What this course is

Ten modules that take you from picking a product to running and reading your first Meta ad campaign. Do them in order. Every module ends with a checklist and a decision: proceed, revise, or stop.

This course is free. Running the business is not. Learning costs you nothing here, but a store plan, a domain, samples and ads all cost real money, and no part of this guarantees a profit.

Assumptions used throughout

• You are in the United States and selling to US customers.
• You are a beginner with no existing tools or subscriptions.
• Your budget is one of three levels: $300, $750 or $1,500. Module 4 breaks each one down.
• You have 5 to 10 hours a week.

One example product is used in every module: a dog paw cleaner cup (a cup with soft silicone bristles that you fill with water to rinse mud off a dog's paws). Every price and cost for it in this course is an illustrative assumption, not a verified quote. It is here to show the method, not to tell you what to sell.

Free learning vs business expenses

Age and account rules

If you are under 18: the legitimate setup is for a parent or guardian to open the Shopify store, the payment accounts and the ad account in their own name. They are the legal owner, the money and the taxes are theirs, and they can add you as a staff member so you can do the work under their supervision. Do not enter a false birthday. Accounts opened that way get closed and payouts get frozen.

One rule change every US dropshipper needs to know

For years, packages worth $800 or less entered the US duty-free. This was called the de minimis exemption, and it is what made shipping single cheap items from overseas factories work. It has been suspended for all countries, and in June 2026 US Customs published rules making that suspension indefinite for both mail and courier shipments.

What that means for you: every overseas package now owes duties and goes through customs entry. Someone pays that, and if your supplier does not handle it, your customer may get a bill at the door. Modules 3 and 4 show how to ask suppliers about this and how to put it in your numbers.

Sources checked October 2026: Shopify pricing, Shopify Terms of Service, Federal Register, de minimis suspension for mail shipments, Thompson Hine summary of both customs rules. Verify yourself: Meta Business Help Center, PayPal user agreement.

Goal

Understand the full life of one order and what you are on the hook for. You will produce a one-page map of your order flow and a short list of the risks you accept.

How it works

Dropshipping means you sell a product you do not stock. When a customer buys, you pay a supplier, and the supplier ships to the customer.

1. Order. A customer buys on your Shopify store and pays the full price.
2. Payment. Your payment processor takes its fee and holds the rest. The money reaches your bank on a payout schedule, often a few days later.
3. Fulfillment. You pay the supplier for the product and shipping, usually right away and with your own card.
4. Tracking. The supplier ships and gives a tracking number. Your supplier app sends it to Shopify, and Shopify emails the customer.
5. Support. The customer emails you, not the supplier, with every question.
6. Returns and refunds. If something goes wrong, you refund the customer. Whether the supplier refunds you is a separate conversation.

What stays your responsibility: what your ads and product page claim, the delivery time you promise, product safety, refunds, customer data, and taxes. The FTC's shipping rule puts the duty on the seller who took the order, not on the fulfillment partner. You need a reasonable basis for any delivery time you state, and if you cannot ship on time you must tell the customer and offer a refund.

Three business models compared

Cash flow, in plain terms

Cash flow is the timing of money in and out. In dropshipping, money goes out before it comes in: you pay for ads today, pay the supplier when the order arrives, and get the customer's money days later. A store can be profitable on paper and still run out of cash.

A chargeback is when a customer disputes a charge with their bank. The money is pulled back from you, plus a fee, while the bank decides. Too many of them can get your payment account closed. Honest shipping times and fast refunds are the best prevention.

Revenue is what customers paid. Profit is what is left after product, shipping, duties, fees, refunds, ads and monthly bills. A store with $5,000 in sales can lose money.

Do this

1. Draw the six steps above on one page. Under each, write who does it and how long it takes.
2. Write your refund rule in one sentence. Example: "Damaged or not delivered within the promised window gets a full refund, no return needed."
3. Write down how much cash you can leave untouched for supplier payments and refunds. Module 4 sets the amount.
4. Read the FTC shipping guide linked below. It takes ten minutes.

Tools and costs

Nothing to buy in this module. Paper or a free notes app is enough.

Worked example

One order of the paw cleaner kit at $34.99, using this course's illustrative costs:

You were down $31.90 for three days to make $1.78, and that is before refunds and your Shopify bill. Multiply that by 20 orders a day and you can see why cash matters.

Common mistakes

• Calling sales "profit." Track profit per order from day one.
• Promising 3 to 5 day delivery you cannot back up. State the real window your supplier has proven.
• Spending the payout before orders are delivered. Refunds come out of money you already spent.
• Thinking the supplier handles problems. The customer only knows you.

Checklist and decision

• I can explain the six steps of an order without notes.
• I have a one-sentence refund rule.
• I know the difference between revenue, profit and cash flow.
• I read the FTC shipping guide.

Proceed if you accept that you carry the customer risk. Stop if you cannot set aside any cash for refunds and supplier payments, and come back when you can.

Sources checked October 2026: FTC business guide to the Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule, Shopify pricing.

Goal

Run the same research process on every idea and end with one product worth ordering a sample of. You will produce a filled-in scorecard for five ideas and a research file for your top pick.

How it works

Nobody can tell you a product is a "winner" in advance. What you can do is collect evidence and reject weak ideas cheaply. A good candidate has a specific customer, a clear reason to buy, proof of demand, enough margin to afford ads, and no legal problems.

The seven things to evaluate

1. Customer and buying reason. Name the person and the moment. "Dog owners who wipe muddy paws at the door every rainy day" is specific. "Pet lovers" is not.
2. Demand, seasonality and competition. Are people searching for it and buying it now? Does interest drop in certain months? How many stores sell the same thing?
3. Differentiation. Why would someone buy from you when it may be cheaper on Amazon? Possible answers: a bundle, a better explanation, a specific audience, a guarantee.
4. Price, landed cost and ad affordability. Landed cost is everything it costs to get one unit to the customer: product, shipping and duties. If what is left after landed cost and fees is under about $15, paid ads rarely fit.
5. Shipping, weight, fragility, returns. Small, light and unbreakable is best. Sizing causes returns.
6. Quality and video demonstration. Can you show it working in five seconds with no talking?
7. Legal risk. No brand names, logos or characters you do not own. Avoid categories with safety rules you cannot meet (children's products, anything ingested, items with lithium batteries, medical devices). Never make health claims you cannot support.

Why long-running competitor ads do not prove profit

Meta Ad Library shows that an ad is active and when it started. It does not show spend, sales or profit. A long-running ad might be profitable. It might also be backed by investor money, running at a loss to collect customers, selling a much pricier upsell you cannot see, or simply forgotten. Treat it as a sign of interest, not proof.

Do this

1. Collect 10 ideas. Scroll Instagram and TikTok for 30 minutes and save every product ad. Add problems you or people you know complain about.
2. Meta Ad Library. Search each product keyword with the country set to United States. Note how many advertisers run it, the angles they use, and their prices. Open their stores.
3. Google Trends. Search the product term, set United States and 5 years. Look for a steady or rising line and note the seasonal peaks.
4. Marketplaces. Search Amazon and note the typical price, review counts and the top complaints in 1 to 3 star reviews. The complaints tell you what to fix or explain.
5. Competitor stores. Note their price, offer, shipping promise and return policy.
6. Supplier check. Look up the product on a supplier platform and write down the product cost and US shipping options. Mark these as unconfirmed until Module 3.
7. Score it. Use the scorecard below for your top five.

Tools and costs

The weighted scorecard

Score each line from 1 (bad) to 5 (great). Multiply by the weight, add them up, and divide by 5 to get a score out of 100.

How to read it: 70 or more, order a sample. 55 to 69, rework the offer or the angle and rescore. Under 55, drop it. A 1 on legal risk is an automatic reject no matter the total.

Worked example: five ideas scored

These scores are illustrative. Every number is my assumption for teaching, and none of these products has been verified as profitable. Redo the scores with your own research.

• Paw cleaner: clear customer and easy to show. Weak on differentiation because it is widely sold. Worth a sample only if a bundle fixes the margin.
• Gap filler: safe and easy to ship, but low price leaves little room for ads.
• Portable blender: lithium battery, breakage, and it is sold everywhere.
• Posture corrector: selling it usually depends on health claims you cannot support. Automatic reject.
• Character night light: uses someone else's character. Automatic reject.

Full research file for the paw cleaner

Evidence that justifies a sample: steady or seasonal search interest that fits your launch month, several stores advertising it at $25 or more, review complaints you can address (for example by adding a size guide), and a supplier quote that leaves at least $15 after landed cost and fees.

Evidence to reject it: search interest falling year over year, the same item at $9 with fast shipping on every marketplace and nothing you can add, landed cost that leaves under $10, or a trademark on the name you planned to use.

Prompt you can copy

Act as a skeptical ecommerce product researcher. I am considering selling [PRODUCT] to [SPECIFIC CUSTOMER] in the United States.

Here is the evidence I collected:
- Google Trends pattern: [WHAT I SAW]
- Number of advertisers in Meta Ad Library and their angles: [WHAT I SAW]
- Typical marketplace price and top complaints: [WHAT I SAW]
- Supplier landed cost: [AMOUNT OR "UNKNOWN"]

Using only this evidence, list the three strongest reasons to reject this product and the three things I still need to verify. Do not invent statistics. If I have not given you a fact, say it is unknown.

Common mistakes

• Picking what you like instead of what the evidence supports.
• Skipping the margin check. A $15 product almost never survives paid ads.
• Copying a store's photos or brand name. That is infringement and gets stores taken down.
• Trusting "winning product" lists. By the time it is on a list, hundreds of stores are selling it.

Checklist and decision

• I scored five products with my own research.
• My top product scored 70 or higher with no 1 on legal risk.
• I saved screenshots of my Trends, Ad Library and marketplace findings.
• I wrote what would make me reject it.

Proceed with a product at 70 or above. Revise if your best is 55 to 69: change the offer or audience and rescore. Stop and research new ideas if nothing reaches 55.

Free tools: Meta Ad Library, Google Trends, USPTO trademark search.

Goal

Choose a supplier you have personally tested and confirm real interest before you build a store. You will produce a supplier comparison, a sample inspection report, and a backup supplier.

How it works

Supplier apps connect your Shopify store to factories and warehouses. They import product listings, forward your orders, and send tracking numbers back. The app is the easy part. The supplier behind the listing is what you are really choosing.

What to check with any supplier

• Processing time: days between your order and the package leaving. This is separate from shipping time.
• Shipping estimate to a US address, and from which warehouse.
• Duties: is the price DDP (delivered duty paid, meaning the supplier handles US customs charges) or will your customer be billed on delivery? With the $800 duty-free exemption suspended, you must ask.
• Tracking: a real number on every order that updates.
• Stock: how many units they hold and how they warn you when it runs low.
• Packaging: plain packaging with no supplier invoices or ads inside.
• Returns and defects: what they refund or resend, and what proof they need.

Do this

1. Find your product at three suppliers. Record product cost, shipping cost and time, warehouse location and seller rating.
2. Send each one the outreach message below. Note how fast and how clearly they reply.
3. Order one sample from your top two, shipped to your home the same way a customer's would be.
4. Log the dates: ordered, shipped, tracking first updated, delivered.
5. Inspect each sample with the checklist below.
6. Keep the better one as your main supplier and the other as backup.
7. Run the interest check at the bottom of this module before building the store.

Supplier outreach template

Hello,

I run a US online store and I am interested in [PRODUCT NAME / LINK]. Before ordering, could you confirm:

1. Processing time before shipping
2. Shipping options and delivery time to the United States, and which warehouse it ships from
3. Whether your price is DDP with US duties and customs fees included, or whether the customer pays on delivery
4. Current stock level
5. Whether you can ship in plain packaging with no invoice or promotional inserts
6. Your policy for damaged, defective or lost orders, and what proof you need
7. Whether the product has any safety certifications or test reports

I plan to start with a sample order and expect around [NUMBER] orders per week after that.

Thank you,
[NAME]

Sample inspection checklist

• Arrived within the time the supplier quoted
• Tracking number worked and updated
• No surprise charge on delivery
• Packaging was undamaged and had no supplier branding or invoice
• Product matches the listing photos, color and size
• Materials feel solid, no sharp edges, no strong chemical smell
• It does the job. Use it five times.
• Instructions are included and readable
• Nothing in the box makes a claim you would not make

Checking consistency: one good sample does not prove the hundredth unit will be good. Order a second unit a week or two later, or order two at once, and compare. Ask the supplier for photos of the current batch.

If quality is poor: send clear photos and ask for a replacement or refund. If the reply is slow or evasive, that is your answer about how they will treat your customers. Move to the backup.

Finding backups: search the same product on a second platform, or reverse image search the product photo to find other sellers. Save the link and the quote.

Validating interest honestly

Likes and views show attention. They do not show that anyone will pay. Stronger signals, from weakest to strongest:

1. Comments asking "where can I get this?"
2. People clicking through to a product page
3. People leaving an email on a "notify me at launch" page
4. People paying

A simple test: film three short videos with your sample, post them, and link a basic page with the price and a "notify me" form. Twenty email signups from a few hundred visits is real interest. Ten thousand views and no clicks is not.

Tools and costs

Budget $20 to $75 for samples depending on how many suppliers you test. DSers free and the CJdropshipping app cost nothing to install. Do not pay for a supplier subscription until you have orders.

Worked example

Illustrative results for the paw cleaner. These are example numbers, not real quotes.

Supplier B looks cheaper, but a customer who gets a customs bill will ask for a refund. Supplier A becomes the main supplier at $13.90, and the search continues for a second supplier with US stock as backup.

Common mistakes

• Selling before sampling. You cannot promise a delivery time you have not seen.
• Choosing on price alone. A dollar saved is not worth a 16-day wait and a duty bill.
• Using supplier photos that show another brand's logo.
• No backup. Stock runs out without warning.

Checklist and decision

• I compared at least three suppliers.
• I received and inspected a sample.
• I know the real delivery time and who pays duties.
• I saved a backup supplier.
• I ran an interest check and wrote down the result.

Proceed if the sample is good, delivery matches what you will promise, and you saw real clicks or signups. Revise if the product is good but the supplier is not: test another. Stop on this product if quality is poor from every supplier or nobody clicks.

Sources checked October 2026: DSers on the Shopify App Store, CJdropshipping on the Shopify App Store, Zendrop plans and pricing, summary of the customs rules on low-value imports.

Goal

Know exactly how much you can pay to get one customer before you lose money. You will produce a financial model for your product and a budget plan.

How it works

Unit economics is the profit math for one order. Get it right for one order and you can predict a hundred.

• Variable costs happen on every order: product, shipping, duties, card fees, and an allowance for refunds.
• Fixed costs happen every month no matter what: your Shopify plan, apps, domain.
• Contribution margin before ads is the sale price minus the variable costs. It is the money one order contributes toward ads, fixed costs and profit.
• CAC or CPA (customer acquisition cost, cost per acquisition) is ad spend divided by orders.
• Break-even CPA equals the contribution margin before ads. Pay more than that per order and you lose money on every sale.
• ROAS (return on ad spend) is revenue divided by ad spend. Break-even ROAS is the sale price divided by the contribution margin.

Revenue basis: in this course, revenue means what the customer actually pays for the product after any discount, with sales tax left out. Sales tax is not your money. You collect it and pass it on.

Avoiding double counting: product cost is counted once, on every order. The refund line is only the revenue you give back, because the product cost on that order is already counted. Ad spend is never inside the contribution margin. It is what you compare the margin against.

Do this

1. Enter your real numbers in the calculator below.
2. Write down your break-even CPA and break-even ROAS. You will use them in Modules 9 and 10.
3. If break-even CPA is under $15, raise the price, add a bundle (Module 5) or pick another product.
4. List your fixed monthly costs.
5. Pick the budget plan below that matches your money.

Worked example

All costs are illustrative assumptions. The card fee is Shopify Basic's published online rate of 2.9% + 30¢. The 5% refund rate is a planning assumption.

Reading it: the kit lets you pay up to $18.03 per customer. A 10% discount cuts that to $14.81, so the discount costs you $3.22 per order, not $3.50, because fees and refunds shrink a little too.

Fixed costs: with Shopify Basic at $39/month and free apps, fixed costs are about $39 a month plus the domain. If your CPA is $14.00 on the kit, each order leaves $18.03 - $14.00 = $4.03. You need $39 ÷ $4.03 = about 10 orders a month just to cover Shopify.

Taxes: sales tax is collected on top of your price and sent to the state, so it is not in this model. Income tax is owed on whatever profit is left at the end of the year. Set some aside and ask an accountant how much.

Cash reserve: keep enough to pay the supplier for about a week of expected orders plus your refund allowance. At 10 orders a week that is 10 × $13.90 = $139, plus a little for refunds.

Three starting budgets

When paid ads are too expensive for your budget: compare your test money to your break-even CPA. $197 is about 11 times the kit's $18.03 break-even CPA. That is enough to find out if tracking works, but not enough to judge several ad ideas. With $300, validate with free content first and move to paid only after a video proves people click. After month three, remember the Shopify bill returns to full price.

Tools and costs

The calculator above and a free spreadsheet (Google Sheets) are enough.

Prompt you can copy

Check my unit economics. Do the arithmetic step by step and show each line.

Sale price: $[PRICE]
Discount: [PERCENT]%
Landed cost (product + shipping + duties): $[AMOUNT]
Card fee: 2.9% + $0.30
Expected refund rate: [PERCENT]% of revenue
Fixed monthly costs: $[AMOUNT]

Calculate: revenue after discount, contribution margin before ads, break-even CPA, break-even ROAS, and how many orders per month I need to cover fixed costs at a CPA of $[AMOUNT]. Do not count any cost twice. Tell me if any of my inputs look unrealistic.

Common mistakes

• Leaving out duties, refunds or card fees. Small lines decide whether you make money.
• Using revenue to judge ads. A 1.5 ROAS sounds fine and loses money when your break-even is 1.94.
• Spending the reserve on ads. Then one busy week leaves you unable to pay the supplier.
• Forgetting the Shopify price goes up after the intro months.

Checklist and decision

• I know my contribution margin, break-even CPA and break-even ROAS.
• I listed my fixed monthly costs.
• I set aside a cash reserve and will not spend it on ads.
• I chose a budget plan.

Proceed if break-even CPA is $15 or more. Revise price or offer if it is $10 to $15. Stop on this product if it is under $10 and you cannot bundle or raise the price.

Sources checked October 2026: Shopify pricing and card rates, Shopify Help Center, US taxes.

Goal

Decide who you sell to, what you call the store, and what the offer is. You will produce a one-page brand sheet: name, domain, colors, fonts, positioning statement and offer.

How it works

Your brand is what makes your store look like a real business instead of a random product page. For a first store it only needs to be simple and consistent.

Your offer is the full deal the customer gets: product, price, what is included, shipping and guarantee. A stronger offer is usually the cheapest way to improve your numbers.

One-product store or niche store?

A sensible path: start with one product under a name broad enough for the niche, so you can add related products later without renaming.

Pricing, bundles and upsells

• Price from your Module 4 math and what competitors charge, not from a formula.
• A bundle adds a cheap, useful item so the order is worth more. It raises your margin more than it raises your cost.
• An upsell is an extra offered at or after checkout, like a second unit at a lower price.
• Genuine incentives: a real welcome discount for joining your email list, free shipping over a set amount, a real guarantee you will honor.

Do not use fake countdown timers, "only 3 left" when that is untrue, a crossed-out "was" price you never charged, or reviews you wrote yourself. The FTC's rule on fake reviews bans fake and AI-generated reviews, reviews from insiders without disclosure, and buying fake followers or views, and it allows civil penalties.

Do this

1. Define the customer in one sentence: who they are, the moment they need the product, and what annoys them now.
2. Write the positioning statement: "For [customer] who [problem], [store] offers [product] that [main benefit], unlike [alternative], because [true reason]."
3. Brainstorm 20 names. Short, easy to say and spell, no brand names inside it.
4. Check each finalist: search it on Google, look it up in the USPTO trademark search, and check that the .com and the Instagram handle are free.
5. Pick a simple look: one main color, one accent color, one or two fonts from your theme. Make a plain text logo.
6. Build the offer and rerun the Module 4 calculator with it.

Tools and costs

Worked example

Customer: dog owners in rainy or snowy areas who wipe paws at the door after every walk and still end up with prints on the floor.

Positioning: For dog owners who are tired of muddy paw prints, Doorstep Paws offers a paw cleaning kit that rinses paws in seconds at the door, unlike a towel alone, because the soft bristles reach between the pads.

Name: "Doorstep Paws" is an example only. I have not checked whether the name, domain or trademark is available. It is broad enough to add a drying mitt or door mat later.

Look: one calm green, one warm gray, the theme's default fonts, a text logo.

Offer:

• The Doorstep Kit: paw cleaner cup plus microfiber drying towel, $34.99
• Ships from a US warehouse, arrives in [VERIFIED DELIVERY WINDOW]
• 30-day money-back guarantee
• 10% off a first order for joining the email list
• Upsell: a second kit for a second dog at a lower price

Why the kit: Module 4 showed the cup alone leaves $11.72 before ads and the kit leaves $18.03. The towel adds about $2.90 of cost and $10 of price.

Prompts you can copy

Give me 20 store name ideas for an online store selling [PRODUCT] to [CUSTOMER]. Rules: two words or fewer, easy to spell, no existing brand names, broad enough to add related products later. For each, say in a few words what feeling it gives. I will check availability myself, so do not claim any name is available.

Write a positioning statement and three offer options for my store.

Product: [PRODUCT AND WHAT IS INCLUDED]
Customer: [WHO AND WHEN THEY NEED IT]
Price: $[PRICE]
Verified facts I can state: [DELIVERY WINDOW, GUARANTEE, MATERIALS]

Use only the facts I listed. Do not add scarcity, countdowns, review counts or claims I did not give you.

Common mistakes

• Spending two weeks on a logo. A clean text logo is fine.
• A name that locks you into one product.
• Discounting before you know your margin.
• Fake urgency. It breaks trust, ad policies and the law.

Checklist and decision

• I can describe my customer in one sentence.
• My name passed the Google, trademark, domain and handle checks.
• I have colors, fonts and a text logo.
• My offer is written down and every part of it is true.
• I reran the calculator with the final offer.

Proceed when the offer keeps your break-even CPA at $15 or more. Revise the bundle or price if not.

Sources checked October 2026: FTC final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials. Free tool: USPTO trademark search.

Goal

Launch a working one-product store that looks trustworthy on a phone and has passed a test order. You will produce a live store with product page, policies, payments, shipping and supplier connection.

How it works

There are two kinds of AI help, and mixing them up wastes time:

• Tools that suggest. A chat AI writes copy, ideas or code. You paste it in yourself. It cannot see or change your store.
• Tools that act inside Shopify. Shopify's built-in AI can generate a theme from a description, write text in the editor, build theme blocks and edit images, directly in your admin.

Simplest stack: Shopify's built-in AI, one free chat AI, and a free video editor. Total extra cost: $0. A paid design or AI subscription becomes worth it only when you are producing new ads every week.

AI can do: first drafts of copy, layout, images, FAQs. You must verify by hand: every product fact, sizes, materials, delivery times, prices, policies, tax settings, payment setup, and how the page looks on a real phone.

Do this: the setup walkthrough

Menu names are the ones Shopify uses now. If yours look slightly different, use the search bar at the top of the admin.

1. Account and plan. Sign up at shopify.com and pick Basic. It is $39/month, or $29/month billed yearly, and new stores currently get 3 days free then $1/month for 3 months. Do not pay yearly until the product is proven.
2. Domain. Settings > Domains. Buy one through Shopify (it connects itself) or connect one you own.
3. Theme. Online Store > Themes. Pick a free Shopify theme or generate one from a description. Skip paid themes for now.
4. Mobile design. In the theme editor, switch to the phone preview and build there first. Most of your visitors will come from Instagram on a phone.
5. Product. Products > Add product. Add title, description, your own photos and video, price, and weight. Add variants (versions like size or color) only if the supplier really stocks them. Leave "compare-at price" empty unless you truly sold at that price.
6. Homepage. For a one-product store keep it short: headline, product, three benefits, how it works, FAQ. Or send the homepage straight to the product page.
7. Product page. Follow the annotated structure below.
8. Navigation and footer. Content > Menus. Main menu: Shop, FAQ, Contact. Footer menu: all four policy pages and Contact.
9. Contact and FAQ pages. Online Store > Pages. Use a real email you check daily.
10. Policies. Settings > Policies. Shopify gives templates for refund, privacy, terms and shipping. Edit them so they match what you actually do. A template that promises something you do not do is worse than none.
11. Payments. Settings > Payments. Activate Shopify Payments and complete identity and bank details. The rate on Basic is 2.9% + 30¢ per online card order. Using another processor instead adds a 2% Shopify fee on Basic.
12. Shipping. Settings > Shipping and delivery. Set one simple US rate, for example free shipping built into the price.
13. Taxes. Settings > Taxes and duties. Shopify helps calculate sales tax but does not file or pay it for you by default. You generally start with the state you live in, and you must register with a state before collecting tax there. Shopify recommends asking a tax professional.
14. Checkout and notifications. Settings > Checkout and Settings > Notifications. Send yourself the order confirmation and shipping emails and read them as a customer would.
15. Supplier. Install your supplier app, import the product, and link it to your Shopify product so orders and tracking sync. Map every variant.
16. Analytics. Shopify's Analytics section works out of the box. The Meta pixel comes in Module 8.
17. Test order. Turn on test mode in Shopify Payments and place an order on your phone, or place a real order and refund it. Confirm the emails arrive and the order appears in your supplier app. Do not pay the supplier for the test.
18. Launch check. Remove the store password under Online Store > Preferences. Open the store on mobile data, not Wi-Fi, and time how long it takes to load.

Keep apps to a minimum. Start with only the supplier app and the Facebook & Instagram app. Every extra app can add a monthly fee and code that slows your pages, and slow pages lose buyers.

Annotated product page

Trust elements that are real: a contact email, clear delivery window, clear refund policy, photos you took, secure checkout by Shopify. Skip badge images that claim awards or certifications you do not have.

Prompts you can copy

BRAND STYLE GUIDE
Create a one-page brand style guide for my store.
Store name: [NAME]
Customer: [ONE SENTENCE]
Feeling I want: [THREE WORDS]
Give me: a main color and accent color with hex codes, a font pairing available in Shopify themes, a tone of voice in three bullet points, and five phrases to use and five to avoid.

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
Write a product description for a Shopify product page.
Product: [NAME AND WHAT IS INCLUDED]
Customer and problem: [ONE SENTENCE]
Verified facts: [MATERIALS, SIZE, HOW IT WORKS, DELIVERY WINDOW, GUARANTEE]
Format: one-line promise, three short benefit bullets, a three-step "how it works".
Rules: plain words, under 120 words, use only the facts I listed, put [VERIFY] wherever a fact is missing, no health or safety claims, no fake urgency.

HOMEPAGE
Write the copy for a one-product homepage: headline (under 8 words), subheadline, three benefit blocks with a title and one sentence each, a "how it works" in three steps, and a closing call to action.
Product, customer and verified facts: [PASTE FROM ABOVE]
Use only those facts.

FAQ
Write 8 FAQ questions and answers for my product page covering shipping time, returns, sizing, cleaning, materials, what is in the box, order tracking and how to contact us.
Facts: [PASTE YOUR REAL POLICIES AND PRODUCT FACTS]
Where I have not given you the answer, write [VERIFY] instead of guessing.

THEME CUSTOMIZATION (paste into Sidekick in your Shopify admin)
On my product page, add a section under the buy button with three icons and short text: "Ships from the US", "30-day guarantee", "Secure checkout". Match my theme's colors and fonts, and make it stack in one column on mobile.

Common mistakes

• Publishing AI copy without checking facts. Wrong sizes cause refunds.
• Using supplier photos only. Shoot your own with the sample.
• Installing ten apps on day one.
• Never testing checkout on a phone.
• Policies that do not match what you do.

Checklist and decision

• Domain connected and store loads fast on mobile data.
• Product page follows the structure, with my own photos and verified facts.
• Four policy pages and a contact page are live and accurate.
• Payments, shipping and taxes are set up.
• Supplier app is linked and a test order went through.
• Only two apps installed.

Proceed when a friend can buy on their phone without asking you a question. Revise anything they got stuck on.

Sources checked October 2026: Shopify pricing, Shopify Help Center, AI tools, Shopify Help Center, Sidekick, Shopify Help Center, US taxes. Not verified: current Canva and CapCut paid pricing, so check their sites before upgrading.

Goal

Build a small library of honest videos and images from your sample. You will produce at least three different ad concepts, each as a finished vertical video, plus two static images.

How it works

On Meta, the ad itself does most of the targeting. People who stop to watch tell the system who is interested. So your job is to make several clearly different ads and let results choose.

A creative concept is a different idea: a different problem, angle, format or person. A variation is the same idea with a small change, like a new first line or caption color. Three concepts teach you far more than ten variations of one.

Six formats

Specs that matter

• Aspect ratio: film vertical, 9:16, for Reels and Stories. Export a 4:5 version for the feed.
• Opening frame: the first second must show the problem or the product in action. No logo intro.
• Pacing: a new shot every one to two seconds. Total length 15 to 30 seconds.
• Captions: add on-screen text. Many people watch with sound off. Keep text away from the top and bottom edges where app buttons cover it.
• Call to action: end with one instruction, like "Tap to get the kit."

Staying honest and legal

• Show the real product. If you use AI to change a background, compare the result to the sample. Color, size and shape must match what the customer receives.
• No synthetic testimonials. Do not use an AI avatar or AI voice pretending to be a customer. The FTC's rule bans fake and AI-generated reviews and testimonials.
• No invented results. Show what happened on camera.
• No footage you do not own. Do not download other stores' or creators' videos. Film your own or get written permission.
• Paid creators must disclose. If you pay or gift someone, they need to say so clearly.
• Music: popular songs are generally not cleared for business use. Use music your editor or Meta marks as cleared for commercial use, or use no music.

Do this

1. Film everything on the shot lists below in one session.
2. Edit three videos, each from a different concept.
3. Make two static images from your best photos.
4. Post the videos to your Instagram as normal Reels first. Note which gets the most watch time and link clicks.
5. Save each finished file with a clear name, like "concept1-problem-v1".

Phone filming checklist

• Clean the lens
• Film vertical, highest quality your phone allows
• Stand near a window. Daylight from the side or front, never behind the subject.
• Hold steady or lean the phone on something
• Film each action three times from different distances
• Hold every shot for five seconds
• Record real sound, even if you add voice later
• Clear clutter and anything with another brand's logo

Tools and costs

Worked example: the paw cleaner kit

10 hooks

1. "This is my floor after every rainy walk."
2. "I got tired of chasing my dog with a towel."
3. Silent shot of a muddy paw going into the cup and coming out clean.
4. "Dog owners, how are you cleaning paws right now?"
5. "The towel-only method does not get between the pads."
6. "Ten seconds at the door saved my white couch."
7. "Things I keep by the front door as a dog owner."
8. "He hated paw wipes. He does not mind this."
9. "Mud season is here. This is how I deal with it."
10. "I tested this paw cleaner for a week. Here is what happened."

Hooks 6, 8 and 10 describe personal experiences. Only use them if they are true for the person saying them.

5 short video scripts

Script 1, problem and solution (20 seconds). Shot: muddy prints across the floor. Text: "Every rainy walk." Shot: dog at the door, paws muddy. Voice: "I used to do the towel chase." Shot: paw into the cup, twist, out clean. Voice: "Now it is dip, twist, dry." Shot: towel dry, dog walks in. Text: "The Doorstep Kit. Tap to get yours."

Script 2, silent demonstration (15 seconds). Close shot of water being poured into the cup. Muddy paw goes in. Twist. Paw comes out clean. Dirty water poured out to show what came off. Towel dry. Text over the last shot: "Rinse paws at the door."

Script 3, creator style (25 seconds). Real owner to camera: "If you have a dog and it rains where you live, this is what I keep by the door." Holds up the kit. "Add a little water, dip each paw, twist, dry with the towel." Shows it. "It takes me about [REAL TIME] for all four." Ends: "Link is below."

Script 4, comparison (20 seconds). Split screen. Left, labeled "Towel only": wiping a paw, then showing the pad still dirty. Right, labeled "Cup and towel": dip, twist, dry, pad clean. Text: "Same dog, same walk." Only use this if your own footage really shows the difference.

Script 5, routine (20 seconds). Text: "After-walk routine." Shots in order: leash hung up, cup filled, four quick paw dips, towel, treat, dog on the couch. Text at the end: "The Doorstep Kit: cup plus towel."

5 primary texts

The primary text is the caption above the ad.

1. Muddy paws at the door? Add water, dip, twist, dry. The Doorstep Kit comes with the cup and a drying towel.
2. For dog owners who are done with the towel chase. A quick rinse at the door before paws reach the floor.
3. Rain, snow, mud. Soft silicone bristles rinse between the pads, and the towel finishes the job.
4. Cup plus towel, $34.99. Ships from the US. 30-day money-back guarantee.
5. Keep it by the door. Use it after every walk. Rinse it out when you are done.

5 headlines

1. Rinse Muddy Paws at the Door
2. The Doorstep Kit: Cup + Towel
3. Dip, Twist, Dry
4. Made for Mud Season
5. 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

3 shot lists

Shot list A, the mess. Wide shot of paw prints on a clean floor. Close shot of one muddy paw. Dog waiting at the open door. You holding a towel while the dog walks off. Film outside right after a wet walk.

Shot list B, the demonstration. Water pouring into the cup. Cup from above showing the bristles. Paw going in, from the side. The twist, close. Paw coming out. Dirty water being poured out. Towel dry. All four paws in one fast take.

Shot list C, the product. Kit laid out on a plain surface. Cup in your hand for scale. Bristles close up. Towel folded next to the cup. Kit sitting by the front door. Package as it arrives.

Prompt you can copy

Write 5 short video ad scripts, 15 to 25 seconds each, for [PRODUCT].
Customer: [WHO AND THE MOMENT THEY NEED IT]
What I can truthfully show on camera: [LIST]
Verified facts: [PRICE, WHAT IS INCLUDED, DELIVERY WINDOW, GUARANTEE]

Each script must be a different concept, not a variation. For each give: the first-second hook, a shot-by-shot list, on-screen text, and the closing call to action.
Rules: no customer testimonials, no results I did not list, no health claims, no "best" or "number one", no before and after I cannot film myself.

Common mistakes

• One video, ten tiny edits. Make different ideas.
• A slow first three seconds.
• No captions.
• Using someone else's video.
• AI images that no longer look like the product.

Checklist and decision

• I have three finished videos from three different concepts.
• Each has captions and a clear last line.
• I have two static images.
• Everything shown and said is true and filmed by me or with permission.
• I posted them organically and noted the results.

Proceed with at least three concepts. Revise if nobody watches past three seconds: rewrite the openings before spending on ads.

Sources checked October 2026: FTC final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials, Shopify Help Center, AI tools. Verify yourself: music licensing terms in your editor and in Meta's tools, and the FTC's endorsement guidance for creator disclosures.

Goal

Have every Meta account connected and tracking confirmed. You will produce a working ad account with billing, and a tested connection that reports purchases from Shopify to Meta.

How it works

Meta's ad system is a set of connected pieces:

• Personal Facebook account. Your login. It needs your real name and two-factor authentication turned on.
• Business portfolio. The container that holds your business assets. It used to be called Business Manager.
• Facebook Page. The public identity your ads run from.
• Instagram professional account. Lets ads run from your Instagram handle.
• Ad account. Where campaigns live and where you are billed.
• Dataset, also called the pixel. Collects what visitors do on your store.

Tracking in plain language

The Meta pixel is a small piece of code on your store. When someone views a product or buys, their browser tells Meta. Ad blockers and privacy settings can stop this.

The Conversions API sends the same information straight from Shopify's servers to Meta's servers, so it cannot be blocked by a browser.

When both are on, Meta gets two reports of the same purchase. Deduplication means Meta matches them by a shared ID and counts one. Shopify's official app handles this for you.

Standard events are the actions Meta understands for stores: PageView, ViewContent (looked at a product), AddToCart, InitiateCheckout, AddPaymentInfo and Purchase.

Shopify's app offers three data sharing levels:

Consent and privacy: the higher levels share personal details, so your privacy policy must say so. Shopify's customer privacy settings can show a cookie banner in regions that require consent. US state privacy laws differ and keep changing, so review Settings > Customer privacy and your policy rather than assuming.

Why Shopify and Meta numbers differ: Shopify counts actual orders and credits the last link the buyer clicked. Meta credits itself for a purchase if the person clicked or, in some settings, only saw your ad within a set number of days. Meta also models some purchases it cannot see directly. Shopify is the truth for how many orders you got. Meta is a guide to which ads drove them.

Do this

Steps and menu names can differ by account and region. If a button is not where this says, search Meta's Business Help Center for the item name.

1. Secure your Facebook account. Real name, confirmed email, two-factor authentication on.
2. Create a business portfolio. Go to business.facebook.com, sign in, choose Create account, and enter your business name, your name and a business email.
3. Add a Facebook Page. In Settings, open Accounts > Pages > Add. Create a Page with your store name, logo and website.
4. Add Instagram. Switch your Instagram to a professional account in the app, then in Settings open Accounts > Instagram accounts > Add.
5. Create the ad account. Settings > Accounts > Ad accounts > Add > Create a new ad account. Choose your time zone and US dollars carefully. The currency cannot be changed later.
6. Add billing. Add a payment method to the ad account. Set an account spending limit equal to your test budget so you cannot overspend.
7. Connect Shopify. In Shopify, install the Facebook & Instagram app by Meta. Follow the prompts to connect your Facebook account, business portfolio, Page, Instagram and ad account.
8. Turn on data sharing. In Shopify go to Sales channels > Facebook & Instagram > Settings > Data sharing settings. Turn on customer data sharing, pick a level, and select or create your pixel. If you ever pasted pixel code into your theme by hand, remove it first so events are not counted twice.
9. Verify your domain if asked. In business settings under Brand safety and suitability > Domains, add your domain and follow the verification steps.
10. Test tracking. See below.

How to test tracking

1. Open Events Manager in Meta and select your dataset.
2. Open the Test events tab and enter your store address.
3. In the window that opens, view the product, add to cart, start checkout and complete a test order.
4. Watch each event appear: ViewContent, AddToCart, InitiateCheckout, Purchase.
5. On Enhanced or Maximum, check that events show both a browser and a server source and that they are marked as deduplicated.
6. Confirm the Purchase value matches the order total.

Events can take a little while to show in the main overview after setup. If Purchase never appears, do not run ads yet. Recheck the data sharing settings and that only one pixel is connected.

Tools and costs

All of these accounts and the Shopify app are free. You only pay for ads you run.

Worked example

For Doorstep Paws: business portfolio "Doorstep Paws", Page "Doorstep Paws", Instagram @[YOUR HANDLE], ad account in US dollars and your home time zone, spending limit $350, data sharing set to Enhanced, privacy policy updated to mention sharing data with Meta. A test order of $34.99 shows one Purchase event with a value of 34.99 and both browser and server sources.

Common mistakes

• Running ads from a personal ad account with no business portfolio. Harder to recover if something is restricted.
• Two pixels on the store. Every purchase is counted twice.
• Skipping the test. Without a working Purchase event you are paying for guesses.
• No spending limit.
• Creating new accounts after a rejection. Request a review instead. Duplicate accounts get banned.

Checklist and decision

• Two-factor authentication is on.
• Business portfolio, Page, Instagram and ad account are connected.
• Billing is added with a spending limit.
• Shopify's Facebook & Instagram app is connected and data sharing is on.
• A test order showed a Purchase event with the right value.
• My privacy policy mentions Meta data sharing.

Proceed only when the Purchase event works. Stop and fix if it does not. This is the one module where "good enough" is not enough.

Sources checked October 2026: Shopify Help Center, Facebook data sharing, Shopify Help Center, Meta pixel. Meta's own help pages could not be read directly, so the Meta-side steps come from current third-party guides: Leadsie on Meta ad prerequisites and Cometly on verifying the Conversions API. Confirm against the Meta Business Help Center.

Goal

Launch one simple, measurable test. You will produce a live campaign with settings you can explain, and a written plan for when to continue and when to stop.

How it works

Meta ads have three levels:

• Campaign: the goal. You choose an objective, which tells Meta what result to chase.
• Ad set: who, where, how much, and which action counts as success (the conversion event).
• Ad: the video or image, text and link.

Objective and event. Choose Sales, with Purchase as the conversion event. You get what you ask for: ask for clicks and Meta finds people who click, not people who buy.

Meta's automation. Sales campaigns now default to Meta's automated setup, branded Advantage+. Advantage+ audience lets the system find buyers broadly and treats any interests you add as suggestions, not limits. Advantage+ placements spreads your ads across Facebook, Instagram, Stories, Reels and more. You still control country, minimum age, budget and the ads themselves.

Broad or interests? Broad means you set only country and age and let Meta learn from who responds to your video. Interest targeting narrows to people Meta links to a topic. For a new account with a small budget, broad with good ads is the simpler starting point, and the system treats interests as hints anyway. The tradeoff: broad needs your ad to make clear who it is for.

The learning phase. Meta's delivery settles as it collects results, and guides commonly cite about 50 conversion events per ad set per week. At an $18 break-even CPA that would be around $900 a week, which is beyond a beginner test. So expect your test to stay in learning. That is fine. You are judging on your own math, not on Meta's status label.

How many concepts can you afford? To learn anything about one ad concept, it needs to spend around three times your break-even CPA. Divide your test budget by that figure to get the most you could test. Meta never splits money evenly, so plan for about half that many.

Do this

1. Confirm Module 8's tracking test passed today, not last week.
2. Write your numbers at the top of a note: break-even CPA, break-even ROAS, total test budget, daily budget, end date.
3. In Ads Manager choose Create, then the Sales objective.
4. Build one campaign, one ad set and three ads, each a different concept from Module 7.
5. Use the example settings below, adjusted to your budget.
6. Before publishing, run the pre-launch check.
7. Publish, then leave it alone for at least three to four days unless something is broken. Constant edits restart learning.

Pre-launch check

• Each ad's link opens the right product page on a phone
• Price in the ad matches the price on the page
• Captions have no typos and no claims you cannot back up
• Purchase event is selected and the dataset is yours
• Account spending limit is set
• Supplier has stock
• Cash reserve is untouched

Worked example: illustrative campaign for the $750 budget

This is an example for learning, not a formula. The budget comes from Module 4: $350 for round one.

When to continue and when to stop

There is no universal rule like "turn it off after $10". Decide using four things, in this order:

1. Is tracking accurate? Compare Meta's purchases to Shopify's orders every day. If Shopify shows orders Meta does not, fix tracking before judging any ad.
2. Spend compared to break-even CPA. How many break-even CPAs has this ad spent without a purchase?
3. Sample size. One purchase is luck. Patterns need more.
4. Cash. Never spend the reserve. When the test budget is gone, the test is over.

A first test that loses money is normal and still useful if it tells you what to change. Nobody can promise a sale within a set number of days.

Tools and costs

Ads Manager is free. The only cost is the ad spend you set.

Common mistakes

• Too many ad sets. Splitting $25 a day five ways teaches you nothing.
• Editing every day.
• Judging by likes and comments.
• Raising the budget after one good day.
• Borrowing from the reserve to "give it one more day."

Checklist and decision

• My break-even CPA, total budget and end date are written down.
• One campaign, one ad set, three different concepts.
• Objective is Sales and the event is Purchase.
• Pre-launch check is complete.
• I know the four things I will use to decide.

Proceed to Module 10 once the campaign has run at least four days. Stop immediately if tracking breaks or the supplier runs out of stock.

Meta's own help pages could not be read directly. Interface terms come from current third-party guides: Bïrch on Advantage+ sales campaigns and 1ClickReport on campaign setup. Those guides suggest far larger daily budgets than this example, which is sized for a beginner test. Confirm settings in the Meta Business Help Center, and read Meta's Advertising Standards before you publish.

Goal

Read your results without guessing and choose one change to test next. You will produce a results sheet with every metric calculated and a written next step.

How it works

Think of the path from ad to order as a funnel. Each metric measures one step.

Diagnostic metrics tell you where the problem is. Financial metrics tell you whether the business works. A great CTR with a CPA above break-even is still a loss. Only CPA against break-even CPA, and actual profit, decide viability.

Do this

1. After the test, export the numbers from Ads Manager and the order count from Shopify for the same dates.
2. Use Shopify's order count and revenue as the truth. Use Meta's numbers for everything before the purchase.
3. Calculate every metric in the table.
4. Compare CPA to your break-even CPA and ROAS to your break-even ROAS.
5. Find the weakest step in the funnel using the troubleshooting table.
6. Choose one change. Test it. Changing five things at once means you will not know what helped.

Worked example

Illustrative results for the 14-day, $350 test of the paw cleaner kit. These numbers are made up to show the math.

Reading it. Revenue of $279.92 sounds like progress. The test lost $205.76 before the Shopify bill. CPA was $43.75 against a break-even of $18.03, and ROAS was 0.80 against a break-even of 1.94.

What would break-even take? $350 ÷ $18.03 = about 19.4 purchases instead of 8. From the same 230 visitors that would need an 8.4% purchase rate, which is unrealistic for cold traffic. So no single fix gets there. It would take cheaper clicks from a stronger ad, a better page, and a higher order value together.

The decision. The funnel is not broken at one step: people click, add to cart and buy at reasonable rates. The problem is the economics. Options, in order of effort: raise order value (a two-kit offer), make new ad concepts to bring CPC down, or accept that this product cannot support paid ads at this price and use organic content while you research another product.

Troubleshooting table

Prompt you can copy

Help me read my ad test. Show every calculation.

Spend: $[AMOUNT] over [DAYS] days
Impressions: [NUMBER]
Link clicks: [NUMBER]
Landing page views: [NUMBER]
Add to carts: [NUMBER]
Checkouts started: [NUMBER]
Purchases (from Shopify): [NUMBER]
Revenue (from Shopify, before tax): $[AMOUNT]
My contribution margin per order before ads: $[AMOUNT]
My break-even CPA: $[AMOUNT]

Calculate CPM, link CTR, CPC, add-to-cart rate, checkout rate, purchase conversion rate, CPA, AOV, ROAS and profit after ads. Tell me which single funnel step is weakest and how many purchases I would have needed to break even. Do not compare me to "industry benchmarks" unless you can name the source. With this few purchases, tell me how confident I should be.

Common mistakes

• Celebrating revenue.
• Fixing the ad when the page is the problem, or the reverse.
• Changing several things at once.
• Trusting Meta's purchase count over Shopify's.
• Drawing big conclusions from five orders.

Checklist and decision

• I calculated every metric from my own numbers.
• I compared CPA and ROAS to my break-even figures.
• I identified the weakest funnel step.
• I chose one change to test next, or decided to stop.

Proceed to a second test if CPA is within reach of break-even and you know what to change. Revise the offer or page if one funnel step is clearly weak. Stop this product if CPA is several times break-even with nothing obvious to fix, keep your reserve, and take what you learned back to Module 2.

What comes after

If a test reaches break-even or better: keep the ads that work running, add new concepts every week, raise the budget in small steps, ask your supplier for better pricing as volume grows, and keep tracking profit weekly. Once money is coming in, talk to an accountant about registering the business and sales tax.