January 24th 2018
During my third week of class, I gained a general knowledge of Affiliate Marketing business models verses Drop Shipping business models.
• Affiliate Marketing business models can be applied through the creation of a blog that provides information on a product or products. This blog would need to be on a personally created website including a domain name, hosting, and server. The website and blog will take time to build content/merchandise on and will eventually need affiliate programs so it can build revenue in the future. The blog must be relevant (socially, politically, seasonally, etc.). This business model is not for entrepreneurs that are looking for a “get rich quick scheme.” This is for an entrepreneur who is willing to practice patience and put in a lot of time/labor into perfecting their blog and website. It is recommended that an email service be used so customers can submit their emails to you so you can send out information to customers and more. When joining an affiliate program this can be accomplished by going online and attending conferences like Affiliate Summit where it gives you a chance to face-to-face network with individuals.
• Drop Shipping business models can be applied by entrepreneurs that do not want to hold their inventory but want to sell products. Drop Shipping allows an entrepreneur to avoid the hassle of holding inventory while the manufacturer or wholesale warehouse (usually sells cheaper products) holds inventory for them when they are ready to order a shipment whether that be in single pieces or bulk. The entrepreneur would focus on the promotion and payment collection while the company shipping the product to the customer focuses on making sure the order is fulfilled. In order for the entrepreneur to find the right Drop Shipping company it is best to research and understand the terms and conditions such as how the company handles its accounts, support, returns, refunds, and charge-backs. To find a supplier one can use search engines, visit drop ship resource directories such as OneSource, or use other related resources. One example of a free drop ship resource directory website is: www.productsourcing.com. All you have to do is order from the supplier to begin a relationship with them.
Below are a few articles I drew from that I enjoyed reading/watching most because they explained these two business models clearly.
http://www.tamingthebeast.net/articles3/drop-shipping-ecommerce.htm
http://affiliatetip.com/affiliate-newbies/
Beginning Creation of an Online Business 