Have you ever dreamed of striking gold on Shopee, only to invest time and effort with zero sales to show for it? You're not alone. Many new sellers face this exact predicament. The issue often isn't lack of effort—it's starting with the wrong product selection strategy.
Imagine this scenario: You excitedly open a Shopee store, carefully curate a selection of products, and eagerly await your first orders. Days pass, yet your store remains empty. Doubts creep in—maybe e-commerce isn't for you, or perhaps your product choices missed the mark.
The reality? Over 90% of sellers choose products based on intuition, especially those new to cross-border e-commerce. This approach is akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. Top-performing sellers achieving thousands of daily orders rely on scientific data analysis, not guesswork.
1. Avoiding Oversaturated Categories: Store Count Matters
While Shopee publishes weekly product reports highlighting bestsellers, blindly following these trends can lead you straight into hyper-competitive markets where success becomes nearly impossible.
To gauge market saturation:
- Use specialized tools like Mangodan to analyze category competition
- Focus on "number of stores" and "products with sales" metrics
- Sort categories by store count—higher numbers indicate fiercer competition
Recent data shows particularly crowded markets include home improvement tools, oral care products, mobile accessories, and outdoor equipment like camping gear—categories new sellers should approach cautiously.
2. Recognizing Product Flood Zones
Beyond store counts, product volume serves as another critical warning sign. Categories overflowing with listings require either unique product differentiation or unbeatable pricing to stand out.
To identify these markets:
- Use analytics tools to sort categories by "products with sales"
- Watch for markets like phone cases, home tools, fishing equipment where thousands of sellers compete
3. Advanced Strategy: Calculating Blue Ocean Index
Experienced sellers can quantify market competitiveness using this formula:
Blue Ocean Index = (30-day category sales/total sales) ÷ (30-day category units/total units sold)
Lower index values indicate tougher competition. For example, in women's hosiery:
- If hosiery represents 7.8% of women's apparel sales but 8.2% of units sold
- The index calculates to 0.96—suggesting relatively balanced competition
4. Leveraging Product Research Tools
Effective product selection tools provide:
- Comprehensive market analytics
- Keyword discovery for SEO optimization
- Competitor performance tracking
- Personalized product recommendations
In Shopee's increasingly competitive landscape, data-driven product selection separates successful sellers from those struggling to gain traction. By applying these analytical methods, you can identify underserved niches and position your store for sustainable growth.