This is an unbiased, in-depth review of Jared Goetz's dropshipping course, eCom Hacks Academy.
Is it possible to still hack into the dropshipping market in 2020?
Just how good is this dropshipping course? How does it compare to other courses?
But first who am I?
I made money with dropshipping but few years ago I decided to fully focus on making money with lead generation and blogging.
Lead generation is ranking simple websites like the tree care site you see above and making commission for generating leads for your local small businesses.
Imo its the best business model to get started online, click here for more info on that.
If you're still interested about dropshipping, keep reading.
INTRODUCTION TO JARED
First we have to start with who Jared Goetz is. Jared shot to fame in 2017 when his Shopify store was the second biggest seller next to Kylie Jenner. He made a whopping cool $2 mill in just 6 months! The store, The Gadget Snob, at one stage went on to make $5 million in sales in less than 12 months!!!
And since then he has been able to repeat his successes. Given, it’s not as big as the first one, but he clearly knows what he’s talking about.
WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE COURSE…
eCom Hacks, is a course presented by Jared Goetz himself, a very successful online entrepreneur.
- Jared covers EVERYTHING from A-Z on how to set up your first store – he even tells you which plugins to use!
- Which products to look at, where to get them and how to deal with order fulfillment.
- Jared’s tried and tested advertising and scaling method.
- The course includes 24 hours and 18 minutes worth of videos. (This however is not the amount of time it will take you to implement everything. That will take weeks, so fair warning…)
THE eCOM HACKS COURSE BREAKDOWN
MODULE 1: STRUCTURE
- how to go about getting a domain name,
- linking it to Shopify,
- getting a business email,
- setting up a call center 1-800 number,
- and linking your payment facilitators via Shopify and PayPal.
Module 1 is great for the beginner or those looking to refresh their existing knowledge of Shopify. Most of it is pretty standard info though.
Jared shares some great behind-the-scenes tips, such as why it’s important to set up an aftersales number, and how to easily set it up. The 1-800 number addition to the course is something unique.
Total video time for the module: 53 minutes.
MODULE 2: SETTING UP YOUR STORE TO CONVERT
In Module Two, Jared gets into the meat of the course.
- how to install his preferred theme
- which apps to use on your site
- and why you’re using them.
A nice touch is taking you behind the scenes to show you which apps to use, how to install them, why he uses them and how to best utilize them.
BUT - I don't always agree with course presenters urging you to use their theme. You don't always know how often it gets updated, or if it's even been properly tested for bugs. Then there's always the possibility that the theme might not be compatible with certain apps or plugins on the Shopify App Store...
Total video time for the module: 1 hour and 26 minutes.
MODULE 3: PRODUCTS
- What To Look For In A Product
- Adding Products To Your Store
- Where To Find Products
- Order Fulfillment
In Module Three, Jared explains how to find the right products. He doesn’t spend time on finding new, trending products, but rather on building on the successes of others. You basically get coached on how to ride the wave of success, following in the wake of others by copying their trending products. You need to decide for yourself whether this is the best strategy for you or not.
Personally, I don’t know if this is a great option. Others have already marketed and made sales on the product before you, so how much of the pie is still left? That’s if you’re more successful at marketing your product than the others before you…
This for me, it sounds like a bit of a gamble and far from a sure-thing. Then again, not much is sure in the world of business, but you at least want to cut down on the variables.
Trying to flog existing, trending products as opposed to finding your own “next-great-must-have-thing”, is a bit like trying to sell a shiny thing that has already lost some of its shine.
It’s possible, yes. But it’s going to be difficult…
To me, the product research section of the course is lacking...
Total video time for the module: 24 minutes
MODULE 4: ADVERTISING
- From a Losing Product to a Winning Product in 6 Days
- How To Setup Your Facebook Page
- Setting Up Your Business Manager, Ad Accounts, and Page
- Campaign Structuring
- Facebook Ads 101 and 201 (by Jake Tenenbaum)
- Different Facebook Ad testing methods
- Scaling Strategies
- Manual Bidding Strategies
- Scaling Adsets Out To See Deeper
- Custom Audiences, Look-a-Likes, & Intersecting
As you progress through the course, this is probably the Module where you have to pay the most attention. Likewise, it is also the module where you get the most information. It is a lot to take in and taking your time and working through the steps methodically, are essential to getting your Ad Campaigns right. Do not skimp on this module. You’ll probably have to go through it more than once.
As you would expect in the final module of a course, this is the most valuable and comprehensive module. It goes into much more detail than the previous modules and covers more advanced subject matter.
Compared to other dropshipping courses, this is the best module where FB Ads are concerned. It is certainly the most comprehensive.
BUT, be warned. Jared's bidding strategy is not for the faint of heart and is far from conservative. It is VERY aggressive, and you can end up spending $1 000 per day on a single ad...FYI, Jared has spent $60k on a single DAY.
Go big or go home, right? (Nope, Not for me, thanks.)
Total video time for the module: 3 hours and 12 minutes.
BONUSES AND SUPPLEMENTALS
The eCom Hack Course also offers Bonus features and Supplemental documents for you to use.
I feel the Bonus Features are a bit of a hit and miss. Additional documents are a real bonus and a great resource. Some of the Bonus Content however is not so great.
- Bonus #1 is awesome. It is a complete course on it’s own (but longer than Jared’s main course…), but I don't know the presenter and can't find info on him...
- Bonus #2 is a document with a link that was already given in Module 2… It cannot be seen as a bonus, and why it’s here is a mystery. That's a FAIL.
- Bonus #3 features the videos with the worse video quality in the entire course. Coming in at under 2 hours, it’s a strain on the eyes… Not a great bonus where that is concerned. Another FAIL.
- Bonus #4 is a full stand-alone course on its own. It contains Mike Long’s Reverse Death Grip Strategy with a full 20 videos in the series. Course length: 6 hours 40 minutes. This is a worthy addition and for those of us who are not so gung-ho in our approach to advertising.
- Additional Documentation: a great resource! This is a worthy bonus. The highlight is the Hacks Document that offers insights to improve your on-page SEO.
Total video time for the Bonuses module: 18 hours and 23 minutes.
IS IT A WORTHWHILE COURSE?
If you are seriously considering going into dropshipping, then this is one of the better courses out there.
Jared Goetz is a proven dropshipping guru (or hacker), and has (apparently - it's difficult to verify the claims made) millions using these same tried and tested methods.
COURSE COMPARISONS
DROPSHIP LIFESTYLE by Anton Kraly
Dropshipping business model with lots of ongoing support
70%
eCOM HACKS BY JARED GOETZ
Dropshipping model relying on Facebook Advertising
74%
Positives:
Negatives:
AMAZON ASSASSIN by Matt Gambrell
Dropshipping business model, based on selling on Amazon
85%
Review Conclusion
eCom Hacks by Jared Goetz is a great introduction course to the drop shipping model.
Despite Jared's success and credentials, this course should be seen as an introduction and not the be-all and know-all of drop shipping. A lot of it is very basic and although Jared shares a lot of his own methods and the tools that he uses (which are great tips), I still feel the course content is a little thin. Especially for the price tag...
Established drop shippers will not learn much from the course, except for Jared's FB Ad methods.
Another issue is that Jared only focuses on Facebook advertising, when there are so many other platforms to take advantage of as well.
All in all, it's a good course with some unique content, but it certainly isn't the most comprehensive, nor the best.
3.7/5
What we like:
What we didn't like:
So what is the best online business platform?
In my opinion, local lead generation is by far the most superior online business model out there. Don’t get me wrong. Drop shipping can make you money. It has been proven to make millionaires within months.
BUT: It takes a LOT of hard work, a LOT of marketing skill and a LOT of luck to succeed. If you want to know more about my own personal drop shipping experience, then continue reading here. I spent well over a $100k in Facebook Ads, so I have been there, done that and got the T-shirt to prove it...
In my opinion, the best online business model for 2020 and beyond, is STILL local lead generation. Let's make a quick comparison between dropshipping and lead gen:
Dropshipping
Lead Generation
Why I believe that local lead gen is far superior than drop shipping:
- It’s not a business model based on fads, trends, fashion, the seasons or your star sign. It consistently performs, year after year and will continue to do so as long as there are business owners out there, looking for customers/leads.
- It’s a lot less hassle. You don’t deal with suppliers, shipping companies, and customer issues. You deal with a handful of selected clients. (Yes, YOU choose them).
- Because it’s online, your overheads are low and you’re looking at much higher profit margins than any other online business model.
- You get FREE organic traffic from Google. There’s no daily ad spend.
- There’s no chance of market saturation. As long as there are new businesses out there, you’ll make money.
Lead Gen works. Years later, I still make $2000 per month on my Grand Rapids Tree Service site....
Why?
Because I ranked my site to number 1 on Google, the correct way.
Because of that, other businesses find it difficult to dethrone me from that number 1 organic spot.
And we can teach you the exact same methods with our Lead Gen Training.
