Comparethatnumbertoyoursmallbusiness’sownwebsitetraffic,andit’squicklyobviouswhylistingyourcompany’sofferingsonAmazonisagreatwaytoexpandyourbusiness.
Butinadditiontopotentialcustomerreach,Amazon’swiderangeofback-endselling,businessmanagement,anddistributiontoolsmakeiteasyforbusinessesofallsizestoscalefarbeyondwhattheycouldotherwisedoalone.
Ifyou’vebeenthinkingaboutusingtheAmazonMarketplacetoexpandyoursmallbusiness,readonandfollowourstepbystepprocesstobuildanAmazon-centricbusinessmodelthatfitsyourcompany’sneeds.
BecominganAmazonsellercanbeaseasyorascomplexofaprocessasyouchoose,dependingonthetypeandquantityofproductsyouaresellingandhowyouchoosetofulfillyourorders.Butifyouwanttomakeitreallyeasy,itcomesdowntothese4steps:
SuccessfulAmazonSellershaveincludednationallyrecognizablebrandnames,individualssellersdistributingthousandsofunitsstraightfromtheirlivingrooms,andeverythinginbetween.ItallcomesdowntohowyouchoosetoleveragethemarketplaceandthevariousAmazonservicestofityourbusinessneeds.
Regardlessofscale,everynewAmazonsellergetsstartedbythosefoursteps.HerearethedetailsofwhatyoureallyneedtodotosellonAmazon.
WhenyousignuptosellonAmazon,you’llchooseoneoftwodifferentsellingcategoriesdependingonthescaleofyourbusiness:
Nowthatyou’vechosenwhatcategoryyou’llsellunder,you’rereadytosetupyourAmazonSellerAccount.Tocompleteyouraccountsetup,Amazonwillrequest:
Onceyouraccountisactive,you’llwanttocompleteyourpublicsellerprofile.ThinkofthesellerprofileasyourAmazon-basedsocialnetworkprofileforyourbusiness.ThisiswhereAmazoncustomerswillgettoknowyourcompany,viewyourshippingandreturnpolicies,reviewcustomerfeedback,andmore.
Herearethemainsectionsyou’llwanttocompleteinyourSellerProfilerightaway:
Onceyoursellerprofileiscomplete,youarereadytobegintheprocessoflistingandsellingproductsontheAmazonMarketplace!
Amazonbreaksdownitssellingprocessintofoursimplesteps:list,sell,ship,andgetpaid.Ofcourse,thefirstthreeofthesestepsinvolvequiteafewsub-stepsandmovingpieces,andthereisdefinitelyalearningcurvetosettingupandmaintainingsuccessfullysellinginventory.Butonceyougetthehangofit,sellingonAmazondoesn’thavetobedifficult.
AddproductstotheAmazonMarketplaceoneatatime,orinlargebatchesusingyourProfessionalsellingsubscription.Amazon’ssellercentraloffersvariousoptionsforproductuploading.
YourproductssoldonAmazonwillfallintooneoftwocategories:productsalreadylistedintheAmazonMarketplace,andnewproductsforwhichyouwillbethefirstand/oronlyseller.
Iftheproductyou’relistingisalreadyonAmazon,you’llbeabletousethestockimagesanddescriptionsalreadyonthesite.Youonlyhavetoindicatehowmanyproductsyouhavetosell,describetheconditionoftheproduct(s),andselectyouravailableshippingoptions.
Tolistmultiple(morethan50)productswhicharealreadyintheAmazoncatalog,usetheExcelformattedListingsLoadertofillinanduploadtheUPC/EANcodesfortheproductsyouwhichtolist.
Doyoudesignormanufactureanewproductthatisn’tyetsoldonAmazonThegreatnewsisyou’llfacelesscompetitioninsellingyourproduct,butthesetupprocessinvolvesafewextrasteps.InordertolistanewproductonAmazon,you’llneedtoprovide:
Onceyou’vegatheredyourproductinformation,youhaveacoupleofoptionsforuploadingyournewproductlistings.Ifyouwanttosellonlyfewproducts(upto50),youcanaddthemusingtheSellerCentralAddaProducttool.
ToaddmultipleproductsnotyetlistedintheAmazoncatalog,gotoSellerCentralanddownloadtheInventoryFileExceltemplatewhichcorrespondstoyourprimaryproductcategory.Thenyou’llbeabletofillinanduploaddetailsforallofyourproductsfromonecentraldocument.
Foryourfirstbulkproductlisting,it’sagoodideatolimityournumberofindividualproductstoabout20items.Thiswillkeepyoufromlosingtoomuchtimeandenergyifadataerrorpreventstheuploadfromgoingthrough.
Listingsmaybeavailabletocustomersassoonasimmediatelyafteryouruploadiscomplete—butAmazonmaytakeupto24hourstoprocessyourupload.Ifyoudon’timmediatelyseeyournewlistingontheofferlistingpage,bepatientandcheckbackthenextdayforupdates.Ifitstillseemstobemissing,contactAmazonthroughtheSellerPortal,orusetheFAQtotroubleshootanyuploaderrors.
AssoonasyourlistingsareuploadedandhavegoneliveontheAmazonmarketplace,youcanusetheSellerCentralwebsitetomanageallaspectsofyoursellingaccount.Checkforneworders,updateyourinventory,monitoryourperformancemetrics,andmuchmore.
Ifyou’veprimarilylistednewproductsintheAmazonmarketplace,thehardestpartofgettingstartedasasellerisalreadybehindyou.
Butifyou’resellingproductsthathavealreadybeenlistedonAmazon,you’llneedtoworktowardbuildingthebestpossiblelistingsforyourproductsinordertobechosenbycustomersagainstthecompetition.AmazonmanagesthiscompetitivesellingprocessthroughwhattheycalltheAmazon“BuyBox.”
AkeyfeatureoftheAmazonplatformisthatmultiplesellerscanofferthesameproduct.Ifyou’velistedaproductthatisofferedbymorethanoneseller,eachsellermaycompetetowinthe“BuyBox”forthatproduct.
TheBuyBoxistheareaofthelistingpageforeachproductwherecustomerscanbeginthepurchasingprocessbyaddingitemstotheirshoppingcarts.
Althoughanygivenproductmaybeavailablefrommultiplesellers,onlyonesellerwill“win”theBuyBoxandbeconsideredthedefaultlistingforthegivenproduct.Sellerswhodonotwinthebuyboxmaybeeligibleforthe“MoreBuyingChoices”boxbelow,butAmazondoesnotguaranteeplacementineitheroftheselocations.
ThespecifictargetsrequiredforsellerstobeeligiblefortheBuyBoxaren’tdisclosed.Buttoincreaseyourchances,focusonoptimizingyourlistingsinthesefourareas:
Ultimately,improvingyourlistingplacementontheAmazonOfferListingPagerequirestrialanderrorandalittlebitoftime.Worktoprovideatopnotchexperiencetothecustomersyouhave,andimproveyourlogisticalprocesses,andovertimethoseeffortswillshowinyourBuyBoxplacementincomparisontoyourcompetition.
Onceacustomerplacesanorder,youneedtogettheproductintotheirhands.Amazonofferstwoproductshipmentoptions:
FulfillmentbyAmazon:ProductsarestoredinAmazonfulfillmentcentersaroundthecountry,andAmazonhandlespackagingandshippingproductstocustomers.(ReadbelowformoreinformationaboutAmazonFBA).
SellerSelf-Shipping:Youasthesellerareresponsibleformaintaininginventory,packaging,labeling,andshippingproductstoindividualcustomers.
Ifyouchoosetofulfillordersyourself,Amazonwillchargecustomersstandardshippingratesformediaproducts(books,music,video,DVD,software,andvideogames)soldbyProfessionalSellers,andtoallproductssoldbyIndividualSellers.
Theratesaredeterminedbasedontheproductcategoryandshippingspeedchosenbythebuyer,andthendepositedthroughtheAmazonpaymentsservicetoreimburseyouforshippingcosts.
Unfortunately,thismeansifyourshippingcostsdon’tmatchtheplatformrate,youlosethedifferenceinanyadditionalshippingcostsyouincurred.
Amazonwilldeducttheirfeesanddepositpaymentsintoyourbankaccountevery14days,sendingyouanemailnotificationwhenyouhaveanewpayment.
Nowthatyou’vethebasicsofsellingonAmazon,followthesebestpracticestomakeyourproductlistingsstandoutfromthecrowdandwinsalesoverthecompetition:
It’simportanttoknowwhenanewcustomerhaspurchasedyourproductorservicesothatyoucanpromptlysatisfytheorder.You’llreceiveanemailnotificationwhenyouhaveasale,butemailsaren’talwaysreliable.GetinthehabitofcheckingtheSellerCentralportaldailytodeterminewhetheryouhaveanynewordersorcustomercommunications.
ProductsellersshouldalwaysconfirmontheSellerCentralportalwhenanorderhasshipped.Amazononlychargesyourcustomer’screditcardaftertheshipmentisconfirmed,sothisstepisimportanttogettingyoupaidforyourproductsinatimelymanner.Rememberthatyou’reresponsibleforconfirmingshipmentwithinthetimeframethatyouspecifiedinyourshippingsettings.Toconfirmthatanorderhasbeenshipped,gototheOrderstabandselecttheConfirmShipmentbuttonfortheorderinquestion.
Especiallyifyou’resellingyourproductsinmultiplechannels(notjustAmazon),it’simportanttokeeptrackofhowmuchinventoryyouhaveinstockatalltimes.Realizingthatyou’reunexpectedlyoutofstockafterandcan’tfulfillanorderisarecipefornegativecustomerfeedback—whichcanhaveadramaticimpactonyourfuturesales.
Whenabuyersearchesforyourproduct,theofferlistingpageshowsthelowestshippinginclusivepriceditemsfirst.Shoppersaremorelikelytochoosethelowestpricedealslistedclosesttothetopofthelistingpage,soifyouholdasaleorloweryourprices,makesureyouupdateyourproductlistingstoreflectthosechanges.
OneofthebenefitsofpartneringwiththeAmazonbrandistheassociationwithtopnotchreliabilityandcustomerservice.Asanewseller,youstartwiththebenefitofAmazon’sbuilt-incredibility—butit’syourresponsibilitytomaintainthatcredibilitybybeinghighlyreliableandresponsivetocustomers.
Ifanorderisdelayed,reachoutpromptlyandproactivelytothecustomertoletthemknowofthesituation.Orifacustomercontactsyoubecausetheydidn’treceiveanshipmentortheproductwasdamaged,respondpromptlytothecommunicationandtakeproactivestepstoremedythesituation.
CultivatingastrongcustomerfeedbackratingiskeytoyoursellingexperienceonAmazon—bothforimprovingbuyerperceptionofyourproductlistings,andforimprovingtheplacementofyourproductsontheofferlistingpage.Hereareafewthingsyoucandotohelpbuildastrongfeedbackrating:
Accordingtoexperiencedsellers,thesinglebestwaytoensureanexcellentfeedbackratingandoverallsellerexperienceisbyusingtheFulfillmentbyAmazonservice.
Infact,asurveyconductedinQ1of2012indicatedthat89%sellersusingfulfillmentbyAmazonreportedanincreaseinsaleswithintheyearperiodsinceswitchingtoFBA—with13%ofthosesellersreportingdoubledsalesvolumesinaoneyearperiod.
ReadonformoreinformationaboutusingFulfillmentbyAmazontoscaleyouronlineproductsales.
Iftheday-to-dayofprocessingandshippingorderstocustomersfeelsoverwhelming,Amazon’sfulfillmentprogrammaybetheperfectfitforyourneeds.
ThroughAmazonFBA,youcanleverageAmazon’sworldclassfulfillmentcenters,customersupport,andotheroperationaltoolstoscaleyourbusinessfasterthanyoucouldeverdoonyourown.Basically,yousendyourproductstoAmazon,andtheyhandlealltherest.
StoreyourinventorywithinAmazon’sfulfillmentcentersaroundtheworld.Whenanorderisplaced,Amazonhandlespackagingandshippingtheproducttothecustomer—meaningallyouhavetodoismakesurethefulfillmentcenterisstockedwithinventory.
OneofAmazon’sgreatestpullswithcustomersistheavailabilityoffastandfreeshippingthroughAmazonPrimeorSuperSavershipping.
ThroughtheAmazonPrimesubscriptionservice,PrimesubscribersenjoyfreetwodayshippingonalleligibleproductslistedonAmazon.com.WhenyouchoosetomanageyourproductsthroughAmazonFBA,yourentireinventorybecomesPrimeeligible—abenefitthatregularlyleadstoyourlistingbeingchosenfirst,aheadofcompetitorswithsimilarlistings.
Evenforcustomerswhoaren’tPrimesubscribers,productsmanagedbyAmazonFBAareeligibleforFreeSuperSaverShippingonordersover$25.Asaresult,theselistingsbenefitfrombetterplacementontheAmazonsitethanseller-fulfilledlistings.
Beyondtheproductplacementandfreeshippingperks,thebestpartofusingFulfillmentbyAmazonisthatit’sincrediblyeasy.Insteadofhandlingthelogisticsofmonitoringandfulfillingorders,trackingshipments,andhandlingcustomerserviceissuesyourself,allyouhavetodoissendyourinventorytoAmazonandletthemhandletherest.
IfyoudecidethatusingFulfillmentbyAmazontomanageyourselleraccountisthebestchoiceforyourbusiness,followthesesimplestepstogetstarted:
TogetstartedwithfulfillmentonAmazon,uploadyourproductlistontoSellerCentralfollowingthesamestepsyouwoulduseforaseller-shippedproduct.ThensimplyarrangetoshipyourfullorpartialinventorydirectlytoAmazon,benefitingfromAmazon’sreducedshippingrates.
Whenyourinventoryisreceived,Amazonwillstoreandmanageyourproductswithinoneorseveralofits75+fulfillmentcentersaroundtheworld.Youstillowntheinventoryandpayastoragefeeforitemsstoreduntiltheyaresold.
YoucanuseAmazonFBAtofulfillordersnotjustfromtheAmazonMarketplace,butfromyourowne-commercesiteorotherthirdpartysitesaswell.
ThismeansyoucankeepasinglepoolofinventoryintheFBAfulfillmentcentersandhaveaseamlesssalesandshippingexperienceregardlessofwhereyourproductissoldonline.
BecauseAmazonFBAhasnominimumunitcountorflatratesubscriptionfees(beyondthemonthlysubscriptionyoualreadypayasaProfessionalAmazonSeller),youonlypayforthenumberandweightofunitsyouactuallystoreandshiptocustomers.
Assoonasanorderisreceived,Amazonwillpackageandshipyourproductdirectlytothecustomerwithnoactionrequiredfromyou.
Oncetheorderisshipped,Amazonwillcollectpaymentfromthecustomer,deducttheirfulfillmentfeeasapercentageofthetotalsalebasedontheweightandnumberofitems,anddepositpaymentsdirectlyintoyourbankaccountevery14days.
AmazonservesasthedirectcustomerservicecontactforcustomersonFBAproductssoldonAmazontocreateaseamlessbuyingexperience.
Ofcourse,themanybenefitsofusingFulfillmentbyAmazoncomewithasignificantpricetag.Formanybusinesses,theincreasedexposureandeaseofscalabilityfaroutweighthecostsofusingFBA.
Butultimately,decidingwhethertousetheserviceisamatterofcomparingFBAratestothecostsyouwouldincurwhenfulfillingordersyourself.
Let’sbreakdownexactlyhowfeesforFulfillmentbyAmazonarecalculated.Keepinmind,thesefeesareinadditiontothenormalmonthlyProfessionalsellersubscriptionandfeesyoualreadyincurasanAmazonseller.
Amazondefinesstandard-sizeproductstoincludeanypackagedunitthatis20lb.orlesswithitslongestside18″orless,itsshortestside8″orless,anditsmedianside14″orless.Anyunitproductexceedinganyofthesedimensionsisconsideredoversize,andwillincurspecialprocessingfees.
InadditiontohigherPick&PackandWeightHandlingfees,someoversizeproductsmayincura“specialhandling”feeaveraging$40pershipment.
NotsurewhetherusingFulfillmentbyAmazonistherightchoiceforyourbottomlineCheckoutAmazon’shandyrevenuecalculatortoweighthedollarsandcentsofusingFBAforyourparticularproducts.
Bynow,mostretailers,wholesalers,productdesignersandmanufacturersareawareoftheimpactofAmazonontheproductmarketplace—andtheyknowhowsellingtheirproductsonamazoncanbenefittheirbusiness.
ButifyouareaserviceprofessionalprovidinganytypeofB2Cservice,didyouknowthatyoucouldalsouseAmazontogrowyourbusiness
ThecompanyrecentlylaunchedAmazonHomeServicestoallowAmazoncustomerstosourceanytypeofprofessionalservices—fromhandymen,tocarpetcleaners,toyogainstructors—throughtheAmazon.comportal.
Here’saquickbreakdownofthetypesofprofessionalscurrentlylistingtheirservicesonAmazon,andthislistisgrowingregularly.
Areyouahandyman,afitnessinstructor,oranyothertypeofhomeserviceprofessionalHere’swhatyouneedtoknowinordertogetstartedsellingyourservicesonAmazon.com.
AmazonHomeServicesisessentiallyanonlinemarketplaceforserviceprovidersthroughouttheU.S.Amazoncustomerscanusetheservicetoquicklyandeasilysourceavarietyofservices.RightnowthemostcommonrequestsareforassemblyandinstallationofproductspurchasedonAmazon,butAmazonisquicklyexpandingintoavarietyofservicecategories.
CheckouttheAmazonHomeServicesStorefronttoseehowcustomersnavigateservices,andtodeterminewhatotherserviceprovidersarecurrentlyparticipatinginyourneighborhood.
Onceyou’vebeenacceptedasanAmazonServiceProvider,you’llbeabletocreateyourstorefront,whichistheprofilepagewherecustomerscanlearnmoreaboutyourcompany.Youcanwriteanintroductiontoyourbusiness,specifyyourserviceareabyzipcode,collectcustomerreviews,andmoretodifferentiateyourbusinessfromthelocalcompetition.
Amazonhascreatedsetpre-packagesforvariousservicecategoriesbasedonthemostcommonservicerequeststheyseefromcustomers.Onceyou’vesignedupasaseller,youcanchoosewhichoftheseservicestooffer,setyourprices,andevenspecifytheexactzipcodesinwhichyou’lloffertheseservices.
Onceyou’vesetyourpackages,customerscanclicktoorderthesepackagesonAmazon.comatanytime,andyou’llreceiveanemailnotificationwhenaneworderisplaced.
ThroughtheAmazonSellerCentralportal,youcanscheduleservicesonline,setupautomatedcommunicationswithcustomers,manageyourpackages,prices,andpayments,andmuchmore.Amazon’ssimpleprocessestakeahugeamountofguessworkoutoftheback-endbusinessmanagementthatmostserviceprovidershavetodealwithontheirown.
Occasionally,acustomerinyourneighborhoodmaybeinterestedinaservicethatiswithinyourexpertise,butdoesn’texactlyfitwithinoneofyourpre-packagedoptions.Inthesecases,Amazonofferscustomservicerequests.Whenacustomermakesacustomservicerequest,you’llreceivetherequestviaemailandhave24hourstorespondwithabid.Ifthecustomeracceptsthebid,you’llproceedwiththeorderasusual,withAmazoncontinuingtohandlescheduling,billing,andpaymentprocessing.
PaymentforservicessoldthroughAmazonHomeServicesisautomaticallyhandledthroughAmazonPayments,soyoudon’thavetodealwithinvoicingorcollectingfromyourcustomers.Onceajobiscompleted,Amazonsimplydeductstheirfees,thenyoureceivepaymentdirectlyintoyourbankaccount.
OneofthegreatestbenefitsofsellingservicesonAmazonisthatyoudon’tpayupfrontforleadsoradvertising.Feesarecalculatedasapercentageofsales,soAmazononlygetspaidwhenyoudo.
Essentially,foranyservicethatAmazonsellsonyourbehalf,thecompanywillcollectthefollowingfees:
Yourtotalcostofthesefeeswillofcoursedependonthepriceofyourservice,butalsothecategorythatyourservicefallsinto.
Thesearethepackagesthatyoucreateaheadoftimeforcustomerstopurchase.They’lllikelybethemostcommonpackagesorservicerequeststhatyoualreadyreceivefromyourcustomers.Amazonwilladvertisethoseasapackage,andcollectfeeswhenyoubookacustomer.
ForPre-packagedservices,Amazoncollects20%fortheportionoftheservicepriceupto$1K(5%Transactionfeeand15%ServicePlatformfee),and15%fortheportionoftheservicepricegreaterthan$1K(5%Transactionfeeand10%ServicePlatformfee).
Amazonunderstandsthatoccasionally,customerswillhaveaspecificservicerequestthatdoesn’tfitwithinoneofyourpre-packagedoptions.BecauseAmazonisn’tspecificallyadvertisingthesecustomservicesonyourbehalf,theychargeslightlylowerplatformfeesforthesetransactions.
FeesforCustomServicesamountto15%fortheportionoftheservicepriceupto$1K(5%Transactionfeeand10%ServicePlatformfee),and10%fortheportionoftheservicepricegreaterthan$1K(5%Transactionfeeand5%ServicePlatformfee).
IfacustomerbookedthroughAmazonHomeServicesbooksyourcompanyforarecurringservice(suchasweeklyfitnesstrainingsessionsormonthlycarpetcleaningservices),Amazoncollects10%ofservicepriceforcompletedordersover$1K(5%Transactionfeeand5%ServicePlatformfee).
Alltransactionandplatformfeesarecollectedasapercentageoftheserviceprice,excludinganytaxescollectedthroughAmazontaxcollectionservices.
Beginningin2016,Amazonwillchargeanadditional,onetimeflatratefeeof$50toconductbackgroundchecksonbusinessessellingthroughAmazonHomeServices.Additionally,businesseswhoseservicesinvolveemployeesgoingintocustomers’homestocompleteaservicewillpay$40perparticipatingemployeeforindividualbackgroundchecks.
Currently,sellingservicesonAmazonisaninvite-onlyprogram—butyoucannotifyAmazonofyourinterestinparticipatingasasellerbycompletinganapplication.Ifyouareaccepted,youwillreceiveane-mailfromAmazonwithanactivationcodeandinstructionsforgettingstarted.
Wanttoknowevenmoreaboutsellingyourcompany’sservicesthroughAmazonHomeServicesCheckouttheirhandyFAQsectionformoreinfo.
There’sawholeworldouttherejustwaitingtopayforyourproducts—butifyou’veneverbeforenavigatedtheworldofexporting,figuringouthowtoselltointernationalcustomerscanbeintimidating.
Butwith11globalmarketplaces,109worldwidefulfillmentcenters,andbuyingcustomersin180countries,Amazonmakesiteasytobreakintointernationalexportingwithouthavingtoreinventthewheel.
LetAmazonhelpyounavigateshippinginternationallyforyourself,oruseFulfillmentbyAmazontoquicklyandeasilyfulfillinternationalordersontheGlobalAmazonMarketplace.YourAmazonGlobalSellingportalcanevenhelpyounavigatetaxandregulatoryconsiderationsforthecountriesyoumaybeshippingto.
Whetheryou’redistributingproductsormarketingyourservices;whetheryou’regrowingyourinternationalbusinessorfocusingondomesticsales—thebrandrecognitionandlogisticalprovisionsoftheAmazonnetworkareanincredibletoolforexpandingyourbusinessforbeyondwhatyou’dlikelyhavethelogisticalcapacitytoachieveonyourown.
WhilethecostsassociatedwithusingAmazontosellanddistributeyourproductsandservicesdocertainlytakeanotchoutofyourbottomlineprofitmargin,theregularlyincreasedsalesvolumethatthemajorityofusersexperienceasaresultofchoosingtosellonAmazonarealmostalwaysworththeassociatedcosts.