Search any topic online and, invariably, one of the rabbit holes you’ll fall down is Reddit. While there are some trolls (hey, where aren’t they) you’ll find plenty of people sharing their legit skills and experience on an incredible array of topics.
This roundup, we look at ecommerce, which offers a fascinating slice-of-life look at a constantly growing industry. Some Redditors needed help getting their first online store off the ground, while others looked to spark discussions among fellow seven-figure ecommerce merchants.
Ecommerce tips, tricks & advice on Reddit
Riding along on this Reddit roundup reveals that ecommerce has caught on to the extent that online store Jedis are rubbing elbows with total noobs still getting their feet wet.
Whales wanted for six-figure advice
It might seem far-fetched to see dan_obrien casually polling users to see who else is pulling six figures in monthly recurring revenue. Or maybe not, with Statista reporting that last year global ecommerce sales hit $5.2 trillion and are forecast to top $8.1 trillion by 2026.
Whale spotting: does anyone in this subreddit do over $100k MRR? What is ONE tip you're willing to share with the eCommerce community?
If so, how much $$$ are you bringing in and what product category do you operate in?
What is one piece of advice you'd give to others seeking to scale to your level?
According to panache123, content is still king. And that makes total sense, as we’ve seen tons of cool, new content platforms emerge lately. It would seem people’s thirst for convenient shopping might be matched only by their desire for fresh content online.
Best month so far is $200k (but I also work for a 9 figure brand).
If ads are your thing, invest in a consistent pipeline of content. A real mix. Unboxings, UGC, product demos, customer reactions, helpful how to content, etc. Syndicate that content (TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YT Shorts, etc) to make it go further organically. Whitelist where possible. Collaborate with customers / content creators where possible to leverage their audience too.
Crypto for ecommerce?
Here we see rayban2602 musing about online stores accepting crypto alongside other payment methods. Hmm… On one hand, it’s never a bad idea to offer shoppers a smooth checkout experience. But on the other, ecommerce merchants might find themselves scrambling to keep up with crypto’s value – which can fluctuate dozens of points in as little as 24 hours.
What are your thoughts/experiences with having crypto as a mode of payment for ecommerce sites?
I am currently developing an online marketplace and given the surge in popularity for crypto, I am actually surprised by how few online marketplaces/ecommerce sites actually accept crypto tokens/coins as forms of payments. I know BTC or ETH might not be viable due to the high volatility but then there are other stablecoins that are pegged to real-world currencies like USD or EUR. Curious to know if you all have had experiences accepting them or reasons for not doing so.
This ain’t no thang, according to leggggggggy, who anticipates a growing adoption of crypto as a payment method.
I think there is no harm in doing it. The product you sell and the customers that come to your store will probably have a big influence on how much it is used. I would expect it to be used very little currently, but I expect usage to keep increasing.
I'm looking at integrating bitcoin/lightening payments using open node if you are worried about volatility, you can have open node exchange for usd instantly upon receiving payment.
Also, if I was receiving btc as payment, I would do so with the expectation of hodling indefinitely and not exchanging for usd until the tax situation is more favorable.
Put me in, coach!
For SA4000bomb, ecommerce seems like a sweet gig, but the barrier to entry – especially knowledge-wise – is a bit high. It almost seems worth paying a coach to help get that online store off the ground. Anyone agree?
i've got no experience, should i follow an Ecommerce coach?
I 18M, have 0 experience with Ecommerce or marketing. I mainly want to find ways to become financially independent as i don't have any ideas for university what to do. Stocks seems too hard and Ecommerce seems doable, because i have no experience with this i am thinking about taking coaching from Alex Fedotoff's team where they will guide me from start to finish and test methods with me. I have yet to get a plan from his team and it's price, but i do know startup price is around 7000 euro's. While i have 37k to spare, keep in mind i've never done payments over 1000 euros at a time so this is a pretty big investment / gamble for me.
I aim to try and make 3-5k per month because i currently do not have many monthly costs so becoming financially independent right now might not be as hard as later in life. But I might be a bit naive thinking i might succeed in such a large ocean of competitor
For those who already have done stuff in ecommerce and have had ups and downs. Could you recommend this decision to me or not? Is it good that i try to take a risk when i am still this young or is it a bad gamble?
However, Skytscular was quick to point out that the internet is full of useful (and often free) resources to jump-start a venture online. Just start Googling and the answers will come!
You can learn it all for free on the internet.
LEARN ON DEMAND; Meaning, take action now and when you get stuck, search up that problem and move on. Rinse and repeat.
With a new online store on the way, patmcdill started to wonder about front-loading SEO before a full-on launch. It’s an interesting question, as it’s clearly important to get revenue streaming in, as soon as possible, to offset expenses.
New ecommerce site SEO
Advice needed.
I have a few months to build a site selling products. I want it to gain high DA, Backlinks and Org. traffic. I know I have to build a well-structured, well-built, content-rich site. My problem is logistically, I will not be able to ship any products for 6 months as they will not be ready.
How can I build a site full of content, and gain authority but not ship goods?
I am thinking noindex the sales pages - hiding the online basket.
Or getting people to a sales click and then hitting them with a Coming soon and lead capture form.
These are my ideas, but all thoughts and feedback welcome.
Nobody stepped up to validate this idea, but noor_deepsingh offered a rundown of some solid SEO fundamentals. It’s an interesting conundrum, though, as digital marketing can quickly become its own job, rather than merely a supporting function.
Follow normal SEO process like add keywords, Meta tags, content.
Add a blog section on your website and start posting some trending topics there. Then keep promoting them on different channels in order to boost DA and to gain traffic.
Add a zip code button to each product page. When a user will add zip code, notify them with a message "Out of stock for your location, please add your Gmail and we will get back to you with a solution asap"
Do limited promotion of collection and product pages.
Online store pet peeves
No matter what line of work you’re in, some aspects of the job just suck. It’s likely why syniczFx wanted to hear about some of the low points in the ecommerce game. Better to know ahead of time what you’re getting into, amiright?
What Do You Hate Most Running An Ecommerce Biz?
Hi everyone! I'm just curious what are some of the things you absolutely hate about running an Ecommerce business?
Hope this might be useful for those seeking to enter this industry.
For Logistisch, it’s a pain managing all the myriad apps and channels involved in ecommerce. How nice would it be if all that clutter could be managed from a single platform? (Just sayin’...)
(For me) it’s messy. Lots to learn. It seems so easy but there’s so many moving parts you don’t think about until you start coming across it and organizing.
Trying to get out of the weeds
It’s concerning for kw_hipster that so many hours have gone into an ecommerce project with so little to show for it. Is this normal for a fledgling online store? Or is too much time being wasted? The world waits with bated breath…
Is my progress reasonable in starting eCommerce brand?
Hello,
I have been working towards opening an eCommerce store. I have been working on this for about 6 months while maintaining a young family and a full-time job. I put an hour a day in the morning (7 hours a week) into this project.So far I spent roughly 100 hours in niche research (researching industry, customer persona, etc) and about 40 hours so far in product research (and learning to use Jungle Scout) to find suitable products from wholesalers and dropship suppliers.
I want to really quantify and manage the risk, but at the same time I sometimes feel my progress is slow or I am suffering paralysis analysis.
Could anyone with experience in e-Commerce give me your thoughts?
EDIT: Thanks for everyones' thoughts and advice. The overall sentiment is I should be doing something tangible and not just research.
It seems like too much time is spent lost in the weeds, according to thearchitect1209. Ecommerce ain’t rocket science: just find a product people love and sell the heck out of it. THEN worry about advanced stuff like drop-shipping.
I just don’t understand why people struggle to see that drop shipping will never make a sustainable business model. You will never see a big e-commerce brand use dropshipping.
Put money aside, source your own products to your own hands. Study marketing because effectively you can pretty much sell anything if you market well. Learn the algorithms on all social media platforms you will launch on.
Understand customer retention strategies. Learn campaigning, USP and influencer marketing.
There are a lot more ecommerce tips, tricks & advice out there
If you’re kicking off your online venture, Reddit can be a great resource (as well as this blog). But don’t stop there. The internet is a great big place, and you’re sure to find people ready to help you along.
And if you’re looking for a head start, don’t forget to post your questions in the GoDaddy Community. It’s not just about our products — people from all walks of life are covering a huge range of topics. You’re sure to find an answer or three.