I burned through $2,000 on my first 3 stores before I figured out what actually works. Here's what I'd tell anyone starting from zero:

1. Your product doesn't matter as much as your offer.

Everyone obsesses over finding a "winning product." But I've seen ugly products sell like crazy because the offer was irresistible — free shipping, bundle deals, money-back guarantees. Start with the offer, then find products that fit.

2. Don't test with $5/day ad budgets.

You'll learn nothing. You need enough data to make real decisions. I'd rather test 3 products at $30/day each than 10 products at $5/day. The math changes when you actually get data.

3. Your store needs to look like a brand, not a dropship store.

Custom logo, real product descriptions (not AliExpress copy-paste), a proper about page, and reviews. Takes an extra 2-3 hours but it's the difference between 1% and 3% conversion rate. That's literally 3x your revenue.

I break all of this down step-by-step inside Brand Emperor Academy. If you're serious about starting, this is where you learn.