Supplier Finding
Part of Dropshipping supplier agreements
Checking whether a supplier includes its own promotional material
Check parcel labels, slips, coupons and inserts, then agree what the supplier may include and how packing changes need approval.
Ask a dropshipping supplier what appears on and inside the parcel before you promise an unbranded customer experience. Get answers for the products and fulfilment locations your store will use, then agree how changes to those materials will be approved.
Check the whole parcel
“Unbranded shipping” is too broad to settle the question. Ask about:
- the sender name, logo and return address on the label and outer packaging;
- invoices or packing slips, including any item price shown;
- catalogues, coupons, QR codes, warranty cards and requests to register or review a product;
- material placed in the product box by a manufacturer; and
- inserts used only for certain products, warehouses or promotions.
Request a current packing specification or photographs tied to the relevant product and route. If the supplier cannot control a manufacturer insert, record that limit. Do not describe parcels as free of supplier promotion without a basis for that claim.
Decide what is acceptable
Separate information the buyer needs from promotion the store has not approved. Product instructions, required warnings and genuine warranty information may serve a different purpose from a coupon directing buyers to another shop. Do not remove necessary product information to make packaging look neutral.
Check the wording and context of any insert. A discount for a future order might leave a buyer unsure which shop offers it; an invoice showing a different price may prompt a question. Those are possible issues, not findings about a supplier. The ACCC says it accepts reports about possible misleading or false claims and can require businesses to back up claims they make about their products or services.
Unbranded shipping: what’s acceptable vs. potentially misleading
- Acceptable (non-promotional)
- Product instructions, required safety warnings, genuine warranty details
- Potentially misleading
- Discounts for future orders, invoices showing different prices, unclear promotional offers
Put the packing rule in writing
Specify permitted documents, promotional material the supplier must omit, approved sender details and the process for changes. State who approves a proposed insert, which products it affects and how the instruction reaches the packing team. Agree how an unapproved insert will be reported and corrected.
If a supplier offers a “blind” or white-label option, ask exactly what it covers. It may address the shipping label without changing a branded product box or manufacturer leaflet. Record the actual promise and any applicable charge rather than relying on the option name.
A controlled order may help compare the written rule with one parcel received. Inspect the outside, documents and product box, and record the product and date. One parcel cannot prove how every warehouse or later order will be packed. Require notice when inserts, branding or packing locations change.
