Stand Out and Profit With Branded Dropshipping
Ready to build a loyal following and secure steady profits? Branded dropshipping is the answer, whether you’re a seasoned online entrepreneur or just starting your eCommerce journey.
Stand out from the competition with unique products and a strong brand identity. Keep reading to explore the benefits of selling branded products, best practices to get you started, and how Printify can be your partner in building your branded dropshipping store.
Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you make a purchase through those links. This comes at no additional cost to you.
Key Takeaways
- Branded dropshipping allows you to sell products with your own brand identity without holding inventory. This approach differentiates your store and builds customer loyalty.
- Selecting reliable suppliers and high-quality products is crucial. Track supplier reviews, maintain open communication, and always sample your products before selling.
- Print on Demand allows you to create unique products that align with your brand, providing more customization options compared to traditional dropshipping.
- Printify offers multiple branding options for custom product orders, such as inner and outer neck labels, branding inserts, and packaging labels.
- Grow your online presence, use various marketing channels to establish your brand identity, and attract buyers with great customer service and transparent values.
Table of Contents
- What Is Branded Dropshipping?
- Why Dropship Branded Products?
- Essential Steps for Successful Branded Dropshipping
- Branded Dropshipping Options for Your Online Store With Printify
- Dropshipping Branded Products With Print on Demand
- How to Start a Branded Dropshipping Store With Printify
- Branded Dropshipping FAQs
What Is Branded Dropshipping?
Branded dropshipping is an online business model that doesn’t require holding inventory. Instead, you choose the products from a supplier, and they ship them directly to the customer.
Branding involves adding a unique brand identity to your eCommerce presence, like a unique website, a brand content strategy, and custom designs to enhance your store’s appeal.
Why Dropship Branded Products?
As global eCommerce sales keep growing, more and more people are turning to dropshipping, and with good reason. The global dropshipping market value accounted for $287.36 billion in 2023, and it’s expected to reach a whopping $1,253.79 billion by 2030.
Today’s shoppers are likelier to choose labels with a strong brand identity, even if it means paying a bit more. Generic dropshipping stores, lacking uniqueness, often struggle to compete.
Branding encourages purchase decisions, but a brand identity emphasizing shared values and a good customer experience leads to higher loyalty and conversions.
Since dropshipping mainly revolves around wholesale product re-selling, finding ways how to incorporate branding into a dropshipping business model is a surefire way to increase profits.
Essential Steps for Successful Branded Dropshipping
So, you’re thinking about creating a brand for a dropshipping store but aren’t sure where to start to make branded dropshipping profitable? While there are no guarantees in eCommerce, we’ve prepared a set of best practices to follow for a successful branded dropshipping business.
Find Your Niche and Stick To It
A strong niche is one of the key factors that can make or break an online business.
Let’s be real – it’s impossible to please everyone. You’ll always have a better chance of success by solidifying a strong brand reputation around a specific target audience.
Build your niche around a hobby, social cause, profession, art genre, or anything else that has a following. Most importantly – be knowledgeable about what you represent.
Remember to do proper research to make sure that there’s a demand for what you’re offering. There are plenty of underserved niche markets to target.
Use keyword research tools like Google Trends and Semrush to see what’s trending, and go on online marketplaces like Etsy to see what people are looking for.
Tip
Learn more in our in-depth article about print-on-demand niches.
Pick a Great Brand Name
It’s probably easier said than done, but picking the right name is crucial for your brand image and recognition – it’s one of the first things people associate with a business.
Try to create a name that’s simple, distinctive, memorable, timeless, and relevant to your target market. Even better if it provides more significance to your brand story.
Tip
Learn more about naming your eCommerce business in our five-step guide to coming up with a business name.
Select High-Quality Products
Choosing high-quality products is essential to keep your branded dropshipping business on the radar. Start by finding reliable dropshipping suppliers who offer excellent products that align with your brand values. A good supplier should provide:
- Consistent product quality
- Timely shipping and delivery
- Positive reviews and high ratings
- Responsive communication
- Clear return and refund policies
- Competitive product pricing
- Sustainable and ethical practices
Start your branded dropshipping journey by exploring established dropshipping directories or marketplaces, like AliExpress, Oberlo, and others to find reputable brands with dropshipping programs. Additionally, consider using Printify to create unique, custom-branded products to complement your branded dropshipping offerings.
Identify popular items and gaps in the market by further researching your niche, market trends, and social media insights. Pay attention to customer reviews and feedback.
Also, order samples to personally verify product quality. By investing time in selecting a reliable supplier, you’ll build a foundation and longevity for your brand.
Show Your Brand Identity on Your Online Store
Brand colors and fonts, a thorough About Us page, and product images shot in the same style – these branding elements can help build awareness and attract repeat customers.
Think of your branded store as a business card. In addition to showcasing your brand’s unique identity, it should be free of stylistic and grammatical errors or other loose ends.
One of the most important initial choices is picking the right sales channel:
- eCommerce platforms and website builders, like Shopify, WooCommerce, and Wix, offer extensive customization options – custom domain names, personalized email addresses, and complete control over design and layout.
- Online marketplaces like Amazon or Etsy can offer greater brand exposure but might limit your branding opportunities due to their standardized layout and stricter guidelines, which allow only banners, listings, and product descriptions.
Before proceeding, it’s important to consider the differences in hosting and transaction fees between platforms and marketplaces. Decide which channels better serve your needs – create attractive product pages and branding while managing costs efficiently.
Make It Happen Today!
Reward Customer Loyalty
A key practice for enhancing brand recognition and encouraging repeat purchases is showing gratitude to loyal customers. People want to feel valued through exceptional customer service.
Rewards and services can take many different forms:
- Offer special deals and discounts to repeat customers, provide free shipping or additional perks for larger purchases, and give discounts for referrals.
- Prioritize great customer service by responding promptly to customer inquiries, addressing issues efficiently, and personalizing interactions.
Whatever approach you take, building strong relationships with customers is crucial for your branded dropshipping store’s success. Treating customers well and maintaining transparency in product offers and your brand promise will drive long-term growth.
Use Your Brand Voice
Decide on a brand voice that suits your custom products and resonates with your target audience. Should your messaging be humorous, or is a more serious tone better?
Start by observing what other brands and eCommerce stores are doing. Experiment with different styles to see what works best and feels most authentic for your business.
With your brand values and style in place, let them shine through consistently across your online store and social media. This helps customers recognize your brand just from the tone of your messages.
Tip
Learn more about building a strong and unique brand identity for your business.
Promote Your Store
Effective marketing is the final link that connects the store and customer. Use various marketing channels, such as social media platforms, email marketing, and content marketing, and drive traffic to your store with search engine optimization (SEO).
- Social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest can help you engage with potential customers through visually appealing posts and content.
- Email marketing allows you to maintain direct communication with your audience, offering personalized promotions and consistent product updates.
- Content marketing, including blogging and video creation, can establish your brand as an authority in your niche and maintain a fresh stream of organic traffic.
- Search engine optimization guarantees that your website is primed for any online user and that your store ranks higher in search results, increasing visibility.
Create a branded marketing strategy by consistently using your brand voice, visual identity, and business values across all channels. Track your marketing efforts and adjust your strategies based on performance metrics to maximize your effectiveness.
Now, let’s see how to make your product listings shine with Printify’s branding options.
Branded Dropshipping Options for Your Online Store With Printify
Printify is a print-on-demand dropshipping service provider with more than 900 unique and customizable products. Apply original designs and visuals to all items from the product Catalog and explore several branding options for apparel products. Let’s check them out:
Branding Inserts
These are custom-designed inserts added to the product packaging. They can feature your logo and brand message and are perfect for providing additional details about your brand, special offers, a thank you note, or care instructions for the product.
Gift Message Inserts
Gift message inserts, printed and included in the order, offer a more personalized touch for customers purchasing gifts. This option is especially useful during holiday sales seasons, differentiating your store by adding value to the shopping experience.
Note: Personalized gift messages are currently only available for Etsy store integrations.
Inner and Outer Neck Labels
Adding product labels to your apparel is a subtle yet effective way to build brand awareness. Inner neck labels allow you to include your brand logo and name without interfering with the product’s main design, discreetly enhancing your brand’s presence.
For a more visible branding option, outer neck labels on the upper back side of the garment serve as free advertising, making your brand label noticeable while maintaining a tasteful appearance. Learn how to create a custom neck label through our guide.
Main Print Areas
Our branded dropshipping offers options for assets front and center in the product designs. Use the main print areas – front and back – to sell products with your brand visuals. Start by developing or finding unique and free logos that look great in print.
Many branded dropshipping stores and brand owners incorporate their own brand logos and names in designs. In fact, for many big brands such as Nike, Adidas, Puma, The North Face, Timberland, etc., that is often the main part of the entire design.
Sleeve Printing
Sleeve printing offers a unique way to showcase a sponsored brand feel. We print brand assets on the sleeves of t-shirts, hoodies, and sweatshirts. Make sure to preview all your product templates for quality control to see that the final design is level and center.
Custom Packaging Label
Printify lets you add your brand labels – a store name and a custom return address – to various branded packaging. While full packaging isn’t yet available, these label options credit your own brand instead of supplier information to give your store more credibility.
To add your store’s address to the packaging label, go to your store settings and follow our instructions to set up a custom return address for all your product orders.
Use the above-mentioned branding options to make sure your brand stands out. Our featured options are made to support branded dropshippers on their way to success.
Dropshipping Branded Products With Print on Demand
Branded dropshipping pairs perfectly with Print on Demand (POD), allowing you to customize white-label products with your own designs and incorporate additional branding elements.
While both customized product fulfillment and regular dropshipping send your items directly to customers after purchase, only POD lets you personalize the products to fit your brand image.
Here are the main differences between Print on Demand and regular dropshipping:
| Print on Demand | Dropshipping | |
|---|---|---|
| Product Customization Options | All products are customizable with various printing methods | Sparse, with select dropshippers and private label suppliers |
| Product Selection | Limited to products that are easy to print on (apparel, accessories, stationery, etc.) | Larger product variety from various categories (electronics, furniture, etc.) |
| Brand Awareness | Possibility to use brand colors, fonts, logos, etc. in designs | Impossible to brand the majority of products |
| Product Uniqueness | All products you create are unique to your store | All products are sourced and likely sold on multiple stores |
| Product Validation | Harder to figure out if your products will sell well because they're completely new | Possible to see which products have sold the best in the past |
| Product Customization Options | |
|---|---|
| Print on Demand | All products are customizable with various printing methods |
| Dropshipping | Sparse, with select dropshippers and private label suppliers |
| Product Selection | |
| Print on Demand | Limited to products that are easy to print on (apparel, accessories, stationery, etc.) |
| Dropshipping | Larger product variety from various categories (electronics, furniture, etc.) |
| Brand Awareness | |
| Print on Demand | Possibility to use brand colors, fonts, logos, etc. in designs |
| Dropshipping | Impossible to brand the majority of products |
| Product Uniqueness | |
| Print on Demand | All products you create are unique to your store |
| Dropshipping | All products are sourced and likely sold on multiple stores |
| Product Validation | |
| Print on Demand | Harder to figure out if your products will sell well because they're completely new |
| Dropshipping | Possible to see which products have sold the best in the past |
While print-on-demand dropshipping services offer fewer products than a private-label dropshipping supplier, POD allows you to stand out with unique designs and build brand awareness. Commitment to original ideas and creativity can also influence your brand values.
How to Start a Branded Dropshipping Store With Printify
With more than 80 Print Providers and over 100 fulfillment locations worldwide, Printify is the perfect option for your branded dropshipping venture. Start by following the steps below.
Sign Up and Pick a Product
First, sign up for Printify – it’s free and only takes a few minutes. You’ll gain full access to our product Catalog, branding resources, and product design tools.
When selecting a product, consider the Print Provider’s ranking and location, as well as the production and shipping costs. Decide whether the product fits your business.
Add Your Design
After picking a product, add a design with our user-friendly Product Creator. Upload a PNG, JPG, or SVG file and adjust the image placement to your liking.
If you don’t have a ready-made design, try our Shutterstock integration to access thousands of high-quality images and illustrations. Pick one and apply it to the product.
Create text designs with the built-in text editor, use our free graphics library, and try out our AI image generator for quick inspiration and curation of creative ideas.
Connect a Store and Start Selling
When your products are good to go, connect your Printify account to an online store. We support all major sales channels, including Shopify, Etsy, eBay, Wix, and many more.
Once you start making sales, Printify takes care of order fulfillment. We’ll produce the products and ship them directly to the customer. With zero inventory hassle and no minimum order quantities, all you need to do is spread the word about your brand.
Branded Dropshipping FAQs
How do I start a branded dropshipping business?
To start your own branded dropshipping brand, you’ll need branded products to sell and a service provider who’ll make them. You can get both by signing up with Printify.
Once you’ve created an account, use Printify to pick items from our product Catalog, add your unique designs, and connect to an online marketplace or an eCommerce platform to start selling. Printify will make all the branded products for you and ship them directly to customers.
Before developing any products and designs, conduct in-depth market research. Decide on a niche and audience to target, create a brand name and logo, and develop your brand identity.
Is branded dropshipping legal?
Branded dropshipping is perfectly legal as long as you don’t use copyrighted or protected elements in the designs when planning on selling products with your own dropshipping brand.
Check out our article that outlines what content is prohibited from being used on print-on-demand products, and get more detailed information in our Intellectual Property Policy.
How do I choose a dropshipping supplier?
There are several factors to consider when looking for reliable suppliers:
- Product offer and product diversity
- Product prices
- Fulfillment locations and order processing time
- Shipping costs
- Product customization options
- Customer service
A basic online search will give you an extensive list of dropshipping businesses. Do initial market research, inspect customer reviews, and order samples to check product quality.
Final Thoughts
Branded dropshipping is a great business idea because it allows you to create a unique identity for your online store, increasing memorability, customer loyalty, and profit margins.
By leveraging these best practices with print-on-demand services, you can customize products seamlessly. Use branded labeling, packaging inserts, and more to reflect your brand presence.
Whether you’re starting a new branded dropshipping store or want to enhance an existing one, we offer the resources and tools you need to create and sell branded products effectively.
Make It Happen Today!
Written by
Jānis Bute
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