The good news first. We have product. I’m in business.

The bad news?

I’m afraid to launch. Can I really sell 2400 pairs of socks?

Hard to believe, right? I have years of experience growing successful businesses, and yet, I’m having trouble pulling the trigger.

What’s holding me back?

I know everything isn’t perfect, so I’m waiting until it is.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten something, and I just need a few more weeks to remember all the things.

I’m afraid that nobody will buy our socks, and then what?

I’m afraid to fail.

You know that voice in your head? The one that stops you from moving forward? The one that gives you permission to make excuses?

That voice has been loud for the last few weeks. I’m sharing this with you because I bet you know how I feel. It happens to most of us.

And I’ve decided a little fear is a good thing. It keeps us in check. But, even if all the bad things happen, we’ll just create a new plan. That’s the best part about e-commerce. We can switch it up, and try again.

Nobody’s really watching.

And if we keep trying and learning, we’ll make progress. We don’t have to be stuck. And we don’t have to be afraid to try new things.

So, if you feel a little stuck today, or a little lost. I get it. But I promise you, for almost every business I’ve seen, there is a path to success.

It’s highly likely that it will take a few tries to find it. And that’s ok. Most people quit too soon. Or just never really start.

So, I’m just going to start.

This week, we’re running an event for “Proof of Concept”. I’ve partnered with an Influencer for this one. Let’s see what happens when we make an offer to a curated audience.

Stay tuned and I’ll tell you what we did and how many socks we sell.

After that, no more excuses. I’ve got to sell some socks!

If you have questions, comment below and ask me!

So, here’s what I need you to do next.

First, sign up to get updates in your inbox:

Then, be sure to Like and Follow my page on Facebook. I’ll be posting regular updates there!

That’s it! It will be a fun adventure, all the way from 0 to $50K on Shopify!

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It’s been a whole month since I updated you on my new project.

I’m building a new business, and I’m sharing the details – all of them as I start from zero, and work my way towards the first $50K in sales.

Last week, we launched our website.

Granted, it’s a bare-bones version, but it’s a great start.

You can see it here:  sockdoggo.com

You might have all sorts of questions like:

• How did you go from concept to live site?
• Why launch your site, when you don’t have product to sell?
• When will you start selling?

If you have questions, comment below and ask me!

So, here’s what I need you to do next.

First, sign up to get updates in your inbox:

Then, be sure to Like and Follow my page on Facebook. I’ll be posting regular updates there!

That’s it! It will be a fun adventure, all the way from 0 to $50K on Shopify!

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Do you ever feel like your business takes two steps forward and one step back?

That’s me, with our new sock business on Shopify.

This week, two steps forward – samples are approved. Whoop!!

And then a step back – ugh. A new dilemma.

Watch and you’ll see how we navigate this latest challenge, and even better, how we turn this setback into progress! 

If you have questions, comment below and ask me!

So, here’s what I need you to do next.

First, sign up to get updates in your inbox:

Then, be sure to Like and Follow my page on Facebook. I’ll be posting regular updates there!

That’s it! It will be a fun adventure, all the way from 0 to $50K on Shopify!

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This is the first version of the product that I’m betting on to reach sales of $50K.

Because things are getting real, and Q4 is around the corner, it’s time for us to step on the gas with this project.

I’ve decided that I’m just going to share it all.

And the easiest way to do that is to just offer you a seat at the table for our team meetings.

Here’s our first meeting. We launched this format with our Inner Circle Members first, but going forward, we’ll be going live in our free Facebook Group, Roadmap to $50K (link)

Watch and find see:

• The first look at our new product
• What’s great about it
• What’s not great, and how we’ll fix it
• A strategy tweak – because I’m looking for the best sales
• Our next steps

If you have questions, comment below and ask me!

So, here’s what I need you to do next.

First, sign up to get updates in your inbox:

Then, be sure to Like and Follow my page on Facebook. I’ll be posting regular updates there!

That’s it! It will be a fun adventure, all the way from 0 to $50K on Shopify!

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Here’s what I know:

If you want to set yourself up for long term profit and success, one of the best ways to do that is to control the product. That means, be a “Maker” or have the product manufactured just for you. Even if that’s not how you start, it’s a great goal for most sellers.

There’s one great big reason why, and it’s this:

You control the Distribution and the Selling Price.

Here’s the thing:

When you’re dropshipping or buying wholesale, most of the time you are unable to control who else the manufacturer sells to, and how it’s being promoted.

But, there’s good news.  It’s getting easier to import your own branded products, even if you’re just starting out. In fact, that’s exactly what I’m doing with my new product.

Last week, I sat down with Nathan Resnik, the Founder of Sourcify. He’s helping me find the best factory to make our products. Even though I’m an experienced importer, I have to tell you, it’s overwhelming when you’re starting fresh with a new product.

The huge benefit of working with Nathan? It’s like he gave me a straight path directly to the best factory to make my product, at the best prices, with the lowest minimum order quantity. Instead of sorting through a marketplace like Alibaba, I’m dealing with one person. My Sourcify Account Manager. Yipee. Seriously, you can’t imagine how much time this has saved me.

Watch our interview below. It’s one of the best I’ve ever done. So many answers to so many questions like:

• How to get started when you don’t know where to start
• How to protect yourself when you have to pay upfront
• The most important questions to ask when you’re considering working with a factory

Are you pricing your products correctly?
Download this super cool Profit Calculator and find out.

If you have questions, comment below and ask me!

So, here’s what I need you to do next.

First, sign up to get updates in your inbox:

Then, be sure to Like and Follow my page on Facebook. I’ll be posting regular updates there!

That’s it! It will be a fun adventure, all the way from 0 to $50K on Shopify!

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It’s time to spill the beans on my first go at the product for my new store on Shopify.

Here’s the story behind my initial idea, my why and how I was going to pull it off.

Be warned, this also includes:

The big mistake that almost cost me thousands.

My original product idea was to sell socks (so many reasons why).

I want to sell socks because they fit into so many of my product rules.

1. Could package it in a way that supports our minimum order value (red)
2. High margin, and there’s room for wholesale (red)
3. Can buy as a gift (yellow)
4. Can buy many times (yellow)
5. Light and easy to ship
6. Easy fit for low returns
7. Easy to tell who it’s for

So the product was socks.

But what was our concept – our hook?

I wanted a concept that would raise the perceived value of the product above being just a sock. And I wanted to do that visually.

I’m on a bit of a mission to use Instagram more with this next business – so I can share what’s working with our Inner Circle members, so I wanted people to be able to identify the concept at a glance.

I decided that I would make socks that matched for the whole family.

And we would use family pictures of “feet” to create images that were easy to identify as our “thing”.

We set up a Facebook Page called “Sock Twins” – and started building a page (no spend). And we built an email list by promising a free pair to anyone who signed up. I think we got about 400-500 names. And then we started talking about product.

That’s where we went flying off the rails.

This is where your ego can really trip you up. This is the part where I tell you how I almost made a whopper of a mistake that could have cost us thousands.

And it’s this:

MINIMUM ORDER QUANTITY.

It didn’t take me long to realize that if I was selling socks for the whole family, that’s a minimum of 5 sizes. And with MOQ of 600 per size and color, I was looking at 3000 pair per design. Roughly, that’s $6500 per design.

Multiply that by 8 designs, and I’d be buying $50K worth of socks. And without a brand, proof of concept, or a huge audience – that would be a really bad plan.

So, we hit the brakes hard.

And once I did that, I stepped back and realized a couple of things. Things that are worth thinking about for everyone.

Here’s what should have been obvious:

ONE: I had a little voice in my head question whether matching socks for the whole family was really a “thing”. Note to self – if you’re questioning yourself, that’s a RED FLAG.

TWO: Flawed concept – even though pictures of feet in matching socks might be cute, really, how many would anyone need?

People want to see THEIR faces in pictures, not their feet. Another RED FLAG.

THREE: When I sat down and really thought about it, the only people that wear socks, year-round are grown MEN. And that’s only because they can’t wear sandals and flip flops to work.

So again, RED FLAG.

But here’s the real gem. It’s the strategic part.

Going through this exercise made me realize that:

I can’t start a sock business for sock lovers. I can’t afford enough selection. The minimums are too high for a new store.

I’d have to buy from other companies, and for many many reasons, I don’t want to do that.

But – here’s the good news.

I can start a sock company for people who have a common interest. We can build a relationship with people who have an affinity for one thing. It will be easy to identify who it’s for.

We can create images that people will easily identify as our “thing”. And we can sell socks just for them.

Next Up: I’m going to share the process for ordering samples, and be talking about sourcing in China.

Stay tuned… we’re on our way!

If you have questions, comment below and ask me!

So, here’s what I need you to do next.

First, sign up to get updates in your inbox:

Then, be sure to Like and Follow my page on Facebook. I’ll be posting regular updates there!

That’s it! It will be a fun adventure, all the way from 0 to $50K on Shopify!

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