Here is the step-by-step process:
___ The customer places the order.
__ You receive the order confirmation email (so does the customer).
__ You capture the payment in Shopify, which collects the payment from the customer and schedules a deposit into your bank account (minus processing fees). More details about capturing payments here .
__ You need to create a Purchase Order (we call it PO) and send it to the supplier. I like the Order Printer Pro App .
__ The supplier will fulfill the order and charge your credit card.
__ The supplier will ship the item and send you a tracking number (there are nuances on how suppliers do this, but this is the most common way).
__ You need to paste the tracking number to the Shopify Order manually.
__ Adding the tracking number will trigger an email confirmation to the customer, informing them the order has shipped and giving them tracking information.
__ Theoretically, the order is complete at this point. However, if I sell a high-ticket item, I like to monitor the tracking and follow up with the customer once the item is delivered. I ask the customer how the delivery was and are they happy with their purchase.
Here are more details about calculating your profit! https://www.amplifymediastrategies.com/blogs/shopify/how-we-make-money-in-dropshipping
