What I see a lot of people doing wrong

Hey r/ecommerce , been lurking & posting here and in similar subs for a while now. I've seen a few patterns in what people do wrong when starting a brand (especially when it comes to fashion, which is my area of expertise). I hope to give some people some insights into what actually works (I've probably looked at over 20000 fashion brands, so I have some milage) **Let's break it down:** **1. Nothing new** A lot of people are naive, there is basically two ways your products can gain traction. Either you are really good at product development and create unique and high quality products (T-shirts & hoodies are neither of these). Or you are a marketing god, which let's be honest, pretty much no one is. **Problem:** Trying to compete in the most over-saturated market in pretty much all of business. **Solution:** Learn how to make cool stuff, that's truly unique and that makes people who see it instantly want it. I have never seen a hoodie with a printed graphic and thought "Gosh I really need to buy this right now!". **2. Don't knowing why people buy, and what they want** There is in my opinion six priorities people have when considering buying clothing ( or any other product, with expections): **1. Fit & Comfort** **2. Price vs. Perceived Value** **3. Fabric & Material Quality** **4. Style/Aesthetics** **5. Sustainability & Ethics** **Bonus #6: Social Proof (Herd Mentality)** When you are creating a brand, or thinking about your current brand. Where does your products score in all of these, and how are you communicating all these aspects to your customers? Most brands don't consider this at all. **3. Expensive operations** Many brands that's making under 20k/month is paying waaay too much to suppliers, different middlemen & shipping (Many brands over are aswell, but they have at least looked into it most often) . In the beginning, you need to hustle to cut your costs down, every dollar you spend elsewhere could be an advertising dollar instead. And the biggest problem in the beginning is that no one knows who you are, so what can you do to maximize your ad-spend? \-> **Remember though, if you have generic & boring products it doesn't matter that everyone knows who you are, they are not gonna buy.** Hope this helps someone out there! If you have any questions regarding your operations or what I just mentioned, just write a comment down below or send me a message! :)