$200,000 With eCommerce/Shopify - Q&A For You!

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Hey guys,

so over the last year I made around $200,000 with Shopify, with three stores. After not relaunching a shop for almost half a year now, I currently have two new projects. Most of the time I buy my products in bulk to be able to control the user experience in a more extensive way than dropshipping ever could. But especially in the beginning of my "career" I have been doing dropshipping regularly as well and I still do in certain cases.

I decided that some of you might be interested in a big Q&A thread, since the topic became more and more popular recently. My specialties are:

- Affiliate Marketing
- PPC Advertising
- Marketing Strategies
- Branding
- Customer Experience
- Business Strategies

- Conversion Rate Optimization

Feel free to ask any questions

PS: No "what should I sell and why and what strategy should I pursue" please, I don't have time to make a free extensive research for anyone obviously.

Cheers!
#$200 #ecommerce or shopify #qanda
  • Profile picture of the author stirezxq
    Hi, Good job! When you do dropshipping, do you use Aliexpress? Do you target ond country or global? Any tips for Good traffic source and how to quickly build up trust.

    I have been wanting to make get into dropshipping business. What mentality should I have?
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  • Profile picture of the author yukon
    Banned
    Are you a wizard?
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  • Profile picture of the author Shay S
    I don't have any questions yet as i'm setting up my first store, but I do appreciate the time and goodwill to help others along this journey! So thanks for doing it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Daren Bara
    This is the comment I find most interesting

    "PS: No "what should I sell and why and what strategy should I pursue" please, I don't have time to make a free extensive research for anyone obviously."

    My earnings might make some millionaire laugh however I at least make some money with my store. In my experience what to SELL and the STRATEGY behind it are one of the biggest factors between success and failure.

    You might be telling the truth. Just pointing out how sketchy it seems that you chose to answer anything but those two critical questions.
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  • Profile picture of the author Scuderia
    The profit that I get per sale is about $20. I plan to use Aliexpress.
    1. How do I bring customers to my store when the profit per sale is low? I mean FB ads, building a list, etc...
    2. Do you recommend to use Aliexpress?
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  • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
    Originally Posted by stirezxq View Post

    Hi, Good job! When you do dropshipping, do you use Aliexpress? Do you target ond country or global? Any tips for Good traffic source and how to quickly build up trust.

    I have been wanting to make get into dropshipping business. What mentality should I have?
    I used Ali for one single shop, most of the time I make dropshipping agreements individually on sites like Alibaba. Aliexpress prices are far from being really good, they are still consumer prices. Most of the time I targeted my domestic country + some neighbors. Good traffic sources are relevant traffic sources: don't be the guy heading to FB just because some Guru said its the ultimate way to generate happy buyers. Try other things, affiliate marketing, Instagram, Bing Ads, Google AdWords, articles, blog entries, solo ads, Twitter, SEO and what not.

    The mentality that this business is extremely hard. 95% of all people fail miserably, yet it seems that Shopify is the new gold rush. It makes the barrier of entry lower, yes, but at the same time it makes competition way harder and the chance of succeeding lower. So prepare for some uniqueness and not plain Aliexpress importing -> product listing -> 5$/day FB advertising.

    Originally Posted by yukon View Post

    Are you a wizard?
    Some say yes but its a myth I guess

    Originally Posted by Shay S View Post

    I don't have any questions yet as i'm setting up my first store, but I do appreciate the time and goodwill to help others along this journey! So thanks for doing it.
    Thanks mate.

    Originally Posted by Daren Bara View Post

    This is the comment I find most interesting

    "PS: No "what should I sell and why and what strategy should I pursue" please, I don't have time to make a free extensive research for anyone obviously."

    My earnings might make some millionaire laugh however I at least make some money with my store. In my experience what to SELL and the STRATEGY behind it are one of the biggest factors between success and failure.

    You might be telling the truth. Just pointing out how sketchy it seems that you chose to answer anything but those two critical questions.
    Well thats funny. There are two types of people: those who wouldn't spend a minute of their time to help for free, yet they sell their shady knowledge based on 3 weeks of experience for 200$. And there are people like me who've easily helped more than 400 people in the last months for free, whether through simple forum answers or even in detail in personal Skype sessions, Facebook groups etc. Yet they told me how I could have helped them in such a way without asking for money. Some of them paid for real 1:1 consultancy then, but in 99% of the cases everything was free.

    And you nailed it: these are the crucial points of the business. Everything else can be learned relatively easy, but having a solid strategy, whether its differentiation or cost, is where you standout.

    Do you really think you can source this out by asking someone in a forum thread? Its not that I can formulate a tailored strategy for your business in a post. And for the product thing: "well you could sell sunglasses". Would this help anyone? Nope...

    Originally Posted by Scuderia View Post

    The profit that I get per sale is about $20. I plan to use Aliexpress.
    1. How do I bring customers to my store when the profit per sale is low? I mean FB ads, building a list, etc...
    2. Do you recommend to use Aliexpress?
    1. You have to achieve a very good CTR and keep conversions high - this is the only chance. Of course, building an organic reach aside is also crucial, so that you save money in the long run, but it will be a long process.
    2. No I actually don't, I'd prefer buying in bulk every time. However, if I HAD to dropship, I would approach suppliers individually and get my own deals (Aliexpress prices are NOT wholesale prices).
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  • Profile picture of the author Scuderia
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  • Profile picture of the author jfrombk
    I have a question, though I am not sure if this is a good one to ask.


    How does one acutally learn how to start with ecom?


    Like If I don't even have a store up, what is a proper training to learn to start everything to begin with?


    Any recommendations? I know you have a training, but I think yours is more so when someone already has a store let up.


    Also, a question on branding. When would someone actually start to take their store from just a store, to brand? Is it a certain dollar amount, or a certain level of success they need to achieve? Thanks.
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    • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
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      • Profile picture of the author jfrombk
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        • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
          Originally Posted by jfrombk View Post

          Ok sounds great. I don't have a niche or item yet, but I definitely want to go the shopify route, and want to use fb ads for traffic. everything else is still in the air.


          I will definitely check out youtube for information like you said
          Alright, much success in your journey!
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  • Profile picture of the author Shay S
    Hey Splatterfox, love your youtube video series!

    1. Do you only use Facebook for your PPC ads or do you use other platforms as well? If so, which are you recommending? I'm thinking about trying vk, snapchat or 7search.

    2. These $5 a day ads on Facebook getting a bit tiring, I sense there's so much competition going on and I don't get much engagements and clicks to my products as I would've wished for. What's your take on Facebook ads efficiency now compared to one or two years ago?

    3. How long did it you have to go through / how much money you spent before you were start having some success?

    Thanks dude
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    • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
      Originally Posted by Shay S View Post

      Hey Splatterfox, love your youtube video series!

      1. Do you only use Facebook for your PPC ads or do you use other platforms as well? If so, which are you recommending? I'm thinking about trying vk, snapchat or 7search.

      2. These $5 a day ads on Facebook getting a bit tiring, I sense there's so much competition going on and I don't get much engagements and clicks to my products as I would've wished for. What's your take on Facebook ads efficiency now compared to one or two years ago?

      3. How long did it you have to go through / how much money you spent before you were start having some success?

      Thanks dude
      Thanks for your kind words

      1. For the store I used to make +200,000 I didn't use PPC at all, it was based on affiliate marketing and organic search. But I definetly recommend to take a look at other affiliate networks, don't do FB just because everyone does. If it fits your business, go for it, if you feel like it doesn't, then try something else. Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest etc. might be good ideas (as well as AdWords of course!!)

      2. 5$ a day is only to test audience reaction - nothing more. You can use them to gain a very first insight, for example running 5 of them at once testing different audiences/images/products. You shouldn't be running with 5$ ads for too long because the end results come in very slowly and you don't give FB that much room to optimize.

      3. In the beginning of my eCom carreer I went a lot with eBay, for at least one year. I had some minor success with it, but nothing special. When I moved to Shopify then around 1.5 years ago I actually saw immediate results. I think I made my first 25,000-30,000$ in sales within 2 months This is not that common though and I recommend to have AT LEAST 500$ at hand to play with, but its better to have more because you might need some time to take off.
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  • Profile picture of the author dir0x
    Helllo Splatterfox
    i get with shopify latly and pick up a niche but didin't find a success
    i can go with a niche that just have a 3 or 4 product int he store .
    also which apps that you are using that you highly recommned that others use them ?
    thanks alot
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    • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
      Originally Posted by dir0x View Post

      Helllo Splatterfox
      i get with shopify latly and pick up a niche but didin't find a success
      i can go with a niche that just have a 3 or 4 product int he store .
      also which apps that you are using that you highly recommned that others use them ?
      thanks alot
      Hey,

      3-4 products are absolutely ok, its a common misconception that you need a bright variety of products from different niches. I even prefer focusing solely on one very specific niche and becoming some kind of "authority" in it.

      I always recommend LuckyOrange, Klaviyo Email Marketing, Shopify Reviews and Oberlo (if you dropship from AliExpress). Besides this there are some more as well of course.
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  • Profile picture of the author kaymehelp
    Great OP, Thoses are some crazy earnings.

    I'm doing dropshipping aswell in 4 stores all made with woocommerce.

    The eranings aren't bad at all (XX,XXX) anually from every single shop.

    Lately I've been testing taboola to get some traffic but didn't crack it till now. wonder if you have tried it before.

    Good luck!
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    • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
      Originally Posted by kaymehelp View Post

      Great OP, Thoses are some crazy earnings.

      I'm doing dropshipping aswell in 4 stores all made with woocommerce.

      The eranings aren't bad at all (XX,XXX) anually from every single shop.

      Lately I've been testing taboola to get some traffic but didn't crack it till now. wonder if you have tried it before.

      Good luck!
      Thanks man, glad you are doing well too! five figures a year is definetly an achievement!

      No, I only heard about Taboola once and just gave their website a short look. Never considered using it though.
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      • Profile picture of the author Andrew Um
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  • Profile picture of the author omerzaken
    Thank you so much for the information.

    Any generel tips about shop looks and how to make my shop look "safe" to my client so he wont quit quick?

    Also, you highly recommand to buy theme for shopify or use free one till earn some cash? does it realy influance the sales?
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    • Profile picture of the author Splatterfox
      Originally Posted by omerzaken View Post

      Thank you so much for the information.

      Any generel tips about shop looks and how to make my shop look "safe" to my client so he wont quit quick?

      Also, you highly recommand to buy theme for shopify or use free one till earn some cash? does it realy influance the sales?
      Thanks mate!

      In order to look trustworthy you have to improve your overall site. Many people tend to reduce "trustworthiness" to a few artificial badges, but customers feel the difference. Make your page load fast, don't make it too crowded, add product reviews, maybe even put in some real testimonials/social media feed in there and offer as many payment options as possible. Of course warranties are also a very good factor.

      In my opinion you don't need paid themes, especially not in the beginning. If your store fails this may have 1000 different reasons, but choosing a free theme won't be among them.
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  • Profile picture of the author diaz212
    HI, can you teach me how to choose a good product for start eCommerce, and the source where i can found a solid supplier.

    Thank for you kind
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  • Profile picture of the author Courtney Boz
    Did you select a specific country?
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  • Profile picture of the author Mysterious Robin
    What do paid ad platform do you use? Facebook Ads, Google Adwords, or Something else?
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  • Profile picture of the author Tradedog
    Any opinions on using Google Shopping Network ppc to drive traffic to our stores?
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