Preparing to sell on Amazon Australia or any other e-commerce marketplace can be daunting. These tips will help set you on the road to success.
DON’T
✘wait. It’s vital to develop a seller history on Amazon, as this impacts everything from Buy Box placement to conversion rates. Merchants with long, positive selling histories have a better chance of obtaining prime position, so don’t delay getting started.
✘ think it’s just about price. If you’re only competing on having the lowest price, you probably won’t succeed. The core of a successful marketplace strategy is to ensure everything from your inventory management to customer service is seamless.
✘ restrict yourself. Although the temptation may be to just list products that sell well on your website, you should list widely on marketplaces in order to test what works. This will help you gather data and insights across your product range, rather than guessing or assuming which products will do well.
DO
✔ ensure you understand the requirements. Before you can begin selling on any marketplace you first need to understand what’s expected of you. Different marketplaces have different requirements around things like email, shipping and returns policies and it’s important to keep to these guidelines otherwise you may be penalised.
✔ your research. Know what your competitors are doing—what they’re selling and how they structure their listings. Know your options when it comes to everything from product titles to shipping preferences. Learn from the experiences of merchants overseas—there is a wealth of information about succeeding on Amazon US that local retailers can use to get started.
✔ optimise your listings. Each marketplace has different requirements for product listings, from the title length to image specifications you must adhere to. There is also an art to crafting a listing that will get your products seen by customers, so start by putting yourself in the mind of your customer—how would they search for your product?
To read the rest of our dos and don’ts download the free RetailBiz Special Report ‘How to integrate marketplaces into your e-commerce strategy’.
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