What Type of Products Should You Sell in Your Ecommerce Store

Are you thinking about launching an e-commerce store? Making money online through retailer products is an excellent way to create a steady income stream that grows into the future. 

Stocking your online storefront with products is one of the most challenging decisions you can make. Many entrepreneurs struggle with selecting products that sell well, and they often make mistakes in marketing products that have no demand.

Let’s take a look at the type of products you should sell in your e-commerce store. 

Use Social Platforms to Brainstorm for Ideas

Sites like Wanelo and Polyvore have millions of products from all around the world. Create filters to find products that match your search terms, and choose products you feel you would enjoy selling.

Social platforms like Instagram and Pinterest have millions of examples of products you could sell online. Choose something that resonates with your interests, as well as with the market. 

Avoid these Sites and Product Categories for Drop Shipping Ideas

We recommend that you avoid using sites like TrendHunter.com or SpringWise.com for your product research. These sites are great for other marketing purposes, but they aren’t suitable for coming up with product ideas. 

Getting involved with selling trending items is a risky business. In most cases, you’re jumping on the bandwagon too late, and you could end up with a lot of merchandise that sells slowly. 

There are also some product categories you need to stay away from with your product research. Avoid selling jewelry and books; both of these markets have high saturation levels. Other industries and product categories to avoid in your research are clothing and electronics. 

Short-listing Top-Selling Product Ideas

When finalizing your products, we recommend that you focus on three to five “alpha products.” These products are the cornerstone of your range. Each of the alpha products should have sub-products that you can cross-sell and upsell to your customers. 

Put together a list of 10 to 15 sub-products for every three alpha products, and you’ll find you increase upselling and cross-selling opportunities.

Niche Product Ideas

Over recent years, niche online storefronts are ow a rising trend in the e-commerce marketplace. This proven and successful strategy allows you to laser-target your customer audience while getting away from the grip of big retailers that have consumer’s attention.

Avoid product categories that are general or broad, and focus on specific niche products that solve solutions for your customers. If you manage to find niche dropshipping ideas, there’s a better chance of you making a profit with your online store. 

Identify Products That Customers Purchase Repeatedly

Stocking your online store with once-off products is the best choice. However, if you can find a product that requires repeat purchases, you could be looking at a goldmine. Setting up a repeat customer base keeps your relationship going with your customers. 

As long as you maintain excellent customer service and offer an exciting shopping experience, you build brand loyalty in your customers. Examples of product niches where you can build customer loyalty to your brand include cosmetics and party supplies.

Targeting your customer base with seasonal or monthly advertising campaigns will keep your store fresh in their minds when they need our product. Look at your previous sales data to find periods in the month where online sales peak, and then launch your campaigns around those days.  

Wrapping Up – Create a Marketing Funnel

Any good marketer knows the importance of creating a marketing funnel. A funnel lets you see where your prospects are dropping out of the sales process. By analyzing the data in your marketing funnel, you get a fast an accurate idea of whether or not the product has demand.

Adam Richards

About Adam Richards

Adam Richards is a semi-retired business professional originally from Bangor, Maine. He spent the majority of his career in sales and marketing where he rose to the marketing lead of a Fortune 1000 company. He then moved on to helping people as a career counselor that specifically helped bring families to self-sufficiency through finding them rewarding careers. He has now returned to Bangor for his retirement and spends his free time writing. This blog will be about everything he learned throughout his career. He'll write on career, workplace, education and technology issues as well as on trends, changes, and advice for the Maine job market and its employers.