Have you ever asked yourself: “What product can I sell online to make a lot of money?”
If you have, you’re not alone. In fact, surveys show that more than 60% of aspiring entrepreneurs never launch their online store because they’re waiting to find the “perfect product.”
It’s easy to see why. Social media is filled with stories of overnight millionaires who claim they “found the right product” and struck gold instantly. Maybe it was a trending gadget on TikTok or a beauty product that went viral. The message seems clear: find the magic product, and money will follow.
But here’s the truth that no one tells you: there is no perfect product that guarantees success from day one.
According to MarketingSignals, 90% of e-commerce businesses fail within the first 120 days, not because the product was wrong, but because the people running them lacked the mindset to keep going when challenges appeared.
As someone who started an e-commerce side hustle while working full-time, I can tell you this from experience: products come and go, but it’s your mindset that determines your success and financial growth.
In this blog post, I’ll share the three mindset traits that you absolutely must develop if you want to succeed in e-commerce:
- The willingness to learn
- Patience
- Resilience
If you’ve never taken the first step because you’re waiting for the “right product,” keep reading. You’ll discover why your mindset, not your product, is the real key to success.
1. The Willingness to Learn (The Skill That Pays You Back Forever)
When you’re standing at the starting line, it’s tempting to believe that your success depends on spotting the right product. But once you actually begin, you’ll quickly realize something else: what matters most is your ability to learn new skills.
Think about what goes into launching an online store:
- Setting up your website: Whether you choose Shopify, WooCommerce, or Wix, you’ll need to learn the basics of hosting, domains, and design.
- Listing products effectively: Writing product titles, descriptions, and uploading images that make customers click.
- Understanding SEO: Learning how to rank on Google so people actually find your store.
- Sourcing products: Figuring out where to buy, how to negotiate with suppliers, and how to handle import duties if you go international.
- Registering on marketplaces: Platforms like Takealot, Amazon, or Noon require you to complete training before you can start selling.
- Running ads: Crafting Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok ads that convert strangers into buyers.
- Logistics: Choosing a reliable shipping partner, managing delivery times, and dealing with returns.
That’s a lot to learn, and it can feel overwhelming. But here’s the key: you don’t need to master everything before you start. You just need to be willing to learn as you go.
Think about your career. When you started your full-time job, you didn’t know everything on day one. You learned through training, trial and error, and feedback. E-commerce works the same way.
When I started, I knew nothing about web design, WooCommerce, SEO, or Facebook ads. My first website was so slow and failed miserably. I wasted money on ads. I felt like quitting. But instead, I watched tutorials on YouTube, read blogs, and spent 30 minutes to 2 hours every day to practice something new. Slowly, I improved. That willingness to learn was the difference between giving up and growing my business.
Fact worth noting
LinkedIn research shows that entrepreneurs who commit to continuous learning are 50% more likely to achieve long-term success.
Pro Tip
Block out 30–60 minutes each day to learn one skill related to e-commerce. Over a year, that’s more than 300 hours of learning, enough to transform a beginner into a competent store owner.
2. Patience (Sales Don’t Happen Overnight)
If you’ve never started, it’s easy to imagine that the moment you list your product online, sales will pour in. But here’s the reality: your store will be invisible at first.
Unlike a physical shop where customers can walk by, an online store has no “foot traffic.” People won’t find you unless you bring them in through marketing, SEO, or marketplaces. This is why patience is absolutely critical.
Why Patience Matters
- First sales take time: Many new stores don’t see consistent sales for the first 3–6 months.
- Marketplaces speed things up: Takealot, for example, already has millions of shoppers. Listing there can help you make sales faster while your own website grows.
- Customers guide your business: Often, the product you think will sell best isn’t the one people want. It takes time and feedback to discover what your real customers are willing to pay for.
📊 Quick fact
Takealot has over 2.9 million active monthly shoppers in South Africa. That’s a customer base you can’t build overnight on your own website.
This is why I recommend beginners use marketplaces alongside their website. You can start getting orders, learning about customers, and building confidence without waiting months for traffic to arrive on your website.
When I first launched my store, I expected sales within days. Instead, weeks went by with nothing. I was discouraged. Then I started learning about Amazon, Takealot, and other marketplaces. Every successful store you see today also started at zero. It’s patience that got them to where they are.
Pro Tip:
Stop thinking in days or weeks. Start thinking in 6–12 month timelines. If you’re patient enough to give your side hustle time, you’ll be amazed at what you can build.
3. Resilience (The Shield That Keeps You From Quitting)
Let me be real: e-commerce will test you. If you’re balancing a full-time job and a side hustle, challenges will come, and they’ll come often.
Here are just a few things you might face:
- Marketplace rejection: Your first attempt to sell on Takealot might get denied.
- Negative reviews: A customer might complain even if you’ve done your best.
- Supplier delays: You might wait weeks for stock that customers wanted yesterday.
- Dead stock: You may invest in a product that just doesn’t sell.
These moments are frustrating. They’ll make you want to throw in the towel. And that’s why resilience is your greatest asset.
Resilience doesn’t mean ignoring problems. It means using setbacks as data, learning from them, and moving forward.
For example, I once ordered a large batch of stock I thought would be a best-seller. It didn’t move. I felt like I’d wasted time and money. But instead of quitting, I used it as a lesson: next time, I’d order smaller quantities to test demand first. That one adjustment saved me thousands later.
Harvard Business Review study: Entrepreneurs who build resilience are 70% more likely to scale their business beyond year two.
Pro Tip
Start a “resilience log.” Each time something goes wrong, write down what happened and what you learned. Over time, you’ll see that every setback is shaping you into a stronger entrepreneur.
Bottom Line: Stop Searching, Start Building
If you’ve been hesitating to start your e-commerce side hustle because you’re waiting for the “perfect product,” let me leave you with this: the perfect product doesn’t exist.
The people who succeed in e-commerce don’t start with magic products. They start with the right mindset.
- Willingness to learn: to pick up the skills needed to launch and grow.
- Patience: to give their business time to build momentum.
- Resilience: to push through challenges instead of quitting.
With these three traits, you can succeed with almost any product. Without them, even the “perfect” product won’t save your business.
👉 Ready to take the first step? Download my free Product Research Workbook. It will help you identify and validate products with real potential without falling for “get rich quick” myths.
And if you want deeper guidance, subscribe to my newsletter or book a 1-on-1 consultation with me. I’ll help you move from hesitation to action and give you the clarity you need to launch confidently.
Remember: success in e-commerce isn’t about waiting for the right product. It’s about becoming the right person.