{"skill":{"slug":"dropshipping","displayName":"Dropshipping","summary":"Build and scale dropshipping businesses with product research, supplier management, order automation, and multi-channel operations.","description":"---\nname: Dropshipping\nslug: dropshipping\ndescription: Build and scale dropshipping businesses with product research, supplier management, order automation, and multi-channel operations.\n---\n\n## Core Workflow\n\n### Product Research\n- Validate demand: Google Trends, TikTok trending, competitor analysis\n- Calculate REAL margins: product + shipping + platform fees (8-15%) + payment fees (3%) + ads (CAC) + returns (10-15%) + chargebacks\n- Minimum viable margin: 20%+ after ALL costs — below 15% is dangerous\n- Red flags: saturated products, trademark issues, no tracking, unreliable suppliers\n\n### Supplier Evaluation\n- Never depend on single supplier — always have backup\n- Verify stock before promising delivery (many lie)\n- Test with sample orders before scaling\n- Track: response time, shipping accuracy, defect rate, tracking updates\n- For China suppliers: 15-30 day shipping is NORMAL — set expectations accordingly\n\n### Order Operations\n- Automate order forwarding to suppliers (DSers, AutoDS, CJ)\n- Proactive tracking updates reduce support tickets 40%\n- Monitor: orders stuck >7 days, tracking not updating, supplier excuses\n- Fraud detection: mismatched billing/shipping, disposable emails, high-risk countries\n\n### Customer Service\n- 80% of tickets are \"where's my order?\" — automate with tracking links\n- Refund proactively BEFORE dispute when appropriate (chargebacks cost $15-25 + reputation)\n- Chargeback threshold: stay below 0.5% (>1% = processor warning, >2% = account closure)\n\n## Critical Compliance\n\n### Legal Requirements\n- EU: 14-day return right (mandatory), 2-year warranty, VAT/OSS registration if >€10k sales\n- US: Sales tax nexus varies by state ($100k or 200 transactions threshold typical)\n- Never sell: trademarked products without authorization, products with unverified health claims\n- Customs: declare real values, warn customers about potential duties\n\n### Platform Rules\n- Shopify: chargebacks >1% = risk of ban\n- Amazon: ODR >1% = suspension risk, late shipment >4% = problems\n- PayPal: new accounts get 20-30% held for 90 days\n- Ad accounts: policy violations = ban — have backup accounts\n\n## Scaling Checklist\n\n1. **Multi-store**: centralized inventory view, localized pricing, per-country compliance\n2. **Cash flow**: predict 90 days ahead, negotiate payment terms with suppliers\n3. **Team**: SOPs for common tasks, escalation rules for complex issues\n4. **Diversification**: no >30% revenue from single product/supplier/platform\n\n## References\n\nFor detailed integration guides, see `integrations.md`\nFor risk assessment frameworks, see `risks.md`\nFor supplier evaluation templates, see `suppliers.md`\n","tags":{"latest":"1.0.0"},"stats":{"comments":0,"downloads":1679,"installsAllTime":63,"installsCurrent":10,"stars":2,"versions":1},"createdAt":1771178487736,"updatedAt":1778491549296},"latestVersion":{"version":"1.0.0","createdAt":1771178487736,"changelog":"Initial release","license":null},"metadata":null,"owner":{"handle":"ivangdavila","userId":"s178jdk12x4qj3gs2se3etxf3h83h7ft","displayName":"Iván","image":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/81719670?v=4"},"moderation":null}