AliExpress Dropshipping is helping more Nigerians make money than any other online business right now.
Unlike a few years back, many Nigerians are now realizing the power of eCommerce and internet business.
But dropshipping has been the biggest hit because it could be started with almost zero capital.
You don’t need to have a million Naira or purchase a huge inventory to start making money with AliExpress Dropshipping.
How AliExpress Dropshipping Works
AliExpress Dropshipping shipping is as simple as ABC if you know what you are doing.
Dropshipping is just like putting on a front to get buyers for goods that you can get somewhere else at a profit.
To start dropshipping on AliExpress, you have to first find buyers for products and convince them to pay you. After payment, you go to AliExpress and purchase the product for the customer at a lesser price.
Note that the price the customer pays you has to cover the price of the product on AliExpress plus the cost of shipping it to the customer.
Local AliExpress Dropshipping
For the purpose of this article, I’ll be focusing on implementing AliExpress Dropshipping in Nigeria.
That is, you would be selling to Nigerian customers only.
I know that you could sell globally via dropshipping with AliExpress, but we’ll discuss that in a later article.
With local AliExpress Dropshipping, all you have to do is find buyers for products that cannot be sourced locally or products that can be bought cheaper.
Most of the wrist watch sellers on Instagram or Twitter are mostly dropshipping from AliExpress and other global stores.
Once you make payment, they then proceed to order for the product and ship to you.
Many of the Gold wrist watches that are being sold for 50,000 Naira and above in Nigeria are actually bought for less than $30 on AliExpress and other global stores.
Choosing a Dropshipping Niche
To start with AliExpress Dropshipping, you have to choose a niche or category where you can build a reputation.
I know it could be tempting to sell different products in different categories and make more money, but in the long run, it is better to choose a specific niche so that you can build a stronger brand.
Your choice of niche should be one where you believe you can make a good profit.
Is there enough demand for products in a particular niche?
Can you make enough profit selling products in a particular niche?
Is a particular product trending in Nigeria and you see opportunities for making lots of money?
You have to make your calculation and see what dropshipping niche is feasible for you, taking into consideration your budget and experience.
Alibaba vs AliExpress
I know most people would be tempted to ship from Alibaba instead of AliExpress, due to products being cheaper on Alibaba.
After all, Alibaba owns AliExpress and most sellers on AliExpress purchase their goods from Alibaba.
But you have to consider that most sellers on Alibaba only sell on wholesale and would require you to order a higher minimum number of products.
Also, the turnaround time should be considered. How fast can you purchase from Alibaba as compared to AliExpress?
Are you focused on selling a particular product in a niche? Then use Alibaba.
Are you focused on selling different products from a particular niche? Then use AliExpress.
AliExpress Trending Products
There are several trending products on AliExpress to target for your dropshipping business.
In my experience, the most trending products are small accessory items like wristwatches and hand-held electronics.
Here is a list of some trending products on AliExpress:
- Fashion
- Jewelries
- Health Accessories
- Home Accessories
- Music Boxes
- Power Banks
- Hand-held Electronics
If you are in doubt, AliExpress has a list of trending products you can choose from. You have to find products under tags such as ‘Trending’ or ‘Hot’
How to find customers for your Dropshipping Business
There are different ways to set up business for your AliExpress Dropshipping in Nigeria.
Your choice of strategy for finding customers would depend on your budget and your long-term plans for the business.
Are you looking to make quick bucks on trending products or are you looking to carve a niche and build an eCommerce brand?
Here are your options:
Jumia Marketplace
Jumia Marketplace is a good first step to launch your AliExpress Dropshipping business in Nigeria.
You don’t have to spend any money on building your own website, and you could tap into the millions of customers that are already shopping on Jumia.
Shopify
Shopify is like the big brother of Jumia, but with some branding opportunities.
You could set up shop with Shopify if you are looking to target customers beyond Nigeria.
Shopify gives you the opportunity to use your own domain name for your online shop, plus access to their own dropshipping plugin with Oberlo.
WordPress Woocommerce
Woocommerce with WordPress is for the big players.
If you are looking to build an eCommerce shop from the ground up with everything under your control, then you could do so easily with Woocommerce on WordPress.
Receiving payment is also now a breeze as Nigeria’s Paystack is now the official payment partner of Woocommerce in Africa.
Social Media Selling
I believe you’ve heard about Facebook marketplace and how people are making millions there.
Well, I’m here to tell you that it is the absolute truth. People are making a killing by selling on Facebook.
Not everyone you see on Facebook is there to chat, make friends and show off their lifestyles.
There are people on Facebook that are building and growing an audience, spending huge money on adverts, and cashing out big without making any noise.
The secret is that they are using Facebook to find trends and know what people want, and then in turn use AliExpress and other global shops to dropship products that are high in demand.
Procurement Contract
If you prefer to get your customers offline but in a big way, then procurement is the way to go.
You could target political campaigns or churches looking to purchase bulk items or souvenirs with branding.
I read a recent story about a young Nigerian man who made over 5 million in just a month of dropshipping.
Actually, he hit it big with a politician during an election year, as he won a contract to supply branded items for a political rally, such as wristbands, flash drives, and other hand-held accessories.
He did all his dropshipping in bulk from Alibaba and made over 1,500 Naira profit per item before shipping.
Multiply that by over 5,000 items procured and you’ll see that this guy was swimming in money.
How much can you make with AliExpress Dropshipping?
Making money with AliExpress Dropshipping is not a matter of if, but how much can you really make?
The opportunity is there and the money is there, but how much you make with dropshipping would depend on your strategy for entering the market and how much capital you have to commit to the venture.
There are Nigerians who are currently rinsing and repeating money making trips with dropshipping on AliExpress, but they would never tell you how they do it.
Everyone has their own strategy and they are hoarding it against competitors.
If you can find the right market with the right customers, then you can be making as much as 500,000 Naira monthly or more, depending on how big your marketing is.