Biophase - 2018 Ecommerce/Amazon Business Coaching Program

[biophase]

I have decided to do the coaching program again in 2018​

I was on the fence for the past month, but seeing a bunch of last year's clients doing well and even selling out their products during the holiday season made me decide to do this next year!

Below are results from four of my 2017 clients. Keep in mind that mpst of these numbers are from just 3-4 months of selling.



The format will be the same as last years. Conference on Sunday nights for 2 months and then private coaching for the next 4 months. In addition, you will be invited into a private Facebook group with me and all the past participants.

This program length is about 6 months long (January 14, 2018 to June 30, 2018). Yes, there's an end date, but quite honestly once you are in the Facebook group I will continue to answer your questions. I am still in contact with the 2016 and 2017 group.

I've found that the schedule works out very well because February is Chinese New Year so nobody gets quotes or samples anyway. So we learn about product selection and then really start doing the actual work in March-June. People get their products around September and get a few months under their belt until the holiday season hits.

The general timeline will look like this:

January and February - Weekly group calls where we will discuss product selection and help you determine what is good, bad, easy and hard to sell online and most importantly why. We will discuss potential products and some case studies of my own products to help you all understand how I choose my products.

I also wanted to make the product selection phase longer so that clients aren't pressured to choosing something because they feel that they are running out of time. In 2017 some clients didn't find their product until May or June.

March-May - Clients should be on their way to select a product. In this phase they we be speaking with a supplier and getting samples. At this point, we will move towards the 1 on 1 coaching. I am doing 1 on 1 because I don't know if every client will want to reveal their product selection to the others. This is always a sensitive area and I would error on the side of privacy.

June+ Clients should usually have placed their initial production order by this time. There is alot of waiting at this point.

Products arrive and we list on Amazon. We will optimize listings and sell!

Communication between you and me

· Weekly group call coaching sessions in Jan. and Feb. Calls will be on Sunday nights. They last about 2 hours.
· 1 on 1 weekly coaching calls from Mar. to June.
· Unlimited email communications
· Access to private Facebook Group (all new clients and past clients are eligible to join, what you divulge in there is up to you)

What you will learn​

Product selection – This is the most important choice you can make as it will shape your business in the month’s to come. We are not picking any AMZ seller products. We will be hand choosing products that have little or no competition and likely will not have many in the future. Amazon gets more competitive every year, so product selection is critical. That is why we are spending 2-3 months on this part.

Importing – We will go over the process of getting samples all the way to importing your first production order.

Everything Amazon – Everything you need to know about selling on Amazon. We will not be using any review groups to launch.

Everything Ecommerce – I will help you set up your own ecommerce store on Shopify or Bigcommerce. You will need your own store as we are building a real business, not an Amazon business.

Photography – I will teach you how to take photos with your smart phone and edit them with free editing software. This is a very important part of your listing.

General value add strategy – Changing your thought process to care about value vs. profit.

Cost​

The price for this coaching program is $8,000 USD. The full payment amount is due upfront.

Other Requirements​

You should also have at least $3,000 (preferably $6,000) to spend on your first inventory order.

What results you should expect​

If you end up with a business that is profiting $500-$1500 a month with one product on Amazon, I would call our time together a huge success.

We are not trying to find you a $10,000/mo product. We will find a decent product that is profitable and relatively easy to sell with little or no competition.

I want to make your life easier and lower its stress, not help you battle in the trenches of Amazon warfare. If you want to do that, just save your money and start a supplement company.

I am trying to teach you skills that you can use to replicate what we’ve done. I am teaching you how to think, not what to think or what to do. Therefore, if you have one decent product, you can find another one.

OK, Let's be real​

Yes, you are paying me alot of money. But spending money and attending group calls does not make you successful. You must be willing to work hard, but more importantly you must be willing to think and exercise your brain. There's going to be alot of stuff that suddenly makes sense and you wonder why you didn't think of that. That is your brain thinking and changing its thought process.

You may be running the numbers and thinking, geez $8k and he's finding me a product that makes $500/mo. That's like 16 months to get my money back. Well, that's not the point of this course. If we find a $500/mo product, you should be looking for another $500/mo product after this program is over. The point is for you to leave with a some startup business and more importantly, for you to leave with a better brain inside your head that can generate hundreds of $500/mo products for life.

I will help you find and source a product, set goals and answer all your questions, but I cannot guarantee your success.

I can only put you in a position to succeed and you must do the rest. I am also not a babysitter, so I will not be contacting you if miss calls or are not contacting me. Some products will take longer than others to develop, improve, rank or sell and may take longer than 6 months to fully mature.

Application Form​

Coaching is closed.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[NickC]

I need to find a bank to rob.

 

[Longinus]

I was in Kenric's first groups so this is my second year. There's a detailed progress thread inside: https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/ecom-progress-from-nothing-to-something.72411/, but I'll just quickly recap this here:

Started selling first product February 2017,
messed up the shipment first, had little margin left, but sold out pretty quick,
made second shipment, sold better, better margins,
tried second product, was a mistake,
found new products that went well at first but supplier messed up, quality issues,
had to start over for some products and dump a batch of bad quality products in trash,
found new suppliers, some of them on trade shows, others reached out to me,
made new products, all of them with good margins,
inventory issues because selling too quick,
clients sending messages asking when it will be back in stock,
too many ideas for new products...

Status November 30th 2018:

 

[biophase]

@biophase

Thank you for taking the time to offer coaching. Just wondering, I travel for work and am at a hotel 4-5 nights a week but usually home on weekends, I also work during the day but have 4-5 hours a night to give. Just wondering if the opportunity you present is feasible for my given situation, don't want to potentially take an opportunity away from someone else whom may be a better fit?

Thank You

This really depends on how bad you want it. All of my clients from earlier this year have jobs. A few were gone for 1-2 weeks at a time and couldn't make all the calls. They still succeeded. On my donation call last month there was a guy from Europe who woke up at 3am, just to call into my 90 minute call!

I don't think that being in a hotel will hinder you from starting a business. But some people watch TV all night in hotel rooms and don't get any work done. Others go down to the bar. I personally am on my computer when I'm in a hotel room and I get a decent amount of work done.

I don't want you to waste your money, so you need to decide how committed you will be.

 

[vitality11]

Short & Sweet Version: 100% blessed to learn from Kenric and also grateful for having enough drive to actually take real action. Coming very close to going full-time fastlane. Working/learning from Kenric - one of the most important "moments"/"phases"/"opportunities" in my whole life with a butterfly effect that will last a lifetime. Grateful to learn from the best and also have friends in this community who I talk/text/chat with on any basis. Good news - this forum has a ton of posts by O.G.s like Kenric. Just read them, hustle, show your legit failure/success and people will legit help with advice. It was the best investment of my life for my financial present and future.

Longer version and sort of an update/rant on my stuff since I don't get to post often on the forum (yet), it's long so don't bother reading it - I'd prefer if you just work on finding a product/working on your idea instead if you are new to this.

I took the class 2 years ago and my business has been growing consistently. I am still working at my job but that is because I am reinvesting in the business to keep it growing. Kenric actually provided me with a great perspective that made me plan me leaving the job in an intelligent fashion. Always learning a ton from him.

Fastlaners versus WishIDidIt-ers: The most important indicator to me whether the person will have a good chance at succeeding at Fastlane is how much time (your most precious resource) do they spend on it. The time you spent on it is a reflection of how much you want it. People daydream all the time about all kinds of stuff, even Fastlane. Still, you can daydream but take action.

If you not already are, business will force you to be customer-oriented. If you are not providing some sort of value, why would anyone spend any money on your product? Just think... what makes your product competitive. Is it savings? Quality? Color? Functionality? Design? Customer Service? Insert any variable here.

What is the best thing about fastlane?
I can calculate how much I need per month to live a lifestyle I want and once my fastlane comfortably covers that amount -> I am free and can really figure out where to take myself next. No matter where the journey will take me, I still require myself to invest daily time into the daily/weekly/monthly grind.
Slowlane Ejection Point: Let's say you need $2000 to cover everything comfortably. If you get 2k then you don't need to work anymore. Do you quit your job at 2k profits after earning about 2k consistently for a few months? Or do you keep hustling and grow your business to maybe 6k? If you grow it to 6k and your business tanks 50% then you are still making 3k. That number is different for everyone.

If you have the drive, you'll do it. Countless people are in a 10-40 year old movie where they show up to work on time and sit in front of the computer 8-9 hours per day, get 1-week sick leave, and 2-3 weeks of PTO, 3-7k pay bump per year. Maybe more if you are a really good corporate team player.
Some people actually love it (they are blessed), the majority have to do it, and that majority would still keep doing it no matter how many forum posts they will read. And that's okay. Everyone is different.
Not everyone is crazy enough to risk failure but a fastlaner should be okay trying and failing and also trying and succeeding. Failure is really just experience points.

No one is perfect and you don't need to have great IQ to succeed in this game. Don't let feelings or your mood determine if you hustle, just get into the habit. Protect your time cause you need to have time to invest into fastlane (especially in the beginning).

The beauty of this forum is that all of the O.G.s here are really helpful even if you are not part of any specific program (just see how much value they've spilled out in their posts! I am jealous cause I don't get a chance to read it all...yet). Invest time in fastlane and it will reward you.

When it comes to fastlane mindset of divorcing your income from your time...You know some people's brains are simply not able to comprehend that stuff on a real "real" level - if your brain gets it - you are already blessed.

P.S. Always practice internal gratitude (at least) to the people that have helped you along the way. And be grateful for any successes as well. You don't want to be that guy that never stops to appreciate it.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[B_Mac]

Any testimonials or progress threads from anyone who took this course?

I took the course this year. It was amazing. I now look at business in entirely new ways. I evaluate what consumers are asking for much more clearly, and I communicate that I am offering what they are asking for in an effective way.

After identifying my first product in Feb. 2018, it took until May 2018 to get what I wanted from the manufacturer. I placed an order of 500 units and was on Amazon the first week of July. As of today, I have sold 433 units. An order of 2,000 units just entered the port in New York and should be at my house next week. I have all 4 and 5 star reviews. It is a seasonal product where the majority of sales occur from March to May, so I expect all 2,000 units to be gone by May.

I haven't started my own progress thread yet because I don't have that much to add that hasn't been discussed in other FBA threads. At the beginning of the year, I am going to be reaching out to local sellers and regional distributors of my product to get into B&M stores. When that happens, then I may start a progress thread.

 

[biophase]

But serious question Kenric, Do you accept financial aid?

Sorry upfront payment only. Haven't had good luck with people paying in installments. Just don't want to deal with the headache.

 

[Longinus]

I was in Kenric's first groups so this is my second year. There's a detailed progress thread inside: https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/community/threads/ecom-progress-from-nothing-to-something.72411/, but I'll just quickly recap this here:

Started selling first product February 2017,
messed up the shipment first, had little margin left, but sold out pretty quick,
made second shipment, sold better, better margins,
tried second product, was a mistake,
found new products that went well at first but supplier messed up, quality issues,
had to start over for some products and dump a batch of bad quality products in trash,
found new suppliers, some of them on trade shows, others reached out to me,
made new products, all of them with good margins,
inventory issues because selling too quick,
clients sending messages asking when it will be back in stock,
too many ideas for new products...

Status November 30th 2018:

View attachment 22661

Got notifications about this post, so I thought to post a small update.

As of today:



Profit: about 31% incl PPC.

 

[maverick]

I've also taken the course. My thoughts:

1- Amazon FBA process
@biophase walked us through the entire process of product selection down to actually launching/selling on amazon. This in itself was worth more than what we paid for.

It has enabled all students to find, source and launch a (profitable) product on amazon FBA. biophase guided us to seek out good products to start with, provided us with advice and saved us from many mistakes. The direct access to him (+other former students) has proven invaluable. Having a group of likeminded people to talk to is also great fun.

2- Thinking longterm: Build a brand
The most important thing I've learnt is to change your mindset. Don't look for products to launch on amazon to make a quick buck. Focus on the longterm. Build something that will last for years and years.

Once this truly sets in, you start to notice that all successful posters here share the same mantra. Check out the posts on the inside if you don't believe me. @JasonR is one of the great examples. Or @Scot, @Carol Jones and the list goes on and on...

I currently have 2 products on amazon and got 2 more products in the (short term) pipeline. All in the same niche. This niche has proven to be a good starting point however I've not realized that this does not fit my longterm thinking.

I want to own a product line that will sell on multiple channels (amazon being 1 of them). To do that, I truly have to create a product that is better than anything that is out there. So I'm doing that now.

Hired a 3d modeler to create a 3d model of a product that I've been using for years. I know how to improve it and reading the bad reviews on amazon has validated that thinking. Currently 3d printing the first prototype.

Will post a progress thread on the inside in the new year once this starts rolling.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[StompingAcorns]

1- Amazon FBA process
@biophase walked us through the entire process of product selection down to actually launching/selling on amazon. This in itself was worth more than what we paid for.

Pretty much ditto to @maverick. When you know you're being led by someone who has been wildly successful, it removes a lot of doubt, fear, and risk. That is priceless.

It took 11 mo. and $5k to get my first SKU online. I then made a small improvement to my first SKU. After two years, I have two SKUs and half a dozen samples for my third (a major, unrelated project this year delayed my progress by about 6 months). I turned a profit during my first order of 500. I now have a warehouse. It still kind of freaks me out to say that. All while working full time.

I have a huge backlog of things-to-do-and-new-things-to-learn, and I just slog through them as I have time and try to stay focused on the most important value add activities. Even this mild success has skyrocketed my confidence in my ability to create a profitable business. Again - priceless.

The camaraderie and continued help among the group - also priceless.

The next time you see a similar opportunity, are you going to hesitate, or are you going to jump? I can tell you that if anyone had said to me a few years ago that I'd be doing this, I would have told them that they were batshit crazy. But when I saw the opportunity, I intuitively knew the benefits that would come from it, whether I was successful or not, and I Jumped. I'm glad I did.

Thank you, @biophase! (Can you tell how inadequate those words are?)

 

[Mr_Maravish]

I need to find a bank to rob.

Makes two of us!

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[MJ DeMarco]

Approved, good luck.

Anyone interested, check out his prior program here:

Marketplace - Biophase - Introducing My Ecommerce/Amazon Business Coaching Program

 

[maverick]

Sent in my application. Who's going to outsell me?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[maverick]

@biophase how are you clients living in Europe doing when compared to the ones who are living in the USA?

Are the ones living in Europe facing problems related to their location that's hindering their process?

There are plenty of people making a (good) living with AWS whilst not being physically present in US. This is just another problem that needs to be solved.

I'm based in Europe. I've signed up. No more excuses.

 

[maverick]

I would love to join a program like this next year, if you would offer it. My timing sucks.

If biophase would do the program again next year, that gives you 6-7 months to get the money together. Every year people say the same thing that you've just said however only few people actually follow-through and join the program the year after.

 

[AceVentures]

Biophase, any chance for coaching going into 2020? I know that things have likely changed for you since the last post, and that your schedule for 2020 is booked up with bigger/more interesting projects. However, if you still hope to continue giving back in this fashion, I'd love to join the group for coaching.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Mr_Maravish]

I have decided to do the coaching program again in 2018​

I was on the fence for the past month, but seeing a bunch of last year's clients doing well and even selling out their products during the holiday season made me decide to do this next year!

Below are results from four of my 2017 clients. Keep in mind that mpst of these numbers are from just 3-4 months of selling.

View attachment 17234

The format will be the same as last years. Conference on Sunday nights for 2 months and then private coaching for the next 4 months. In addition, you will be invited into a private Facebook group with me and all the past participants.

This program length is about 6 months long (January 14, 2018 to June 30, 2018). Yes, there's an end date, but quite honestly once you are in the Facebook group I will continue to answer your questions. I am still in contact with the 2016 and 2017 group.

I've found that the schedule works out very well because February is Chinese New Year so nobody gets quotes or samples anyway. So we learn about product selection and then really start doing the actual work in March-June. People get their products around September and get a few months under their belt until the holiday season hits.

The general timeline will look like this:

January and February - Weekly group calls where we will discuss product selection and help you determine what is good, bad, easy and hard to sell online and most importantly why. We will discuss potential products and some case studies of my own products to help you all understand how I choose my products.

I also wanted to make the product selection phase longer so that clients aren't pressured to choosing something because they feel that they are running out of time. In 2017 some clients didn't find their product until May or June.

March-May - Clients should be on their way to select a product. In this phase they we be speaking with a supplier and getting samples. At this point, we will move towards the 1 on 1 coaching. I am doing 1 on 1 because I don't know if every client will want to reveal their product selection to the others. This is always a sensitive area and I would error on the side of privacy.

June+ Clients should usually have placed their initial production order by this time. There is alot of waiting at this point.

Products arrive and we list on Amazon. We will optimize listings and sell!

Communication between you and me

· Weekly group call coaching sessions in Jan. and Feb. Calls will be on Sunday nights. They last about 2 hours.
· 1 on 1 weekly coaching calls from Mar. to June.
· Unlimited email communications
· Access to private Facebook Group (all new clients and past clients are eligible to join, what you divulge in there is up to you)

What you will learn​

Product selection – This is the most important choice you can make as it will shape your business in the month’s to come. We are not picking any AMZ seller products. We will be hand choosing products that have little or no competition and likely will not have many in the future. Amazon gets more competitive every year, so product selection is critical. That is why we are spending 2-3 months on this part.

Importing – We will go over the process of getting samples all the way to importing your first production order.

Everything Amazon – Everything you need to know about selling on Amazon. We will not be using any review groups to launch.

Everything Ecommerce – I will help you set up your own ecommerce store on Shopify or Bigcommerce. You will need your own store as we are building a real business, not an Amazon business.

Photography – I will teach you how to take photos with your smart phone and edit them with free editing software. This is a very important part of your listing.

General value add strategy – Changing your thought process to care about value vs. profit.

Cost​

The price for this coaching program is $8,000 USD. The full payment amount is due upfront.

Other Requirements​

You should also have at least $3,000 (preferably $6,000) to spend on your first inventory order.

What results you should expect​

If you end up with a business that is profiting $500-$1500 a month with one product on Amazon, I would call our time together a huge success.

We are not trying to find you a $10,000/mo product. We will find a decent product that is profitable and relatively easy to sell with little or no competition.

I want to make your life easier and lower its stress, not help you battle in the trenches of Amazon warfare. If you want to do that, just save your money and start a supplement company.

I am trying to teach you skills that you can use to replicate what we’ve done. I am teaching you how to think, not what to think or what to do. Therefore, if you have one decent product, you can find another one.

OK, Let's be real​

Yes, you are paying me alot of money. But spending money and attending group calls does not make you successful. You must be willing to work hard, but more importantly you must be willing to think and exercise your brain. There's going to be alot of stuff that suddenly makes sense and you wonder why you didn't think of that. That is your brain thinking and changing its thought process.

You may be running the numbers and thinking, geez $8k and he's finding me a product that makes $500/mo. That's like 16 months to get my money back. Well, that's not the point of this course. If we find a $500/mo product, you should be looking for another $500/mo product after this program is over. The point is for you to leave with a some startup business and more importantly, for you to leave with a better brain inside your head that can generate hundreds of $500/mo products for life.

I will help you find and source a product, set goals and answer all your questions, but I cannot guarantee your success.

I can only put you in a position to succeed and you must do the rest. I am also not a babysitter, so I will not be contacting you if miss calls or are not contacting me. Some products will take longer than others to develop, improve, rank or sell and may take longer than 6 months to fully mature.

Application Form​

If you have read this far and would like to apply for my coaching program, please visit Kenric Ecommerce Coaching Form and fill out the application form.

I will be reviewing applications from now until December 25th. I will notify clients if they have been accepted on December 26th. Full payment will be required by January 6th.

But serious question Kenric, Do you accept financial aid?

 

[1stclassballer]

Sorry, this is not happening again. My coaching store is officially closed.

Man, this sucks. Especially since I had saved 10k to go through the program. Anyway, I did launch a product on Amazon in May in a small market using the criteria you use as stated in your threads and I'm glad to say I made a 2k profit after 1k in costs, after 6 months. Not much, but I proved to myself that it can be done. I'm hungry and want more and so I was planning on launching a few more products under your direct guidance.

Thank you so much @biophase for the knowledge you have given away freely in the forum. It has been eye opening and life changing. If you ever open up your coaching program again, I'll be the 1st to sign up.

 

[jon.a]

Speaker phone?

Hey Kenric,

All of my capital and focus will be on product development this year, but I do have a question - I might be looking to supplement my products with others in an ecommerce business, and my wife is heavily interested in ecommerce as well. If you do the program next year, would you be open to coaching a couple simultaneously?

 

[StartUpDavid]

Good luck to all the students in this program. Timing is everything. Look forward to the next coaching opportunity from @biophase

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[amp0193]

Amazon FBA seems a bit tricky with the new tariffs and regulations on imports.

There's nothing tricky about new tariffs. It's just an x% increase on the cost. You don't have to do anything different or special.

Just cross-check your product against a list of tarriffs. Factor that percentage into your costs, and carry on.

 

[NewManRising]

I wish I had to dough to spare.

 

[DavidK]

@biophase

Thank you for taking the time to offer coaching. Just wondering, I travel for work and am at a hotel 4-5 nights a week but usually home on weekends, I also work during the day but have 4-5 hours a night to give. Just wondering if the opportunity you present is feasible for my given situation, don't want to potentially take an opportunity away from someone else whom may be a better fit?

Thank You

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[kestrel]

@biophase , I have submitted my application and I am hoping to be accepted. When next week to you plan to inform people who are interested if their application has been accepted.

 

[B. Cole]

Speaker phone?

Pretty much, just thought it courteous to ask. Inevitably, we’d each have questions, but would respect the time boundaries.

 

[TrowelHead]

I'm in - if there are still any spots? K - i emailed you just now.

My personal goal is to use this as a second/side business (already have a successful ecom business) and i want to generate $1500 monthly profit by this time next year

That number is quite specific, as it's what i need to cover the costs on my new toy (Audi RS6 Performance)

Cheers!

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[jacksparrow]

Damn! I wish I hadn't missed this! Looking forward to the next mentoring programme. All the best to those on the programme

 

[Daniel.]

@biophase any chance of being able to talk to you privately about a product? I will pay for your time.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[ygtrhos]

I would love to join a program like this next year, if you would offer it. My timing sucks.

 

[KLaw]

Any testimonials or progress threads from anyone who took this course?