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Biophase - 2018 Ecommerce/Amazon Business Coaching Program

bilkar1985

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Javier.serrano1

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I am interested in this too, I also wonder how easy it would be to do it in Spain.

Also, if the methods learned work the same everywhere around the globe? USA is the biggest market so no idea how it would be in Europe
 

cautiouscapy

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I am interested in this too, I also wonder how easy it would be to do it in Spain.

Also, if the methods learned work the same everywhere around the globe? USA is the biggest market so no idea how it would be in Europe

Javier
Amazon across the whole European Marketplace has been good for me (though I only do it on a small scale, my choice). I learnt from someone running a course about the US marketplace so it would be worth you doing this.
 

biophase

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Sorry, this is not happening again. My coaching store is officially closed. :)
 
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1stclassballer

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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.
 

MetalGear

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

Hi @biophase

Are there any other coaches or training programs that you do recommend for Amazon FBA related ventures?

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

I am just finishing up my real estate house hacking project and aim to launch a product in 2019.
 
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biophase

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Hi @biophase

Are there any other coaches or training programs that you do recommend for Amazon FBA related ventures?

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

I am just finishing up my real estate house hacking project and aim to launch a product in 2019.

Honestly, I don't know because I've never looked at any other Amazon training programs in detail.
 

B_Mac

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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.
 

maverick

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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.
 
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amp0193

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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.
 

StompingAcorns

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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. :wideyed: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?)
 

vitality11

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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.
 
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Last edited:

Longinus

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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:

upload_2018-12-1_12-29-4.png
 

2legit2quit

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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
damn, late to the party lol
 

AceVentures

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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.
 
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whiterabbit

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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.
me too.
 

MoneyDoc

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Bump.

@biophase will this be available again? My brand is at a point where it will either be extremely successful or slowly start crumble...
 

biophase

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Longinus

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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:

29362

Profit: about 31% incl PPC.
 

biophase

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Smuggo

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maverick

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Got notified that somebody liked one of my old posts here so thought I would write an update. I'm a terrible writer so bare with me.

As noted in the previous posts, I setup an amazon account pushing 2 products. Both of them in the diamond sharpening stones business. I made a big list of suppliers (from Alibaba / made-in-china.com etc), put them all in Excel, and added all company details I could find for my due diligence. I whittled down the list to 10 potential suppliers and wrote to them asking them for samples. I did not mind paying for these samples and I did not try to get a discount or anything at this point.

Using the amazon FBA calculator (google it if you've never used it) I put together a first estimate of what my margins would look like. How much will I need to pay amazon to store/fulfill this item (based on a competitor ASIN), how much do I think the product will cost me (based on info I got from the suppliers) and how much money would I need to spend on amazon ads to get a sale.

Your job is to take this spreadsheet list of assumptions and start filling them in with concrete, real numbers. You start off with estimates (which is fine) but once you start going you need to fill this in. Rule number one: always know your margins.

Based on the 10 vendors that sent me samples, I selected a winner and placed my first order with them. As I went through the Amazon class of @biophase I had a freight forwarder lined up to ensure the freight would go from China => US smoothly.

The lessons so-far:
1- Know your margins
2- Don't be afraid to spend time up-front on selecting your vendor. Put together a due diligence process that works for you. Don't overanalyse but also don't just order from the first guy you find online.
3- A quality freight forwarder will save you a lot of headaches. Try to get a referral here. I'm assuming there will be a lot of low quality forwarders. It's easy when things go smoothly. It can be a real pain once it goes wrong (and it will go wrong ;-)

At this point in time I had already made 2 mistakes. If somebody is still reading this thread after all this time, let me know and I will write up part 2.
 

SeeYouAtTheTop

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Got notified that somebody liked one of my old posts here so thought I would write an update. I'm a terrible writer so bare with me.

As noted in the previous posts, I setup an amazon account pushing 2 products. Both of them in the diamond sharpening stones business. I made a big list of suppliers (from Alibaba / made-in-china.com etc), put them all in Excel, and added all company details I could find for my due diligence. I whittled down the list to 10 potential suppliers and wrote to them asking them for samples. I did not mind paying for these samples and I did not try to get a discount or anything at this point.

Using the amazon FBA calculator (google it if you've never used it) I put together a first estimate of what my margins would look like. How much will I need to pay amazon to store/fulfill this item (based on a competitor ASIN), how much do I think the product will cost me (based on info I got from the suppliers) and how much money would I need to spend on amazon ads to get a sale.

Your job is to take this spreadsheet list of assumptions and start filling them in with concrete, real numbers. You start off with estimates (which is fine) but once you start going you need to fill this in. Rule number one: always know your margins.

Based on the 10 vendors that sent me samples, I selected a winner and placed my first order with them. As I went through the Amazon class of @biophase I had a freight forwarder lined up to ensure the freight would go from China => US smoothly.

The lessons so-far:
1- Know your margins
2- Don't be afraid to spend time up-front on selecting your vendor. Put together a due diligence process that works for you. Don't overanalyse but also don't just order from the first guy you find online.
3- A quality freight forwarder will save you a lot of headaches. Try to get a referral here. I'm assuming there will be a lot of low quality forwarders. It's easy when things go smoothly. It can be a real pain once it goes wrong (and it will go wrong ;-)

At this point in time I had already made 2 mistakes. If somebody is still reading this thread after all this time, let me know and I will write up part 2.

Keep it going, I'm interested to see the results so far.
 

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