Inventory Source, A Decade Later – Still A Source For Honesty, Transparency, and Value To The Dropship Reseller Community
At InventorySource.com we take honor and integrity here very seriously and the openness and transparency with our members is one of our most important attributes as we help them launch their eCommerce businesses. This is not a new change at Inventory Source. Honesty and transparency have always been part of our founding principles.
Our company was born over 10 years ago, when our founder and current CEO was trying to navigate the challenges of eCommerce dropship selling on his own. After running the technology and development teams for a large DotCom eCommerce IT service provider, he wanted to start his own eCommerce shop after using wholesale dropship sources. Early on, he saw first hand how difficult it was to find trusted supplier sources and avoid scams and middleman programs when trying to find the right product source. Once he found a few trusted sources, he was next faced with the challenges of keeping a good clean format with a valuing adding SEO structure to the product data, resolving data errors, responding to changes in the feed access or server availabilities, customizing the feeds to have the right mix of products, updating pricing strategies and filters as selling needs changed from week to week, staying current with the daily changes in price and quantity/status updates, and more.
It was from the efforts in trying to solve these challenges that Inventory Source was born, and with it, a commitment to providing a data service which would be honest and transparent in its approach from the tools and features provided with the FREE account access (something unheard of at its time when the only way to access supplier details was from paying for directory or list access….many of which, even after paying for access, provided no value with no real verification over the “trusted sources” they provided.) and in the solutions offered through our custom tools and features and in the support and advice provided by our team to our members.
One of the key value points when working with Inventory Source, is also part of our free account access. We help you to research and find trusted wholesale dropship product sources, and we help you to apply and get approved directly by these wholesale distributors. Our team reviews and tests suppliers for integrations. We evaluate them over several points, but a few key needs are: 1- They must be large enough to offer a diverse catalog. 2- They need to have a high quality service record with their members and fulfillment services. 3- They must also provided accurate and high quality product data for their catalog.
That is why you will find some of the largest and most trusted wholesale supplier programs in North America and abroad, and we provide you with the details needed to apply and work with them directly for your orders and shipments out to your customers. This approach puts you in control of your business and provides you with bigger potential profit margins….which is the main goal of getting started with online selling. It is the right approach for you to use when you are getting started, but its also the right approach that allows you to grow over the long term as well.
Some sellers first think about just finding products to buy for their site….but this is how you fall into a middleman trap or scam. You need to find the true source and a real wholesale distributor program to work with when you are selling online. There are plenty of “services” big and small who say “Sell our products on your site” and promise quick profits with just an email and credit card on file…..but they don’t actually have any products. They have no warehouse. They do not ship the items to your customer. In reality, they are just a reseller like you….the difference is THEY are working with the real supplier while they pretend to be your source and have fake warehouse names or locations. So, you are selling FOR them, not FROM them, while they make the true profits while you do all of the work and take on the risk.
This means they are cutting into your potential profit and sales and they often have their own monthly fees, which means you are setup to fail, even before you get started. They make it sound easy, but that is because they are the online seller. You are just buying from them without being a true eCommerce business. It only takes a few minutes to get a Tax ID or Reseller Certificate so you can work with a real wholesale supplier. Once you have this, you can launch the right way.
The truth is, getting this account ID is the easiest step AND the most important step. It must also be your first step. If you don’t feel like you have the time or patience to get the business ID, you are not ready for running eCommerce business. It only takes a few minutes to get this Tax ID or Reseller Certificate, and for most states it’s free. You can learn more about it in this guide here- HOW TO GET A TAX ID FOR YOUR DROPSHIP BUSINESS
Note- Sellers outside of the US or those working with non-US based suppliers will not need a US based tax ID, and will have other options for getting launched with your supplier which will be detailed as part of your supplier/reseller application process with their program.
Once you have the ID, you can easily apply to and be approved by a wholesale supplier. When you order from a wholesale distributor, you are not charged tax on your purchase because it is not a retail transaction, so they just need to have this ID so they can show why the tax is not charged when you order items from them to be shipped to your customer.
Once you find a wholesale supplier for your business, we can easily help you load, customize, and update the products from your supplier data on any sales channel automatically, even when you need a customized data format. Our services have no high upfront setup fees or long term contracts. We make it easy to start or cancel if needed at any time. Our prices have not changed in over 10 years, but the value we provide while adding to the tools and features in your account every month has grown considerably, and we will continue to add to the tools and features and supplier options every month.
You can research the suppliers with your free account access without needing to submit any additional applications until you have found your preferred supplier. You can also access our free guides and tutorials to help you launch your business the right way. When you are ready you can add any number of data solutions which are around $1/day for a fully supported and robust product data solution keeping you in control of your products and in sync with your supplier and their changing catalog details automatically.
- If you have an existing website, we can help you sell from your current store front without ever needing to change or customize your code.
- If you need a website, we can provide one for free with the automation service.
- If you want to sell on marketplaces like eBay, Amazon, PriceGrabber, Google Shopping, Nextag or more, we can help with that process as well.
InventorySource.com and our team of dropship experts are here to help! Contact our team to learn more about the suppliers we are integrated with and the services and features we offer. Let us know more about your goals and needs, and we can help you find the right solution for your business no matter your size or budget.
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