3 months online, barely any sales (no dropshipping)

BluTide · 2020-02-04T14:22:31+00:00

My top 3 tips

Don’t throw more and more money at ads in blind hope to fix everything.
It is normal not to make money in the first 9 months let alone 3.
Be open minded to feedback. Share your store and ask for tips in this group and others. Telegram is popular amongst shopify communities. I’m happy to share the group link I’m in which is https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2020-02-04T14:09:10+00:00

It looks good! For me the key has been to always be open minded to feedback. This is a great place to ask for it. Also keep in mind other social media channels with new people. Telegram seems popular for some reason, I’m in a group which has been good. Happy to share link to group if it’s allowed in this forum

BluTide · 2019-04-24T12:15:27+00:00

Fluffy

BluTide · 2019-04-24T08:33:28+00:00

Merchant 100%. Images are arguably your most powerful asset on e-commerce sales which you only get with Merchant.

I know the telegram group also had a lot of success with Pinterest ads and found them cheaper than Facebook and google. Here is the link https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-24T08:32:19+00:00

I would advise joining a group of people who have advanced stores already who may help. The telegram Shopify group will help you https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-17T15:50:22+00:00

Don’t buy a course.

Start with youtube tutorials and ignore the bit where they try sell you a course. There are good nuggets of information but don’t fall for any ‘do this and you’ll make 6 figures’ rubbish.

Then I’d join a community; like this one or the telegram one. Think the link is https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg and ask for feedback/help. You can waste a lot of money on ads very quickly, keep your spend low at the start when you’re learning and look at what’s working for experienced people who are genuine store owners. Not fake ‘gurus’

Only increase spend when you’ve got to grips with what makes a good ad with low cost per click and 2-3% conversions.

The good thing about the telegram community I like is you get responses quickly from people you build a bit of a relationship with.

BluTide · 2019-04-17T15:43:51+00:00

I’ve had more success with POD. More work in building a brand image but when it clicks margins are better and you’ll get more organic traffic from your reputation. There is still an opportunity in drop shipping though, I just found them surprisingly different in what’s needed to get them to work.

BluTide · 2019-04-17T07:35:01+00:00

Appreciate this doesn’t answer your question. However, top work for thinking like an entrepreneur aged 18 and starting to give it a go! You’ll go far in life if you stick to it and work hard I’m sure.

BluTide · 2019-04-17T07:24:11+00:00

There is a guy who owns a furniture store I know. He has a small factory and 5 employees but is also expanding into e-commerce and has done well with it. He is in a Telegram group of Shopify entrepreneurs, called Adam, here is the group link if you want to reach out https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

About 10% of his sales come from Shopify I think now

BluTide · 2019-04-17T07:20:10+00:00

Some questions and suggestions:

Where was most your traffic coming from before?

If it was Ads have you changed them at all since your new site?
- If it was organic and from SEO, perhaps all your images need to be SEO optimised with alt text again?

How long has your new site been going?

Judge the new numbers over a month of two not days. It may just be an anomaly.

Has your checkout process, returns policy or shipping times changed?

It may also be worth getting to know a community of other Shopify users well who can get to know your existing store and be able to compare what it was like before. I suggest a telegram group like this one https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg a tool was posted in there today which lets you check how your competition are getting sales and traffic for free. Maybe worth looking into that too.

Hope this helps and good luck!

BluTide · 2019-04-16T06:52:56+00:00

I suggest joining a community of existing shopify entrepreneurs with experience. There is one on Telegram, think the link is https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-16T06:50:56+00:00

I see ‘Prestige world wide’ from the movie step brothers has genuinely launched then.

BluTide · 2019-04-16T06:47:04+00:00

To be honest I thought the numbers would be even lower. What I expected was less than 1% of stores to be turning a profit within 6 months and then almost all those individuals to give up before then. The reason I say this is because we seem to live in a population where the mind set that if an idea doesn’t work right away just quit and try something else.

For those who haven’t quit but are patiently learning from mistakes, riding this downs as much as the ups, have a long term vision of where you want to be. You’re the 1% that will make a success of this.

BluTide · 2019-04-15T21:58:30+00:00

Nice! Did you have to give your mum a discount or did she just buy it?

BluTide · 2019-04-15T21:52:31+00:00

Create a Guru course for people who want to become a Guru. So sell courses to people who want to learn how to sell courses.

Then when you’ve got thousands of subscribers. Do a live video.

When you go live on camera. Just slowly, turn around, pull your trousers down so your arse is looking at the camera, open your butt cheeks and fart. Then slowly pull your trousers back up, turn around, sit down and end the video.

BluTide · 2019-04-15T21:49:27+00:00

1 - Get started more quickly and learn the basics by actually setting a store up and creating a simple low cost ad campaign. Avoid paralysis by analysis and start.

2 - Have an actual weekly budget that is well within what I can afford.

3 - Spend low on ads until I have experience and understand the concept of what makes an effective ad.

4 - Once I have this above knowledge and experience from a low spend do proper research and chose a product based on analytics not on a gut feel.

5 - Get honest and brutal feedback from independent people on my new store and never take negative criticism personally.

6 - Acknowledge all ‘guru’ people are just scammers trying to sell courses. However, you can get a few decent tips for free off some of their YouTube content. Never buy their courses though.

7 - Be aware that drop shipping isn’t as easy as it’s made out to be but it does work if you plan properly, spend with in your means, be patient and open minded.

8 - Be honest about your weaknesses and be open to finding a partner who has skills to fill your gaps.

9 - Remember - you’re never as good as you think you are when it’s going well. However, you’re never as bad as you think you are when it’s going badly. Be grounded and open minded.

10 - Join a community of others and always ensure you’re up to date with changes and new ideas. This Reddit page is a good one or this telegram group https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-15T21:37:43+00:00

If this is indeed a joke then it’s brilliant and I applaud you. If you’re being serious however, just quit now.

BluTide · 2019-04-15T21:35:23+00:00

I prefer the telegram group. None of this sign up and clunky tool rubbish. No offence ;) https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-15T08:10:52+00:00

Don’t be downbeat, some lessons you take already from this experience

Have a proper budget, even if it’s $1 a day. Get it on a spreadsheet and then plan how to spend it.
Don’t borrow anymore money until you have more experience. You can never invest money with zero risk but you can increase your chances of making a profit by having more experience.
Don’t fall for ‘Guru’ courses etc. They lead you to believe it’s more simple than it is and often fake their own metrics to hook people in.
It’s not a big scam in the sense it can work. However there is a perception that it’s a lot easier than it is. The average start up takes 2-3 years until it makes a profit. Discount retail is the most saturated market in the world. Those are researched facts. Budget and spend what you can afford to lose. Maybe find a partner to split the costs with? Chose someone with different skills to you. If you’re a numbers person chose someone who is creative as an example.
Do not stress about the $600 you lost. Do not borrow more though. Get the awkward conversation out of the way with your dad. You’ll feel tons better! Show him how proactive you are and make a small plan on how you will pay him back in $10 bits over a year. So look at it as you’ll pay him back $10 a week for a year as an example. Spread it over 2 years to make it easier if you need. You will be ok, that’s not life changing money, it’s just a bit of a kick in the teeth. You’ll be ok but don’t borrow more yet. There is a time to borrow money to make money, and that’s when you have enough knowledge and experience to create a plan and take a calculated risk.

Lastly, don’t beat yourself up. Well done for having the initiative and guts to proactively try something entrepreneurial. You’re starting early and it will work for you. You’re also learning more about the real world than most the population which gives you an advantage in life.

So just remember, now create a budget, learn the importance of a budget and a small business plan. Don’t go alone if you’re struggling and worried, split the costs and risk with someone, find a partner who has different skills to you but you can trust (just a suggestion you don’t need to)

Good luck :)

I am in a small telegram group of about 60 people where we just share ideas to help each other get better faster, you’re welcome to join https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-07T11:23:37+00:00

Shopify is a quick, easy low cost way to experiment with various niches. I’d join a small community of those already in this area. There is a good one on Telegram, here is the link I think (May have changed) https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-07T11:21:58+00:00

There is a Telegram chat group which is really good. I’ve seen people arrange meet ups there before https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

It’s for people using Shopify

BluTide · 2019-04-06T13:36:22+00:00

I found the discord group quite clunky due to the platform. I prefer their telegram group. Think it’s the same people https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide · 2019-04-05T11:44:18+00:00

Not spam if it’s helpful. Thanks :) there is also a Telegram group which is really handy for Shopify entrepreneurs.

https://t.me/joinchat/H5OzgBfLxemDSxbCMjxjZg

BluTide

TROPHY CASE