What You Need to Know About Amazon as an E-Commerce Store Owner
If you’re an e-commerce store owner, there are many reasons to consider selling your products on Amazon. You’ll be able to expand your customer base, attract traffic to your own webstore, and boost your sales. Amazon’s marketplace spans the globe and will take care of your shipping needs too. However, since Amazon is so large, there are a few things you should know before you get started selling in their marketplace to ensure that your e-commerce efforts will be successful.
Be Aware of What the Buy Box Is and How It Works
The “buy box” holds the very important “Add to Cart” call-to-action button. It’s located on the product detail page where customers begin sorting through product options for a category and begin the purchasing process by adding items to their shopping carts. About ninety percent of Amazon’s sales, over fifty billion dollars’ worth of sales, happens here. So, understanding how it works is imperative. The buy box is difficult to attain for your listings since you must first become a featured seller who is ranked high in product search results. Even if you’re not ranked the highest, it’s still beneficial to know the factors that affect how your products are ranked. Here are the factors that matter most.
Whether you offer competitive pricing (including shipping costs).
How many competing offers are already available. It’s harder to get a high ranking if there is a large number of options for what you’re offering.
Your history and credibility as an Amazon seller.
The number of reviews you and your products have.
Know the Specifics Behind How to Use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA)
When you participate in Amazon’s fulfillment program, you send your merchandise to them. They store your merchandise in their large warehouses and then ship it for you when a customer places an order. When using Amazon’s fulfillment program, you’ll have the capabilities of a large corporation without actually having to be one. Amazon will provide expedited shipping and handle customer service issues with orders for you so you can focus on other aspects of your business. Remember, however, that expedited shipping methods must be earned, such as two-day shipping for Amazon Prime members. You must first establish a history of reliable shipping at the slower shipping speeds. Also keep in mind that Amazon determines how much they think it should cost to ship a product based on the merchant’s origin, the customer’s address, and the weight of the product. Therefore, the amount of money Amazon reimburses merchants for shipping costs won't always match actual shipping costs. Major perks to using Amazon’s fulfillment program include being able to track your inventory with their user-friendly integrated tracking system and being able to use your own website or other channels to sell your products through their fulfillment program.
Uncover Best Practices of Merchants Who Are Successful on Amazon
The merchants who perform the best on Amazon typically offer unique products for a niche market. An example would be if you have an extract from a special exotic flower present in your organic face lotion, or if you offer refurbished equipment only relevant to kite boarders. These types of unique products have a better chance of performing well because not many people will be offering similar products. Products with less competition have a better chance of getting seen and purchased on Amazon. The merchants who perform the best on Amazon also have their own branded e-commerce websites. Having your own e-commerce store and website increases your credibility and level of perceived expertise. Having a strong digital marketing presence with ads and online content also increases your authority in the marketplace for what you have listed on Amazon. Top performing merchants on Amazon have also reviewed and abided by all of Amazon’s policies and procedures on product detail pages, shipping, selling, and general merchant agreements. They’re also aware of prohibited seller activities and actions. When merchants are aware of all policies and procedures, and abide by them, it’s less likely their products will be removed from listings and more likely that they’ll receive positive customer reviews. If you want to use Amazon as an additional resource for your e-commerce business, you can get help managing and shipping your products, and gain valuable customer reviews. Just be sure to do your homework (i.e. read all of their policies and procedures, and information about how they rank their products) beforehand so you can become one of their successful merchants.
