in the header of the homepage and each product page.
9. Banners & Badges
People in your target demographic would not have been exposed to your store previously. Customers will feel more at ease making purchases after seeing trust badges, so be sure to include them on your site.
Banners promoting similar services should also be displayed prominently on the home page of your website. These banners would be necessary to publicize discounts, sales, and other enticing offers, such as free shipping for purchases over a certain threshold.
10. Custom Email
To keep in touch with your customers until they receive their orders, a personalized email is crucial. It’s also helpful for promoting deals and promoting deals via email campaigns.
Stay away from the usual suspects like Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. Your clients will not think highly of you because of this. Any of the major email hosting providers, like GoDaddy, Namecheap, Hostinger, etc., can provide you with a personalized email address.
FAQs about Dropshipping Store Checklist
You can rest assured that all of your concerns regarding dropshipping store checklists have been addressed.
Is Dropshipping Store Checklist the Same for a Niche Store?
Yes. You’ll need everything on the dropshipping store checklist whether you’re opening a general or specialized store.
Why? Because your store’s credibility and professionalism depend on every last detail. Moreover, you wouldn’t want to forget any essential features that your shop should provide.
What Will Be the Dropshipping Store Checklist for One Product Store?
A one-product store has the same fundamental needs as any other kind of store, whether it sells a wide variety of items or specializes in a specific field.
If you want your store to leave a lasting impression on customers, there are a number of conditions that must be met. You won’t make any money any other way.
You can think of the items on the dropshipping store checklist as the bare minimum requirements for a professional online shop. Increased levels of competition in the dropshipping industry mean that you must consistently demonstrate exceptional effort to stand out and grow your clientele.
So, if you want to open a store selling just one item, you still need to follow all the steps outlined in this manual.
Can I Launch My Store Quickly Without Implementing a Dropshipping Store Checklist?
An essential step in starting a dropshipping business is creating a dropshipping store checklist. Before you start your business, you should do all of the things in this manual that are needed to get ready.
You can choose from these alternates if you don’t have time to carry out the tasks on this check list.
Get a freelancer to help you out with it.
Use AI software to quickly and easily recreate your shop’s atmosphere.
To wrap up, these frequently asked questions related to dropshipping store checklists.
