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Over the last few years, e-commerce has grown into something many people didn’t expect just a decade ago. Hundreds of new shops are starting each week, rapidly raising the number of companies out there. This post will explore drop shipping and the benefits it could bring to your business.

Instead of selling products and shipping them to customers, this process cuts out a lot of the work you have to do. Storing your goods in someone else’s warehouse, having them shipped by another company, and all of the work in between being handled by someone other than you will make life a lot easier. In fact, you will simply have to collect money from your customers. Drop ship services aren’t completely free, though you can often get good deals if you have a large volume of orders that need to be processed.

The key benefit from this sort of action is time. While you still have to sell the goods, once the order is made, you can  leave it to start its journey without you. Along with time, some business owners find that their companies start to feel more professional and efficient with their shipping. Having a company that specializes in shipping and handling your fulfillment is a great way to ensure that things go smoothly.

Where you find benefits, though, you will often find some risks. This happens to be true for drop shipping. Relying on another company always comes with some risks. If the company makes mistakes with your orders, you may not be aware until customers come to you with complaints. Storing your goods with another company could also open the doors to theft. You won’t be able to meet or control the employees working for your partner company, and this will make it hard to ensure that they’re good.

Once you have an idea as to whether or not this seems like a good path for your business, it will be time to start looking at your options. There are loads of companies out there offering warehousing and logistics services – ranging from completely automated options to places filled with friendly people. Choosing the right option will make a huge difference here, with some companies finding it harder than others to make shipments on time. Reviews can help, and you should be able to find them online for the companies that you’re considering.

Hopefully this post will inspire you to start considering options to help you simplify your business. Drop shipping is simply one option. In reality, there are hundreds of different business types that can be run with very little effort.