How to Sell Your Products on Amazon FBA: A Definitive Guide
August 3, 2022 - 12 minutes readAll you need to know to get started with Amazon FBA.
Many retail or eCommerce business owners fight against the Amazon tide, trying to lure consumers away from the platform and towards their online store. The problem is that Amazon is such an established name (and so convenient) that competing against the platform is a continual struggle.
But rather than going head-to-head with Amazon, did you know that you can use the platform to accelerate the growth of your business? By selling your products through Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA), you can tap into a highly engaged audience of online shoppers while creating a new revenue stream for your business.
Did you know? On average, operating through Amazon FBA gives sellers a 30% to 50% boost in online sales.
Selling through Amazon FBA the right way will benefit your retail or eCommerce business.
Benefits of adding FBA to your retail or eCommerce strategy
Amazon FBA allows you to sell your products or services through Amazon while using the company’s extensive picking, packing, storage, and fulfillment services.
Selling through Amazon FBA will make you visible to a captive audience of shoppers while saving you time and money on inventory management. Here are some other key benefits of selling through Amazon FBA:
- Using Amazon’s fulfillment services will allow you to scale without any issues, as you don’t have to consider upgrading your inventory storage space or strategy
- Amazon’s swift Prime delivery service will ensure your delivery is reliable and consistent
- As a seller, you will gain access to Amazon’s customer support service, which means that Amazon’s team will resolve many customer issues on your behalf
- Using Amazon as part of your overall marketing strategy will expand your commercial reach
How to sell on Amazon FBA: 5 essential steps
Now that you know the benefits of selling your products through Amazon FBA, let’s look at how to get set up successfully—starting with your product range.
1. Curate your product range and work out your Amazon revenue
First of all, you need to lay solid foundations for your Amazon FBA store. Before you set up your account, it’s important to curate your products and range.
Your Amazon FBA products are likely to reflect your main website or online store’s product range. But it’s always worth looking at your competitors to see what is most popular among your target audience.
Researching competitor FBA accounts will give you a solid idea of what to include in your Amazon product range (items that are likely to sell) while identifying any potential gaps to exploit.
If you’re a retro shoe seller, for example, and you notice that none of your direct competitors have a sneaker range, you could add some to your inventory to stand out from the crowd.
Tip: Getting your pricing right will ensure you make a healthy profit margin while covering the platform’s fulfillment fees. Our essential guide to pricing strategies will help you make a healthy margin across your entire product range.
2. Source reliable product suppliers
Once you’ve curated your product range, you will need to source the right suppliers. If you manufacture your products in-house, you won’t need a supplier. But in most cases, you will have to go through this process with care.
To find reliable product suppliers for your Amazon FBA store, you can try the following strategies:
- Search through online wholesale directories like Alibaba or DHGate for suitable suppliers
- Attend relevant conferences or trade shows to speak to potential suppliers and negotiate a mutually beneficial deal
- Research your competitors and find out which suppliers they use for their product range
- Join relevant social media groups to connect with potential FBA suppliers and expand your professional network
When you’re searching for potential suppliers, you should always take your time and carry out a little research. Explore your suppliers’ track record, search for customer or client reviews, and always compare pricing models. Doing so will ensure you make informed decisions about the suppliers you use for the Amazon FBA store.
3. Sign up for Amazon FBA and set up your seller account
With your product range, prospective pricing strategies, and suppliers firmly in place, it’s time to sign up for your Amazon FBA account.
First, you need to become an Amazon Seller, then sign up for an official FBA account to access features like multi-channel fulfillment, Amazon Prime options, fully managed customer communication, and product returns service.
Take your time when setting up your seller’s account to make sure all of your information is accurate and you’ve included every key detail. Doing so will ultimately save you from having to go back and correct anything later down the line.
Here is a hand-picked tutorial video that will guide you through the Amazon FBA account set-up process:
Once you’re all set up, you can add your brand imagery, set your product categories, and write a compelling bio to attract potential customers.
Read: 7 copywriting principles for the modern age for practical tips on how to produce compelling content for your Amazon FBA store.
“Avoid the ‘hard-to-grasp’ headline – the headline that requires thought and is not clear at first glance.”—John Caples
4. Launch and optimize your Amazon FBA listings
With the foundations of your store all set up and ready to go, you will need to upload and optimize your product listings.
Your product listings are among the most crucial elements of your store. If your listings are engaging, attractive, and offer real value, they will become more visible on the platform, and you will close more sales. Let’s walk through the key aspects of an Amazon FBA listing and what to consider.
Product title: Keep this snappy and succinct. Add the product name as close to the start of your title as possible and add a suitable adjective where possible.
EXAMPLE: Sparkling Vintage 70s [Brand Name] Basketball Sneakers
Key features and product descriptions: Always outline the product’s key USPs and features as clearly as possible. Write in a natural human tone and add relevant key terms to the copy where possible.
Categories: Always be sure to list your product under every relevant category and subcategory to make it as visible as possible.
Imagery: Your images should be well-cropped, high-quality, and 100% representative of the product while capturing it in its best light.
Reviews: Give customers the option to leave product reviews and include good testimonials in your product descriptions if there’s space. This is a powerful way of building trust.
SKUs: When you list a product, Amazon will assign it an automatic SKU. Make sure you keep a note of these for stock and product management purposes.
Read: How to produce product pages that get results for additional tips on optimizing your listings for maximum sales.
5. Market your Amazon FBA and start selling
With your Amazon FBA store populated with your full (and no doubt enticing) product range, you should promote it across various channels and touchpoints to let people know it exists.
To promote your Amazon FBA account, you should consider the following marketing approaches:
- Email marketing campaigns
- Social media posts and paid advertising
- Blog and article writing
- Segmented marketing communications
- Traditional marketing methods (to capture a wider audience) **NOTE: We will be happy to rework the traditional marketing post at some point and update it to make it evergreen.**
Using a cohesive mix of marketing methods will drive more traffic and engagement to your Amazon store while boosting general brand awareness. The more you engage with your audience and offer your customers personal value, the more trust you will build. When that happens, your business will grow, and your sales will soar.
Once you’ve started gaining momentum on Amazon FBA, you can look at your sales data to see which products are performing the best. Armed with this knowledge, you can refine your product range to generate more sales while promoting the products that are likely to generate the most sales with techniques like cross-selling or upselling.
“We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.” —Jeff Bezos
Adding Amazon FBA mix is a viable way of engaging with a wider range of customers, earning more sales, and smoothly scaling your business. Follow these essential steps, and you will start seeing your profits soar in no time.
We wish you the best of luck. For more business-boosting advice, check out these 10 tips for creating a strong visual identity for your brand.