If you have a product you are already selling elsewhere but want to increase your sales, sell on Amazon. Amazon is the world-leading marketplace where sellers and goods compete 24/7. However, check if you are allowed to sell on Amazon first. Suppose you sell posters. You create layouts yourself and have an agreement with a printing facility already. You used to sell them in a couple of local shops before. But everybody says they are great, and you want to expand.
How to get your first sale:
1. Choose Amazon selling plan. You can either pay a 40-USD membership fee a month or a 1 dollar for an item sold. If you expect to sell more than 40 posters a month, go for a fixed payment. But if you have no idea of how the business with Amazon will go, try paying for an item first. You also need to decide if you want to carry the logistics out yourself or go for the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) option and let Amazon store and ship your products. If you have very little time to waste and are happy to pay Amazon FBA removal fees, let Amazon carry out all the packing and shipping. Your clients will get their orders quicker if the logistics are done by Amazon. You can decide whether you want to have the FBA later.
2. If you have a customer account with Amazon, you can use it for selling. Alternatively, you can register a new one in no time. Suppose you were paid in cash previously for your works sold in a local book shop. With Amazon, you need to have a bank account. You need to provide your tax information and government ID too.
3. After the registration, creative marketing work starts. You need to decide on the prices you are going to charge. You know your costs and have some experience in selling your product. But what matters more when selling on Amazon is the competitor prices. Study poster offers on Amazon, consider your product, and decide on your markup. Pay attention to the special offers competitors make. Maybe, somebody offers to get the third poster for free if purchasing two items, for example. Study the delivery terms competitors offer. Do they give free delivery? What are their customers happy or unhappy with? Plan how you can beat your competitors even before you start selling.
4. A painstaking task comes next. You need to download clear images of all your products and add careful, informative yet tempting descriptions. You may download the Amazon app and do it all from your phone. Material and size are obvious things to mention, but you can add a couple of things about yourself and convince your clients they will love the product.
5. If you decide to go for FBA now, you need to ship your product to the Amazon warehouse and watch your first sale happen. You might decide to try Amazon logistic with some of your posters. For example, you know for sure some funny posters are your best-sellers, and they are often bought as a present. Quick delivery is everything for a last-moment gift solution. While you may decide to ship the less popular and urgent ones, the posters your clients usually buy will be delivered quicker.
There is much to do after the first sale if you want your business to be successful. You need to track customer reviews, make sure you do not run out of products, watch competitors’ moves, adjust your offers in line with your sales, and add new items.
The algorithm of selling on Amazon is simple and straightforward. To sell well on Amazon and earn money is a challenging task, which depends on your creative efforts to make customers happy.
