There are so many eCommerce platforms out there. All of them promise to offer sellers the best opportunities to connect with potential customers. With so much choice, sellers can find themselves in a catch determining the best platform to establish their online presence on.
That said, finding the right eCommerce platform is an important first step that may as well determine the long-term success of your eCommerce business. Again, as eCommerce shopping continues to boom, omnichannel sellers need to find opportunities in different marketplaces to get their products in front of hundreds of millions of potential customers.
Founded back in 2010, Wish.com is one such platform. But the question is: Is Wish worth your time and effort? Is it like selling on Instagram? In this article, we help you understand how to sell on Wish so that you can figure out whether it is worth establishing your store's presence on the marketplace.
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What is The Wish Marketplace?
Before you know how to sell on Wish, you need to know what the Wish marketplace is and gauge its potential. Wish.com is a mobile-first and web-based eCommerce marketplace that allows shoppers to browse and buy almost anything from third-party sellers.
Powered by a mobile-first functionality, the platform presents a unique opportunity for online retailers to tap into m-commerce and establish brand dominance. This is true even as mobile commerce continues to grow three times faster than traditional commerce.
It won't be long before m-commerce overtakes eCommerce, and moving early presents a way to win over the competition.
Why Sell On Wish?
There seem to be compelling reasons why eCommerce merchants should consider selling on Wish. Here is a rundown of a few:
- The platform has become popular across the world with over 300 million shoppers in over 120 countries
- 60% of its customer base consist of Millenials and Gen Z
- More than 10 million users placing over 2 million orders per day!
- In 2017, Wish emerged as the most downloaded shopping app in the US with 32.5 million downloads.
- On Google Play and Apples Store, the Wish app ranks top 1 and 2 respectively as the most downloaded app ahead of other eCommerce giants
- Wish remains the top shopping app in about 42 countries.
These are not stats to sneeze at. Without a doubt, eCommerce retailers need to know how to sell on Wish.
How Does It Work?
The Wish marketplace works pretty much like other eCommerce marketplaces such as Walmart, Amazon, and eBay. Qualified sellers list their products for free on the platform for buyers to browse.
Shoppers can access merchant's products by downloading the Wish app or visiting the website where they receive a personalized, scrolling shopping feed based on their browsing or buying behavior.
The customized feed makes it easy for sellers to place their products in front of the relevant customers, making the marketplace to have a highly engaging and addictive shopping experience.
How Much Does it Cost to Sell On Wish?
Determining your selling costs is an important thing to consider when figuring out how to sell on Wish. Here are the costs that you need to be aware of:
- $2,000 registration fee for new stores: Wish maintains that this fee is meant to weed out jokers and attract only serious high-quality sellers.
- 5% Sales commission: There is a 15% revenue share on the total order. The sales commission is calculated by combining the order value and shipping fees.
- No monthly or annual subscription fees
- Zero product listing fee
To help you understand how the sales commission works, and its impact on your bottom line, let us look at an example.
Let's say you have listed an item for a selling price of $40 plus $10 shipping fees. Wish has a revenue share of 85/15 on the total order. They will take 15% of the total sale, which is $50. That translates into a $7.5 cut.
You will receive 85% of the total sale, which is $42.5. Remember $10 goes into shipping, so your bottom line on the sale is $32.50. One way to cut your shipping costs is to partner with a 3PL. Easyship has partners with global warehouses and specializes in helping merchants transition to a 3PL.
What Can I Sell On Wish Marketplace?
Another important aspect of knowing how to sell on wish is to be aware of Wish's product categories. The good news is that there are extensive categories that sellers can sell under on this marketplace. They include:
- Fashion
- Accessories
- Baby & Kids
- Makeup & Beauty
- Tops & Bottoms
- Phone Upgrades
- Gadgets
- Watches
- Wallets & Bags
- Home Decor and many others
Things to Consider Before Selling on Wish
Before you sign up for a store on the Wish marketplace, there are some things you should be aware of. The following are some vital points that you should keep at the back of your mind when thinking of how to sell on Wish.
- Be an authorized seller of a Brand: To sell on Wish, you need to be an authorized seller of the brand whose items you have listed. This is meant to protect both the seller and brand owner.
- Affordable pricing: Wish is known to offer premium quality products at affordable rates. You may struggle to sell high-end, costly products on the Wish marketplace.
- New and branded refurbished products are welcome: You can sell new or refurbished products on Wish. That means used electronics and other refurbished products can be listed on Wish.
- Order fulfillment: You must fulfill customer orders within 1-5 days of order placement. Otherwise, Wish will automatically initiate a customer refund.
Benefits Of Wish Marketplace for eCommerce Merchants
There are several benefits of selling on Wish. Let's get up close with the most obvious ones.
- No monthly subscription or product listing fees: Wish doesn't charge any monthly or product fees on sellers. That means you don't have to pay a dime until your items sell.
- Huge customer base: Wish boost over 300 million customers in over 120 countries, with Millennials and Gen Z representing 60% of its customers. Theoretically, you stand a chance to have your products in front of the right users and sell more.
- Active users: Over 10 million users place more than 2 million orders daily. That means shoppers are very active on the platform. With the average customer spending around 20 minutes on the app per day, chances are high that they will see and browse your items.
- Promotions: Wish runs promotional campaigns on the marketplace and social media channels like Facebook. It is the largest advertiser on Facebook, spending nearly $500 million a year on Facebook ads. This helps bring more customers on board, hence driving traffic and conversions.
- Mobile app: Wish sellers can use the Wish mobile app without the need to create their ow
What Are the Risks?
There are some downsides to selling on wish. They include:
- High fees: Although there are no monthly charges or listing fees, the 15% cut on total order is somehow high.
- Slow Payments: When you receive any payments from Wish via PayPal or Payoneer, you will have to wait for 5-7 days for the money to arrive in your account.
- Competition: There are more than 200,000 merchants on Wish selling millions of products. You will need to brace the competition to make your store stand out and get noticed.
- Exchange rates: With Wish, you can sell in over 120 countries. Unless you open a multi-currency account for online sellers, your profit margins can be impacted by the exchange rates charged by PayPal and Payoneer.
Shipping and Fulfillment on Wish
As you figure out how to sell on Wish, you need to understand the different fulfillment options that the platform allows. There are a few ways to ship Wish orders. They include:
- Fulfillment by Wish: Wish has multiple warehouses across the US and Europe. If you want to run a hands-off eCommerce store on Wish, you can take advantage of their fulfillment services. It is not a free service. You'll have to pay inbound and long-term storage fees. They don't provide fulfillment for other sales channels. This makes it unsuitable for multi-channel sellers, or those with extensive/slow-moving inventories.
- In-house fulfillment: This is a good option for stores with existing order fulfillment processes in place or merchants starting small. That means you have the capacity to pick, pack, ship, and track orders yourself. Easyship can help you streamline your in-house fulfillment by offering you over 250+ cost-effective couriers, a global tracking system, and discounted shipping rates of up to 70%.
- Outsourced fulfillment: This involves partnering with third-party manufacturers and providers who store your inventory and ship orders on your behalf. To help you delight your customers with the best shipping rates and impeccable delivery times, Easyship partners with a network of fulfillment centers in different locations.
Step-By-Step Guide on How to Sell on Wish
Before you start to sell on Wish, you need to register as a merchant on the platform. Here are the steps you should complete to sign up for a merchant account on Wish.
- From the Wish homepage, click the Sell on Wish link, then click on sign up for free
- Create your store by entering your store's unique name, email address, and password
- Add your business information such as your full name, phone number, and business address.
- Verify your email address and enable 2-factor authentication
- Add your payment information by selecting the payment provider you'll be using to receive payments from Wish. PayPal, AllPay, Payoneer, UMPay, and PingPong are the common payment options.
- Review and agree to the Wish Merchant Terms of Service and Agreement
- Finally, provide Wish with proof of personal and business ID plus any other official details of your business.
- You can also sell on Wish through your eCommerce store. If you are in any of the eCommerce platforms such as BigCommerce, and Shopify that offer omni-channel selling, you can integrate your existing store with Wish and start selling your products on Wish while still listing them on other platforms like Amazon, Instagram, and Facebook.
7 Tips for Selling On Wish
- Ship quickly: Take advantage of Wish 2-day, and Wish express to guarantee your customer's quick delivery. Or partner with a shipping company such as Easyship to take advantage of 250+ shipping solutions at discounted rates.
- Stock quality products: Selling high-quality products at great prices will help you get positive reviews. Such social proof encourages customers to trust and buy from you.
- Optimize your listings for mobile: Mobile devices account for 90% of Wish purchases. Make sure your listings and images look great on mobile screens. This is possible when you provide detailed and accurate product information backed with multiple high-quality photos.
- Offer product variations: Add different product sizes, photos, measurements, and colors to our listings. This will help optimize your listings for different feeds.
- Sell rare products: Wish's product category opportunity updates help you identify high-demand items in your niche that are under limited supply. This can help you rank highly in a less competitive niche.
- Add product tags: Product tags help Wish categorize your items and place them on relevant feeds. Take advantage of them. You can add up to 10 product tags to each product listing on Wish.
- Wish's Seller tools: From ProductBoost and IntenseBoost to Wish 2-day and Wish Express, there is no shortage of tools that are designed to help you maximize your visibility on the platform. Take advantage of them to increase sales.
The Bottomline and How Easyship Can Help
There you have it! That is how you sell on Wish. The most important thing you need to remember after you set up your store and list products for sale is that you have only 1-5 days to fulfill orders. To avoid souring your relationship with Wish and your buyers, consider a partnership with a top 3PL eCommerce company like Easyship.
Easyship can help you automate much of the shipping process to get orders to your customers faster and easier. Through our platform, you can access an extensive network of 250+ couriers and fulfillment centers in different locations. This will help you delight your customers with faster shipping times at affordable rates.
Sign up for a free Easyship account to get started and access the best shipping rates with up to 70% in discounts.
