How to Start a Successful Dropshipping Store
Over the last couple of years, I’ve made millions of dollars with dropshipping and, more importantly, helped hundreds of thousands of people start their first successful store. So today, I’m going to condense my 7 years of experience into an easy-to-follow guide that you can use to start your first successful store this year.
And it all starts with finding a winning product.
The 3 Principles of a Winning Product
Product research methods change every year, but if you understand the three principles of a winning product, you’ll be able to spot opportunities everywhere.
This is the difference between beginners and experts: experts understand these principles.
- Trending Recently
- Look for products that are starting to pop off in the last couple of days.
- The key is not being the first to sell something, but catching it just as it starts to go viral.
- As a beginner, you don’t want to be first because you lack marketing knowledge. Having competitors gives you inspiration and clarity on what’s already working.
- Solves a Real Problem
- Avoid gimmicky toys or throwaway products.
- Focus on products that actually make life better, something you’d buy for yourself or family.
- My biggest winner? A product called The Sleep Band, a sleep mask with built-in headphones. It solved insomnia problems, helped people relax, and generated nearly $2 million in sales.
- The best niches to target:
- Health
- Appearance
- Safety of pets and children
- Not Easily Available Everywhere
- If someone thinks they can just grab it at Amazon, Walmart, or Target, they won’t buy from your store.
- Look for unique products that stand out, something you’d personally gift or use.
Finding a product that checks all three boxes isn’t easy, but once you do, you’re in business.
Where to Find Winning Products
The best strategy right now: take products going viral on TikTok and run them on Facebook ads.
Why?
- TikTok Shop made it harder to run TikTok ads, since TikTok is pushing its own sellers.
- But this created opportunity: TikTok feeds are flooded with products.
- We can take those viral products and move them over to Facebook where competition is less intense.
Method 1: Manual TikTok Scrolling
- Create a new TikTok account and engage with product-selling videos.
- Comment, like, and even buy a product to train the algorithm.
- Over time, your feed will be full of viral products.
- Downside: inconsistent and time consuming.
Method 2: Use a Spy Tool (Recommended)
- My favorite: AutoDS.
- Features include:
- A powerful ad spy tool that compiles top TikTok ads.
- Filters (e.g., last 7 days, sorted by likes) to surface the hottest products.
- Additional tools like AI store builder and fulfillment systems.
- Example: Recently, I found an AI translating earbud using AutoDS. It just launched, solves a huge problem, and isn’t widely available, the definition of a winning product.
Store Setup: One-Product Store (With a Twist)
Once you’ve found your product, the next step is building your store.
The best setup for 2023: a one-product store.
- Customers trust you more when your store looks like it was built for one specific product.
- But instead of naming your store after the product (e.g., “AI Earbuds”), give it a broad name so you can test other products without rebuilding everything.
Pro Tips:
- Keep the design clean and simple (white, black, minimal branding).
- Focus the website entirely on the product, no distractions.
- Use a theme like Shrine Theme (highly recommended for conversions).
This setup allows you to:
- Test new products quickly.
- Repackage the same store if one product fails.
Ad Strategy: Testing with Facebook Ads
Now that you have a product and a store, it’s time to launch ads.
- Start Simple
- One campaign.
- One ad set with broad targeting.
- Test 5–10 creatives (videos).
- Budget: $20–$50/day.
- Creatives Are Key
- Repurpose TikTok Shop videos to test quickly.
- Once a product shows promise, create your own custom content to stay safe long-term.
- Analyze the Data
- No clicks? Your video or ad copy needs work.
- Clicks but no sales? Improve your website and offer.
- Nothing happening at all? Reassess the product and campaign setup.
Ads aren’t just an expense, they’re data. Learning to read that data is the fastest way to grow.
The Truth About Dropshipping
One product can change your life.
I’ve lived it, and I’ve seen countless others succeed with it. But the key is persistence: keep testing until you find that one winner.
For me, this may be the last dropshipping video/blog I create. It’s not that I dislike dropshipping, it’s just not what I do anymore, and this channel is heading in a new direction.
But if you’ve been with me since the OG dropshipping days, thank you. I appreciate you, and the best is yet to come.
