Introduction
Welcome to the world of Ecom!
A land brimming with opportunity and riches… right?
Maybe!
In this article, we’re going to break down our Top 5 Ecommerce programs that we believe will give you the best chance of making some real money in 2024.
Before we get started, it’s important to know that Ecommerce is one of the largest “how do I make money online” industries out there.
You’ve got Amazon FBA, Dropshipping, Print On Demand, Private Labeling, Wholesaling… the list goes on and on.
You’ve also got a suspicious number of 18 year olds with Lamborgihins they rented for that ad they recorded…
So the purpose of this review is to actually give you a no-nonsense breakdown of some gurus and programs that actually aren’t a scam.
It’s my hope that by the end of this article, you have a good idea of which program might be for you, and whether or not there are any alternative businesses that might be a better fit for you.
Each review will have:
The star rating (out of 5)
The course length
The price
The category
Our star system looks at 3 things:
#1 – The value of the curriculum
#2 – The value of the community
#3 – The value of the mentorship
We take those 3 factors to make a Star Rating out of 5.
We end each review with one positive and one negative takeaway… so if you’re a skimmer, make sure to read those ones!
So that being said, let’s get right into it.
#5 - Freedom Ticket
Overall Rating
Course Length
???
Price
$39/mo
category
Amazon FBA
- This is a “free course when you get our software” style program, meaning you’ll have most basic tools you need straight out of the gate (no hidden costs)
- $39/mo is about the cheapest price you’ll ever pay to get exposure and experience with the Amazon FBA business model
- Kevin King has significant experience creating and scaling brands with Amazon FBA, so you’re learning from a real professional
- We couldn’t find many public testimonials or huge success stories, which means they either don’t market them well, or you might be buying in to a very new program
- This specific subset of Amazon FBA businesses requires significant startup costs, so don’t let the $39/mo fool you - you’re going to be investing big time into product creation, inventory, and advertising
- Amazon FBA, despite what gurus claim, is very difficult to succeed with, and requires extensive capital (think $15,000+) in order to really win and do it quickly
Overview
As far as Amazon FBA courses go, Kevin King’s Freedom Ticket has a pretty good reputation.
Kevin himself has made millions off of Amazon FBA brands, so you can rest easy knowing that the guy actually knows what he’s talking about.
If you’re sitting on a nest-egg of around $20K or more and you really want to be a player in Ecom specifically, then this course could be a good fit!
You get the training in addition to the software, so you’ll be in a good spot.
The Bottom Line
- Getting this type of training for such a low price is the biggest selling point of Freedom Ticket!
- Huge investment required to really succeed with this style of Amazon FBA business.
Conclusion
This program certainly delivers on the value for the price. The thing is, if you’re being taught a business model that you can’t even afford to implement – is it really worth your time
That’s only for you to decide! For now, we move on to #4 on the list…
That being said, if you aren’t sitting on $20,000+ in liquid cash to be able to invest in advertising the product while it’s hot, then I don’t think you’re going to like this program very much.
#4 - Ecom Elites
Overall Rating
Course Length
30+ Hours
Price
$197 - $297
category
Dropshipping
- Shows you over-the-shoulder real life examples setting up his stores, which means you’ll get to see a step-by-step of the daily work actually being done
- Coaching & community via Facebook, so that you have someone to reach out to if you get suck along the way
- Facebook ads training is very “tutorial”-ish, AKA point here click here, which means you aren’t learning much in the way of actually strategies for paid ads in ecommerce
- Frank Hatchett is also a popular Affiliate Marketing guru, so it begs the question if him showing you a Shopify dropshipping course is just his own affiliate marketing play
- Skims the surface of mission-critical skill areas, like FB Ads, Google Ads, IG Ads, Email Marketing, etc - which in order to be successful in dropshipping, deserve their own 30 hour courses
Overview
Truth be told, Ecom Elites is one of the first “online money making” opportunities I ever tried, almost a decade ago!
Yes you read that right, Ecom Elites has been around for quite some time – and for a good reason.
At a meager $297 price point, this is definitely one of the easiest entry points into the world of dropshipping & ecommerce.
That means if you want to learn what it “kinda looks like” without putting down a few grand, and want to at least have some good skills to write home about… Ecom Elites is a safe choice.
You’re going to learn about things like selecting niches, running ads, building stores – a lot of skills that certainly have value in today’s online world.
That being said, whenever we’re dealing with programs in this price range (Free through to maybe $997 or so), the question is always this:
“How much value could I possibly get out of a program that only costs $300?”
The way most programs work is that the higher the price, the higher the quality of the end product.
I’ve seen Ecommerce courses in the $10K range, and when you look inside them – they blow programs like this out of the water.
Point being: if you’re a complete beginner that can’t scratch two pennies together and wants to throw a hail mary, then there is definitely a non-zero possibility that you strike it big from this program.
But for most humans, you’ll probably get in, get no meaningful results, and then give up and write it off as “only being out $297”.
The Bottom Line
- Like most of Frank Hatchett’s products: it’s built for the mass-market, and is a low price point offer that makes it easy for anyone to get into the world of dropshipping
- With only 30 hours of training, there is no way he goes into enough depth to cover all of these topics with the amount of detail you’d require to actually “win” with this program
Conclusion
If you’re an absolute beginner and couldn’t muster up anything more than $1,000 even if you knew with 100% certainty that it would make you a millionaire, then this program is going to be the best for your budget!
#3 - Ecombabes
Overall Rating
Course Length
6 Weeks Forced Pace
Price
$2,000
category
Dropshipping
- A lot of public facing testimonials, which is always a good sign. This means some % of students are actually succeeding (and you might, too!)
- Has a community with lifetime access, so you’ll have support from other entrepreneurs along the way
- Course material is something you’d expect to see in a sub-$1,000 program, which means you’re paying a premium just to “be an ecom babe” (sorry guys, girls only here)
- Throws around hand-wavy terms like “Connective Ecommerce” which is putting lipstick on the pig that is “Dropshipping”. Meaning, you are buying a Dropshipping program
- Cortney Fletcher is a “new kid on the block”, which means you’re learning from someone that isn’t exactly a “seasoned” entrepreneur
Overview
To put it in one sentence: yes, you can most likely make some money with the Ecom Babes program.
That being said, there are a few things I’d like to point out based on my (many) years of experience in ecommerce and in paid advertising:
#1 – This business angle will take a lot of work to get up and running to the point where it’s making high 5 or low 6 figures in profits.
For some back-of-the-envelope math:
Let’s be kind and say you pull out a 30% profit margin when all is said and done (inventory, website hosting, premium shopify plugins, email marketing tools, returns, paid ads – all things Cortney Fletcher recommends).
If you’re selling a piece of Jewelry for $100, that means you’re taking home $30 per sale.
To make $7,000 per month in profit, you’d need to be moving 233 units per month.
Now, that’s assuming you actually know how to run ads and/or build relationships with large influencers in your niche (she covers Affiliate relationships in Week 5).
It may seem like a low number… but that is A LOT of volume, sleepless nights, pain and heartache which you will need to replicate every single month – AKA not passive!
#2 – The platforms Ecom Babes relies on have a habit of slapping down Dropshippers very hard. I talk a lot about this at the end of the article, so stay tuned.
#3 – The idea of “women entrepreneurs only” is simply a well-constructed marketing ploy. There’s nothing about her concepts or training that is special to women… it’s just meant to have women feel the identity of “woman entrepreneur” and buy based on that feeling…
The Bottom Line
- There’s a good amount of female testimonials, so it seems some people are really having success.
- Course material seems rather light and basic considering the price tag of the program.
Conclusion
If you buy into this program and really put your head down, there’s definitely potential for you to make some money. You just need to accept the amount of work it will realistically take to become successful.
#2 - Low Hanging System
Overall Rating
Course Length
???
Price
$2,485
category
Print On Demand (POD)
- Rachel Rofe actually runs her own Print On Demand business, so you’d be learning from someone with the actual experience to back up their training & advice
- Teaches multiple platforms like Amazon, Etsy, & eBay, which is a nice departure from the most Ecom courses in this list
- The POD business is highly saturated, and you’re going to be going up against some big players, which means you’re going to need to really niche down and get things right out of the gate
- Their Refund Policy is filled with caveats and “ifs” - for example, you need to test 90 different mugs in order to qualify for a refund. That should give you an idea of how much work they actually know is required in order to be successful!
- Achieving viral success through repurposed coffee-mug designs is hardly a sustainable or predictable business - it seems kinda like hitting a lottery number
Overview
We decided to include Low Hanging System on our Top 5 list for a few different reasons:
#1 – Print on Demand is a breath of fresh air in a world consumed by ecom bros driving lamborghinis
We live in a time where everyone is trying to convince you that Ecom is an easy path to riches, which couldn’t be further from the truth.
Rachel doesn’t seem to be pretending to be something special or “outside the box” – she’s simply showing you how to put some words on mugs and sell them to people that might like those words.
There’s value in simplicity.
It might sound stupid to some, but hey – who doesn’t love a good mug?
#2 – The methods and processes can technically work, despite the fact that it isn’t going to be major riches out of the gate
The program is pretty simple – research mug ideas, “copy” someone’s design, optimize a product listing, launch it, and cross those fingers to hope it goes viral!
Let’s look at some quick math: $8 average profit per mug, so if you want to make $4,000 per month, you’re looking at selling 500 mugs per month.
In order to do that, it seems like you’d need to enter some really saturated markets and come up with a super clever mug idea.
For example, I don’t really see a mug saying: “Knit like your life depends on it!” selling 500 mugs per month to old grannys or… hip millennials.
But something like “Brew unto others as you would have them brew unto you” might have some more broad appeal to a Christian audience (if you decide to go with her program, feel free to take that one.. It’s my gift to you for reading this article!)
The Bottom Line
- PoD isn’t exactly rocket science, so the barrier to entry from a skills perspective is very low
- Making a legitimate income with PoD requires a very large business. Beginners aren’t going to replace their 9-to-5 income with an entry-level PoD operation
Conclusion
If you’re looking for something really laid back and chill, where you can make a tiny bit of extra money each month and have a “business to run” in your spare time… this could be a good option for you!
#1 - Dropship Lifestyle
Overall Rating
Course Length
26 Hours
Price
$3,997 - $11,000
category
HT Dropshipping
- The program teaches High Ticket Dropshipping, which has a greater upside potential than most other dropshipping programs
- Dropship Lifestyle has been around for over a decade - and that only happens if people are clearly winning inside
- High ticket niches tend to have a higher barrier to entry due to the high profits and margins on the products being sold
- Has a conditional refund guarantee, which means if you want to be refunded your $10,000 you will have to actually put in quite a bit of work
- Limited traffic strategies taught, meaning you’ll need to be able to invest thousands into advertising, in addition to the $10,000 you paid to get into the program
Overview
Anton Kraly’s Dropship Lifestyle has been around for over a decade, and is well established as one of the top Dropshipping courses on the market.
Despite having a very poor rating on certain review sites, we can say that this program is one of the best in the business.
He takes you through everything from Niche Selection, through to Supplier Selection, Conversion Rate Optimization, Paid Advertising, & more.
Like we noted above, one big drawback is that running paid advertising for high ticket niches is no joke! It can get very expensive very quickly, so if you’re going to invest in this program, we recommend you to have at least $20,000 saved up for a business.
This would be enough to cover program entry, business operation costs, as well as ad spend.
The only real downside here is the difference in pricing tiers.
At the lower end, you’re missing out on some key features that you can only get on their premium plan: a custom-built webs store, private coaching, and done-for-you content marketing.
In our opinion, those are the most valuable pieces of the entire thing – you can find free information online that will teach you how to run Google Shopping ads and build a Shopify store… it’s the knowledge of exactly how to do it all without wasting time and money that is the REAL value.
So all that to say: if you don’t have $20,000 saved up – we would think about investing in a different course, or a different business model altogether that can make similar money with a much lower investment.
The Bottom Line
- High Ticket niches in general are great because you can make more money from each sale, with a similar amount of up-front work as other models
- In order to really succeed with this program, you’re going to need at least $20,000 to invest
Conclusion
Overall, Dropship Lifestyle is a good dropshipping program, but you need to be willing to invest a lot of money for the prospect of making it a legitimate business.
Alternatives To Ecommerce?
So… Are Ecom Businesses Even Worth It?
Key Takeaways
Ecom is a beast of a business model to break down, because there are so many different angles and perspectives.
You’ve got Amazon FBA, Dropshipping, Private Labeling, Print On Demand… the list goes on and on and on…
And the thing is, each category has some things that make it really attractive, and other things that make it seem like the plague…
With Amazon FBA, you can create a legitimate brand for yourself, but the start-up costs are wild and out of control – not to mention you’re competing with Amazon itself and its own white label brands!
(There’s actually a big court case going on about this right now. Amazon has been using sales numbers from high performing FBA businesses to determine what products to produce and run you out of business)
With Dropshipping, you’ve got lower barriers to entry, but on the flip side you have to deal with inventory quality issues, getting banned by ad platforms, and dealing with geo-political issues between the US and China.
Then you’ve got a smattering of other submodels like Print on Demand that are just kinda… meh
A Story About The Pitfalls Of Ecommerce
I have two things I’d like to discuss here.
Thing #1: That Time Facebook Wiped Out Dropshipping Businesses En-Masse
Facebook itself has a bit of a nasty history of literally disabling / wiping out large Dropshipping companies due to internal policy changes!
I’d like to take you back in time about 6 or 7 years to a damp and dreary NYC ad company, where one of my mentors used to work.
He was working with one of the largest Facebook Marketing Partners in the world… at the time, about $1 Billion Dollars (yes, with a B) went through their company each year.
One of their medium-ish sized clients was a very, very large Dropshipping operation based out of the USA, run by two nice mid-30s fellows.
They were a big spender, around $1 Million per month on Facebook alone across their portfolio of just a few Dropshipping products.
Well, on one rainy NYC day, Facebook changed some of their policies, and literally disabled all of their ad accounts, and removed their Account Manager access overnight.
Yes, you read that right. In a single moment, they were cut off! Not only cut off from being able to spend money on Facebook, but also from even being able to talk to anybody at Facebook!
Just imagine how serious Facebook must be about this problem if they’re willing to f*** off $12 million per year in revenue from a single advertiser.
So now, you might be asking yourself: “why would they do that, though?”
There’s a few major problems with the business model of Ecom the way that it’s taught today:
#1 – You’re usually selling an absolute garbage product, and trying to convince people through your pretty landing pages and ads that its not complete garbage
So think to yourself for a second… if you’re Facebook… and you value more than anything that customers stay on your platform… how do you think those customers will feel when they get burned buying crap products every time from YOUR platform?
They’ll probably get pretty upset and stop using it!
And that’s exactly what happened, so Facebook banned and now monitors these types of advertisers closely (if they even let them advertise at all).
Facebook went so far as to also implement quality feedback scores on each ad account that sells physical products, and if your score gets too low – the BAN HAMMER gets dropped.
#2 – Product selection is a joke. I can save you about 5-10 hours of course time from any guru on this list by summarizing their product/niche research process in a sentence or two:
“Find something that someone else is already making a boat load of money on, and then see if you can find a shit version of it that passes off as the real thing”
There’s a lot of ways to make money online… let’s try to at least build a business that provides value to people, not just rip them off with crap products.
#3 – Shipping Times
One of the biggest issues with Dropshipping and Print On Demand is that shipping times can sometimes be as much as 30 days!
Just imagine, you impulsively buy a product from an ad on Tiktok or Facebook, and then wait patiently for the package to arrive.
One week goes by…
Two weeks go by…
Three weeks go by…
You reach out to support, but it just goes to some Dropshippers unmonitored email.
You reach out to your bank to tell them you’ve been scammed.
They take the money back from the Dropshipper and put it back into your account.
Once the package actually arrives 30 days later, you’re now out the money you paid for the product.
With US Based Dropshippers this isn’t as big of a problem.
#4 – Ad creative on platforms like Facebook and Tiktok are more important than ever for performance!
Back when most of these courses were filmed / created, you could get away with a crappy picture of the product with a backdrop and a giant banner saying “50% OFF!” and build a 6 figure business.
With the rise of social media advertising, and with big brands moving their budgets to places like Google Shopping, Facebook, TikTok, etc – you now have HUGE investments being made into producing creative (fancy words for Video and Images).
This means the days of crappy looking pictures ain’t going to work anymore.
Meaning, any meaningful ad images or videos will need to be created by YOU purchasing the product, buying video/lighting equipment, scripting out your ads, filming yourself on camera – the whole 9 yards.
Make sure you’re OK with this before making the leap!
What’s the point with all of this that I’ve just said?
You need to understand that you’re about to invest into an industry that is:
- Riddled with compliance and regulatory issues
- Takes a ton of active management and daily work
- Has very low profit margins and high competition
But also has the potential for:
- Building a brand you actually care about (if you go more the product building route of Ecom)
- Scaling over a 3-5 year timeline if all goes well
Thing #2: Control
Time for another story.
A few years back, I sold mini putting greens that you could attach to your toilet bowl (creative… I know)
I spent my days and nights digging through Shopify, building out my store.
I downloaded premium plugins, premium email services… all the cool stuff the guru said I should do.
It took me MONTHS of trying & testing different ads to find something that would work…
(I should mention my background was in paid advertising already and it still took me months).
I would take my paychecks from work, pay my bills, and funnel the rest into testing.
Is it a video with a guy putting on the toilet that works best?
Maybe a girl giving it to her dad for his birthday and watching the family laugh?
Should I run it to people that are avid golfers? Or would anyone at all want this thing?
I spent weeks testing different variations of my landing pages.
Do I make my call to action button red like all the gurus say?
Do I do a B.S. fake “deal only lasts” countdown timer?
How do I source quality product images for the listing?
Finally, I found a formula that worked, and I was able to sell products at a profit!
Guess what happened next?
The supplier stopped selling the product!
Just like that, months of hard work and determination vanished.
I realized in that moment that I would never pursue another business model that left so much of my fate into the hands of another.
Between all the monotonous testing, the advertising issues, the ability to have my products TAKEN from me, & everything else… it just wasn’t for me.
Don’t get me wrong – I still make over $20,000/mo online by running ads that ultimately help other people… but it’s structured in such a way that I control everything.
So, That’s Why I Don’t Really Like Ecommerce
#1 – Too much trust placed in unreliable Corporate Giants
#2 – Lack of control over my business
Conclusion
So, all that being said, I present you 3 options if you’re still 100% bought-in to joining an Ecommerce program.
Option #1: If you’re OK with investing more for a business / product that can definitely make you some cash if you get it right, I’d suggest you go with Dropship Lifestyle or Freedom Ticket (again, $20K+)
Option #2: If you want to get your feet wet without fully committing, go with Ecom Elites or Low Hanging System
Truth be told, Ecom can definitely work.
I mean, look at the world around you – Ecom by itself is a tool that legitimate businesses use to reach people, so it definitely has value.
I have a friend I went to college with that has a big Ecom business, has been featured in Forbes, makes a bunch of money… all from selling Tie Clips to entrepreneurs.
So it works…
There’s a ton of free information out there, so what you’re really paying for with these courses is the organization of the information, & (hopefully) the coaching.
Option #3: If your goal is to reach $5,000 – $10,000/Mo as quickly as possible, I would recommend checking out the Digital Rental Method business model.
This is the model that helps me make over $20,000/mo. It’s not 100% passive income, but it’s pretty close, and it’s a legitimate way to make money by actually helping people.
You may have to talk to some actual real-life humans to hit that $10K/mo, but hey – at least you know it’ll work. Also, you can’t live your entire life hiding behind a screen.
If you haven’t read my post about the Digital Rental Method, it basically means renting websites to local businesses across the country that need help growing.
Why I Choose Digital Real Estate Over Ecom In 2024
With Digital Real Estate, we focus on targeting niche services in local cities across the country (or the world). We’re not trying to rip off another company’s hard work and intellectual property via Aliexpress or whatever…
Let me show you.
You see this search term?
Colorado Springs has a population of maybe 500,000 and growing.
There are dozens of concrete companies that serve the local population.
Making this ad profitable is A LOT easier than making this one profitable:
There’s much less competition.
You’re not going up against every Dropshipper bro that purchased the same program you did.
Even better: you’re going up against some random guy that owns a competing concrete company that’s never run an ad in his life.
So “winning” and sending the best leads to your client is easy.
My mentor calls it “knocking out 3rd graders”.
With the Digital Rental Method, you can create $500 – $2,500 per month semi-passively in 3-6 months.
And the cool part is that every time you make another “rental property” and “rent” it to a local business owner, that number doubles.
And to be honest, 3-6 months is A LOT LONGER than most people take. Some people do it in as little as a week!
Let’s look again at my concrete ad.
See where it’s positioned? #1
The top most ad gets most of the clicks.
This is my “digital real estate” property.
This concrete site makes me $1,500/mo, and I haven’t touched it since I made it!
OK, so maybe you need to get in there for an hour once per month to make sure everything is working as expected…
No business is truly 100% “passive” as much as a guru might try to tell you it is – so that’s why I call this “semi-passive” income.
The best part is living life on my own schedule. If I want to grow the business more, I can go out and prospect more customers and build more rental properties.
If not? Hello Hawaii!
Don’t believe me?
Check out my call tracker for the concrete site:
Tell me: what concrete contractor in a small town isn’t going to pay me for sending him 56 potential jobs in a month?
Let’s low-ball it and say they close only 10% of these (actual client closes closer to 40%). If we average out to $2K per job and they close 6 of them, that’s an extra $12,000 in their pocket.
You think he’s willing to pay me a measly $1,500 if he’s making back $15,000?
Absolutely.
And with his real numbers, it’s a lot more than 6 jobs.
All you need is to pick a niche (similar to choosing the type of Niche you want to sell your product in), get a proven ad campaign (my mentor gives out 30 of them), and then go around the country getting 1 client per city until you’ve had your fill – pretty easy!
This business scales nicely, which is why I love it.
The best part for me? You’re helping someone put food on the table for their families, provide an education for their children, & do whatever else makes their lives just a little bit easier.
You’re really helping them.
Here’s all the reasons why digital real estate is the best:
Look, local businesses aren’t going anywhere. It’s not like a Dropshipping product where all of a sudden they stop making it, or where your ad account gets shut down…
What do I do with the profits?
Build out more and more of these properties in different cities, and find someone to fill them.
You’re in complete control of how much time (& money) you choose to make.
That means you can go on vacations as you please, or do whatever else it is you would do if you only had to work a few hours per week.
And since you may be asking: “what happens if you lose that client?”
I just go find another one and forward the phone calls to them instead (just like how a landlord would go get another renter).
If you’re interested in learning more, click here to see which Digital Real Estate program I recommend most.
You won’t really find this level of coaching anywhere else. The program is lead by two founders that each bring their own high-level skills to the table.
With most programs, you’re lucky to get 1 with hopefully-high-level skills.
If you’re not afraid of working hard at a proven system, and are willing to be coached to success, then I look forward to seeing you in there!
It’ll change your life!
(just like it changed mine)
