11 Effective Strategies To Advertise Your Dropshipping Store: Why Going Viral Is The Fastest Way To Make Money In 2023

The most effective strategies to advertise your dropshipping store include creating a TikTok channel, using Facebook, attracting people on YouTube, and more. But going viral is the fastest way to drive online traffic to your online store without spending any money. If you can create a video ad with virality potential, you can get in front of a ton of eyeballs fast. Not only are viral ads the quickest way to make money with the business model. But they're the best way to build brand awareness and get in front of your ideal target audience. 

This article reveals strategies you can use across ad platforms to grow your 2023  dropshipping sales. Dropshipping is a low-barrier entry business model based on order fulfillment. So you don't need much capital, and you don't need to house inventory. Instead, you sell your products on demand, and a third-party supplier does the heavy lifting. But, the space is only getting more competitive (Google Trends advises that interest in dropshipping is 4X higher than in 2016). 

I had luck with drop shipping but found the business model unsustainable long-term, so I began doing local lead generation. Build and rank websites that reach the top of Google search engines and generate online traffic (for free). Then once your sites start producing, you sell those leads for cash. So not only is lead gen more sustainable. But it's the best way to make money online in 2023. 

How To Market And Advertise Your Dropshipping Store

You need to market and advertise your drop shipping store to make money in 2023. There are 2.14 billion online shoppers. But the best platform for dropshipping ads is where your target market hangs out. What social media platform are they spending time on? Research and learn as much as you can about your customer, then find the best products to dropship. 

The best products to dropship are things people are actively searching for now. So use Google Analytics or Trends or check out TikTok Made Me Buy It to see what dropshipping products are selling the most. Then leverage third-party software like AdSpy to see what the competition is doing. and what ad type is succeeding. The key is to be a better marketer. So you need to create a unique angle or fill a gap. Do better than the competition. The best dropshipping ad focuses on things like how your product:

Create ads for your dropshipping product with virality potential. Then you can reach as many people as possible without spending much cash and make quick money on dropshipping. Consider that people fail with dropshipping business model because they don't do product research. Or they pick a niche that doesn't have an active online community with items people don't want to buy.

You can still be successful with dropshipping in 2023, but you need to be better than the competition. The goal is to create a recognized brand that sells high-quality products and build a customer-focused profitable drop shipping store. But here are 11 effective strategies to advertise your drop shipping store and be profitable. So let's check it out:

1. Create TikTok Channels to Gain Product Awareness

Tips On Creating Viral TikTok Videos To Advertise Your Dropshipping Store:

If you want your video to go viral on TikTok, you need to know how to play the game and adopt strategies like:

The idea is to create TikTok channels to gain product awareness. Then you can market your online store without using paid ads. TikTok is all about content creation, and it's been dubbed the new Facebook. TikTok is a marketers' dream and a drop shipper marketing paradise. It is the seventh-largest social media network globally and has over 689 million monthly active users.

The platform offers a chance to advertise your dropshipping store for free. The goal is to create videos that go viral. But this is not an easy task. Social videos make up over 81% of all consumer web traffic, and TikTok is where the action is happening in 2023. 

You also have the option to invest in paid ads, including:

• In-Feed Ads
• Brand Takeover Ads
• Top View Ads
• Branded Hashtag Ads
• Branded Effect Ads

But these ads don't come cheap, and you're looking at a minimum TikTok ad campaign budget of $500 to a minimum ad group budget of $50 ($10 per CPM-1000 views). So your ads need to be on-point to build engagement and sell your best dropshipping products and should include things like:

• Content that's authentic and original. 
• Hi-def images or videos with catchy music. 
• Compelling hooks, GIFs, and clickable links.

Pro Tip: TikTok paid ads offer great returns on ad spend for dropshipping stores that cater to the Generation Z audience. (A demographic with 82 million people and a buying power of over $140 billion). Also, consider leveraging a TikTok influencer to create a buzz around your product and develop trust with your target audience. 

2. How To Advertise Dropshipping On Facebook

Advertising dropshipping on Facebook was the go-to marketing strategy for drop shippers as early as 2009. But fast forward to 2022. Now dropshippers need to implement new techniques to see good returns on ad spend. In addition, privacy changes have made it challenging to track Facebook ads or determine if they're working well. (Even with the Facebook pixel). But Google Ads have generated a lot of noise in the industry. So you need to decide what platform is the best option for your dropshipping product: 

Should You Invest More In Google Ads Or Facebook Ads To Market Your Online Store?

Deciding where to spend your drop shipping advertising dollars can be difficult. But, it comes down to your niche, products, supplier, and target audience. Where do your customers like to hang out online? Where is your ideal target market spending its dollars?

Google Ads are ideal for broad terms and extensive reach. But you should advertise on Facebook if you want to target a specific demographic or build brand awareness. A few other differences between the two include things like:

Google Vs. Facebook Ad Comparison:

3. How To Attract People To Your Dropshipping Business On You Tube

You can attract people to your dropshipping store by creating a YouTube channel. First, consider that the platform has over 2.3 billion users, so you have an audience. But with over 500 hours of new content uploaded every minute, you also have some competition.  

So you need to research and use calculated keyword targeting to get in front of your ideal target audience and expand your brand reach. You also need to create a video that will sell your dropshipping product. But you need to call out a real-life problem in 30 seconds or less, so focus on your best dropshipping product—something people use every day.

"YouTube is the second largest search engine, and experienced a 4.9% growth rate in 2021." SEMRush

Pick a product that will invoke emotion that you can get from your supplier quickly. An item that will get people angry or interested in the first 5 seconds of your ad. Then use the next 10-20 seconds to show the solution. But here's your chance to hook people with your business ideas and get rid of ones you don't want to sell to (your non-target demographics).

Remember, it's all about the solution. People don't care about you or your product. They want to know how it will either: 

To maximize profit potential, create three variations of your YouTube video. First, only change your hook (first 5-10 seconds) for testing. Start with standard ads that include your most relevant keywords and select your target audience and location. Then, when you start seeing results, scale your ads. Pay attention to things like:

• Which keywords work the best?
• Which video is working the best?

Set up a new campaign and YouTube ad with winning videos and keywords. Then keep increasing your budget spend and testing new market audiences.

Pro Tip: Test every audience you can and scale 20% a daily for each successful campaign.

4. How To Boost Dropshipping Store Sales With Instagram

How You Can Advertise Your Dropshipping Store For Free Organic Versus Using Paid Ads:

Instagram offers two ad options: organic (free) and sponsored (paid): Here's a chance to advertise your dropshipping item without spending money on paid ads. So use effective ad marketing tactics, like:

Boost drop shipping store sales with Instagram ads by posting videos and reels. Video isn't just a trend anymore. In , it's a baseline for advertising online for dropshippers who want an effective way to promote their Shopify dropshipping store. Instagram is trying to beat TikTok at its own game and has introduced Instagram Reels. Short clips in the form of vertical videos that are 30-60 seconds (aim for 15-30 seconds).

But your reels need to deliver a message with good energy and delivery. So, for example, you can offer tips to increase engagement and build trust with your target audience.  Or you can offer affiliate links through Shopify apps like SecomApp to bring extra revenue to your store.

Pro Tip: Find influencers on Instagram. Then reach out and ask them if they want to join your affiliate program.

5. Grow A Dropshipping Store With SMS & Email Marketing 

You can grow a dropshipping store with SMS and Email marketing, and it won't cost you a ton of money. You can increase your store with internal marketing techniques like email, SMS, or text marketing. Plus, these marketing strategies complement dropshippers social media advertising techniques. (So you don't need to rely solely on external marketing, which could die out or stop working).

Using both methods keeps your business in a safe zone. It also ensures customers are connected to your website. Use SMS and email marketing automation tools like Klaviyo to introduce offers and establish customer trust. Then you can build engagement and share value with things like:

SMS and email marketing are powerful content marketing strategies. Of course, a lot of people aren't going to buy from you right away. But by emailing or texting your list at least once a week, you can promote engagement and secure more recurring sales for your dropshipping business. An abandoned cart sequence, like a follow-up email or text, will also help you close more sales. So you can remind potential customers what they left behind with these tips:

• Build credibility
• Spotlight your best dropshipping product
• Make a connection

By leveraging SMS or email marketing, you show your customers that you care about their shopping experience and are committed to providing the best service possible. Plus, if you lead with value, you build trust and will generate more sales for your Shopify store.

6. Make Your Dropshipping Business Stand Out With Podcasts

Consider making your dropshipping business stand out with podcasts. It is an untapped market underutilized by dropshippers and an industry valued at over $1.3 billion in 2021. Podcasts have yet to reach their full potential. But 51% of the population has listened to a podcast. So this is an effective advertising strategy. (Especially for dropshippers looking to step over the competition). 

The key is creating content your target audience wants to listen to. Information that adds value and answers questions or provides entertainment in their life. But podcast ad revenue is headed for values over $2 billion by 2023. Furthermore, it will reach almost $3 billion in 2025. So now is the perfect time to use this marketing strategy to promote your drop shipping business.

7. Use Google Ads & Optimize For Smart Search On Google

Using Google Ads and optimizing your website for smart search on Google is one of the most effective advertising strategies you can use in 2023. Consider that Google is the most popular search engine in the world and has over 99,000 searches every second. Add that Google's advanced search intent abilities have catapulted its success, and you need to learn the skills to leverage this marketing platform.

But how can drop shippers take advantage of this platform? First, you need an optimized website and search engine optimization (SEO). So you need to develop your dropshipping store for Google traffic. Then you can dominate organic searches and drive traffic to your site for free. But you need the right user signals. (You want people to spend time on your site). 

You should also consider adding a blog. Not only is blog marketing is a low-cost online business strategy to reach your target market. But it's a great way to include new and unique content to your site, which will win favor with Google and help your store rank higher in smart searches. In addition, you can add coupons or discount codes to build your audience.

Then you can generate more traffic and increase sales for your drop shipping business.
Or consider using an abandoned cart process like email or SMS marketing to grow your recurring customer base and create a landing page with a strategic sales funnel. But, of course, you also need to build your off-site authority. So learn the skills to boost your SEO with backlinks and citations.

You can also invest in paid ads on Google for your dropshipping business. But Google ads differ from Facebook ads and offer several payment-style options, including:

PPC (pay per click ) You only pay for your online business ad when a user clicks on it.

CPC (cost per click) Measures the overall cost of each click in a PPC google ads campaign. Example: $50 for a PPC ad that gets 50 clicks-each click will cost $1 (so your CPC is $1).

CPM (cost per 1000 impressions) You pay based on the number of potential customers who see your google ad.

Pro Tip: There's no wrong answer. But most drop shippers prefer to set up their display ads as CPC.

If you're prepared to spend, Google ads will achieve 50% better conversions than organic results. So you need to include the right keywords. Plus, you need to test and keep a close eye on campaigns. But the average ad spend is between $1-$10 per click. So you have a few options to choose from, like:

But if your consumer base is on Google and you have a product that people are actively searching for on the platform. Then investing in paid ads is a great way to market your dropshipping business. 

8. Create A Twitter Account To Make Dropshipping Stores Unique

Ideal dropshipping niches for Twitter advertising include:

• Relationship/Couple dropshipping products
• Fashion and accessories
• Viral products

Create a Twitter account to make your dropshipping store unique and drive online traffic to your offer. Drop shippers who want to succeed with this business model need to find untapped markets and get in front of their ideal customers. But platforms like Twitter offer a unique opportunity because it's not a mainstream platform.

But Twitter is one of the top three social networking apps in the USA, and there are nearly 400 million users on the site. Twitter also has a market cap of over $46 billion and is a potential haven to connect with a new market of customers. The key is to use influencer marketing for your dropshipping business. Not only is it a cheap way to broaden your reach and get insane results. But you have less competition. 

Twitter is a lot less expensive way to advertise your best dropshipping products and a unique way to promote your online store. But to find targeted products to sell, you need to do some market research on TikTok and search these niche terms.

Then, switch to images and see what products are selling well. The secret is to find the same or similar on AliExpress and focus on selling and promoting these items. Then connect with potential influencers who can check a few boxes like:

When you've found several potential influencers, send them your pitch. Ask for a permanent retweet (if they don't do retweets, see how many hours they'll give you-24 hours is ok). Prices for influencers range from:

• $10-$50+ for a permanent retweet.
• $50-$150+ for a quoted tweet

Look at the following potential candidates to find other influencer options.
Offer to pay the fees associated with PayPal to land the deal.
Tweets need to be natural, so your Twitter ads copy shouldn't be spammy or look like a promotion. Keep it short and include emojis or short TikTok-style videos.

9. Get People To Buy From Your Dropshipping Store On Spotify

Spotify Ads should be 30 seconds, and you can either record or request Spotify to provide a voiceover and trendy music. But your ad needs to cover the following:

1. Your Offer
2. Benefit Of Your Offer
3. Clear Call To Action (tap the screen)

You need a minimum of $250 to launch your ecommerce store advertising campaign, which comes with a cost of .15-.25/ad served, depending on the competition. But you have a local market where you can zero in on specific target customers.But Spotify is a way to get people to buy from your dropshipping store. Not only does the platform have over 350 million listeners globally, but it's mastered dynamic ad insertion.

As a result, Spotify is an effective marketing technique to broaden your reach and build the brand of your ecommerce store. Like Facebook ads, Spotify allows you to target local markets, specify a specific geographical location, or leverage other user data like age, gender, and device type. Plus, dropshippers can access 152 million ad-supported monthly active users. So take advantage of the following options:

But for a dropshipping store boasting a large target appeal, Spotify ads are a great way to build brand awareness, drive online traffic and get people to buy from your dropshipping store. 

10. Get More Dropshipping Sales From Snapchat

Tips For Creating Viral Dropshipping Ads On Snapchat:

But you can get more dropshipping sales from Snapchat. Not only is it a newer advertising strategy. But it's one of the best ways for dropshippers to get ahead of the competition. In 2014, 40% of adults in the United States were using Snapchat daily. Fast forward to 2022, where 82% of 18-24 use the platform daily. 

But to be successful with your dropshipping advertising with Snapchat, you need to focus on impulse buys. Use short ads that invoke an emotional response in your target customer. (The shorter and punchier, the better your ad will perform). Snapchat costs are a little higher than Facebook ads. So, you should plan on an initial budget of $300-$400 to get more swipe-ups.

First, you need to create an advanced Snapchat ads account. Then select the website conversion campaign. Test one ad set with an attached video and track conversions using the platform pixel (install to your Shopify store). But see what's working before you customize your audience. (Wait until you start getting swipe-ups or sales before you optimize for purchases).

Pro Tips: Don't add too many variables at once. Test your ads and then keep up the profitable ones. But once you hit 50 purchases, change your ads to target purchases. Then plan on running your ad for 2-3 days to optimize the algorithm.

11. Leverage Reddit With Paid Ads

But as a dropshipper, you need a plan of attack, and that starts with an optimized website. Then join ten subreddits where your identified target market hangs out. (But there are over 280 million subreddits to choose from). Of course, you need to have the right type of content for each sub-Reddit you're targeting. (The key is to make your content better than the existing comments on the thread). So 

Leverage Reddit with paid ads and get in front of your ideal target market. Reddit is one of the most underutilized platforms for dropshipping marketing strategies. But it's a low-cost, low-funnel traffic source with a highly engaged audience. Consider that Reddit has over 430 million monthly users. Plus, you can be extremely specific with your targeting.

People on Reddit aren't used to seeing your product like they are on Facebook. (So, you're getting a low CTR with tons of daily impressions and clicks for very little cash). But beware, Redditors hate marketers. The forum is an honest and often opinionated community. But if you're too spammy, you'll be accused of 'shilling' and will feel the wrath of Reddit users. But Reddit is a community, so you need to follow the rules. Understand the etiquette, and don't just submit content. 

Pro Tip: Leverage the Reddit Enhancement Suite (game-changer for marketing). A Chrome extension for accessing a never-ending scroll of Reddit content. It also allows you to add notes to specific users and create more compelling and engaging content.

Conclusion:

It's not too late to start dropshipping in 2023, but old methods won't work anymore. Instead, you need effective marketing strategies to advertise your dropshipping store and stand out from the competition. If you want to make sales and increase profits, you need a winning product and a successful dropshipping niche in demand now.

Dropshipping isn't hard. But it takes time and effort, and you need to treat your online store like a real business. So be ready to hustle to stay ahead of the curve. First, jump on trends before the market becomes saturated. Then master the skills to create viral video content that gets in front of a ton of eyeballs. But be prepared to test and fail and test again. (Even then, you might need to try a few times before you land a winner).

Offer stellar customer service and provide the best shopping experience possible. Dropshipping is about capitalizing on trends. But these products have a short shelf life. So you're always on the hunt for the next big ticket item. The lead generation business model is a more viable option in 2023. Not only is it a proven concept. (And how I amassed a passive income of $52K/month). 

But lead gen is a long-term business model. Plus, because it's a learned skillset, there's less competition. Of course, you can still make money with dropshipping. But you need effective marketing strategies to advertise your drop shipping store. Then you can be successful and make money as a dropshipper.