Drop shipping - is it worth the hassle?

[emilygems]

I get many requests asking if I do drop shipping of my products. I have always said no, but I am wondering is there any benefit to me? I would like to hear from anyone who does provide drop shipping to know how much work is it, what is the going rate, anything I should be aware of before getting into it. Thanks, Emily

[Rugles]

All depends on how much discount they are going to get.

Plus, keep in mind you will be competing with them for the keywords.

[Planet13]

I sell a lot of stuff that I have my suppliers drop ship.

None of it is over, say, the $25 per product range.

They charge me either $5 or $8 per drop shipment. One shipment could have several items in it.

It really depends on a few things. If you don't rank well for certain particular keywords / adwords, then maybe you should settle for drop shipping those products.

But if you already rank well, then you might be jeopardizing your rankings?

[emilygems]

My industry is HUGE (see my name) and there are many many subcategories for these products. I rank very well for all keywords that I care about. The person I am considering dropshipping for has a related website and already sells many of the items they want me to dropship. They want to spend more time teaching and less time shipping. I am not so concerned about the keyword issue as I am about the added work for my staff. Also they want to use a service called ClickBank for the money distribution...any thoughts on this?

[topr8]

doesn't clickbank deal with digital downloads only?

also affiliate and drop shipping are two different things