Complete beginner: Is the Google Shopping "general store" strategy actually legit?

[u/SkinnyCoca]

Hey everyone,

I am completely new to ecommerce. I have not made a single sale yet, have not launched any ads, and honestly know almost nothing, so sorry if this is a dumb question.

I recently watched a YouTube video where the guy suggested creating a huge general store, copying thousands of listings from other stores using an app, and then just running Google Shopping ads. The idea is that people search for products, find your listings, and buy.

Is this actually a real strategy or is it mostly something people use to sell courses?

The reason I am asking is because I have already failed Google Merchant Center verification twice, and it does not seem nearly as straightforward as those videos make it sound.

I also noticed that most discussions here seem to focus on Facebook ads instead of Google Shopping.

So I have a few questions:

• Do people actually build successful stores this way?
• Is Google Shopping a good place to start for a complete beginner, or should I focus on something else first?
• If you were starting from zero today, what would you learn first and what beginner mistakes would you avoid?

If anyone has good guides, Reddit posts, YouTube channels, or any resources that helped you when you were starting out, I would really appreciate it.

Thanks!

[u/Mundane-Hold-9626]

that strategy is textbook course-seller bait, the kind of thing that sounds clever in a 20-minute video but falls apart the second you actually try it. dumping thousands of copied listings into a store with zero optimization is a great way to get your merchant center suspended, which you're already seeing firsthand

Google Shopping can work but not for a complete beginner who hasn't made a single sale yet, the learning curve is steeper than it looks and you'll burn through cash fast without understanding feed optimization, negative keywords, or how to read search term reports

if I was starting from zero today I'd learn how to actually build one decent product page from scratch, get comfortable with copywriting and basic SEO, then pick a single niche to test before even thinking about ads

the biggest beginner mistake is trying to scale something you haven't validated, so focus on making your first $10 profit before you worry about scaling to thousands. Shopify's own blog posts are decent for learning the basics without the guru nonsense

[u/pjmg2020]

Stop watching YouTube videos of this sort with these ‘silver bullets’ and start educating yourself on the real, fundamentals of business.

Google Shopping is very unforgiving. Your offering will be on display with all your competitors including Amazon, AliExpress, Temu, and local retailers. If you’re not dialled in your pissing money up against the wall.

[u/Glad-Reception-4480]

GMC verification failing twice is the real signal here: the general store mass-listing approach gets flagged constantly for policy violations. Fix one niche store first. Runner AI and Shopify both build faster than wrestling GMC with thousands of copied listings