How to Start a Profitable TikTok Dropshipping Business With $100 or Less

A TikTok dropshipping business has the potential to earn you a full-time income. Dropshipping is a very lucrative online business venture when done right, and when you source buyers from the TikTok platform, the results are explosive. TikTok is not saturated, and organic content can generate massive traffic to your eCommerce store. Compare that to Facebook or Instagram, where organic reach is limited, and ads are not converting as they used to. 

The cost of generating content is low, meaning you do not require huge cash to start or grow your dropshipping business on this platform. If you are low on capital and are willing to put in the work, you can set up and run your TikTok dropshipping business for less than $100. 

The following steps will lead you to a profitable TikTok dropshipping business. 

1. Optimize Your Store 

The first thing you have to do is optimize your store for maximum sales. Make buying easy, and the product page should convert visitors easily. It is easy to start seeing results when you combine your shop with the TikTok platform. 

If you have over 1,000 followers on your TikTok account, you can have a link to your store in the bio section. Those with less than 1,000 followers can set up the link in their Instagram accounts. 

2. Choose a Great Product 

You will not make many sales if your product is not in high demand. So, product research is a necessary step before you settle on a dropshipping product. The following points will help you choose a great product to sell through your TikTok dropshipping business. 

Ensure the Product Has a Wow Factor 

The attention span of most linked users is low, hence the popularity of short videos. Having the product with a wow factor ensures your videos can capture attention, even if they are three seconds. Such products are also easy to market, making your work easier. 

It Must Be Unique on TikTok (While Still Having a High Demand)

If your chosen product is exclusive, even better. A quick search on Amazon should help determine if there is demand for your product. Check the positive ratings; if there are a lot, they are worth selling. But, before settling on it, check if you can get it for a reasonable price, leaving room for a good margin. 

Also, if the product is available on Amazon Prime, the competition may be a bit higher. The reason is they offer products at a much lower price and shipping time is shorter. 

3. Pick Suitable Video Content and Formats 

Screen grab of Ali showing the TikTok creator interface

Although running ads is an option, to do this with the least amount of money, go for organic content. In fact, on the TikTok ads manager, they have a helpful tip: don’t make ads, make TikToks. Since the platform is not yet saturated, the organic reach is excellent. 

Avoid content that looks like ads or that has still images and GIFs. Instead, go for short videos between 8 and 15 seconds, which is ideal for the platform. 

The idea of running contests is currently popular on the platform right now. Giving giveaways to the user who views a certain number of times and also comments is one way to generate engagement on your video. The strategy has given some videos in a certain campaign over 51k likes and another over 10.4 million likes. 

Even people not interested in the prize will engage with your video. You will likely get people asking about your product and where they can find it. 

4. Create Suitable Videos 

You can use content from various suppliers’ websites to make your videos. But the best idea is to get the product and use it to make your own videos. The type of video that does best on TikTok is the raw and organic kind. Don’t spend a lot on making high-quality videos for the platform. A video shot on your phone will perform much better. 

User-generated content is king when it comes to online marketing. You can include the following types of content: 

  • Testimonials 
  • Reviews 
  • Unboxing 
  • Product in use 
  • Creative such as silly/crazy scenarios 

If you want your video to go viral, have a catchy or even weird hook to get users’ attention. Videos of the product in use and creative giveaways seem to be attracting more attention. Include a different mix of content in your account for better reach. 

5. Engage With Your Followers 

Shoppers enjoying content from a TikTok dropshipping business

The more you engage with fans on this platform, the more the algorithm shows users your content. Engage with those commenting on your posts by answering questions and appreciating those who like your posts. The more people view your content, the higher your chances of converting for more revenue. 

If your account is new, engage with other niche accounts to show the algorithm you are active on the platform. 

6. Present the Prize to the Winners 

Some of the accounts running contests are unethical and don’t award prizes to the winners. But honoring your word and giving out the giveaway is an opportunity to promote your product. 

You can ask the winners to do a post using the product. Pin this on your TikTok page for extra credibility and also as a testimonial. 

7. Seek Professional Help 

Ali discussing how to get the best results for a TikTok dropshipping business

If you are not good at creating videos to promote your products, you can collaborate with other creators to help you make them. But the best option in such a case is to seek professional help for your TikTok dropshipping business. Ensure the person or company understands how the platform works, as it differs from the more common YouTube strategies. 

Alternatively, get professionals to build your dropshipping store, including making videos. This way, you shorten the learning curve and avoid pitfalls when guided by experienced people. 

On the TikTok platform, it is possible to earn thousands of dollars without spending a lot on ads. It has not grown to the size of Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube, so it is not (yet) saturated. Follow the steps above, and you will see returns from your dropshipping business in no time. 

If you are ready to start and grow an ultra-profitable dropshipping business without building a website, spending on Ads, or prior experience, sign up for our free webinar. You can also find helpful marketing tips for different platforms on our YouTube channel for more insights.

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How One Entrepreneur Makes Over $1 Million a Year With Ecommerce and Info Product Marketing

It’s more than possible to make $1 million a year with ecommerce. Our 7-figure award winner Nehemiah Davis is one of many proving this. While his level of success may seem somewhat out of reach for you, the fact is that he started out small like every other entrepreneur. Nehemiah managed to build his own ecommerce empire through diligence and patience, which you can also achieve. Here, we’ll explore Nehemiah’s story and journey. We’ll also show you how you, too, can build yourself up to experience this kind of success.

Nehemiah’s Humble Beginnings

Nehemiah Davis’s story is one of impressive success with plenty to show for it, from the enviable lifestyle flying on private jets to driving Lambos. But it took hard work to make it to over $1 million a year with ecommerce. Growing up in West Philly, Nehemiah was raised by a hard-working single mother. Her goal was to give her son the best life possible with the money she had. As a result, Nehemiah received a better education that exposed him to new ways of thinking. He says this was the big game-changer in his life.

Nehemiah attended Archbishop John Carroll High School in Radnor, where he saw firsthand the lifestyle that other students were living, like driving Bentleys and living in mansions with pool houses. It was another world compared to the impoverished neighborhood he knew. It opened his eyes to the possibilities available to him. After struggling academically but ultimately succeeding, he attended college and entered the workforce, working everywhere from his college to McDonald’s.

His job at private airport Atlantic Aviation would direct him toward the next chapter in his life. Long before he would enjoy flying private jets and sharing those rides on Instagram, Nehemiah worked emptying waste from their bathrooms. While the work was menial at best, Nehemiah saw the lifestyle of the millionaires going in and out of Atlantic. He realized the kind of success that was possible. His dreams weren’t without adversity, as people attempted to deter him. But it was the naysayers who fueled his drive even more.

Fast-forward to another job operating his first food truck, and he started the grind that would lead him to succeed. His annual profit? $20. But he kept pushing and worked to better himself and advance his career. He tackled nearly every industry out there, scrambling to make ends meet. Eventually, the combination of effort and choosing not to listen to the negative helped him excel.

The Rise to Success and Continued Exposure to New Ideas

Screengrab of Nehemiah Davis discussing how to grow a business

Like many successful people, Nehemiah is a firm believer in developing yourself and your mind if you want to succeed. So much of success depends on the mindset that you have. If you have a negative mindset and you give up on your dreams easily, then that’s going to be what holds you back. So surround yourself with inspiring people and concepts. Then, you can rise to the challenges you’ll inevitably face, which is precisely what Nehemiah did to get where he is today.

Over time, Nehemiah built on his personal brand. He got into digital marketing, affiliate marketing, and many other areas that helped him develop his own empire. It wasn’t easy, and there was a lot of work and persistence involved. But he was able to make it after working at it and expanding his reach.

Using Sales Funnels to Reach Over $1 Million a Year With Ecommerce 

One of the biggest sources of Nehemiah’s success was the use of sales funnels, which he hadn’t learned about until well into his business ventures. Upon being exposed to the idea of using sales funnels, he was able to optimize his digital marketing efforts and increase sales dramatically. He didn’t just learn the value of sales funnels. He also incorporated his lessons into his own funnel by offering an ebook detailing their value. 

Today, he has fully utilized sales funnel as a core part of his business model, collecting information from leads through his websites and social media from the start. As a result, he’s been able to bring people into the sales funnel immediately. He’s also been able to upsell those customers and keep them coming back. Nehemiah discovered that, through sales funnels and upsells, people are willing to spend as much as several hundred extra dollars than they originally intended. People will buy as long as the value is worth it. This enabled him to see extraordinary success with ecommerce as he maximized his average cart value.

Incorporating Social Media to Build an Online Presence and Reach Over $1 Million a Year With Ecommerce

Screengrab of Nehemiah Davis and Peter Pru talking

Nehemiah has also experienced notable success on social media more than just about any other channel, getting most of his traffic through Instagram and other social media platforms. One of the reasons for this was his tendency to give back to the community as an entrepreneur. He held charity events giving gifts to children, giving food and clothing to the homeless, and performing many other giveaways to contribute to his community. Due to his charitable nature, he began getting featured on social media. This led to a more developed presence on this channel. His contributions and publicized features on Instagram made it easier for him to establish a verified account. The lesson here is that the more you build on yourself and your brand early on, the easier it will make your later successes. 

An example of how Nehemiah is making his digital marketing efforts work is how he operates in the front and backend. Nehemiah hooks his audience from Instagram and encourages them to purchase his ebook, for example. In addition to this ebook, he’s also resourceful enough to repurpose other marketing materials to upgrade that purchase. In this case, he directs people to a webinar from that ebook, so 10% of people who buy the ebook also pay for and attend the webinar. Many instances like this have helped him stay consistently on top. If he finds something that he can repurpose and sell, he sells it.

With sales funnels, a thriving social media presence, and an unbeatable drive, Nehemiah has continued to grow his business. Recently, he’s seen the kind of earnings that he used to dream about at over $1 million a year with ecommerce.

Building a Social Media Presence From Scratch

Nehemiah may have gotten his start in social media from a more unconventional access point. But he still understands the value of diligence on these platforms when just starting out. When it comes to establishing a social media presence, Nehemiah recommends consistency above all. 

Post at least once a day if you want to grow your audience and build your brand. You should also make sure your social media posts have specific and clear calls to action (CTAs). That includes directions to like, share, comment, follow, or subscribe.

It’s also important to establish yourself as a topical authority if you want to appeal to a specific audience. Pick an area of expertise that fits you, and showcase your own expertise on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms. As you begin to develop a reputation as the number-one authority on a given topic and bring unbeatable value to your audiences, you can build trust among new audiences and inspire them to follow you.

The Importance of Finding a Purpose and Working for It

Confident entrpreneur working on her business

One of the big motivators that helped propel Nehemiah was finding a purpose. Every day he wakes up, he knows he has to provide for his wife, daughter, and even his mother and other family members who are working within his companies. At the same time, Nehemiah understands that what you feed your mind is what will influence your mindset. If you allow negativity to penetrate, your worldview will be shaped accordingly, which will keep you from moving forward. Instead, you have to feed your mind with positivity and developmental ideas that allow you to grow.

Even if you’re struggling and finding that things simply aren’t working the way you’d hoped, Nehemiah is an example of persistence paying off. Don’t simply give up if you’re facing hardships. Instead, work through them, and you’ll be able to overcome the obstacles that may initially seem impossible to get around. Expose yourself to new ideas and new solutions. Find a purpose that gives you a reason to keep going and inspires you. Also, encourage yourself to get through the difficulties while ignoring the naysayers. 

The harder you work at it and the more drive you have, the better you’ll be at turning those dreams into a reality. It can and does take years to achieve. But it will be worth it if you keep at it and stay on the right course.

If you want to learn more about how you can become like Nehemiah and many other successful entrepreneurs through dropshipping and digital marketing, then reserve your seat at our free ecommerce masterclass. You can also find more tips and success stories on my YouTube channel. We’ll show you how anyone can maximize their online income by making over $1 million a year with ecommerce.

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How to Use Instagram Influencer Marketing in eCommerce

Empire builders, you already know that marketing is key when it comes to growing your dropshipping business. Facebook ads are the common go-to for eCommerce marketing, but how can you advertise your products without going down the Facebook route? The simple answer is influencer marketing. Ecommerce Empire Builders has found tremendous success in working with Instagram influencers as part of our marketing strategy for our supplement business. Check out our strategy for converting Instagram shoutouts to sales below. 

How Untapped Focus Grew

At Ecommerce Empire Builders, we have created a successful supplement company known as Untapped Focus. This company has truly been built on the backs of influencers. We have paid very little in ads toward this business. We took our Instagram page from 100 followers to over 10,000 followers in just a month through our Instagram marketing strategy. 

Our marketing strategy was simple. 

We paid Instagram influencers for shoutouts. We spent around $600 on this process. However, the investment turned out to be well worth the initial costs as Untapped Focus has been able to thrive from influencer marketing. 

The influencers we worked with are probably not the ones you think of right off the bat. In terms of Instagram influencers, there are two types. There are meme page influencers and then personal brand influencers. Meme pages are the Instagram pages that center around a single topic like entrepreneurship, business, or investing. These pages give people tips and content focused on these subjects.

In comparison, personal brand influencers have Instagram pages that are focused on their personality or lifestyle. For growing our supplement company, we primarily worked with meme page influencers. While some dropshippers in the industry have said meme page advertisement is dead, our company is proof that this strategy is still thriving (and it can help no matter what you’re selling). 

How to Create a Winning Instagram 

new business owner creating an Instagram page

Instagram influencer marketing is great for building your brand awareness. But first, you have to create your own winning Instagram page. Your Instagram page is essentially the landing page of your brand. You have to create an Instagram page that can be a conversion machine before you can have success through influencer marketing. 

So, how do you create a winning Instagram page?

1. Writing a Captivating Bio 

One element that is extremely important in successful Instagram brand pages is the bio. In the first three to four lines of your bio, you have to sell your product. You do this by showcasing the one main benefit your product can bring to people.

 For us, our big, bold statement is that our supplement provides everyone with all-day focus naturally with no calories, sugars, carbs, jitters, or crashes. Remember, your business goal is to provide people with solutions. Make sure your Instagram bio relays to the customer how your product will make their life easier or better in some aspects. 

2. Utilizing Story Highlights 

A second element you need to nail down on your Instagram brand page is the story highlight feature. Stories are an Instagram feature that allows for both monetization and product education. We use the story highlight feature to educate our customers on everything they need to know about the product. We also have story highlights that go over details like shipping.

Having story highlights that answer common questions in an easy-to-access space is an excellent feature for customers. It also gives you a place to direct customers, so you don’t have to answer the same question repeatedly. Instagram stories also allow you a space to sell your product. This is a feature we use regularly and suggest that you do the same. 

3. Having a Mixture of Posts 

Post content is the third element that you need to master to set up a winning Instagram brand page. Ultimately, your brand page needs to have a mixture of posts. The two main types of posts you need to have on your Instagram page are viral content posts and product posts

Viral Style Posts

Viral style posts have a hook and draw people in with valuable information nuggets and captivating graphics. This style of post gives people a reason to follow you even if they’re not going to buy your product right away. But make no mistake: each follower you gain is a potential customer. 

Product Style Posts

Product style posts educate your followers on what type of products you sell. These posts are designed to help followers see how your product can make their lives easier. These types of posts have a longer copy to drive home the benefits of your product. Think of your Instagram posts as your social media landing page. You want potential customers to know two things. The first is the products that you sell, and the second is how the product can help them better their lives.

You will always want your Instagram branding page to have a variety of these two styles of posts. Utilizing both styles will keep current followers engaged and help to bring in new followers, as well. It also sets a solid foundation for your Instagram influencer marketing strategy.

Working with the Right Influencers 

two people browsing Instagram memes together

After you’ve set up a winning Instagram branding page, you need to start working with the right influencers for your Instagram influencer marketing strategy. If you’re looking to grow your following, we recommend working with meme page influencers. There are a few steps that we go through to find the right type of pages to reach out to and work with. 

1. Research Popular Meme Pages

The first step in finding influencers to work is conducting research. Get on Instagram and search a keyword like entrepreneurs or business. A ton of meme-style Instagram pages will pop up. Go through this list and look at the content these pages put out and the number of followers they have. 

2. Check Out Their Metric on Social Blade

After you’ve created a list of some meme pages that you like, you can head on over to Social Blade. This website will give you all the stats you need to know about these pages, like their engagement levels and daily average growth. A page’s daily average growth is the determining factor for us when it comes to striking an advertising deal with the page. If the page has been able to grow itself successfully, it will help your brand page grow. 

3. Strike a Deal 

Once you’ve found the prime influencers you want to work with, it’s time to strike a deal. We start by contacting pages, and they generally come back with their rates. We always pay based on a page’s stats. If they come back with an offer that is too high, we respond with something along the lines of, “Based on your stats, this is the offer we are willing to pay.”

This negotiating tactic has worked well for us, and most brands take the deal we offer. The great thing about researching is that a page can’t lie about their metrics. A page’s metrics can easily be found, and their page’s performance metrics ultimately determines their worth. 

Paying for influencer shoutouts has yielded our business significant returns. You can have the same results for your eCommerce business as long as you do your research

Consult With the Pros 

screen grab of researching influencers on Social Blade

If you’re ready to start your own eCommerce empire, check out our exclusive free webinar today. At Ecommerce Empire Builders, we can help you build, launch, and scale your very own profitable eCommerce business. For more eCommerce knowledge bombs, check our YouTube channel, which is stacked with tons of free eCommerce and dropshipping resources. 

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