Ecommerce Business Revenue Models in Nigeria.

Types Of Ecommerce Business Revenue Models

The next most important thing to think about is how you want to handle inventory management and sourcing products. Some people like the idea of making their own products and others hate the idea of their garage full of boxes.

Drop Shipping

The simplest form of ecommerce, drop shipping lets you set up a storefront and take the customers’ money. The rest is up to your supplier. This frees you from managing inventory, warehousing stock, or dealing with packaging, but there’s a major caveat.

If your sellers are slow, product quality is lower than expected, or there are problems with the order, it’s on your head (and in your reviews). Wacky Hippo is an example of an ecommerce site using drop shipping. I wouldnt base my business on dropshipping – and I totally agree with this article.

If you are dead set on dropshipping – print on demand is the way to go.

Dropshipping Ecommerce Software

Many dropshippers use Shopify and Oberlo. Its quick and inexpensive to set up. A popular model is to set up a quick store and drive traffic with Facebook Ads. Margins are thin and if you can squeeze out some profit here, more power to you. I’m holding off on drop shipping for now.

Wholesaling And Warehousing

Wholesaling and warehousing ecommerce businesses require a lot of investment at the start – you need to manage inventory and stock, keep track of customer orders and shipping information, and invest in the warehouse space itself.

DollarDays is an online wholesaler with a massive product catalog that includes more than 260,000 products. They employ a key strategy for retailers in this space – by offering case prices AND piece prices, they can sell to the general public and to retailers. This gives them a higher profit margin than a strictly wholesale model.

Ecommerce Solutions For Wholesalers

Wholesale businesses are all about volume. You’ll need to push products out to Ebay, Amazon, Google, etc. BigCommerce includes all this in their Basic plan for $29 month. No tinkering needed. If you have dev skills, you can use X-Cart.

Private Labeling And Manufacturing

If you’ve got an idea for the perfect product, but don’t have the cash or desire to build your own factory, this might be the right ecommerce business model for you. Companies that manufacture products offsite for sale send the plans or prototypes to a contracted manufacturer who produces the product to meet customer specifications and can either ship directly to the consumer, to a third party such as Amazon, or to the company selling the final product.

On-demand manufacturing allows you to quickly change suppliers if you encounter problems with product quality. The startup costs are minimal, and if you’re interested in potentially opening your own production facilities later, this is a good way to test a new product or concept.

If you have a product idea and need to find a manufacturer, Try Sourcify.

White Labeling

White labeling is similar. You choose a product that is already successfully sold by another company, but offers white label options, design your package and label, and sell the product. This is common in the beauty and wellness industries, but more difficult to encounter in other niches.

One problem with white labeling is demand. You’re stuck with whatever you order, and most of these companies set a minimum production quantity. If you can’t sell it, you’ll have to live with it. Consider this option when you’re willing to work full time on your business and know your product is in demand.

Ecommerce Solutions For Brands

If you have your own line of branded products and need to get traction, BigCommerce is a good option to start. Their pricing model can get expensive when you start to make significant sales ($150K+ per year).

Subscription Ecommerce

One of the most popular and successful pure ecommerce brands is the Dollar Shave Club. Other examples of subscription services include Stitch Fix, Blue Apron, and Nature Box. On the local level, community-supported agriculture boxes are popular.

These ecommerce companies rely on a subscription model that delivers customers a box of products at regular, scheduled intervals. Subscription companies have relatively reliable income streams and can easily incentivize customers to purchase additional subscriptions or encourage their contacts to subscribe.

Picking the right products and niches can be difficult. Successful subscription boxes tend to fall into a small handful of product categories: health and grooming, beauty, fashion, and food.  Outside of these areas, few subscription companies thrive.