From Zero to One! A 30 Day Challenge in E-commerce

[Brian C.]

As always, any advice provided on this forum is not only welcome, but much appreciated.

While I've been a bystander for the majority of the posts so far, I'd like to add my 2 cents.

All of you are right. You MUST devote yourself to any business. It's THE Cardinal rule.

I get it. And I believe @Nomangee does as well. We really do. It's why I devote 7 days a week to building my agency. It's why a "night out" means sipping a couple of cold ones and working on my business. Even when I take a break (like I am now), I find myself on this forum educating myself further.

We have other priorities. My priorities include building a copywriting agency, and for @Nomangee it's web design. Days off are (and have been) a thing of the past.

We aren't re-inventing the wheel. We are sourcing products to determine market interest. That's it. Yes, we've built our own platform of distribution (our website), but it's cost us only 90 minutes a day - nothing remarkable! We've allocated $0 to the site. None. Just time (which does have a price). We are ready to sell on eBay and Amazon, and already have accounts set for it. We are doing everything to prep for the arrival of our samples.

Why would we devote "days of time" to a product we haven't even received yet? We don't even know how the market will respond! What if there is no need? We just don't know yet!

Fortunately, @Nomangee and I are two puzzle pieces made for each other. I know copywriting, have some experience in dealing with manufacturers, and am able to distribute our products effectively. @Nomangee had the vision to source these products, knows web design, and is learning how to effectively advertise in lieu of our product samples.

I believe the "challenge" here was to show others that even with limited time, it can be done. And we are doing it. Even with all of the daily: time constraints, distractions, obstacles, and action-faking, we are trying to make it happen. We are doing it.

 

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[Nomangee]

ThanksElon's Muskfor articulating our motives more profound and in greater detail.

Update Day 8,9 and 10

1. Facebook:

Created again the Facebook Business account.

Setup the whole Ad once again and now can set it live, when the products arrive.


2. Shop:

We finished completely setting up the Shop.

Elon's Muskbought the Domain, linked it with our Shop and then finished the copywriting for the whole website.

I did the last design and development changes.

Only part that is missing is the Upsell plugin, which I will add when the products arrive.

Also created the exit intent Pop-up via SumoMe for free:


Takes like 10m to do so, really easy process.



Costs so far:

80$ worth of products from Aliexpress

10$ Domain

Shopify 60 days Trial

Upsell 30 days trial


Next Steps:

1. Wait for the Products to arrive

2. Setup the Upsell Plugin

3. Start the Facebook Ad

4. Wait for the first Sale to Happen

5. Sum Up the Challenge with Stats

 

[miked_d]

80$ worth of products from Aliexpress

Using Aliexpress is not a good idea. The prices are high and more importantly it is unlikely you will get consistency between orders.

Read some of @Walter Hay 's threads.

 

[Walter Hay]

Using Aliexpress is not a good idea. The prices are high and more importantly it is unlikely you will get consistency between orders.

Read some of @Walter Hay 's threads.

Don't forget that Aliexpress is a retail site, a bit like eBay. Many of the products sold there are sourced from another Chinese site that I won't name, where liquidation and reject stocks are sold. Quality doesn't enter into the thinking of the vendors on Aliexpress.

Feedback quoted on Aliexpress is a farce, and despite the descriptions of their factories, you will often be dealing with someone who operates out of their bedroom, and can and will change their business name in a flash if they get complaints.

Aliexpress vendors are the subject of literally thousands of online complaints. I'll publish links for evidence of that if anyone wants to look through thousands of tales of woe. I can think of other sites worse to deal with, but Aliexpress are close to the top.

Walter

 

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[Y.B.]

Don't forget that Aliexpress is a retail site, a bit like eBay. Many of the products sold there are sourced from another Chinese site that I won't name, where liquidation and reject stocks are sold. Quality doesn't enter into the thinking of the vendors on Aliexpress.

Feedback quoted on Aliexpress is a farce, and despite the descriptions of their factories, you will often be dealing with someone who operates out of their bedroom, and can and will change their business name in a flash if they get complaints.

Aliexpress vendors are the subject of literally thousands of online complaints. I'll publish links for evidence of that if anyone wants to look through thousands of tales of woe. I can think of other sites worse to deal with, but Aliexpress are close to the top.

Walter

Aliexpress may not be the best solution, but it's not the worst. It's a good way to start to test out products. A lot of people make a lot of money reselling aliexpress products.

Alibaba is the wholesale division of aliexpress. Not sure if that is what Walter is referring to. There's a few other wholesale sites like DHGate but alibaba is the 800lb gorilla. I've ordered products from aliexpress for myself and have been happy with what I received.

 

[Waspy]

Using Aliexpress is not a good idea. The prices are high and more importantly it is unlikely you will get consistency between orders.

Read some of @Walter Hay 's threads.

This

When I was in school, my business studies teacher put us in groups of 3 and gave each group £100 to start a business. My group decided to buy from Aliexpress and sell on eBay (not dropshipping). We found a supplier of a product we liked (copycat Apple headphones, no claims of being genuine or any of that nonsense mind) and bought a couple hundred sets. 3 weeks later they arrived, we stuck them on eBay and sold them at about £1 profit each. They sold out in a day, in a completely saturated market. Man we were SO excited. We just made £200 in a day. Boom, lets buy a couple hundred more sets and do it again. So we did. However this time (same supplier) the headphones were completely different, utterly unsaleable. We went through the returns process and heard nothing. 6 months later we were given half our money back, by which point school had broken up along with our hopes for the business.

We were still the most profitable group in the class though. At 15 years of age, none of this was good business, but it is a little story about Aliexpress, and how they almost ruined my entire childhood.

 

[Walter Hay]

Aliexpress may not be the best solution, but it's not the worst. It's a good way to start to test out products. A lot of people make a lot of money reselling aliexpress products.

Alibaba is the wholesale division of aliexpress. Not sure if that is what Walter is referring to. There's a few other wholesale sites like DHGate but alibaba is the 800lb gorilla. I've ordered products from aliexpress for myself and have been happy with what I received.

DHGate is more of a mixture, with numerous retailers just like most Aliexpress vendors, a lot of traders, and some manufacturers. DHGate has an even worse reputation than Aliexpress.

I don't say every vendor on either of those sites is a scammer or sells low quality or faulty goods, but it happens so often that I would never consider buying from vendors on either of those sites.

Here are some of the sites where you can browse through the many thousands of complaints from unhappy customers. You won't find such complaints on the feedback on Aliexpress because they won't publish adverse feedback.
https://www.sitejabber.com/reviews/www.aliexpress.com
https://www.influenster.com/reviews/aliexpresscom
www.resellerratings.com/store/AliExpress
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.aliexpress.com
https://aliexpress.pissedconsumer.com/

For a general introductory observation on reasons to be wary, see the original post on my thread:
Why newbies should avoid Alibaba, DHGate, Tradekey, Aliexpress, madeinchina.com, EC21, TTNet.net,
Note: I refer there to Alibaba's escrow but that has been changed several times and is now replaced by Trade Assurance.

Walter

 

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[Brian C.]

This

When I was in school, my business studies teacher put us in groups of 3 and gave each group £100 to start a business. My group decided to buy from Aliexpress and sell on eBay (not dropshipping). We found a supplier of a product we liked (copycat Apple headphones, no claims of being genuine or any of that nonsense mind) and bought a couple hundred sets. 3 weeks later they arrived, we stuck them on eBay and sold them at about £1 profit each. They sold out in a day, in a completely saturated market. Man we were SO excited. We just made £200 in a day. Boom, lets buy a couple hundred more sets and do it again. So we did. However this time (same supplier) the headphones were completely different, utterly unsaleable. We went through the returns process and heard nothing. 6 months later we were given half our money back, by which point school had broken up along with our hopes for the business.

We were still the most profitable group in the class though. At 15 years of age, none of this was good business, but it is a little story about Aliexpress, and how they almost ruined my entire childhood.

£200 in one day for a student at 15? Wow. And then to have it taken away? I would've needed to see professional help.

Despite the slight exaggeration, that really sucks.

Fortunately, we only ordered 10 of each product - 2 total.

We aren't sourcing from AliExpress. Just testing products to then go source. We figure 10 of each, what do we have to lose? If they work, we'll place sample orders from a supplier with branding, packaging, etc. included.

Sure, in hindsight we could've placed a "sample order" from Alibaba. It's true. Might've been a better option. AliExpress is convenient though. And in my experience, a large percentage of Alibaba vendors sell on AliExpress. Not all, but some. Some you can trace back to Alibaba.

And who knows if we'll even use Alibaba. @Walter Hay recommends other alternatives in his book (my importing bible).

I've sourced other products, so I feel somewhat comfortable in this stage. It's just for now, we are testing the market and how they respond.

 

[Walter Hay]

This

When I was in school, my business studies teacher put us in groups of 3 and gave each group £100 to start a business. My group decided to buy from Aliexpress and sell on eBay (not dropshipping). We found a supplier of a product we liked (copycat Apple headphones, no claims of being genuine or any of that nonsense mind) and bought a couple hundred sets. 3 weeks later they arrived, we stuck them on eBay and sold them at about £1 profit each. They sold out in a day, in a completely saturated market. Man we were SO excited. We just made £200 in a day. Boom, lets buy a couple hundred more sets and do it again. So we did. However this time (same supplier) the headphones were completely different, utterly unsaleable. We went through the returns process and heard nothing. 6 months later we were given half our money back, by which point school had broken up along with our hopes for the business.

We were still the most profitable group in the class though. At 15 years of age, none of this was good business, but it is a little story about Aliexpress, and how they almost ruined my entire childhood.

Thanks for the story from your real life experience. I have seen that bait and switch operation happen so many times. But because someone has been lucky enough to have made money buying from Aliexpress and selling at a profit, people disregard the advice about the real risks of dealing with those suppliers.

In fact one marketer's experience in buying from Aliexpress has formed the basis of his "expert" story upon which he and his friend have built a huge business selling a program on how to make big money buying from China, and thousands follow their advice - I suppose because they have paid big bucks for it.

Your mention of the copycat Apple headphones deserves comment. Just because they don't carry the brand doesn't mean people who buy for resale, products that look like or use similar technology to big brand products, can avoid prosecution or litigation that in many cases has led to bankruptcy.

Copying the brand name is obviously taboo, but ..... Designs are often the subject of copyright. Out of sight technology is often patented. Colors are sometimes the subject of copyright.

I know of cases in which importers had refurbished second hand big brand products confiscated by Customs. There's no profit in that. The Customs authorities were probably on shaky ground in those cases, but who's going to risk their shirt on a legal challenge to recover the confiscated goods?

Walter

 

[Nomangee]

Don't forget that Aliexpress is a retail site, a bit like eBay. Many of the products sold there are sourced from another Chinese site that I won't name, where liquidation and reject stocks are sold. Quality doesn't enter into the thinking of the vendors on Aliexpress.

Thanks Walter for all your information, I already read through your thread before, but as this was more setup as a challenge, I wanted to get the products as fast as possible ordered, so I went for now with Aliexpress. After the initial test and if we go on with the niche, we would for sure go directly to the manufacturers, as I have also a friend who is importing products from China already for nearly a decade.

 

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[Nomangee]

Day 11

1. Products arrived

Finally all our products arrived like 2 days ago and today I had the time to make the last 90 minutes session.

2. Setup the Upsell plugin

I tried to use bold's Upsell plugin, but somehow that took too long to setup, so I went with an alternative, which still looks quite ok.

3. Setup the FB page
Took me a few minutes to create pictures from the existing one I used for the website and at the end looked really good.

4. Started the Facebook Ad
Finally I could setup the campaign. I started with the interests I searched out before and didn't add anymore restrictions, then country US and to disable it on Instagram/Audiences.
Budget is 5€ per day and a few minutes after submitting it got approved.

Final Step:
We will run the Ad for now until we get the first sale and see how much profit we made on that one, then the challenge is so far over.

I still had on this 90 Minute window over 30 Minutes left, so we created a complete new shop with 2 products populated and a marketing plan in 90 minutes x11 Days, which I find stunning.

 

[Walter Hay]

Aliexpress may not be the best solution, but it's not the worst. It's a good way to start to test out products. A lot of people make a lot of money reselling aliexpress products.

Alibaba is the wholesale division of aliexpress. Not sure if that is what Walter is referring to. There's a few other wholesale sites like DHGate but alibaba is the 800lb gorilla. I've ordered products from aliexpress for myself and have been happy with what I received.

No I wasn't referring to Alibaba. There are in fact two Chinese sites, one of which is only published in Chinese, where liquidation and reject stocks are sold. I won't disclose which ones they are because I know of a few people who have lost their shirts using those sites.

I must add: Don't buy wholesale, buy direct from the manufacturers. There's good money to be made doing that.

Walter

 

[grindmode]

Lot's of haters why? A fun and time limited challenge.... I'm enjoying this. Do work!

 

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[New]

No I wasn't referring to Alibaba. There are in fact two Chinese sites, one of which is only published in Chinese, where liquidation and reject stocks are sold. I won't disclose which ones they are because I know of a few people who have lost their shirts using those sites.

I must add: Don't buy wholesale, buy direct from the manufacturers. There's good money to be made doing that.

Walter

How is it going until now?

Have you had any winning products/ads yet?

I was going the same route as you, aliexpress purchasing small amount of products, then testing, then finding manufacturer on Alibaba. Finally if it sells well ask the manufacturer to private-label the product.

Apparently it's not a good way, hmm. I wonder what the correct way is if your investment doesn't allow large purchases from Alibaba.

 

[strobe]

Just wondering why you chose to go with shopify instead of your bread and butter woocommerce that you said would have taken you no time to set up? That sounds like taking a step in the opposite direction...Giving control to shopify and learning a new platform.

 

[Cato]

Good thread.

I like the 90 minutes in day idea. I have found that when you have limited time to work, then you go to fast mode. You do what is most important and progress faster. When you have unlimited time, you might get too detail oriented and have small or not any significant progress at all.

Actually within 90 minutes (if you have experience), you could reg. domain, get hosting, install wordpress and woocommerce. And get your ecommerce to work- within that time. -Just did it myself.

90 minutes is not issue, when you have some budget - can delegate more.

I love the idea. Have great success!

 

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[Walter Hay]

How is it going until now?

Have you had any winning products/ads yet?

I was going the same route as you, aliexpress purchasing small amount of products, then testing, then finding manufacturer on Alibaba. Finally if it sells well ask the manufacturer to private-label the product.

Apparently it's not a good way, hmm. I wonder what the correct way is if your investment doesn't allow large purchases from Alibaba.

This post quotes my previous one, but I want to make it clear that I have never, and would never, buy through Aliexpress. With reservations I might use Alibaba, but those who use that site need to know that there is a lot of smoke and mirrors there.

Also, the idea that you need a lot of funds in order to buy from suppliers on Alibaba is a myth. You don't have to make large purchases, and I have a huge number of newbies who have learned how to buy small quantities there, without paying high prices.

As a starting point, you don't even ask what is the MOQ.

Walter

 

[New]

This post quotes my previous one, but I want to make it clear that I have never, and would never, buy through Aliexpress. With reservations I might use Alibaba, but those who use that site need to know that there is a lot of smoke and mirrors there.

Also, the idea that you need a lot of funds in order to buy from suppliers on Alibaba is a myth. You don't have to make large purchases, and I have a huge number of newbies who have learned how to buy small quantities there, without paying high prices.

As a starting point, you don't even ask what is the MOQ.

Walter

Hey,

Thank you a lot for the reply.

So can I ask then which supplier directories would you use then, or any pointer in the right direction?

I had understood that Alibaba is the largest directory, and if some supplier was on another one, they were also on Alibaba.

Thank you

 

[New]

Just wondering why you chose to go with shopify instead of your bread and butter woocommerce that you said would have taken you no time to set up? That sounds like taking a step in the opposite direction...Giving control to shopify and learning a new platform.

I believe Shopify is very easy to configure/set-up and that's why he chosen it, this way he can allocate more time to marketing and less to the technical stuff.

Besides, now a days it is one of the quickest developing platforms, with all the apps that are continuously appearing to improve the platform. You don't have that growth ratet with any other platform.

 

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[Walter Hay]

Hey,

Thank you a lot for the reply.

So can I ask then which supplier directories would you use then, or any pointer in the right direction?

I had understood that Alibaba is the largest directory, and if some supplier was on another one, they were also on Alibaba.

Thank you

Alibaba is certainly the biggest but despite their size they only have listed those companies willing to pay them. You can find different suppliers on other sites, and also in other places that are not B2B sites.

Sorry if it seems mean, but I don't publish them online. It is not just a matter of selling my book. There is a lot more to safe sourcing than using safe sites. I list 28 sites in my book, the majority being for countries other than China, and provide screen shots for a couple of them to help newbies work through the online forms. I also explain how to use some of the user-unfriendly sites.

As you can see from my AMA thread, I am providing a huge amount of specific information that could help anyone getting started in importing, depending on their level of knowledge and experience. I have also provided specific and detailed help to a number of members who contacted me direct.

I feel a sense of responsibility regarding offering advice to people who may rely on that advice when risking their very limited capital. I don't want to have them think that a safe site is all they need to know. I have been in this game for most of my life, and I have seen countless attempts fail. I want those who rely on me to succeed.

Safe sourcing has several aspects to it:

• Using safe sourcing practice.
  
• Using safe sourcing sites.
  
• Using due diligence.
  
• Knowing more about importing than finding a supplier and placing an order with fingers crossed. Believe me, I know of many who have approached it that way. Proof: They get scammed or they lose their shirts when they discover all the costs they did not know they had committed themselves to.

Walter

 

[johnconstantine]

Any update on how it's working out? Really curious. Hope its going well for you!

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