As the world's largest online marketplace Amazon dominates the global eCommerce industry. Around 40% of all US eCommerce sales, a third of the UK's digital sales and almost a quarter of Japan's take place on the marketplace giant.
With such a huge customer base brands that use the best strategies and tactics to increase Amazon sales reap huge rewards. With that in mind we've pulled together some of the top tips and tactics to help you sell more on Amazon.
Consumers are attracted to Amazon for its convenience customer service fast delivery and huge product range. But with over 1.5 million active sellers peddling their products competition on the marketplace is stiff.
So if you're wondering how to increase Amazon sales for your business these Amazon selling tips should help.
Online shoppers can't handle a product read the box or examine the instructions. Instead they need to rely on the content of your product pages.
To increase sales on Amazon brands should fill out each section of their product descriptions with clear and comprehensive information. They should also include a selection of carefully chosen images to imitate the in-store experience.
Here's what you need to consider:
Once your digital shelf is in top condition you want to minimize chances of a competitor stealing your customers away at the last minute. We see this happen a lot on Amazon thanks to product-level data which is a data set we specialize in at ChannelSight.
Product level data is an itemized breakdown of everything a consumer puts in their basket and purchases both brand and non-brand and the insights it provides are invaluable.
Here's how using a simple example where we compare what happens offline to online.
So a consumer goes to the supermarket to buy a specific brand of biscuits. They reach the checkout and see a rival brand on special offer. They remove the biscuits they came to buy from their basket and replace it with the rival brand.
Product level data reveals the same thing happening regularly on Amazon. A consumer lands on your product detail page full of purchase intent only to be presented with a competitor's Sponsored Product ad and you lose the sale at the final hurdle due to a cheaper price point.
The trick here is to sponsor your own products. Aim to 'brand lock' your Amazon product detail page with your own alternative and complementary products so competitors don't steal your customers away at the point of conversion.
On Amazon brands don't have full control over product placement or branding. They have to follow the marketplace's rules. But they can still set themselves apart from the competition by communicating what makes them unique.
Perhaps it's the strength of their brand the USP of a product or a low price point. So ask yourself: what pain points does my brand address that competitors don't?
You can then use your images copy and other assets to highlight these differentiators and speak directly to your target audience.
It's also possible to leverage your website and other marketing channels. By creating great content you can turn your brand into a resource. Most online consumers take the time to do some research before they make a purchase. So brands that provide helpful information can build trust recognition and ultimately win the sale.
Amazon wants its sellers to succeed so it has created a bunch of handy tools to help them do just this. Those who take advantage of them tend to sell more on Amazon.
However it's worth noting that many of these tools are only available to members of Amazon's Brand Registry. So if possible you should legally register your trademark and sign up for the program. Not only will this allow you to protect your brand and flag counterfeit products but you'll also gain access to some of these notable tools:
Positive Amazon reviews are great for building trust and increasing sales. Because reviews often feature helpful advice and insights they are also an ideal medium for providing customers with extra information about your products.
Recent data suggests that when a brand's rating on Amazon rises from three stars up to five stars its conversions increase by 12%. Positive reviews can impact your Amazon product rankings too. So it's essential to provide customers with a positive experience and have a team of agents ready to respond when something goes wrong.
Brands can also request customer reviews. However they need to be careful when they do this. Amazon banned incentivised reviews and created strict rules around customer communications. Brands can ask for a review but they cannot ask for a positive review.
Luckily Amazon has a tool to help with this. Its 'Request a Review' button allows sellers to ask for reviews in a way that complies with Amazon's policies. Brands can also remind social media followers to share their experiences while businesses that fulfil their own orders can add requests to their packages.
If you really want to sell more products on Amazon it's definitely worth investing in sponsored ads. They are easy to implement and appear in prominent positions such as the top of search results. Plus people browsing Amazon are usually ready to buy so your investment should pay off pretty quickly.
To get started you simply choose a product some relevant keywords and the amount you want to spend per click. Right now the average conversion rate of Amazon's sponsored ads is just under 10%.
While the cost of Amazon advertising is going up it remains one of our key Amazon selling tips because it is the quickest way to establish a new product listing. Without past sales or customer reviews it can be difficult to rank organically on Amazon.
Amazon is the go-to shopping channel for countless consumers so it's essential for big brands to have a presence there. But as we mentioned the competition is pretty fierce.
For this reason brands need to streamline the consumer journey so that there are less opportunities for shoppers to choose a competitor's product.
Sponsored ads can help with this. But to sell more on Amazon you should also add links to your Amazon product page in emails on social media and on your website. This allows consumers to convert without distraction. Otherwise they may search for your product on Amazon and be bombarded with ads and organic listings for alternative options.
Using a 'Where to Buy' solution is a great way to direct website visitors directly to Amazon. It can help you gather useful insights into shopping behavior's too.
Your consumers aren't mind readers. So if you're selling on Amazon you need to let them know and drive them there. Our 'Where to Buy' technology is one of the best ways of doing this.
We make all digital content shoppable allowing you to capture engaged users and connect them directly to your product pages on Amazon where they complete their purchase without competitive distraction or delay.
For more reading on devising a winning brand ecommerce strategy on Amazon download our free Amazon Brand Strategy Guide and eBook.
It may take some time to implement all of these Amazon selling tips so start by focusing on your best-selling products. Along the way you can use analytics and A/B tests to understand what resonates with your audience and implement even more effective strategies.
