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Question
3 months in, $1,400 spent on ads, 0 sales. Should I quit or am I missing something obvious?
Posted by •9/28/2025
I don't even know where to start. I've been trying dropshipping for 3 months now and I haven't made a single sale. Not one. I've spent $1,400 total on Facebook and TikTok ads across 3 different products and I'm starting to think this whole thing is a scam or I'm just not cut out for it.
Here's what I've tried:
- Product 1: Posture corrector ($25) - Spent $450, got decent traffic but 0 sales
- Product 2: LED strip lights ($35) - Spent $520, some add to carts but no checkouts
- Product 3: Pet grooming glove ($18) - Currently running, spent $430 so far, same story
I'm using a Shopify store with a free theme (Debut). My ads are getting impressions and clicks. I'm targeting broad audiences like the gurus say. I have product descriptions and some images from the supplier.
But literally nothing is working. I see people saying they got their first sale in the first week and here I am 3 months later with nothing. My girlfriend thinks I'm wasting money and honestly I'm starting to agree with her.
Is there something fundamentally wrong with what I'm doing? Should I just cut my losses? I can't afford to keep burning money like this.
Here's what I've tried:
- Product 1: Posture corrector ($25) - Spent $450, got decent traffic but 0 sales
- Product 2: LED strip lights ($35) - Spent $520, some add to carts but no checkouts
- Product 3: Pet grooming glove ($18) - Currently running, spent $430 so far, same story
I'm using a Shopify store with a free theme (Debut). My ads are getting impressions and clicks. I'm targeting broad audiences like the gurus say. I have product descriptions and some images from the supplier.
But literally nothing is working. I see people saying they got their first sale in the first week and here I am 3 months later with nothing. My girlfriend thinks I'm wasting money and honestly I'm starting to agree with her.
Is there something fundamentally wrong with what I'm doing? Should I just cut my losses? I can't afford to keep burning money like this.
3 Replies
•9/29/2025
Holy crap you guys are right. I just went through my store pretending to be a customer and... yeah it looks super sketchy. The photos are obviously from AliExpress (some even have Chinese text in the background), my "About Us" page is literally just 2 sentences, and I just realized my shipping page says "15-25 business days" in big letters.
I wouldn't buy from my own store lol. I've been so focused on finding the "winning product" and running ads that I completely ignored making the store actually trustworthy.
Going to pause ads and rebuild this properly. Thank you for the honest feedback.
I wouldn't buy from my own store lol. I've been so focused on finding the "winning product" and running ads that I completely ignored making the store actually trustworthy.
Going to pause ads and rebuild this properly. Thank you for the honest feedback.
•9/29/2025
Also just want to add - you mentioned "some add to carts but no checkouts" on product 2. That's a MASSIVE red flag for checkout problems.
Check these things:
- Are you using Shopify Payments or some sketchy third-party processor?
- Do you have trust badges on the checkout page?
- Are you forcing people to create an account before buying?
- Is your checkout page loading slow?
Most people don't realize that 70% of people who add to cart don't complete purchase. If your add-to-cart rate is decent but checkout rate is 0%, something is seriously broken in your checkout flow. Could be as simple as not having enough payment options or the page timing out.
Check these things:
- Are you using Shopify Payments or some sketchy third-party processor?
- Do you have trust badges on the checkout page?
- Are you forcing people to create an account before buying?
- Is your checkout page loading slow?
Most people don't realize that 70% of people who add to cart don't complete purchase. If your add-to-cart rate is decent but checkout rate is 0%, something is seriously broken in your checkout flow. Could be as simple as not having enough payment options or the page timing out.
•9/28/2025
Brother, I feel your pain. But let me be real with you - you're getting traffic and even add-to-carts on product 2, which means people ARE interested. The fact that you have 0 sales across ALL products tells me this is 100% a store/conversion problem, not a product problem.
Here's what's probably happening:
**You're sending traffic to a store that screams "dropshipping scam"**
Things that kill trust instantly:
- Free Shopify theme with default fonts/colors (people can spot this a mile away)
- Supplier photos with weird backgrounds or watermarks
- Generic product descriptions that sound like they were translated from Chinese
- No real brand identity - just "ShopXYZ.com" with random products
- Shipping times that say "2-4 weeks" (instant credibility killer)
- No reviews or social proof
- Contact page with just a contact form, no real information
People get to your site, something feels "off", and they bounce. Your ads did their job - they got the click. Your store failed to close.
**What you need to do:**
1. Pick ONE product and build a proper branded store around it
2. Take or source custom photos (or edit the supplier ones professionally)
3. Write original descriptions that speak to the actual benefit, not just features
4. Add urgency (limited stock, timer) and social proof (reviews, "X people viewing")
5. Offer fast shipping option even if it costs more
6. Make it look like a REAL brand, not a dropshipping store
The difference between 0% conversion and 2% conversion is usually just trust and professionalism. You don't need to quit - you need to fix your store foundation.
Here's what's probably happening:
**You're sending traffic to a store that screams "dropshipping scam"**
Things that kill trust instantly:
- Free Shopify theme with default fonts/colors (people can spot this a mile away)
- Supplier photos with weird backgrounds or watermarks
- Generic product descriptions that sound like they were translated from Chinese
- No real brand identity - just "ShopXYZ.com" with random products
- Shipping times that say "2-4 weeks" (instant credibility killer)
- No reviews or social proof
- Contact page with just a contact form, no real information
People get to your site, something feels "off", and they bounce. Your ads did their job - they got the click. Your store failed to close.
**What you need to do:**
1. Pick ONE product and build a proper branded store around it
2. Take or source custom photos (or edit the supplier ones professionally)
3. Write original descriptions that speak to the actual benefit, not just features
4. Add urgency (limited stock, timer) and social proof (reviews, "X people viewing")
5. Offer fast shipping option even if it costs more
6. Make it look like a REAL brand, not a dropshipping store
The difference between 0% conversion and 2% conversion is usually just trust and professionalism. You don't need to quit - you need to fix your store foundation.