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Learn: the numbers behind a profitable store
These ecommerce guides explain the numbers that decide whether an online store makes money: margins, inventory and ad spend. Each one answers a specific question, shows the formula with a worked example in dollars, and links to a free calculator so you can run it on your own numbers.
Pick a topic below, or start with the newest guides.
- Profit & marginsGuides to ecommerce profit margins: gross vs net profit, pricing, COGS, AOV, discounts and CAC, with worked examples and free profit calculators.25 guides
- InventoryEcommerce inventory management guides: reorder points, safety stock, lead time, dead stock, turnover, FIFO and forecasting, with free inventory calculators.15 guides
- Google AdsGoogle Ads for ecommerce, explained: ROAS vs profit, break-even ROAS, Performance Max, Merchant Center, bidding and ad costs for Shopify stores.9 guides
Latest guides
- Click-through rate, CPC and CPM formulasClick-through rate, CPC and CPM formulas explained with a worked Google Shopping example, and why a good CTR or low cost per click says nothing about profit.
- Demand Gen campaigns explainedDemand Gen campaigns explained for ecommerce: what Google Demand Gen is, where it shows ads, what it replaced, and when an online store should use it.
- How much do Google Ads cost for an online store?How much do Google Ads cost for an online store? How the auction sets cost per click, sourced CPC benchmarks, and how to budget from your break-even ROAS.
- Google Merchant Center: a setup guide for Shopify storesGoogle Merchant Center for Shopify: what it is, how to connect with the Google & YouTube app, the feed attributes that matter, and how to fix disapprovals.
- Google Ads keyword match types explainedGoogle Ads keyword match types explained: broad, phrase and exact match with ecommerce examples, what replaced broad match modifier, and negative keywords.
- Performance Max for ecommerce storesPerformance Max for ecommerce: what PMax is, where it shows ads, how it uses your product feed, its controls, and how to measure it on profit, not ROAS.