It is no secret that Amazon is the world’s largest online marketplace, with fast access to millions of customers available to those business owners who are able to compete on the platform. Any brand owner would be a fool to miss the incredible opportunity that comes with selling on Amazon- but it would also be a foolish move to discount the immense competition across the marketplace. No matter what niche a business occupies, there will be strong competitors vying for the same attention and target market.
So, what should a business owner keep in mind when first selling on Amazon?
The Basics
It should go without saying, but running an Amazon business comes with many of the same duties as running any other business. It’s up to owners to create a business plan, conduct market research, source products, create product listings on the platform, and appeal to customers. While Amazon takes care of some customer care duties (such as sending out a generic follow-up email to remind consumers to review their most recent purchases), it’s up to the business to maintain proper customer service standards.
This means that any bad reviews should be taken on board, and any customer questions, complaints, or other communications should be promptly answered in a professional manner.
Use Marketing Tools
No business owner can ignore the influence their marketing strategy can have over their entire business. Marketing largely dictates the way customers see a brand and associated products, so it’s vital to get it right. Luckily, there are many Amazon marketing tools to help business owners make the most of the platform, such as:
- AMZBase – a Chrome extension that can help business owners to decide which new products are worth selling on Amazon.
- AMZFinder – Managing reviews can be made easy with this tool, which allows business owners to review all feedback on their products at once. Amazon sellers may also send direct and personal emails tailored to their consumers using this tool, as opposed to relying on Amazon’s standard automated prompt to review recently-purchased items.
- AMZ Promoter – While Amazon doesn’t allow sellers to access very much information about their clients, this tool allows them to create an email list that can, in turn, generate an income beyond Amazon if email marketing is utilised correctly.
- RepricerExpress – This software allows for product pricing to become automated and optimised, allowing Amazon sellers to be best-positioned in comparison to competitors, with little effort on their part.
Amazon marketing tools and software can help to fill in the gaps that the most bare-bones version of selling on the platform ignores. While sellers aren’t normally given access to customer email addresses, with a tool like AMZ promoter, businesses can urge consumers to leave a review in a personal way. Likewise, much of the hassle surrounding market research can be minimised by employing a tool like RepricerExpress or AMZBase to do a lot of the hard work on behalf of the seller.
Hire an Amazon Marketing Agency
An Amazon agency can take a fair amount of pressure away from sellers and replace it with progress. As Amazon marketing agencies specialise in scaling businesses and attracting leads on the platform, they are the experts in everything from customer service to optimising product listings to appeal to Amazon’s special brand of SEO.
While many beginner business owners attempt to rank highly by paying for sponsored positions or advertisements, an Amazon agency is the best way to go for those sellers who are hoping to achieve long-term success on the platform and who are more interested in ranking organically in search results.
Sign Up to Amazon FBA Services
Fulfillment by Amazon is an excellent way for new Amazon sellers to gain an edge over the competition. Not only does it allow products to receive the coveted ‘prime’ badge in search results, but FBA services can also take care of everything from customer service to product packaging, storage (via an Amazon fulfillment centre), and shipping on behalf of business owners. Many prime products are also eligible for next-day shipping, which can be a major selling point for many who consistently browse the marketplace.
As such, FBA has gained an excellent reputation for increasing sales and overall allowing business owners to worry less about the technical sides of providing products to their customers and think more about what their business should do next in order to thrive.
