How do you decide what to do in ecommerce?

tianbo84

tianbo84

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I swear I seem to have way to many directions I try to go. I am wanting to do something more long term now though and wondering how most people decide. Affiliate, FBA, dropshipping, blogging, video creator, private labeling, apps, and goes on and on.

There's a ton of awesome information here which is amazing.

I wanted to do Amazon FBA and went through a ton of information and research. I am trying to get a handle at product research and see each step needed and make a blueprint.

Then I read it's better to start off doing affiliate marketing and learn from there. Mainly because it seems the mistakes won't be as costly. Would this be a direction most should go in first?
Is there a better way to do go ahead or is it better just to pick one and go full tilt and try to plan for the best and keep learning and trying again?

This post is kind of all over the place but just more curious on someone else's take on it.
 
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Deciding is the hard part. There's so much out there it's distracting.

One thing I like to look at is barrier to entry because I prefer to start small and run "tests". Never put more than you can stand to loose out on a test. Running a small scale "tester" version of the thing you want to do just to see if you like something is better than going all in and regretting it later. You can scale down almost anything worth doing as a beginner. If you can't scale it down, it's not good for beginners.

I also look at the workloads involved. Is it something I can work into my life? If not, it's a no-go. I also try to read more on what can go wrong than what can go right. From there I decide if doing what needs to be done to avoid things going wrong is feasible. Also is dealing with stuff going wrong something I want to bother with? If the answer is "no", I pick something else.

I ignore any claims of overnight success or super returns from the getgo as it's usually overblown, a one-off, or a lie. Never expect overnight results as those things are never feasible long term. Look at percentages to get an idea of results, not the actual numbers, and be aware that the numbers may not take everything into account. Sure, he made $5000 his first week, but he spent $4500 to do it and was banned on week 2 and never saw a penny because he broke the rules and got banned.

Lastly, decide black hat, white hat, or grey hat. Black hat is fast but unstable (see example above), Grey hat mixes both with some risk and better stability, while White Hat is low risk squeaky clean but slow to grow. White hat is always the most rock solid if you can make it work.

I hope it helps a bit!
 
If you're not quite sure where to invest your time I would sugggest starting with affiliate marketing. Get the hang of what it takes to sell and figure out the process of what goes into making a product successful and worth buying.

Once you have some experience under your belt move onto selling your own product/service. This is where the big money is at as you get to control everything :)
 
3tails said:
Deciding is the hard part. There's so much out there it's distracting.

One thing I like to look at is barrier to entry because I prefer to start small and run "tests". Never put more than you can stand to loose out on a test. Running a small scale "tester" version of the thing you want to do just to see if you like something is better than going all in and regretting it later. You can scale down almost anything worth doing as a beginner. If you can't scale it down, it's not good for beginners.

I also look at the workloads involved. Is it something I can work into my life? If not, it's a no-go. I also try to read more on what can go wrong than what can go right. From there I decide if doing what needs to be done to avoid things going wrong is feasible. Also is dealing with stuff going wrong something I want to bother with? If the answer is "no", I pick something else.

I ignore any claims of overnight success or super returns from the getgo as it's usually overblown, a one-off, or a lie. Never expect overnight results as those things are never feasible long term. Look at percentages to get an idea of results, not the actual numbers, and be aware that the numbers may not take everything into account. Sure, he made $5000 his first week, but he spent $4500 to do it and was banned on week 2 and never saw a penny because he broke the rules and got banned.

Lastly, decide black hat, white hat, or grey hat. Black hat is fast but unstable (see example above), Grey hat mixes both with some risk and better stability, while White Hat is low risk squeaky clean but slow to grow. White hat is always the most rock solid if you can make it work.

I hope it helps a bit!
Click to expand...


These are some great points and very good read, thank you.
I think the hardest part is after learning and reading trying to actually implement what you learned. But that's like anything in life, starting something new can seem impossible but once you've done it its alot easier.

Icey Dan said:
If you're not quite sure where to invest your time I would sugggest starting with affiliate marketing. Get the hang of what it takes to sell and figure out the process of what goes into making a product successful and worth buying.

Once you have some experience under your belt move onto selling your own product/service. This is where the big money is at as you get to control everything :)
Click to expand...

This is somewhat of what I read that made me think twice about starting FBA right away. The biggest obstacle I was nervous about was product research and getting products made and delivered.
Made me double think. I think it is a good plan to start with affiliate then dropshipping or private labeling a brand, because you can invest alot less for the learning curve and if you lose your investment its not as severe.
I've had a few sites hit top page made some money through adverts and CPA but this marketing is new to me but I think it has great potential to earn and eventually setup a brand or product.
Thanks, mostly thinking out lots at this point lol!
 
First start with dropshipping / affiliate to understand the nature of the biz. when you got the experience than I would jump into FBA.
FBA will require a huge investment if you compare it to Dropshipping / Affiliate marketing.
 
tianbo84 said:
Then I read it's better to start off doing affiliate marketing and learn from there. Mainly because it seems the mistakes won't be as costly. Would this be a direction most should go in first?
Is there a better way to do go ahead or is it better just to pick one and go full tilt and try to plan for the best and keep learning and trying again?
Click to expand...

It depends on the avenue you want to follow afterward. If you want to get a focus on SEO, then affiliate marketing might do the job. However, if you want to focus and expand on e-commerce later on, then amazon FBA or dropshipping might do the job.

However, there is NO RIGHT ANSWER.

You should start with what you feel most comfortable with and work on than. And do not over-think it! Just do it!
 
IG Professor said:
First start with dropshipping / affiliate to understand the nature of the biz. when you got the experience than I would jump into FBA.
FBA will require a huge investment if you compare it to Dropshipping / Affiliate marketing.
Click to expand...
Yes that's the point that made sense to me. Do I want to throw 5k to 10k at something I don't fully understand. I think I'm going to do some research on affiliate and get this rolling.
 
make sure you research the consumer behaviour from physical aspect of the product to emotional aspect such as the message of your ecommerce make sure also the UI UX is fine
 
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