Blind dropshipping, also referred to as blind dropshipping, is a fantastic tool for businesses in the supply industry. It allows them to keep their manufacturers and suppliers secret while providing the best products that money can buy.
This article will take a closer look at every aspect of blind shipping, including the following:
- What the term ‘blind drop ship’ means
- The competitive advantage blind shipping gives
- Pros and cons of the blind drop shipping method
- And more!
Let’s get into it.
What Is Dropshipping?
The dropshipping business model works on the idea of making products more available to consumers by buying them at a wholesale price, then reselling them at a slight markup. The customer order ships from the wholesaler directly, as per your arrangement.
Since you know which products the customers want and where to get said products, you can take advantage of the wholesale price charged by the supplier to make a profit.
What Is Blind Dropshipping or Blind Drop Shipping?
Blind dropshipping is when you arrange with your dropshipping suppliers to use a blind packing slip. Essentially, that means the manufacturer or wholesale supplier’s information isn’t on the packages.
What many retail businesses experience with standard drop shipping is that they send one batch of products, and then customers order future orders directly from the supplier. By withholding the supplier’s information, businesses can stop losing customers to other members of their supply chain.
There’s another reason to blind ship products. Specifically, some customers don’t believe that dropshipping is legal (even though it is) or may feel cheated if they see you paid less for the product than they did.
What Is a Double-Blind Shipment?
In standard blind drop shipping, the customer doesn’t receive the wholesale supplier information. However, the supplier still receives the client’s information to arrange for shipping.
With double-blind shipping, neither the client nor the supplier receives the other party’s information. Instead, a dropshipping business takes care of all the shipping needs while providing no information.
In this kind of situation, it’s best to add your business details to the packing slips. That way, you can interact with the customer directly from the moment the order is placed to after order fulfillment.
How Does Blind Dropshipping Work?
When you’re using a wholesale supplier to drop ship orders for your e-commerce businesses, they can ship blind if you request it. However, not all manufacturers and suppliers are willing to do so.
If you have your heart set on making blind shipping work for your business, it’s important to talk to your supplier and find out if they’d mind blind shipping orders for your online store.
If they’re willing to practice blind shipping, you’ll likely need to create bills of lading branded with your company’s information. The drop shipping company may ask you to either:
- Print your own shipping labels and send them in for the drop shipper to use, or
- Send them branded shipping labels in jpg or png format that they can print on demand
When you receive customer orders, you simply forward them to the supplier, and they send the orders out using your labels.
It’s essential to note that some drop shipping companies may not be willing to use your personalized labels. In these cases, simply have them send out the orders with standard shipping labels showing your contact details and not theirs.
How to Arrange Blind Shipping with a Drop Shipping Company
Arranging blind shipping is a fairly simple process once you find a supplier that’s willing to blind drop ship your orders. Here’s a step-by-step guide to arranging blind dropshipping:
- Find a wholesaler or supplier that’s willing to take on this type of shipping process.
- Agree on terms of service that will please both you and the supplier. For instance:
- Some suppliers may be willing to receive your marketing materials and ensure that they’re included in the shipment; others won’t.
- It’s essential to confirm elements like shipping times to ensure the best possible customer experience.
- Send the shipping center any marketing material, coupon codes (if they’re placing coupon codes inside your orders), and other items they may require.
- Start fulfilling orders! It’s that simple.
Blind Dropshipping: Is It Legal?
Blind shipping is 100% legal. You’re not practicing any sort of unsavory business unless you’re claiming that the items people buy from you are produced on-site. As long as you’re honest about running a company that uses drop shipping, your business is 100% transparent.
How Does Pricing for Blind Dropshipping Work?
The pricing for blind shipping should be similar to the pricing module your supplier applies to standard orders. While we can’t give a conclusive answer to this question, most companies shouldn’t charge you extra for blind dropshipping orders.
However, they may charge you to add additional marketing materials to the orders or for using your branded labels.
Blind Dropshipping Pros and Cons
Every available tool has advantages and disadvantages, and blind dropshipping is certainly no different. Let’s take a closer look at what blind shipping has to offer.
Pros
- It gives you more control over the supply chain, ensuring that customers don’t bypass your business.
- It allows you to practice improved branding since many drop shipping companies allow you to use your own branded shipping labels.
- You can still use the same hands-off approach you do for normal drop ship orders as long as you ensure the supplier has everything it needs.
- This approach helps you to build trust with your customers since they only need to deal with one party.
- It offers advantages to both dropshipping suppliers and small businesses – small businesses get to work with established manufacturers and drop shippers get to ship to a larger audience.
Cons
- Not all dropshipping suppliers are willing to practice blind shipping.
- This kind of shipping process can mean that you have to play the middleman for returns.
- Double-blind dropshipping requires the supplier to send the order to you first, which can decrease your profit margins.
Blind Dropshipping: Returns and Refunds
Since blind dropshipping works in such a way that the client doesn’t have access to a return address for the manufacturer directly, how do returns work?
Except in rare cases, the drop shipping label typically contains your business’ information, allowing the client to return the product directly to you.
Unfortunately, if you use a blind packing slip, you may have to play the middleman on any returns, but it’s worth it to prevent customers from purchasing directly from the supplier.
You can also arrange with your dropshipping suppliers to put their addresses on the bill of lading without adding additional information. However, if you go this route, the customer can still look up the address to see which supplier it belongs to.
Closing Thoughts
If you have a business that focuses on dropshipping orders, you may want to consider blind shipping to protect your business. Not only does it help you retain customers, but it can help you establish your brand more effectively.
While you’re still relying on your dropshipping suppliers to ship to the customers directly, they don’t include any of their information on the bill of lading. The only thing to keep in mind is that you need to choose a drop shipper that’s willing to offer blind dropshipping.
In the end, we’d say that using a blind shipment is the perfect way to distribute e-commerce orders for your business. While there are certain additional aspects to consider, your e-commerce business will benefit in the long run.
I am Komo, a marketing specialist with a strong focus on dropshipping. Over the past two years, I have gained valuable experience and expertise in the dropshipping industry. I have successfully implemented various marketing strategies to drive traffic and optimize conversions for dropshipping businesses. My passion for the industry has allowed me to stay updated with the latest trends and best practices, ensuring effective results for the companies I work with.
