I Tried TikTok Dropshipping For 14 Days (From Scratch)

Introduction

In this article, I will share my experience diving into the world of dropshipping using TikTok as a primary marketing tool, all while starting with just $ 500. I challenged myself to launch a store and reach $ 5,000 in sales within two weeks, relying solely on a brand-new product and without any of my previous successes. Here’s how it unfolded.

The Challenge Setup

I embarked on this challenge with a structured plan. The rules were straightforward: I had two weeks to generate $ 5,000 in sales from a store built from scratch, using just $ 500 as my initial investment. If I failed, I would give $ 500 to a random subscriber. The first step? Finding a viable product.

Finding the Right Product

To pinpoint a product, I scoured TikTok for trends by searching terms like “Amazon finds” and “TikTok made me buy it.” After sifting through numerous unprofitable products for hours, I finally settled on a Wi-Fi door sensor. My criteria for this product included:

1. Advertising Potential: I needed something easy to showcase in ads.
2. Profit Margins: The product must be profitable enough against competitors.
3. Evergreen: A product that has year-round appeal.
4. Cool Factor: Something that could generate buzz.

After purchasing the item on Amazon, I was ready to create my online store.

Building the Store

The first day was dedicated to setting up my Shopify store. I named the product "Lock Sensor," crafted a simple logo using Canva, and created a cohesive layout. I imported reviews to build credibility and set a competitive price, aiming for a five-times margin compared to the supplier cost. Encouragingly, I implemented options for bundle purchases to increase the average order value.

Content Creation and Marketing

Day two involved creating content. I aimed to produce around 15-20 TikToks to post consistently over the following days. However, I soon found that relying solely on organic TikTok posts wasn’t good enough, as the account was new and lacked followers, causing difficulties in converting views to sales.

Shifting to Paid Advertising

After only a few days of poor performance with organic posts, I pivoted and allocated the remaining budget to paid advertising. I initiated a campaign and slowly started generating sales, leading to my first order within a few days. However, as the campaign progressed, I faced challenges with ad disapprovals and had to appeal for reinstatements.

Sales and Challenges

As time passed, it became clear that the most significant hurdle was product saturation and high competition in the market. I recorded only a few sales, and eventually faced a refund request for multiple units, further impacting profitability.

By day eight of the challenge, I had seven sales, but ongoing losses from ad spending began to mount. Despite implementing strategies to improve upselling and increase average order values, the sales weren’t generating enough revenue to sustain the business.

Conclusion

After evaluating my situation on day nine, I made the strategic decision to close the store and acknowledge this product wasn’t viable for the current market. It's essential to understand that dropshipping is a low-risk method for testing products, and sometimes it’s better to pivot rather than to continue investing money in what isn’t working.

I rolled out an opportunity for my subscribers to win the $ 500, as established at the beginning of the challenge. The key takeaways for anyone interested in dropshipping include choosing the right product, being flexible with marketing strategies, and recognizing when to cut your losses.

Keyword

Keywords: Dropshipping, TikTok, Store, Organic Marketing, Advertising, Product Research, Profit Margins, Ecommerce, Sales, Shopify.

FAQ

Q1: What is dropshipping?
A: Dropshipping is a retail fulfillment method where a store doesn’t keep the products it sells in stock. Instead, when you sell a product, you purchase the item from a third party and have it shipped directly to the customer.

Q2: How did you find the product to sell?
A: I used TikTok to search for trending products by looking at videos related to Amazon finds and popular purchases.

Q3: Why did you decide to switch to paid advertising?
A: Organic posts on TikTok were not gaining enough traction due to my new account having no social proof. Paid advertising helped to drive traffic directly to my store.

Q4: What are the key factors in choosing a product for dropshipping?
A: Look for products with good profit margins, advertising potential, and evergreen appeal. Consideration of market saturation is also crucial.

Q5: What would you do differently in future challenges?
A: I would focus on product selection more carefully, prioritize creating effective advertising content early, and implement strategies for upselling before launching the store.