With all the questions I get asked about dropshipping, and doing business online, what to look for in a dropshipper is by far the most asked question that I get.  When people are ready to invest their time, money, energy and complete focus to a business online, they want to make sure they are working with the right person.  I could not agree more and I have some tips that may help when looking for the perfect dropshipper.

1. Are They Legit?  First, If you found them through the dropshipping directory here at The Shipper then you can rest assured that they are a legitimate dropshipper.  If you found them from another source, you can do things like look them up on the BBB, Google them to see if there is anything negative about them as a company, and follow up with their testimonials.  If they are giving example of websites that use them, then go to the websites, and send emails to the business owners, and ask them how they like doing business with the company.  Besides just look and feel of the site too, there are many tell tell factors of legitimacy or not.  Just use some common sense when narrowing down a supplier and it will help more then you probably know!
   
2. Will They Allow You To Sell On eBay?  One of the most important things to me when looking for a legitimate dropshipper is that they will allow me to sell their products where ever I please, and this includes eBay.  If they are not willing to work with me, and letting me explore all options of making money online, then I just want to move on.  Besides selling on eBay, you want to make sure the supplier is allowing you to sell products on any type of shopping or buying solution site out there.
   
3. Don't Spend Money On Product First.  This is probably where most people get scammed in the dropshipping world.  They find what they think is a great supplier with amazing prices and are told they have to buy a certain amount of product first (in order to work with them) and people send off the money, and product is never sent.  They have been scammed.  A legitimate dropshipper, with the right kind of business model set in place will never ask you to spend a ton of money up front on products.  If you ever come across something like this - run, and then report them as fraud.
4. No Minimum Order.  Making sure the dropshipper you are wanting to work with does not have a minimum order amount is a big deal too.  If they are a legitimate dropshipper then they will not care if your place an order of one, or an order of a hundred.  They are ready for whatever you give them.  Consider this - what happens if your supplier makes you buy a hundred of the "hot at the moment" toy, and then they no longer are hot.   What are you going to do with all them toys?  There is a potential risk when doing business this way!
5. Are They Wanting To Make Sure You Are Legit Too?  Most legitimate dropshippers want to know that you are a legal register business.  If they are giving you access to all their product without even asking if you are a legal business, I would be worried.
   
6. Are They Helping You?  When you first get into a business like this, there are a ton of questions you may have for the supplier.  If they are a legitimate dropshipper they will help you with every problem/question you have.  They will give you access to product information, images, pricing and everything else you need to be successful.  They will be there for you!

I just wanted to share a few of the things that come to my mind right off the bat when I think of a legitimate dropshipper.  Hopefully this gives you a little bit better of an idea how to narrow down, and find a legitimate dropshipper.