Is anyone trading on Amazon?

[zgj512]

I'm currently setting up an ecommerce site and I was recommended by a friend to set up an account with Amazon to sell products through as well.

Just after any views you have on trading through Amazon.

Thanks

Hi,
Till now, i still did not sell my products on Amazon. I used Alibaba as a window to sell my products, so i have no idear about Amazon. But I think very platform has advatages and disadvantages. If shoul make some research and choose a platform whicn you can aviod its disadvantages and make use of its advantages.

 

[DCP]

I tested amazon by selling 1 line of our products. Orders are usually 1 a day compared to 10/15 a day on ebay.

But then I'm already paying 20quid a month for the seller fees, and theres no listing fee so I want to put more of my products on.

The thing which is putting me off is their image rules.

I don't have individual images of every item, and when I used a generic image they sent emails about breaking image regs etc.

I was wondering, maybe it's better to leave out the image? Is this allowed on amazon?

I should add, that all the products I list, are not listed in their catalogue. I assign barcodes to them and create them myself.

 

[dingbat]

I must be looking in the wrong place because everytime I've used Amazon I've not seen any free website or thought a company had credibility because they were on there. All I get is a very confusing Amazon webpage, littered with everything and just a small blue link to the company selling it. Plus more confusing crap about 1 or 2 being available used. The worst is when you get search results and the product isn't even available anymore.

 

[smartaddmedia]

To sell your products on Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com, you need a barcode number to use as a unique identifier for your product.

I have found a UK supplier of barcodes which works with Amazon.
Prices for a single barcode start a just £15.00 with no annual subsription.

The company is called BUYABARCODE and are based in the UK.
Tel 0207 993 8785


Simon
smartaddmedia

 

[MatthewOgborne]

I did get approved to sell in the beauty category but have since changed my mind, 15% would eat to much into our profits since we sell discounted fragrances.

This might be obvious, but don't discount so much so they're is profit left. Total eBay fees come in frequently at the 15%-20% mark (if you include CS support), so is the Amazon 15% that unattractive?

 

[JamieM]

I have found a UK supplier of barcodes which works with Amazon.
Prices for a single barcode start a just £15.00 with no annual subsription.

Did you mean founded? Do we just call up and ask for Simon?

 

[idhaye]

so is the Amazon 15% that unattractive?

Hi checking out this thread as I'm also considering selling via Amazon & was a little surprised with Amazon fees see below taken from their pricing page example

Item - 10.00
p&p - 2.99

Total £12.99

Amazon Fees - 2.68
VAT - .40
Total - £3.08

= 23.5% total Amazon costs

This is a lot more than eBay/PayPal combined!

 

[thoullis]

I tend to associate Amazon with books, DVD's and other consumer items. Does anyone have any experience of selling B2B products on Amazon such as office equipment?

 

[twenty1ten]

In a past life, where we sold Consumer Electronics, we used Amazon, purely as a way of new customer recruitment, rather than as a primary market (in the same way as we used PlayTrade and Ebay).
The right products worked well, but its finding the right product then managing the Price feed etc...

 

[Page]

Hi checking out this thread as I'm also considering selling via Amazon & was a little surprised with Amazon fees see below taken from their pricing page example

Item - 10.00
p&p - 2.99

Total £12.99

Amazon Fees - 2.68
VAT - .40
Total - £3.08

= 23.5% total Amazon costs

This is a lot more than eBay/PayPal combined!

That is VAT on Amazon fees - are these not zero rated just as they are on ebay fees

 

[3Atech]

Ebay is more popular E-business I think. It depends on your correct products and competitive prices. So the products source is important.

 

[johnp341]

I sell items on amazon and have managed to sell quite a lot of on there.
With the right product Amazon can work.

 

[raineshoe]

I've sold on both ebay and Amazon and got shot of both at the end of last year as I decided they were costing too much to run. I do better out of my own website.

 

[Stovin]

I trade on amazon, sales are not very good, but I see it as it helps build the brand and is an extra advertising platform

 

Wow this thread has been going for quite a few years. I would be interested to find out more about peoples experiences on Amazon. We became a Fulfilment By Amazon seller just before Xmas on our gift products. I'm still wary of trying the jewellery on there at the moment as as I make the majority as commissioned pieces rather than having heaps of stock so it would mean dedicating a bit of time to mass making some lines that I think would do well, but I am thinking about it as a trial run for Valentines and Xmas.

Our reasons for doing it with the gift stock was the enormous exposure and customer base as well as a desire to try out an alternative to holding and warehousing all the stock ourselves. So far the experience has been a positive one, you have to closely monitor the sales prices and fees but its given us an insight into what products work even better than anticipated and those that equally dont.

It needs handling closely as there has been a number of issues, they lost some of our stock, they've damaged chunks and had to refund us and they only do this at a set rate, so its not been trouble free, but so far its a business model that has some potential once we've done some more tweaking with our range and sales prices and more importantly it did really well over Xmas and has since maintained a steady rate of sales. We multi-channel and have started using the FBA despatch for the website sales as well which seems good so far. Early days, but with the cost of storage elsewhere and other running expenses its been a good move for us so far..touch wood!

 

[Wiggy]

Just remember that Amazon has set fees for Postage and packaging, where as ebay you set your own.

I can't speak for Ebay but Amazon Marketplace traders set their own delivery prices. You can buy secondhand books for 1p with £3.50 P & P. Draw your own conclusions about where the seller has placed the profit margin. Obviously, Amazon gets their cut from the sale price. . .
I'm a die-hard Amazon shopper and favour anything I can get with free delivery and Amazon's own support and returns policy but when I find an item I want in Amazon Marketplace, I will usually Google the seller's name to see if I can get it direct from them. . . It's probably worth either listing products expensively to pick up shoppers like me or do what others do and balance the product price and delivery cost to optimise profit.

 

[Jayser100]

When you take all factors into account, there isn't actually that much difference between the cost of selling on eBay and Amazon.

Some factors to consider -

Amazon fees, typically 16% (varies on some products)
VAT 20%
Your purchase costs of the product
Your postage or fulfillment costs.

many fail on eBay and Amazon because they don't do their maths properly. Generally speaking, if you buy products at regular dealer prices, with standard mark-ups, it is most likely not going to be worth your while selling on Amazon or eBay. At the very least you need wholesale prices.

My belief is that Amazon certainly, and probably eBay too, only really work for 'proper' companies (i.e. with a variety of overheads as opposed to 'garden shed trading') if the company buys product at source, i.e. manufactures it, as we do. Otherwise, the margins simply aren't there to make it worth your while.

If you want successful sales on either platform, it is a BIG commitment. There is no point just sticking your products on and hoping for sales - you need to be constantly monitoring it, changing keywords, experimenting and fine tuning your listings to maximise sales. Unless you are one of the very few lucky people who has something unique and in high demand that isn't already there, you HAVE to put in this effort or you'll be disappointed.

 

[quikshop]

many fail on eBay and Amazon because they don't do their maths properly. Generally speaking, if you buy products at regular dealer prices, with standard mark-ups, it is most likely not going to be worth your while selling on Amazon or eBay. At the very least you need wholesale prices.

My belief is that Amazon certainly, and probably eBay too, only really work for 'proper' companies (i.e. with a variety of overheads as opposed to 'garden shed trading') if the company buys product at source, i.e. manufactures it, as we do. Otherwise, the margins simply aren't there to make it worth your while.

If you want successful sales on either platform, it is a BIG commitment. There is no point just sticking your products on and hoping for sales - you need to be constantly monitoring it, changing keywords, experimenting and fine tuning your listings to maximise sales. Unless you are one of the very few lucky people who has something unique and in high demand that isn't already there, you HAVE to put in this effort or you'll be disappointed.

We switched our Amazon shop off for the Christmas break and have left it off so far this year, initially because of a stocking issue but more recently because there is anecdotal evidence that it has impacted sales through our main online shop.

It is known that a significant minority of Amazon shoppers will check a companies own website before buying through whichever channel offers the item at the lowest price.

To avoid losing commission on sales Amazon insist that the price you sell at is lower than the price you sell the same product at through your own online shop.

With our Amazon shop turned off our own shop has had the best start to a New Year ever. There are no doubt a few other factors in play but the only significant change is the Amazon shop switched off.

 

[kulture]

To avoid losing commission on sales Amazon insist that the price you sell at is lower than the price you sell the same product at through your own online shop.

Not really true. Amazon insist that you do not UNDERCUT the proce on Amazon. So you can sell on your own site at the same price as on Amazon.

 

[quikshop]

Not really true. Amazon insist that you do not UNDERCUT the proce on Amazon. So you can sell on your own site at the same price as on Amazon.

My mistake, but the point remains. Amazon are aware that customers check prices through Amazon and the sellers own website hence the rule. The net affect seems to have been negative for our shop, only time will tell if this trend continues or it's just a new year blip.

 

[lesliedocherty]

We have always sold on Amazon 25% more expensive than our website, i never realised this wasn't allowed.

 

[kulture]

I have yet to see Amazon penalise anyone over this. Nor Have I seen any retailer try to complain as this could be seen as an attempt at retail price fixing. At the moment I suspect that it is a bluff.

 

[Jayser]

Whether this matters really depends on how strong your corporate site is. My own site (see signature below) is doing reasonably well in Google search (number 4 for 'sports sunglasses' i.e.) and yet the volume of sales achieved through it were never anywhere near what we get through Amazon. For sure, since my brand is still relatively unknown, we are picking up many customers through Amazon search that we just wouldn't get otherwise.

Now, inevitably some customers are looking at our site and then buying on Amazon. Of course they are. But any loss here is more than compensated for by the new business we get, I can assure you.

i think you guys need to consider something else as well. Think about the customer who looks at a product on your company site, considers a purchase but thinks maybe the price isn't generous. Then they go on Amazon, discounted, and voila - they buy. It is naive to think you would definitely get custom from these people if their only choice was your company site.

 

[Jayser]

By the way, I paid my 40 quid and I'm a full member so my website should have been there at the bottom. Not sure what's going on - anyone from UKBF want to contact me please?

 

[AndyP]

By the way, I paid my 40 quid and I'm a full member so my website should have been there at the bottom. Not sure what's going on - anyone from UKBF want to contact me please?

I assume that you have actually set up your signature?

 

[Holbi]

I'm currently setting up an ecommerce site and I was recommended by a friend to set up an account with Amazon to sell products through as well.

Just after any views you have on trading through Amazon.

Thanks

Hello!

Plenty of our customers follow that very advice and sell on Amazon, also on eBay. Sales get greater, especially when you use integration modules - everything is synchronised on your website account with Amazon (and eBay) account.

Kind regards,
Holbi.

 

[lesliedocherty]

Hello!

Plenty of our customers follow that very advice and sell on Amazon, also on eBay. Sales get greater, especially when you use integration modules - everything is synchronised on your website account with Amazon (and eBay) account.

Kind regards,
Holbi.

Hi,
how does the integration module improve sales, not sure how it can impact these

 

[Jayser]

Yes, my site was appearing but now my status has been changed to new member. I've messaged the webmaster and hopefully it will get sorted.

 

[DiannePell]

But 15% fee for amazon is too much.

 

[AndyP]

But 15% fee for amazon is too much.

Compared to what? What percentage do your other costs from, presumably, your own site take? Marketing, payment processing etc. for starters...?

 

[furman]

Hi,
Isn't the Amazon fee 17% or is that just for Toys and Games? Ebay is 10% + 3.7% Paypal if I remember correctly.

 

[AndyP]

Amazon fees vary depending on the category that you sell in. No idea re. eBay

 

[Jayser100]

eBay is slightly cheaper than Amazon, and more so if you qualify for the reduced Paypal rates (2.9% if you bank £1,500 or more in one month). Incidentally, make sure you apply for the reduced rate if you qualify because you don't automatically get it

 

[Holbi]

Hi,
how does the integration module improve sales, not sure how it can impact these

Hi Leslie,

Integration software saves up time to the merchant. They don't have to manually change the numbers and manage the stock with each sale, it gets done automatically and synchronically. And time is money, I believe

Kind regards,
Holbi.

 

[Jayser100]

By the way Furman, standard Paypal fee is 3.4% and not 3.7%

 

[lesliedocherty]

Hi Leslie,

Integration software saves up time to the merchant. They don't have to manually change the numbers and manage the stock with each sale, it gets done automatically and synchronically. And time is money, I believe

Kind regards,
Holbi.

I get that bit, but you said sales were greater,

 

[kulture]

I get that bit, but you said sales were greater,

With proper stock control, you can make sure you can put all your stock on all sites. When one sells the stock is reduced on all sites. So you never oversell, but nor do you run out if there is fast selling site.

 

[Holbi]

I get that bit, but you said sales were greater,

Well yes, sales get greater, because the merchant can sell in a few places at a time, and that's a wider target audience hence more sold products.

 

[AndyP]

Both Kulture and Holbi are correct. Increased sales is a sort of byproduct of a good stock control system. I am guessing that Kulture is talking about Linnworks which we also use. Linn doesn't increase sales per se but its does give you the opportunity to sell in more places with a higher balanced stock level making the whole process more "efficient" and certainly time saving which could, I guess, also allow you to explore other sales channels that you wouldn't previously have had the time to look at, so maybe that's also an "increased sales" angle as well

 

[kulture]

When you have poor stock control, there is a hesitation to list the full stock amount on every site. So if you have say 10 of an item and sell on 3 sites you tend to put say 3 on each. So if one site sells 3 overnight and thus becomes out of stock, you could be missing sales. With a good multi site stock control you can put 10 on each site and sell 4 or more on the fast selling site whilst the stock control is ensuring that every sale reduces stock on all sites.