How To Start An Amazon Business

If you have a passion for selling, natural business savvy, and a unique product(s) to market, you just may have what it takes to start an Amazon business.

Unlike other online shopping businesses, Amazon already has the technicalities and the shopping cart ready-made to give your customers a seamless and pain-free shopping experience.

This is critical to customer satisfaction to keep them coming back to shop with you again. Nonetheless, you must also have a way to expedite the shipping process and ensure that the product reaches the customer safely, in good shape and in a timely fashion. Amazon can help with that if you choose to participate in the “Fulfillment by Amazon” program. Otherwise, you will need to see to the details of product storage and shipping and may need to hire help when your business takes off.

If organizing the logistical details of all this sounds like your cup of tea, a career as an Amazon business owner may be the right move for you.

How Big Is The Amazon Business Industry?

E-commerce sales revenue reached over $512 billion in 2012 with expectations for the e-commerce industry to grow to more than a trillion dollars by 2016 as over 200 million consumers rush to join the online shopping experience.

Online sales average 20 percent growth each year, according to Business News Daily. Bloomberg reports industry analyst Scott Devitt of Morgan Stanley, expects Amazon to reach a market share of 23.5 percent this year driving Amazon’s net sales to $166 billion.

Why Starting An Amazon Business Now Is A Good Idea

Starting in 2011, Amazon proved to be such a formidable competitor in the online sales market that some major chains of brick-and-mortar stores, such as Borders Books, conceded the field and went out of business.

Amazon is the first name many think of when they consider online purchases so showcasing your products on their website could be a lucrative move to further your sales career.

Online consumers spend an average of over $1200 per year, a number that is growing much faster than traditional retail. Some of that money could land in your pocket if you market your Amazon business in the right way to generate sales.

Amazon Business Facts

Here are some facts and figures about the Amazon business you should consider:

Amazon business startup costs

An Amazon business membership currently costs about $40. Add the selling costs (their share of your final selling costs), parts and labor cost of obtaining or manufacturing and shipping the product and what you pay for their marketing and ad programs to get your items noticed and you will get a pretty good estimate of the minimum startup requirements in terms of capital investment up front.

How much do Amazon business make?

It all depends on how much you put into making your business viable and visible. Some vendors report six-figure revenues. How much of that ends up in your pocket depends on how much overhead cost you have to account for, including any wages or salary for employees, if any.

How much do Amazon businesses charge?

Depending on the type of product, retail markups can vary from 50 percent to 1000 percent. In calculating your prices as an e-commerce retailer, you will need to take into account not only the materials and labor cost of obtaining or manufacturing your products on your end, but the cost of maintaining your Amazon website and shipping costs to get the product to the customer.

How do Amazon businesses find customers?

Amazon offers several ad programs to help you get your product to the top of the search engines and visible to browsing consumers. Learn all you can about search engine optimization (SEO) and leverage the power of keywords and ad placements. The Google Keyword Tool can help you raise your product page visibility too. Don’t discount the power of word of mouth either. Ask family and friends to recommend your Amazon products to their network of friends who might be in the market for what you are selling. Fliers or business cards are easy to hand to someone you hear looking for your type of product to send them to Amazon specifically looking for your store.

What skills are required?

Sales and marketing hustle, the ability to create or obtain a desirable product and gauge the market for sale ability, sourcing materials, bookkeeping and accounting, order fulfillment, logistics and organization, computer skills, shipping procedures if you are doing it yourself, and conflict resolution to handle dissatisfied customers.

What do I need to operate an Amazon business?

A computer and an Amazon business account, product to sell, storage and shipping area or a way to ship your product to Amazon’s warehouse in bulk for order fulfillment, a good work ethic – this will be hard work to make it successful just like any other business venture, a business email to communicate with customers and a marketing plan.

Amazon Business Ideas

Nearly one-third of online sales come from mobile devices, according to Business Insider. As an Amazon business, you can take advantage of their app and potentially boost your sales significantly.

Advantages of app usage

Great service all the time

Struggling with what to name your Amazon business, here are a few ideas:

Much of your name choice will depend on the type(s) of product(s) you wish to sell through your Amazon business.

Urbazaar	In Stitches
ActionTap	Tasty Fare
GrocerySpace	Coinville
Fashion Swipe	Chic Moda
Direct to You	Books on Demand
Pampered Pets	KidsKube
ElectroKart	The Gear Shop
AutoHaus	Campout Place