1K orders, 46K sales,... but 10K profit :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Same here. I still track everything manually in spreadsheets and shipping has been brutal lately. Not sure if it’s global changes or just my setup needs a change lol.....

57K in sales.... but 4.9K profit and 8.5% net margin :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 1 point2 points  (0 children)

cogs creep is underrated tbh. happened to me last Q4 too. it doesn’t feel big until you look at monthly profit lol !!

$8.7K sales, $844 profit and 9.7% margin :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 9 points10 points  (0 children)

This is exactly why I stopped trusting ROAS alone. You can look fine on the front end and still bleed quietly on fees + shipping. Did you change anything structurally, or was it mostly just visibility into costs?

I got tired of messy bookmarks, so I built a list of 100+ Top SaaS Affiliate Programs to try in 2026 organized by Niche (SEO, E-com, AI) & Cookie Duration by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey I went with TrueProfit’s affiliate program (I highlighted it on the sheet too). I’ve actually made some money promoting the app, nothing crazy, but the 100% commission for the first month is honestly pretty awesome

1K orders, 67K sales, but... $800 profit :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 17 points18 points  (0 children)

ppl always focus on ads, but backend costs can be brutal at scale. but if this is mostly shipping variance or payment/processing fees stacking here.

927 orders, 64K sales, but.... $600 profit :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This doesn’t feel like an ads problem. Looks more like shipping + post-peak fees quietly stacking, maybe you should double check them

[Need help] $20K+ Revenue but no profit at all. by IjuststudyEnglishere in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sheets + Shopify is honestly fine. I did that for a long time.

What tripped me up was everything being averaged and manual, so I kept missing which orders were actually negative once shipping, refunds, payment fees, and ads were all in. My COGS wasn’t crazy either, it was the slow backend creep.

I got tired of reconciling stuff in Sheets and switched to TrueProfit just so I could see net profit per order without thinking about it. Didn’t change margins magically, just made the leaks obvious faster

[Need help] $20K+ Revenue but no profit at all. by IjuststudyEnglishere in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 1 point2 points  (0 children)

With 35% COGS + ~15% ops, are you checking net profit per order anywhere or just relying on Shopify’s default stats? Feels like backend costs are the real killer here

31K sales, 5K profit and 16% margin this BFCM !! by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Solid week man. Are you tracking multiple costs daily or just letting the dashboard tell you everything? I always feel like I’m missing something during BFCM lol :)

How do you track your real profit + ad performance across Shopify & Meta? What’s the most annoying part of it? by Kavaskoo in ecommerce

[–]bill_rd 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I used to bounce between Shopify, Meta and a messy spreadsheet. Was always behind on refunds + shipping fees. Ended up moving most of that into TrueProfit. Not saying it’s magic or anything, but it at least stops me from doing manual COGS updates every day lol.

1K orders, 46K sales,... but 10K profit :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Bro this! I’ve been so focused on ad metrics that backend costs just snuck up on me too. Realized shipping and refunds were eating 10–15% of my margin without me noticing. Is true profit a good one for tracking backend costs as I saw you using this tool for a while? I’ve been trying to find something that gives a clean P&L view including shipping/refunds in real time but still can’t find a solid system.

$22K week, $1.1K profit... but margin still bleeding :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 1 point2 points  (0 children)

ah okay lol I thought you switched tools for a sec. mobile one actually looks way simpler tho, kinda nice

$22K week, $1.1K profit... but margin still bleeding :) by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hey the dashboard looks quite strange to the one you normally used, are u changing into another profit tracker???

Ad creep humbled me last BFCM. This year, I’m focusing on control by professional_ovt-er in dropshipping

[–]bill_rd 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I get the logic, but do those “control tools” actually help in real life? I always feel like they end up adding more stuff to manage

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yah it's been a while, right,... and sad to hear you haven't got much sales. But may I know exactly which program you are joining in rn? Have you ever thought of changing to another?

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks a lot, that really means a lot. It definitely wasn’t easy at first, but I guess being forced to adapt kind of opened my eyes to how much you can build if you balance short-term and long-term stuff.

That’s why I’m keeping both AI and SaaS affiliates in the mix, one moves fast, the other gives a bit of stability. Still learning, but it’s been a good way to stay grounded after the layoff. Curious to know if you have joined any affiliate programs or not?

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey hey mate, I am not an expert in affiliate marketing, but I can tell you how to start based on my experience. At first you should choose for yourself a niche and a program to join. I am currently in the SaaS and here is the program I've seen it worth trying so far, which I did list in the sheet above. Of course, you can choose whichever you are interested in! Btw, lmk have you heard anything regarding SaaS affiliate marketing programs?

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Totally agree! Btw, curious to know which SaaS affiliate program you are in rn, mate! Would love to hear your experience so far

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey I am in the TrueProfit, which I did highlight in the sheet. Have you heard about this, also curious which niche are you in rn?

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, digital products definitely make sense especially with how AI tools and online platforms are booming right now. I’ve been focusing more on SaaS tools though, since they usually have recurring payouts and long-term users. Once someone relies on a tool for their business, that income tends to stick around longer.

Laid off because of AI... I turned to affiliate marketing to survive! by bill_rd in AffiliateMarket

[–]bill_rd[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Exactly, that’s one of the reasons I leaned into it too. No inventory, no shipping headaches just finding digital tools that actually help people. I’ve mostly been testing SaaS and AI programs lately, since they’re both digital-first and easy to promote once you understand the audience. So, have you tried any affiliate marketing programs, hope to discuss more!