AmazonCode

The

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Contents

Introduction� 5Chapter 1: Idea Strategies 6 What Makes a Good Idea? 6 ThreeStrategiesforDiscoveringaProfitableProduct 6 Amazon Engine 7 GoldenTouch 7 OfflineRetail 8 JungleScout 9

Chapter�2:�Validating�Your�Idea� 10 Demand 10 Competition 11 Profit 12 Passion 13 CustomerLifetimeValue 14 Mistakes to Avoid 15

Chapter 3: Brand Design 18 BrandingandCompetition 18 UniqueSellingPosition 19

Chapter 4: Visual Elements of Branding 23 HowDoYouWantYourProducttoAppear? 23 HiringaDesigner 24

Chapter�5:�Package�Design� 25 HighQualityPhotos 25 PackagingMaterials 25 PortrayingYourUniqueSellingPosition 26

Chapter�6:�Minimum�Viable�Product� 27 WhatIsMinimumViableProduct? 27 OpportunityCostofDelayingProgress 27 IncrementalImprovements 28

Chapter�7:�Technical�Flow�of�Your�Amazon�Product� 29 WhatIsaUPCCode? 29 SubmittingYourUPCCodetoAmazon 29

Chapter�8:�Connecting�with�Suppliers� 31 DecidingonWhichPlatformtoUse 31 WhichPlatformWorksforYou 31 ProsandConsofEachPlatform 32

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Chapter�9:�Deciding�on�A�Supplier� 33 TradeAssurance 33 GoldSupplier 33 MinimumOrderQuantityandUnitPrice 34

Chapter�10:�Terminology�of�Private�Labeling� 37 SourcingSuppliers 37 MFR 37 MOQ 37 QC 37 OEM 38 ODM 38 TradeAssurance 38 PaymentTerms 38 TT 38 WesternUnion 38 PayPal 39 Escrow 39 ShippingTerms 39 FOB 39 EXW 39

Chapter�11:�Communicating�with�Suppliers� 40 CulturalDifferences 40 TimeZoneDifferences 40 Negotiation 41 LanguageBarriers 41

Chapter�12:�Tuning�Your�Company�for�Success� 42 WhyDoSomeCompaniesThriveWhileOthersFail? 42 CultivatingGoodHabits 42 TakingManageableStepsTowardsYourGoal 43

Chapter�13:�Determining�Your�MOQ�� 44 RiskManagement 44 ProsandConsofaLowMOQ 45 ProsandConsofaHighMOQ 45 CalculatingWhatMOQWorksforYourBusiness 46

Chapter�14:�Managing�Your�First�Import� 47 MethodsofCommunication 47 Email 48 WhatsApp 48 Skype 48

Chapter�15:�Sourcing�Product�Samples� 49

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ScreeningSuppliers 49 ComparingSamples 49 NegotiationandMovingForward 49

Chapter�16:�Page�Ascension�Principles� 51 KeywordDensity 51 ConversionRate 51 SalesVolume 52

Chapter�17:�Optimizing�Product�Categories� 53 Niche Categories 53 SellerTags 53 FindinganIdealCategory 54

Chapter�18:�Product�Descriptions� 55 ChoosingKeywords 55 OptimizingKeywords 56 CreatingaTitle 57 TheProductDescription&CreatingaHumanConnection 57 ReviewsandPricing 58

Chapter�19:�Creating�Images�for�Your�Listing� 59 TheMainImage 59 SecondaryImages 60

Chapter�20:�Launching�Your�Amazon�Product� 61 AmazonSnowballLaunch 61 DiscountCouponsforLaunch 62

Chapter�21:�Launch�Marketing� 63 PayPerClickAds 63 GettingReviews 64 LeveragingExistingCustomers 65 SocialMedia 65 MarketingMaintenance 66Chapter�22:�Taking�Care�of�Business� 67 StructuringYourBusiness 67 TrademarksandPatents 68 IncomeTax 68 BecominganInternationalSeller 69Conclusion 70

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Introduction Amazonoffersbuddingentrepreneurstheworld’slargestplatformsforecommerce,withadatabaseofmillionsofcustomersitisnowonderwhysomanysavvybusinessownersareexploringdropshippingasaviablebusinessandalternativetotheirdayjob.

Thisisn’ttosaythatjustanyonecanbesuccessfulsellingproductsonAmazon,thereisasteeplearningcurveandalotofvariablestoconsider.Withthisguide,wetakethenoviceentrepreneuronajourneytonotonlysuccessfullyformulateandvalidatetheirproductideabutalsotowalkyouthroughtheprocessofdesigningthatproductandsourcingvaluablesuppliers.

Understandthatecommerceisamultibilliondollarindustryandthatthereisastilllargelyuntappedmarketripeforexploitationandprofits.Thisguideexploresthebasicterminologyandcommunicationnuancesthatareinstrumentalinformulatingsuccessfulrelationshipswithsuppliers,helpingyoursourceyourfirstproductandtheessentialsinvolvedincreatingaprivatelabelbrand.Itisnotassimpleasjustsourcingaproductandsellingit,yourproductneedstoserveaparticularmarketandhavethatsomethingspecialthatwillsetitapartfromcompetitors,givingyourcustomersasolidreasonwhyyourbrandisthenumberonechoice.

Onceyourproductislisted,theworkdoesn’tstopthere.Wewillalsowalkyouthroughcreatinganeffectivelistingandasuccessfullaunch,followedbyanadvertisingcampaignthatgeneratesaseriousreturnoninvestment.

Thisguidewillcovereverythingthatyouneedtoknowtogetyourfootinoneofthegreatestopportunitiesthatexistonthewebtodayandhowyoucanworkalongsideoneofthelargestandfastestgrowingcompaniesintheworld,sharingintheiroverwhelmingprosperity.

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Chapter 1: Idea StrategiesWhat�Makes�a�Good�Idea? ThequestionthatcomestomindformostaspiringentrepreneurswhentheybegintheirjourneyofstartinganAmazonbusinessis“WhatshouldIsell?”.Searchingforanideaisahighlyimportantprocessasitissetsintomotionhoweveryfollowingtaskwillbeperform.Ifyouhaveageneric,uninspiredideaorfollowthecrowd,youwillfinditmaybemuchmoredifficulttocompletethefollowstepstowardsbuildingaprofitablebusiness.

Followingthecrowdisneveraprofitableplan.Thisisvastlydifferentfromfollowingemergingtrendswhichinmanycaseswillbeprofitable.Followingthecrowdispickingupwheremanyentrepreneurshaveleftoffaftertheyfollowedtrendsandmadethemajorityoftheirprofit.Onceanichebecomesprofitable,everyoneelsejoinsinanditishighlylikelythatthisoversupplywillstruggletomeetwaningdemandthat’snotevenconsideringtheincreaseincompetitionwhichwilldrivedownprofitsandmaketheprocessthatmuchmoredifficult.

Thesolutionthen,istocomeupwithideasthatareuntappedyetholdhugepotentialwhenitcomestocustomerdemand.Itisimportanttoconsiderthatideaswillbefirstneedingtobevalidatedtoensuretheyaresuitabletotakethenextsteps.Thismeanswewillbegoingoverachecklistwitheachofourideastodeterminewhetheritwillbeaprofitableideaworthpursuing.Youwillnoticethatourusedtheplural,ideas,nosingleideashouldbepursuedjustforthesakeofitsincethiscanleadtoattachmentandaconfirmationbias.

Thefirststeptowardsgoingthroughourideavalidationstrategiesistograbsomepaperandapenandsimplybrainstormalltheideasthatyoufeelwouldbeinterestedtoresearchfurtherinto.Youwillwanttotakeaninterestinwhatyouaresellingasyouwilllaterfindthatthiscanaffectyourperformancegoingforward.Ifyouareworkingonsomethingthatyouhavenopassionfor,youarelesslikelytoseeitthroughtotheendwhichiswhereyouwillbemakingthemajorityofyourprofit.Don’tjustgowithideasthatyoufeelwouldbringinthemostmoneyastherewillbetimeswhereyouareyettoseeaprofitandhavinganitemthatyoudon’tparticularlycareaboutcancauseyoutothrowinthetoweltooearlybeforeyouhitthegoldmine.

Three�Strategies�for�Discovering�a�Profitable�ProductTherearethreemainstrategiesfordeterminingwhetheryourideaswillmakeprofitableproductsanditiswisetoexploreeachofthesestrategiesbeforeproceedingfurtherintovalidatingyouridea.Eachofthesestrategieswillrevealthecurrentdemandforyourpotentialideawhichallowsyoutounderstandwhethercustomersaresearchingfortheseproductsandhaveaneedforthem.

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Amazon�EngineThefirststrategyistomakeuseofAmazonitself.YouareabletohaveareadintothoseproductsthatarecurrentlysellingsuccessfulonAmazonbyusingthesearchbar.Bytypingjust,asingleletter,youaremetwithadropdownboxofproductsthatarecurrentlysuggestedduetothefactthatpeoplearesearchingfor.Thisiswhereyouareabletodeterminewhetherthereisademandforyourproductsandisthefirststeptowardsdeterminingwhetheryourideahasanyvalue.

Forexample,ifyouweretosearchforDog,youwillfindthattherearemultiplesuggestionswiththeprecedingword“dog”.Thismightincludedogtoys,dogbed,dogtreesaswellasdoghardnessanddoggreat.Thisgivesyouanicelistofpotentialideasworthexploringwhicharerelatedtodogs.Thisisalsoanindicationthatpeoplearefrequentlysearchingforthesetypesofitemsmeaningthereisademandforthesetypesofproductsandtheyarebeingsold.

Onewayyoumightliketodothis,ifyouarereallystrappedforinspiration,istogothrougheachofthelettersofthealphabet,A,B,Cetc.Thiswilldisplayresultsforsomeofthehottestitemsstartingwiththatletter.YoucanthenaddasecondlettersuchasAD,AN,whichwillprovideevenmoreideasforyoutoaddtoyourbrainstorminglist.

AnotherwayyouareabletousetheAmazonenginetoyouradvantagewhencollectingideasistoclickthroughandseewhatcustomersofcertainproductshavealsobeenviewinginadditiontotheonethatyouarelookingat.Thisgivesyouadeeperinsightintothenichethatyouareresearchingandcanalsounveilmanyfunandinterestingproductsthatmaysparkyourinterest.Thisalsoworkswellifyouarejustviewingcategoriesalone.Amazonhasmanycategoriesavailableforyoutosearchthroughwhichwillexplorelaterinthisbook.

Similartothepreviousmethod,thefinalwayyoucanmakeuseoftheAmazonengineisbyviewingwhatcustomershavealsopurchasedinadditiontotheitemthatyouaresearching.Thisisincredibleusefulasitcanprovideyouwithinformationonhowthenicheperformsandmakestheirpurchases,goingfromoneitemtoanother.

Whilethismaynotbethebestwaytodeterminewhetherideasareprofitable,itdoesgiveyouanunlimitedsourceofnewideasifyouarestrugglingtocomeupwithsomethingneworifyou’relistofitemsislargelycommonitemsthatcanbepickedupjustaboutanywhere.Rememberithelpstosourceideasthatareuniqueyetinhighdemandandlookingaroundyourhouseforcommonitemsisn’tgoingtoyieldtoomanyresultsthatwouldmakeasuccessfulAmazonbusinesssobyusingtheengine,youareabletocollectinformationandaddtoyourbrainstormforfurtherresearch.

Golden�TouchIfyouprefertotakealittlemoretimetoresearchyourproductideasandfindthatsittinginfrontofacomputercanhinderyourcreativitythismethodmighthelpgetthosecreativejuicesflowingandyouareabletoincorporateitintoyourdaytodaylife.Thismethodinvolves

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takingnoteofeverythingyouhavetouchedwithinthelasthour.Thismightseemlikeahugeundertaking,butitgivesyouthechancetoseetheitemsinyourimmediatesurroundingsthatyoumightoverlookonaregularbasis.

Thistechniqueisbestforwhenyouaretotallyoutofideasandreallyneedtogetyourmindworkinginaninnovativewayandstartgatheringideasatanaccelerated.Forexample,youwouldwakeupinyourbed,yoursheets,pillow,pillowcase,alarmclockandmaybeabottleofwaterwouldlikelybesomeofthefirstthingsyoutouch.Thisgivesyouaninstantlistoffiveitemsandyouhaven’tevengottenoutofbedyet!Asyoucanseethiscanbeanincrediblyusefultechnique.Astimegoeson,youwillfindthattherearemoreandmoreitemswhichyouinteractwithinyourdailyroutinethatareworthexploringfurther.

Keepinmindthattheitemsonthislistarenotproductideasforyourbusiness.Insteadtheyareitemsyouwouldgofurtherintodetailwithasyougofurtherandfurtherintothefunctionoftheseitemsandtheircurrentforminyourhands.Workonthistechniqueforatleastaweek.Therearemanyitemsthatwouldn’tevencrossyourmindasyougoaboutyourdaybutwhenyoumakethehabitofwritingthemalldown,youwillsoonfindthatinspirationstartstoflowthroughyouandideasforinnovativeproductsorimprovementsonthoseitemsaroundbecomessecondnature.

Themainideabehindthisstrategyisthatsinceyouareaconsumeroruserofthisproduct,youwillhaveagreaterunderstandingofhowitcanbeimprovedorprovideadditionalvaluefortheuser.Withthisinmind,youcanstartbranchingoutyourproductideasfurtherbybrainstormingnewwaysinwhichthisproductcandeliveritsvalue.

Offline�RetailThethirdmethodinvolvessomeofflineresearch.Thisisoneinwhichthepioneersofecommerceperformedinordertodeterminewhichitemswouldbebestsellersonline.Essentially,youneedtotraveltoabigboxretailersuchasWalmart,Target,BestBuyetc.andtakealookatwhatisstockedontheshelves.Exploreacrossthevariousdepartmentssuchastoys,electrical,homewaresandtakenoteoftheitemswhicharecentrallyplacedwhichisagoodindicationthattheyaresellingwell.Manyoftheseitems,youwillfindarealsosellingquitewellonAmazonbuttherearelikelytobesomehiddengemsthathaven’tquitereachedanonlinecustomerbaseonamassscaleandthisiswherethereisopportunitytotakeadvantageofhotitems.

Wewillexplorefurtherintosomemarketingtechniquesyouareabletoemploywhenscopingoutbigboxstores,soyoumaywanttoholdoffonthisstrategyandactuallydothembothatthemsametimetomaximizeyourefficiencyandgettheballrollingmuchfaster.

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JungleScout

Thereisoneotherresearchmethodwhichfaroutstripsallothers.YouareabletovirtuallysourceanunlimitednumberofvalidateditemswhichyouareabletosellonAmazonandmakeasignificantprofitaswellascreateabrandaroundthem.JungleScoutisapaidservice,$49amonth,howeverthereisenormousvalueprovidedandifyouarepreparedtotakethisbusinessseriously,itiswellworththeinvestment.

ThepremisebehindJungleScoutisthatyouareabletosortthroughtheentiretyofAmazon’sdatabaseusingfiltersthatyouputintoplaceinordertofinetuneyoursearch.Thereareover20millionproductsinAmazon’sdatabasewhichisexpandedeverysingledayandbyusingcertainfiltersyouareabletoreallyhoneinonanuntappednicheandexploitahighdemandproductwherenotmanybusinessesaresupplying.

JungleScoutwillonlydisplayproductswhicharesuccessfullysellingsoyouareabletoreallyseewhichproductsarebringinginthemostprofitfortheirsellers.Youcansortbymarket,priceandreviewsaswellasthequalityoflistingwhichisthemostimportant.Bysearchingthoselistingswhichareunderperformingwithhighlyprofitableproducts,youcanseewherethemarketisfailingconsumersandessentiallydoitbetterthanyourcompetitors.

Readthroughthereviewsoftheseitemsaswellasthisgivesyouanindicationofquality.Thosethatarenotbeingreviewedwellbutremainhighindemandaregoldmines,providingyouwiththeopportunityofmakingtheproductbetterandsellingtoalargemarketwhoaredissatisfiedwiththecurrentoffering.

JungleScoutoffersmuchmorethanastandaloneprogram,youarealsoabletoplugitinasaChromeextensionwhenbrowsingtheAmazonwebsite.Thiswillprovideyouwithinformationoneverylistingyoupullupregardingtheestimatedrevenue,estimatedsales,allthereviewnumbers,theratings,howtheitemisbeingsold,thepricesoffered.Youarealsoabletoseewhetheranitemiscurrentlyonanuptrendindicatingifitisgrowingindemandorslowingdowninsales.

UsingJungleScoutmeansyouhaveapowerfultoolatyourdisposal.AsyoubegintogrowintheAmazonbusiness,youareabletotakeadvantageofthedataofferedbythisprogram.Ifyouarejustgettingstartedanddon’thavetoomuchcapitalatyourdisposal,youmaywanttojustpayforasinglemonthtoavoidcommittinginthecasethatyoumaychangeyourmindlaterbutifyouplanoncreatingalongtermbusinessusingthemassivemarketthatAmazonoffersthenJungleScouttakesawaymostoftheguessworkwhenitcomestogeneratingnewideas.

TosetupaJungleScoutaccountclick�here

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Chapter 2: Validating Your Idea NowthatwehaveexploredthevariouswaysinwhichyoucanhavethecreativejuicesflowingtogeneratepotentialideasforyourAmazonbusiness,wewillcontinuethechapterbymovingtowardsthenextstepwhichistoassesswhethertheideahaspotentialvalueorifitisbetterofflefttosomeoneelse.Thisisyourfinalsteptowardsacceptingtheideaasyournichepriortoenteringthemarket.Ideaassessmentprovidesthebackgroundresearchyouwillperformtodetermineiftheideahasanyvalue.

Thereareanumberofcriteriawewillbeusingtoassessourideas.Thesearedemand,competition,profit,passionandcustomerlifetimevalue.

DemandThisisthefirstofthecriteriawewillbeusingtovalidateouridea.Demandishighlyimportant,whichiswhyitischosenasthefirstofthecriteria.Iftherewerenodemandforaproduct,nocustomerswouldbelookingtopurchasefromyourbusinessmeaningtheideawillstruggletomakeaprofit.Itisbesttosupplyaproducttoamarketwithahighdemand,thatis,manypeopleouttherelookingforthatexactproduct.Thiswillmeantheyaresearchingforsimilarproductsthroughthesearchengineandhopingtouseitintheredaytodaylife.Ifyouhappentobesupplyingthisproducttoademandingbaseofcustomers,yourproductwillbesuccessfulandcontinuetosee.

Itallstartswithdemandandthisiswhyitisthemostimportantofallthecriteria.Demandcanbefurtherbrokendownintothreecriteriatodeterminetheintensityofthedemand.Thefirstofthethreecriteriaastherevenueearnedbyyourproduct.Youareabletodetermineifaproductishighdemandbyhowmanysalesitiscurrentlymakingwithyourcompetitors.Iftherearesalesbeingmadeintheniche,thismeansthereisstillsignificantprofittobemadesellingthatproductandiftherewastobeanotherplayerenteringthemarketsuchasyourself,thenyoushouldbeabletocaptureashareofthismarket.

Thenextcriteriaareuptrends.Certainnicheswillexperienceuptrendsanddowntrendsintheirpopularityasinterestsshiftandchangeovertheyear.Oneproductmightbeahotbestsellerearlyintheyearonlytohavecooleddownandsittingontheshelvesthenext.Oneexampleofthiscouldbefidgetspinners.Theysawimmensepopularityinmid-2017whichresultedinahugenumberofsellersgettinginvolvedtomakemoneyoffthetrend.Whatsoonhappenedwasthesupplydidnotmeetthedemandasthetrendwanedandmanybusinesseswereleftwithanoverabundanceofstockthattheycouldnotmove,manyofthesebusinessesmaynothavefocusedonthedownwardtrendtowardstheendoftheyear.Thiscouldalsobethecaseforseasonalproductswhichmayexperienceanuptrendatcertaintimesoftheyearandremainmorestagnantatotherpointsintheyear.Keepaneyeonthetrendsandseewheretheyaremovingastimegoesonandalsoconsiderhowmuchlongerthistrendcouldremaininforce.

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Thefinalcriteriacanbeseenasawaytovalidtheprevioustwocriteriainordertodetermineyouroveralldemand.Usingthe10-4ruleyouareabletoseewhichproductsareexperiencingastrongdemandandhowconsistentthatdemandis.Itcanbepossibletosellproductscheapinordertoboostrankingsandthiscanskewthedatatoshowthattheyaresellingquitewellwhenitmaynotbethecaseiftheyarenotmakinganysalesattheirregularprice.The10-4ruleworkslikethis.Thefourofthe10-4isfourthousanddollars.Thismeansthatatleasttwotothreeproductsshouldbemakingaroundfourthousanddollarsplusamonth.

CompetitionCompetitioninmanywaysistheantithesistodemand.Oftentimeswherethereishighdemandthereisplentyofcompetition,itisadelicatebalancethatmustbeunderstoodbeforeenteringamarket.Ifthebalanceisthrowninthewayofthesupplier,thereissimplytoomuchcompetitionforthecurrentdemandandthisiswherepricesstarttobeslashedandprofitmarginswilldrop.Incaseswherethereisstillhighdemandandlittlecompetition,thisiswherethereisseriousmoneytobemade.Youwillwanttofindyourplaceinthemarketwhereyoucanworkwithlowcompetitionandeverybodyisabletoenjoytheprofitsintheniche.

ThereisarulewhenitcomestoAmazonforvalidatingyourcompetitionandwhetheritremainsadesirablemarkettoenter.Theruleisthreebyahundred,threehundred.Whatthismeansisyouwillwantthreeproductstobeonthefirstpagewithlessthanahundredreviews.Youwillalsowantlowerthan300reviewsonaverageonthefirstpage.ThisismainlybecauseyouwillwantyourproducttobeappearingonthefirstpageofAmazonwhenyousearchforitratherthanafewpagesin.Thisisbecausemostpeople,seeingwhattheywantonthefirstpage,areunlikelytocontinuescrollingoncetheyseethatmostitemsarewithinthesamepricerangeandbeingofferedconvenientlyinfrontofthem.

Theadvantageofhavingcompetingproductswithlessthan100reviewsmeansyouareablereachthatnumberinashortamountoftimeandineffect,rankhigherthantheminthesearchengine,makingmoresales.Ideally,youwillwanttoavoidanyonesellingaproductwhichhasafewthousandreviewsasthisisastrongindicationthatthecompetitionmightbetoopowerful,makingitmoreofachallengetoenterthemarketsuccessfully.ThisisgenerallyfoundinproductswhichhaveverypowerfulbrandssuchasathleticwearwithbrandsuchasNike.AsYoucanimagine,thesewouldbeincrediblydifficulttocompetewithparticularlyatthesamepricepointandintermsofquality.Forthisreason,itisbesttonichedownfurthertocreateaproductwithoutanymajorplayers.

Therulecanbeflexibleandisuptoyourdiscretion.Around300isgenerallythebestindicationthattheproductyouareresearchinghasahighdemandwhilealsonothavinganyparticularbrandstandingout.Thehigherthecompetition,thelessprofityouwillstandtomake.Keepinmindthathighprofit,lowcompetition,doesn’tgenerallylastlong.Therearemanysellerswhoareresearchingawiderangeofproductsandthereforewideopenniches

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willnottaketoolongtofill.Thisshouldactasaprimarymotivatorforyoutoactwhenthereisanopportunitytobeabletoexploitthehighprofitswhiletheyarestillthereandnotdelayyouractions.

Competitioncanalsobedifferentiatedinordertoboostyourpotentialtotakealargermarketshare.Thiscanbedonethroughinnovationanddevelopmentofyourproduct.Wewillbeexploringthisfurtheralonginthisbook.

ProfitThethirdelementofAmazonproductvalidationisprofitability.ProfitisessentialinordertocontinueyourAmazonbusinessandensuringthatyourproductscreateahealthyreturnoninvestment.Thelastthingyouwouldwanttodoistoinvestagreatdealofmoneyandeffortinshippingproductsonlytofindoutthattheyarenotprofitable,causingyoutoexperiencealossonyourinitialinvestment.ThisissomethingthatcannotbelefttochanceanditisthereforeincrediblyimportantthatresearchandduediligenceprecedesyourdecisionforwhichproductyouwouldliketosellonAmazon.

There is an official�Amazon�FBA�calculatorthatyouareabletomakeuseofspecificallydesignedforthepurposeofFBA.ThiswillletyouknowexactlyhowmuchmoneywillbegoingtoyourbankaccountuponeverysaleyoumakeonAmazon,leavingnothingtochance.Togetstarted,openJungle Scout andforthisexamplewewillbelookingintokitchenanddining.Thepricepointthatwewillbeexploringwewillbethe$12to$60rank,between1and2,500.Startbysortingintermsofpricingandthenestimatedrevenuefromhighesttolowest.Thefirstthatyouwillseearelikelytobearoundthehalfamillionamonthrange.Openuponeoftheproductsandseewhattheaveragepriceforthatparticularkeywordisortheproductitself.Youwillwanttocheckoutafewdifferentpricesasthereisagoodchancethatthepricecouldbeoverinflatedorunderpriced.

Onceyouhavetheaveragepricelockedin,insertthatintothedataandthenwhatyouwoulddo is go over to AlibabaorwhicheverwholesalesiteyouwillbeusingsuchasSalehoo or Oberlo andsearchfortheexactsameitem.YouwillwanttomatchthedataupwithwhatwasbeingsoldonAmazon.Youcaneasilysearchfortheaveragepriceandyouwilllikelygetawidevarietyofpriceswithmanyitemscomingwithvariousaccessories.EnsurethatthelistingisforthesameproductonAmazontocreateaccuratedataotherwiseyouwillbeoffinyourcalculations.

Onceyouhavetheaveragepricefromthesupplies,youareabletoenterthatdataintothecalculatorandthiswayyouareabletoseeexactlyhowmuchyouareabletoearnonceallthefeesareconsidered.Theircalculatorwilldetailthecoststhatwillbeinvolvedwhensellingandyouareabletocustomizethistoyourneedsdependingonhowyouwillbeoperatingyourbusiness.Thiswouldincludewarehousing,shippingfromthefactorandshippingtoandfromAmazonitself.Youwillalsowanttoconsiderafigureforadvertisingyourproductsasyouwouldn’twantthistodrasticallyaffecttheprofitabilityofyouritems.Highprofitabilityright

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outofthegateisidealandwiththecalculatoryouareabletogetanestimateofhowmuchnetprofityouwouldbeearningpersale.

Productsthatarepricedunder$12aregenerallynotworthsellingonAmazon.Thisislargelyduetothefeesthatareincurredandothercoststhatareinvolvedwithsellingwhichfasteatawayanyprofits,leavingnotmuchleftinyourbank.

Using the calculator,youareabletoseewhichproductsofferahighprofitmarginandthosethatarenotworthtakingontherisk.Ifyourrevenueisapproximatelythreetimesasmuchasyourpurchasepricethenyouwillstandtomakeasizeableprofitwithyouritem,takingallfeesandchargesintoaccount.Whenexaminingprofit,considertheotherfactorsthatyouareusingwhenvalidatingyourproductideaastheywilleachplayapartinhowaproductwillperform.Forexample,lowerprofitmarginsmightseemliketherewillbeariskbutifdemandsuggeststhatitisaproductthatpeoplearelookingfor,youcouldpotentiallysellagreatervolumewhereashighprofitmarginsandlowdemandmightmeanthatyourproductmaynotmoveasfast.

Researchanumberofproductsbeforecomingtoyourfinaldecision,particularlywhenitcomestoprofitabilityasthereisalottoconsiderandoftentimestheremaybeareasonwhyaproductwithhighpotentialforbeingprofitablemaynotbesellingasawellasitcouldbeonAmazon.

PassionWhydosomeoftheworld’srichestpeoplecontinueworkingwellintotheiroldage?It’snotthattheyneedthemoney,ortheyareterrifiedoflosingitalloncetheyareretired.Theyabsolutelylovewhattheydoforalivingandthiskeepsthemworkingharderbecauseitistheirpassion.Equally,youwillfindthatwhenyoupursuesomethingsolelyforthemoney,youcanlosepassionincrediblyfastsimplybecausethereisnopleasureinexertingeffortformaterialgains,therewillneverbeenoughtosatisfyyou.

ThisiswherepassionbecomesoneofthemostimportantyetoverlookedaspectsofhavingasuccessfulAmazonbusiness.Ifyoudonotenjoydoingwhatyoudo,youwillnotbeabletoovercomemanyofthechallengeswhichcomesalongwithstartingyourownbusiness.Youarefarmorelikelytosucceedifyouhaveapassionfortheproductyouaresellingandthatyouknowitwell,perhapsevenhavingoneyourself.Thiswillhelpyouidentifywaysofimprovingtheproductandwhattodoincasesomethinggoeswrong,improvingyourcustomerservice.

Findingyourpassionisnotalwaysaneasythingtodo.Somepeoplecantakemanyyearsbeforetheyfinallydiscoverwhattheylovetodoandthereforeyouwillneedtoaskyourselftwoveryimportantquestionstoboildowntheessenceofwhatyouridealproductwouldbe.Thefirstofthesequestionsare“Whatareyourinterestsorhobbies”.Thesequestionswillhelpyougettothebottomofwhichcategoriesofproductswouldbebestsuitedtoyourindividualinterests.Thesecondquestionis“Ifyoumadenomoney,whatkindofproductwouldyou

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launch”.Thistakesmoneyoutofthequestionasamotivatorandleavesjustyourrawemotionanduniquepreferencestowardswhichproductsyouwouldworkbestwith.Italsoopensupthebiggerpictureandrevealsyourtruemotivationtolaunchaproductthatyouareabletoimproveanddobetterthanmanyofyourcompetitors.

Whilepassionisn’tessentialtomakemoney,itislikelythatwithoutpassion,youwillnotbeabletoperseverethroughthehardtimesinthisbusiness.Profitablenichesmaylastquiteawhilebutassoonasacompetitorstartsofferingaproductthatisanimprovementonyourownandyoursalessuffer,youmaynothavethemotivationtobetteryourownproductandinsteadmaystartagainfromscratchorgiveupentirely.

Customer�Lifetime�Value

WhilenotconsideredbytoomanywhoaregettingintotheAmazonbusiness,CustomerLifetimeValueisofhighimportantandoftenoneofthemostoverlookedessentialaspectsofyourbusiness.

Whenlookingforaproducttolaunchtothemarket,youarenotsimplylookingforaproductwhichwillsellwellormakesagoodprofit.Instead,youarethinkingofthelongtermvision,thatisaproductthatyouareabletobuildanentirebrandaround.Thisallowsyoutoscaleyourproducttolargerheightsandcontinuebuildingwhatyouhavecreatedratherthanhaveaproductthatwillselloverafewmonthswhileyouarebusilypreparingforthenextone.Whileyouwouldstillmakemoneythatway,itissimplynotefficientorscalableandyouaremostlikelytoreachaplateauinyourearningsandgonofurther.

Ideally,youarelookingforanichethatyouareabletomakearound3to5profitableproductsandbeginbuildingbrandloyalty.Youdon’tneedtohaveeverysingleoneoftheseproductsbringinginhugeamountsofproducts,thatisnotthepoint.Theseproductswillsimplycreatethebrandimageforyourbusinessandmorethanlikelyyouwillhaveoneortwostandoutproductsthatwillbegeneratingaround80percentofyourprofits.Theideahereisthatonceyouhavelaunchedyourfirstproductsandsetupyouremaillistofloyalcustomers,theywillbereadyandwaitingforthenextproductlaunch.Ageneralruleisthatitisaround7timeseasiertoselltoanexistingcustomerthananewone,meaningyouwillbeableleverageyourexistingcustomerbaseoveryourcompetitionwhenreleasingaproductinthesameniche.

Anexampleofhowthiswouldworkisifyouhadalistofcustomersthathadpurchasedyourproductandyouwerepreparingtolaunchanewone,youwouldsendanemailblasttothislistaswellasestablishadstoretargetthem.Youmightliketoofferthemanexistingcustomerdiscountfortheirloyaltyandinmostcases,youwillhavequiteafewbuyyournextproductsimplybecausetheyweresatisfiedwiththefirst.

Thisway,bycreatingasimilarproductoveracompletelyunrelatedone,youareabletoutilizeallthesamemarketingtechniquesthatyouhaveinplaceasopposedtogoingthroughtheentireprocessagain.

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Let’shavealookatthisasaworkingexamplewitharealproduct.IfIweretosellsplatterscreensinthekitchenniche,takealookatwhatcustomershavealsobeenpurchasinginadditiontothisproducttogiveyouanideaofwhereyoucanexplorenext.Youwillnoticethatthereisanabundanceofproductsinthesamenicheassplatterscreenssuchaspans,panscrubbers,choppingboardsetc.YouwillseethatifIweretoreleaseanotherproductsuchasoneoftheseandacustomerhadjustpurchasedmysplatterscreen,theywouldhaveabetterincentivetopurchaseanotherproductofthesamebrandtokeepthatconsistency.

Focusyourproductsonthegreatervisionofyourbusinessandbrandratherthanjustonindividualproducts.Youwillfindthatthisopensupyourperceptiontogreateropportunitiesthatcanoftenbemissedwhenfocusisfinelytunedonjustasingleproduct.Itdoesn’thavetobefive,butthisprovidesagoodbasetostartfromtostartleveragingexistingcustomersandtailoringyourproductstotheirneeds.

Mistakes�to�AvoidNoteveryonewillbeperfectwhentheyarestartingoutinanewbusiness.Thereisplentyoffactorstoconsider,manyofwhichcanbeeasilyoverlooked.Thebestcourseofactionforanewselleristolearnfrommistakesofpastsellerswhohavegonethroughitallandcomethroughwithasolution.Inthispartofthechapter,wewillbetakingalookintosomeofthemistakesthatsellersmake,thecommononesthatcanbeeasilyavoidedbysimplybeingawareofthem.

Thesemistakescanbequitedetrimentaltoyourbusinessandthereforeitisimportanttosteerawayfrommakingtoavoidwastingtimeandthousandsofdollarsinvestedinaproductthatforonereasonoranotherwon’tsellatthevolumeyouexpecteditto.

Oversized�ProductThefirstmistakeisselectinganoversizedproduct.ThisisdefinedbyAmazonandisaproductthattheywillchargeadditionalfeesforstorage.Youareabletodeterminewhatmakesanoversizedproductbysearching“oversized�products�Amazon”onGoogle.Fromthereyouareabletopullupthefee�schedule�for�FBA�fulfillment�on�amazon.com.Havinganoversizedproductisnottheendoftheworldanddoesn’tnecessarilyneedtobeavoidedatallcostsbutitiscrucialtoconsiderthatanitemlargerthanyouexpectcouldbequiteheavyandthiswouldmeanthefeeswillbemuchgreater,enoughtoshrinkthathealthyprofitmarginyouhadbeencalculating.

Gated�CategoriesTheseareproductswhichrequireadditionalchecks,reviewsandqualificationsinordertobeapprovedtobesoldonAmazon.YourproductcannotcomefromjustanysupplierinthiscaseanditwouldbebesttocontactAmazonbeforehandtoensurethatthesupplieryouhavesourcedisatrustedsupplier.Youareabletosimplysourceforwhichproductsareingated

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categoriesandthosethatarenot.

Anexampleofagatedproductcouldbeamen’swatchunderthejewelrycategory.Therewillbeanumberofrequirementsyouwillneedtofulfilinordertosellinthatcategory.Therearemanygatedcategoriesacrossawidevarietyofniches.Sellinginagatedcategoryisbynomeansnegative,ifanything,itoffersfurtherprotectionsforyournicheagainstcompetitors.Itisimportant,however,toconsidertheadditionalrequirementsthatareinvolvedwhenyouwouldliketosellintheseniches.

PatentsThiscancauseamassiveheadacheforanumberofsellerswhoaretryingtosellproductsonAmazon.TheymighthaveaproductthattheyfeelissellingreallywellforanumberofmonthsuntiltheyreceiveadreadedmessagethattheproductthattheyaresellingisactuallypatentedintheU.S.A.Theywillthenberequiredtotakedowntheirlistingwhichwillcausetheincometoceaseandtheyarestillleftwiththeunsoldstock,gatheringfeesforstorage.

Thiscaneasilybepreventedbydoinganothersearch,thistimethroughgoogle.com/patents.Thisresourceprovidesadatabaseofpatentsthatyouareabletoreview.Ifyouareinvestingasubstantialsumintoaproductorproject,suchastensofthousandsofdollars,itwouldbeworthwhiletohireapatentlawyertosearchforexistingpatentsthatyourproductcouldinfringeon.Whilethismaybecostafewhundredtoathousanddollars,foraprojectofthismagnitude,itwouldbewellworththecosttoavoidyourbusinesscomingtoagrindinghalt.

Forasimpleproductthatyouarejustimporting,itwouldbebetteroffforyoutojustdothesearchyourselfusingtheappropriatekeywords.Additionally,youwillneedtoconsidertrademarksaspartofyourpatentcheckingprocess.Trademarkscanbequitesimilar,andyouareabletosearchforthemjustaseasily.UsingUSPTO,youareabletosearchthroughbrandnamesandsloganswhichmaybesimilartoyourownandthereforecouldpossibleinfringeonthepropertyofothers.

Sourcing SuppliersThefinalmistakethatmanypeoplecanmakeishavingdifficultywhensearchingforasupplier.Thisisquiteasimplestepthatwewillbeexploringmuchlaterinthisbook.Itshouldbeworthsayingherethoughthatitshouldneverbetoodifficultorstressfulwhensourcingaproductorcommunicatingwithasupplier.

Forexample,ifyouwerehopingtolaunchChristmascollarsforcatsandspentagreatdealoftimetryingtofindasupplierthatwillprintChristmaspatternsonthecollarsthenthisshouldbearedflag.Itwouldnotbeworthspendingoveraweek,contactingover20suppliersandcomingupshort,withnosupplierswantingtotakeontheassignment.Therearemanyproductsouttherethatarereallyquitesimpletosourceandcarryfarlessstress.

Thisisnottosaythatyoushouldgiveinattheslightestportionofresistancebutratherit

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shouldmeanthatifyouarehittingthepavementtryingtomoveaprojectforwardandeverywayyouturnisjusthittinganotherwall,thenitmaynotbeworthyourtimeoreffort.Unlessyouwerewellawarethattheseparticularproductswillbeincrediblyprofitableandallyourresearchwouldsuggestevidenceforthis,thenmaybeitwouldbeworthtocontinuepushingbutkeepinmindthateverydayyouarenotsellingthevolumethatyouhaveinmind,youarelosingrevenueandthisshouldnotbetakenlightlywithafastmovingbusinesssuchasAmazon.

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Chapter 3: Brand Design Nowthatyouhaveyourideaslockedin,itistimetocreateauniqueproductwiththoseideas.Thisinvolvesbringingyourideaintorealityandmakingyourproductreal.Youwouldwantyourproducttobesuperiortoyourcompetitors,givingyourcustomersastandoutreasonastowhyyourproductistheonetosolvetheirproblems.

Theideabehindbrandingisshowyourcustomersthatyouhaveexactlywhattheywantandwhyitwillprovidethemwithadvantagesovercompetingproducts,thisknownasyouruniquevaluepositionandisessentiallywhatmakesyourproductstandoutfromtherest.Bycreatingeffectivebranding,yourproductwillshouldbeabletocatchtheeyeofpotentialcustomerswhoaresearchingthroughamazonusingthekeywordsthatyouhaveselectedforyourproduct.Thisisfundamentallyimportantasitwillbeyourfirstpointofcontactforyourcustomersandinthatfractionofasecond,theywilltakethefirststeptowardsmakingapurchasebyclickingonyouritemandgoingthroughthefinerdetails.Thisiswhyitissoimportanttogetbrandingright,itismuchmorethanjustfancydesign,packagingandstyle,itisquiteliterallythefirstimpressionyourcustomerswillhaveofyourbusiness.

Brandingdoesn’tstopthereeither.Onceyourcustomerreceivestheirproduct,youwanttogivethemtheimpressionthattheyhavetheirhandsonahighqualityproductwithsuperiorpackaging.Webeexploringthismuchfurtherthroughoutthisandthefollowingchapteronhowyouareabletodothis.

Branding�and�Competition

Beforewecontinue,itisimportanttounderstandwhatexactlymarketingisandhowitisrelatedtobranding.Inordertoexplaintheseconcepts,wearegoingtobeusinganexampleproductwhichistoothpaste.Withnothingmorethantoothpaste,ifweweretostripawayallbrandingandmarketing,weareleftwithnothingmorethanjusttoothpasteonitsown.Nowwithoutanyinformation,wewouldhavenoideawhatbrandthistoothpasteisorwhatthespecificbenefitsare.Similarly,wewouldn’tbeabletosmelliteithersincethemintysmellisalargepartofthebranding.

Nowifweweretocomparewithaboxtubeoftoothpaste,wewouldseethatitvastlydifferent.Theproductinformationlistedonthepackaging,thecolorsandgraphicsalsoprovideuswithfurtherimageryofwhattoexpectwhenwepurchasethistoothpaste.Ifthesetwoproductsweretobeplacedrightnexttoeachother,whichonewouldthecustomerchoose.Unlessthepricesweresubstantiallydifferent,andthecustomerhadanaversiontohigherpricesforwhateverreason,theywouldmostlikelychoosetheheavilybrandedtoothpasteoverthegeneric.Thisexampleprobablyfeelsquiteobviousanditisbutwhenitcomesdowntoit,customerswillalwaysselectthebrandingtheyfeelismostinlinewithwhattheyareexpectingfromtheproduct.Theydon’twantanysurprisesorsomethingtheydon’tunderstandsothemoreinformationwecangivethemandthemoreinvitingwemakethe

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product,thehigherourchancesareofhavingasale.

Wecanbreakdownexactlywhatthedifferenceisbetweenthesetwoproductstodemonstratetheeffectivenessinthemarketing.Firstly,weareabletoseethatarectangularboxholdsmorevolumeandisagreatersize.Thepackagingprovidesopportunitiestoaddfurtherinformationsuchasalabelthatsaysitisnewlylaunchedaswellasdetailsonhowwellitprotectsyourteeth.Thisiswherethebrandsuniquesellingpositioncomesin.Ratherthanjustbeingaproducttocleanyourteethwithandgiveyougoodbreath,thisparticularproductoffersbenefitsforprotectingyourteethandgums,focusingonthehealthanddentalhygieneaspect.

Furthermore,thereisgenerallydirectionsanddiagramsonthesepackagestoshowhowtousetheproductandtheadvantagesithasforyourteeth.Youwillalsonoticethattherearelogosandspecificthemecolorsacrossthediagramsexplainingwhateachelementoftheproductdoesandisspecificallydesignedthiswaytoshowthetechnicalsideoftheproducttocreatetrustandfaiththattheproductwillprovideyouwithyouwithadvantagesoverinferiorproducts.

Thisisessentiallywhatbrandingis.Thegoalistogetthepointoftheproductacrosstothecustomerandwithaheavyinvestmentinmarketresearch,youareabletodeterminewhatexactlyyourcustomerwantswhenpurchasingaparticularproductandthenuseyourbrandingtoreflectthatyourproductanswersmanyoftheirdesires.Theuniquesellingpositionisnecessarysincethisiswhereyoufocusyoureffortsonsolvingacertainsetofproblemsratherthaneverythingatoncewhichwillovercomplicatethingsandmaketheproductmoreconfusingratherthanasimpleanswer.

Unique�Selling�Position

Asmentionedbeforeyouruniquesellingpositioniswhatwillsetyouapartfromyourcompetitionandpresentyourproductastheidealsolutiontoyourcustomersproduct.Thismeansyouhavetogetyouruniquesellingpositionrightotherwiseyourcompetitionsmightofferagreateradvantageleadingyourcustomertochoosethemoveryou.

Thereareanumberofwaysyoucanreallyfinetuneyouruniquesellingposition.Thefirstistoresearchthereviewsonsomecompetingproducts.Thisprovidesyouwithawealthofinformationsincecustomersarelettingyouandyourcompetitorsknowexactlywhattheyareneedandwhethertheproductdidagoodjobofmeetingthatneed.Furthermore,wewillalsobecloselyexaminingwhatexactlycustomersareaskingforandfromtherewewillbeabletodevelopaclearsuccinctuniquesellingpositionthatwearesurewillmeettheirneedswhichwewillthenbeabletocarryovertoourbrandingandmarketing.

Withouruniquesellingposition,weareabletocombinebothourmarketingandourproducttogethertoinformthecustomerandhelpsteerthemtowardsmakingtheirfinaldecision.

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What�Do�Your�Customers�Want?

Largecompaniescanspendmanymillionsofdollarstryingtodeterminewhatexactlyitisthattheircustomersarelookingforinaparticularproductorniche.Itisnotalwaysaneasytaskandcantakemuchtimeandresourcestogettothebottomofit.Todeterminewhatyourcustomerswant,itisbesttotakedownnotesintheirexactwords.Doingsowillallowyoutocapturetheirexactthoughtsandfeelingstowardscertainproductsandtheirexperiencewiththemratherthanyourowninterpretationwhichcanleaveroomforerror.

Forexample,ifsomeonestatedthattheywantedapremiumproductratherthanahighqualityproduct,youwouldthenlookforwhattheywoulddeterminetobeapremiumproduct.Thiscouldmeanthatthereareextrafeatures,moreattractivepackagingandadditionalservicesandsupportassociatedwithit.Higherqualityonotherhandcouldsimplymeanthematerialsusedtodesigntheproductareofahigherqualitywhiletheproductitselfoffersnotadditionalbenefits.Differentphrasesdomeandifferentthingstodifferentpeople.Thewordpremiumcouldcreateimagesinyourmindthatarequitedifferentfromthatofanotherperson,soitisbesttocaptureindetailexactlywhattheywantratherthanmakingupyourownmindandriskmissingthemark.

Inordertoreadexactlywhatitisthatyourcustomersarelookingfor,goontotheAmazonwebsiteandclick�on�the�bestseller�ads.Thesewillbefirstplacetostartwhenlookingataproductthatishighlyregardedbycustomersbuteventheseyouwillsee,havetheirfairshareofonestarreviews.Thisisperfectlynormal.Youwillnoticethatboththefivestarreviewsandtheonestarreviewsareattheextremeendofthespectrumandthisisgenerallyjustpeopleactingontheiremotions,itiseitheraproducttheyreallyloveandtheywanttoletthesellerknoworitissomethingthattheydidn’thaveagoodexperiencewithandtheywanttousethereviewsystemtovent.Therealvalueisfoundinthefour,threeandtwostarreviews.Thesearepeoplethatmaytakereviewingalotmoreseriousandofferactualinformationontheproductratherthanjustexpressingtheirfeelings.

Nowtogetstartedonnarrowingdownyouruniquesellingposition,youwillneedtoopenupawordprocessorinordertostarttakingnotesoneachofthereviewstodetailthemdownfurther.Thiswilltakesometime,perhapsevenanumberofdays,asyouwillneedtoexplorequitedeepwitheachreviewandstartdevelopingyournotesfromtheinitialcommentsandstartdiscoveringwhatitisyoucandoforyourownproductthatwillhaveavastimprovementoveryourcompetition.Thereviewswon’tbelimitednosimplyyourproductbutalsoacrossyourbranding,marketingandthroughtoyoursalesandcustomerservice.Youwillwanttohaveallbasescoveredasthedifferenceitmakeswillbephenomenal.

Youwillfindthataftergoingoveranumberofreviewsthatseveralwillbesayingtheexactsamething.Itisimportanttomakethisknowninyournotes.Addanxtoyournotewhereyouhadmentioneditthefirsttimeforeachtimethatitismentioned.Thisallowsyoutokeeptrackofwhatcustomersareaskingforthemostandthiswayyoucangetclosertowhatyouruniquesellingpropositionwilllooklike.

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Anotherwaythiscouldbedoneistogoontowritewords.org.uk.Whatyoucandohereislookatthewordfrequencycounterandcopyandpastethereviewsintothistool.Thiswillthentakecountofallthewordsusedinthereviewsanddetailexactlyhowmanytimesithascomeup.Youwillhaveanumberofwordsthatarenotrelevanttotheproduct,especiallywiththemethodofcopying,socontinuesearchinguntilyoucomeacrossacommonwordrelatedtotheproduct.Withthisword,youcanthengetanideaofnotonlywhatyoumaybeabletoofferinyouruniquesellingpropositionbutalsoforyourtitle,keywordsandmarketingsincethisiswhatyourpotentialcustomersarealltalkingaboutintheirreviews.

Onceyouhaveanoticedatrendinthenumberofreviewswhicharesuggestingsimilarthingsofyourcompetingproducts,youwillthenhaveanideaofyouruniquesellingposition.Thiscouldbe,forexample,thattheproductispoorquality,perhapsitbreakseasily.

Creating�Your�Unique�Selling�Position

Nowthatyouhaveagoodideaofwhatitisyourcustomerwouldlikeandthechallengestheyarefacingwithyourcompetitor’sproducts,itistimetousethatinformationtoessentiallyboildownasingleuniquesellingpositionforyourproduct.Youwillideallywanttospecializeinasingleareaasthiswillbethemoststraightforwardforyourcustomertounderstandandgivethemtheoverallideaofwhatyourproductrepresents.Thiscouldbeacertainfeatureoftheproduct,thequalityoranyotheradvantageithasovercompetingproducts.

Havingasingleobjectiveforyourproducttofollowhasadvantagesovertryingtobethebestatallthingsasyoucanreallytargetwhatitisyourcustomerswantandwhentheyhavethatproblemontheirmind,seeingyourproductwillbetheoptimalsolutionforthem.Afterreviewingyournotes,youshouldhaveagoodideaofwhatcurrentlystandsout.

Togetabetterunderstandingofwhatyouruniquesellingpositioncouldbe,itwouldbeworthwhiletosearchthroughlistingsofcertainitemstoseewhatmakeseachonestandsout,particularlythosethatareatthetopoftheresultspage.Asanexample,let’slookintoiPhone�7�cases.Youwillnoticethatthisisanincrediblysaturatedmarket,withmanysellersandtheproductshavelittleroomforinnovation.Takealookatsomeofthoselistingsaroundthetop.Avoidlookingatitemsthatarelistedas“Sponsored”astheseareartificiallyrankedhigherduetothepaidadvertising,sowewon’tbeabletoreceivethesamelevelofinformation.

Aroundthetop,itcanbeseenthattherearefeaturessuchasanti-scratchandslimdesign.Theseareexamplesofuniquesellingpositioninamarketwhereitwouldbeverychallengingtostandout.Customerswillgravitatetowardstheselistingsiftheyhaveexperiencedscratchesontheirphonesduetoaninadequatecoverorifthecasestheyhavehadinthepasthavebeentoobulkytofitintheirpocketorwallet.

Onethingyoumightnoticewhenscrollingthroughtheselistingsisthatitdoesn’tnecessarilyhavetobetheproductthathasauniquesellingposition,itcouldalsobethelistingitself.An

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exampleofthiswecanseeintheiPhonecasenicheisthatsomelistingsstatetheirproductispremium.Thisallowstheproducttostandoutfromothercoversinthemarketsincemanyarecheaplymadeandmassproduced.Havingaproductthatisperceivedaspremiumnotonlydemandsahigherpricetag,whichwillstandoutalso,butitcancreateagreaterperceptionofhigherqualityandamorecomfortabledesign.

Thelistingcouldalsogotheotherway.Youmayfindthereareproductslistedthatofferthecheapestpricesandthisishighlyadvertisedontheirlisting.Anotheralternativethatmanypeoplespecializeinishavingthemostreviewsinyourmarket.Thisisparticularlyusefulforthosenichesthatdon’thavetoomanyreviewssuchasthosebetween100and300.Customersareusuallydrawntothoseproductsthatappeartobesellinginvolumeandarethemostpopularwiththereviewsbeingthetelltalesign.

Afewotheruniquesellingpositionsyouwillcomeacross,usingtheiPhonecovermarket,isshockproof,engaginggraphics,ultra-lightdesign,RFIDblockingwallet.

Ifyouarelookingforwaystoimproveyourcurrentproductidea,oneoftheeasiestyetmosteffectivemethodsistotakealookatwhatcustomershavefrequentlyboughttogether.Thisgivesyouanideaoftheitemsthatpeoplearepurchasinginadditiontotheonethatyouarethinkingofselling.Whatyoucanthendoiscombinetheseitemstogethersuchaswithaccessoriesorbundlingthetwoitemstogether.Asyoucanimagine,thiswillputyoufaraheadofcompetitorsbecauseratherthanhavingtobuytwoitemsseparately,customerswillchooseyourbrandsimplybecauseitwilltakethemlesseffortandlikelylesscashtopurchasethetwoitemslistedinyourproduct.AfantasticexampleofthisusingouriPhonecoversisthosethatcomewithscreenprotectorsorstyluses.Itprovidesthatextraincentivethatisoftenjustenoughtobringthemoverthelineandsettleonpurchasingyouritem.

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Chapter 4: Visual Elements of BrandingThisisoneofthemostexcitingpartswhenbringingyourproducttomarket.Thisiswhereyoucancreatehowyouwantyourproducttolookandtheassociatedbranding.Theappearanceofyourproductisrankedquitehighonhowyourbrandwillbeperceivedbyyourcustomers.Itisessentiallytakingyourideaandbringingittolife.

How�Do�You�Want�Your�Product�to�Appear?�Thefirststepincreatingthevisualimageofyourbrandiscommunicatingyourideastoyoursuppliers.Inthischapterwewillalsobeexploringhowweareabletotakeyouruniquesellingpositionfromabunchofconceptsandwordsandbringitintorealitythroughworkablesolutionsthatyoursupplierswillbeabletobuild,designandmanufacture.Thisiswherewewillbemovingfromtheideaphaseandstartcreatingsometangibleresults.Ifyouhavemadeitthisfarinyourbusiness,youshouldbeveryproudasmanypeoplestruggletogobeyondtheideaphaseduetofearandalackofconfidenceintheideasthattheyhavecomeupwith.

Inordertoensurethatyourproductisuniqueandwillstandout,youwillwanttogothroughcurrentlistingsandseewhatyourcompetitorsarecreatingtogetsomeinspiration.Manyproductsyouwillfindarequitegeneric.Theylackcolorandadditionaldesignfeatures,andthisiswherethereisroomtoexploittheseadvantages.

Onceyouhaveabasicunderstandingofwhatimprovementsyouwouldlikeforyourproductoveryourcompetitors,moveovertoAlibaba.comtostartsearchingforthebaseproductyouwouldliketoworkwith.Thisshouldessentiallybethegeneralideaofwhatyouwouldlikeyourproducttolooklike.LookingattheproductsthatarelistedonAlibaba,youaresearchingforinspirationandselectingproductsthatyoufeelwouldbeagoodstarttobuilduponforyouruniquesellingposition.

Gatheracollectionofimagesthatrepresentthestyleandfeaturesyouwouldpreferforyourproduct.Thenextstepistoopenphotoshopandstarteditingtheimagestogiveyoursuppliersabetterideaofwhattheproductshouldlooklike.Thisdoesn’thavetobeanoverlyprofessionaldesign,itissimplyatooltousetobetterexplainyourequirestoyoursuppliers.Itisrecommendedthatyouuselabelstobestillustratewhateachofthefeatureswillbetoavoidbackandforthcommunicationandfurtherexplanation.

Ifyoudon’thavethefundsforadesigner,youstilldoityourselfanddoyourbesttoprovideanswerstothosequestionsandkeepinmindyouwillbeorderingasampletobeginwith,soyouhaveagoodideaofwhatyourproductwilllooklikeandwhatstillneedsfinetuning.

Beforesendingyourimageovertoyoursupplier,ensurethattherearenothirdpartylogos.Createalogoforyourbrandandusethisforyourimagessincethiswillpaintyourbusinessinamoreestablishedandprofessionallight.

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Hiring a DesignerIfyouprefer,youcouldalsohireaprofessionaldesignerfromafreelancermarketplaceandtheywouldbehappytohelpyourefineyourimageandgiveitamoreprofessionalappearance.Thiswillbeusefulandworththeinvestment,particularlyifyouarejuststartingoutsinceyoursuppliersarelikelytocomebackwithanumberofveryspecificquestionsregardingthedesignandspecificationsoftheproductandformostpeople,theywouldhavenoidea.Anindustrialdesignerwillbeableworkwithyouandprovideamoredetailedimagewhichwillhelpinthecommunicationprocess.

OneofthecheapestandmostsimpletouseisFiverr.com.Fromthereyouareabletosearchthroughgraphicdesignerswhoareadvertisingtheirservices.Thepricesvaryfrom$5andupdependingontheservicesinvolvedandtheskillsofthedesigner.TherearequiteafewadvantagestohavingadesigneraspartofyourteamasyougodeeperintotheAmazonbusiness.Youwillbeabletohaveaprofessionallydesignedlogo,packaging,products,sketchesandbranding.Youmayalsobeabletoreceiveadviceoncertainelementsofyourdesignswhichcanhelplowerthelearningcurvewhenbuildingyourproductandyourbrand.

Thereareanumberofservices,particularlyonFiverr,thatarespecificallytargetingAmazonsellers,andthesewillbetheguystolookoutfor.Theyhaveworkedwithsellersinthepastandtheyknowexactlywhattoexpectwhenitcomestodesigningforsuppliers. 

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Chapter 5: Package DesignHavinganattractivepackagedesigndoesfarmorethanjustactasacontainerforyourproducttobeshippedtotheconsumer.Yourpackagedesignisanextensionofyourbranding,uniquesellingpositionaswellasyourmarketingthereforeitisessentialtogetyourpackagingright.

Packagedesignhasthreeverycrucialelementswhichwillneedtobeconsideredinordertocreatetheidealpackagingforyourproduct.Thesearehighqualityphotos,howtheproductwilllookandfeelinthecustomershandsandthethirdistoportrayyouruniquesellingposition.Throughoutthischapter,wewillbetakingalookateachofthesekeyelementsingreaterdetail.

High�Quality�PhotosHavinghighqualityphotosmightseemlikeanobrainerbutifyouhavealookthroughthesearchresultsinyourniche,youarelikelytofindagreatnumberofphotographsandproductpackagesthatarepoorqualityordon’tfullycapturewhattheyshouldtoportraytheproduct.Theideaistohaveyourproductstandoutandcaptureasmanyreviewsasyoucan.Thismeansusingthephotographstoyouradvantagebyhavingthehighestqualityphotosthatareavailabletoyou.

YouareforbiddentohaveanytextoveryourphotosbyAmazonbutwhatyouareabletodoishavetextonyourpackaginganduseyourphotographstodisplaythistext.Forexample,ifyourproducthappenstoofferafreerecipebookalongwithagarlicpress,useyourpackagingtoshowthisasitwilloffersomethinguniquethatanumberofsimilarproductswouldn’tdoasstandard.

Keepinmindthatyouwanttoprovidethemaximumvaluethroughyourpackagingandthatnospacegoeswasted.Youmaynoticethatmanypackageshaveimagesthatdon’tnecessarilyselltheproduct,theymightlooknice,buttheydon’tprovidevalueandarereallyjustwastedopportunities.

Whenitcomestoprovideanaccessoryorbonusitemthatisbundledwithyourproduct,consideraddingasplashofcolor.Thiswillappearinthesearchresultsasacontrastingcolorfrommanyoftheotherproducts.Forexample,ifyouweresellingfryingpans,muchofthecolorwouldbesilver,greyandblack.Byaddinganaccessorysuchasarecipebookwithit,youhavetheopportunitytoaddavarietyofcolorsthatwillcatchthecustomerseyewhentheyareexploringthesearchresults.

Packaging�MaterialsThinkoutsidethebox(excusethepun)whenitcomestodecidingonpackaging.Itdoesn’thavetobeasimplecardboardbox,insteaditcanbeanopportunitytoreallystandout.

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Alibabaoffersawidevarietyofpackaging,dependingontheproduct.Forexample,ifyouweretosearchforawoodenbox,thiscanbeafarcryawayfromwhatmanycompetitorsareusingtopackagetheiritems.Woodenboxeshaveamuchmorepremiumlookandfeel,andthiscanbereflectedinyourpricetagandyouarelikelytoreceivefarmorefavorablereviewsaswellasmoreofthemwithsomethingthatsurprisesyourcustomers.

Portraying�Your�Unique�Selling�PositionYourpackagingisanopportunitytofurthershowyourcustomerwhatmakesyourproductspecialandwhytheyshouldpurchaseit.Withyouruniquesellingpositioninmind,ensurethatyourpackagingreflectsthesolutionstoyourcustomersproblems.Thiscanbefarmorethanjustthematerialsyouusedortheimagesthatareonthepackagesitself.Itcouldalsobeinthewordingandthebrandingdisplayedonthepackaging,eventhecolorsused.

Genericandloweffortpackaginggivescustomerstheimagethattheproductischeaplymadeandnotofgreatquality.Youhaveseenthistimeandtimeagainwithgenericbrandsfoundinyourlocalsupermarket.Whiletheproductinsidemaybeexactlythesame,theimpressionyouhaveoftheseproductsisalmostalwaysthattheyarenotonparwiththebrandedproductsandthisispreciselywhycreatingabrandwithauniquesellingpositionwillbemuchmoreadvantagestoyouandyoursalesvolume!

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Chapter 6: Minimum Viable ProductNowthatyouhaveagoodideaofhowyourpackagewilllookforcustomers,successfullyportrayingyouruniquesellingposition,yournextstepistoactonwhatyouhavecreated.Itisthisstepthattrulyseparatesthosewhoexploreideasandresearchceaselesslyandthosethatarepeopleofactionwhoareabletoimplementthoseideasandscaletheirbusinesstocreatesuccess.

Allowthischaptertobeyourtransitionarystep.Ifyouhavebeenmullingoverideas,goingbacktothedrawingboardmultipletimes,thisiswhereyouhavetheopportunitytotaketheplungeandmoveforwardonanideaasopposedtorevampingitforperfection.Understandthatthereisnotruedefinitionofperfectionandinmanycasesinthebusinessworld,perfectioncanbeasetbackratherthananadvantage.Whicheverproductyouhavedecidedonwillalwayshaveroomforgrowthandimprovement,wewilltakealookfurtheratthisthroughoutthischapter.

What�Is�Minimum�Viable�Product?�Yourminimumviableproductcanbedefinedasadevelopmenttechniqueinwhichanewproductisdevelopedwithsufficientfeaturestosatisfyearlyadopters.Thisallowsyoutoreceivefeedbackandadvicefromthosewhoarefirsttopurchaseyourproductsallowingyoutohaveabetterunderstandingofwhatcanbeimproved.Followingthis,thefinalcompletesetoffeaturescanthenbedevelopedaftercarefulconsiderationofthatfeedbackfromtheproductsinitialusers.

WhatdoesthismeanforyouandyourAmazonbusiness?IdeallyyouwanttohaveyourMVPreleasedassoonaspossibleasthisisoneofthegreatesthurdlestoyoursuccessonAmazonandwilldefinetherestofyourjourney.Ifyouarestrugglingwithanideaorunsurewhetheraproductwillworkornot,sufferingfromfearanddoubt,oftentimesthebestwaytoovercometheseblocksistoreleaseyourMVPtomarketandallowyourfirstuserstoprovidetheanswerstothoseuncertainquestionsforyou.

Usingthisconceptallowsyoutoworksmarterandavoidpushingbackdeadlinesunderthepretenseofimprovementandupgradinguntilyouarehappywiththeproduct.Keepinmindthatdoneisfarbetterthanperfectandperfectioncansometimesfeelunattainablebecauseeveryindividualhasadifferentconceptofperfect.

Opportunity�Cost�of�Delaying�ProgressOneoftheroadblockswesufferwhenpreparingtoreleaseourproductsisthelackofurgency.Ifyouareusedtoworkingforsomeoneelseratherthanforyourself,youarewouldhavegrownusedtodeadlinesandinmanycaseshavecometoresentthem.Bringingthesefeelingsovertoyourownwork,youbegintostartenjoyingyournewfoundfreedomandvirtually

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unlimitedtimetocompleteprojectsandthiscansoonturntoalackofaction.

Withoutdeadlinesorurgency,thenecessarystepscanbedelayedforfarlongerthantheyshouldbe.Onewayyoumightliketoviewthisisthroughopportunitycost.Thisbasiceconomicconceptcanbeseenasthecostofgivingsomethingupinexchangeforsomethingelse.InthecaseofourAmazonbusiness,thiswouldbethecostofnotactingandhavingyourproductupversushavingyourMVPbroughttomarketandmakingsales.

Let’suseanAmazonbusinesswitharound$10,000amonthprofit.Thisisquiteattainableonceeverythingisfullswingandthereareanumberofpracticalstepsthatyoucantaketogetthere.Nowifthiswasthecase,youwouldbelosingapproximately$333everysingledayacrossanaveragemonththatyourproductisnotbeingofferedtothemarket.Thatis$333today,tomorrowandthenextday.Imaginethat.Having$333andgivingitawayeverysingledaybecauseyouarenottakingthestepsyouknowfullwellyoushouldbetaking.

Usingthiscalculation,youshouldknowexactlywhatyoushouldbedoingeachandeverydayinordertotrulyearnwhatyouarepotentiallylosingthroughyouropportunitycost.Thismeanmovingtothenextstage,communicatingwithyoursuppliertoensureeverythingisontrackandevenjustgettingtothenextchapterofthiscourse.

Incremental�ImprovementsKeepinmindthatevenifyouarenothappywithhowyourproductlooks,thematerialsitismadeoforthecolorsofyourbranding,thiscanalwaysbechangedandaltereddowntheline.Forexample,ifyouweretoorder1,000unitsofyourproduct,knowingfullwellthatwithinamonthortwoyouaregoingtoneedtoorderanotherbatchwithinamonthortwo,youwillthenhavea30to60dayperiodwhereyouareabletocontinuetweakingyourproductandalsobeconsideringthefeedbackofyourfirst1,000customers.

Thisgivesyouthepeaceofmindtoknowthatwhateveryoutobringtomarketcanalwaysbeimprovementthroughthenextroundoforders.Youcanstartsmall,improvingsmalldetailswitheverynewpurchase.Thiscanbeimprovementsintheproducts,thepackagingperhapsevensomeofthefeatures.YourproductswillbesellingeitherwaysinceyouhavethefirstroundsellingconsistentlyasyourMVPwhiletheyarealsobeingimprovedandupgradedbehindthescenes.

Therefore,evenifyouweretoreleasethebarebonesofyourproducttobeginwith,youhaveanunderstandingthatqualityisgoingtobewhatsellsoverthelongtermandyouareabletofocusonthiswhenthetimingisright.

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Chapter 7: Technical Flow of Your Amazon ProductThroughoutthischapter,wewillbedetailingthemoretechnicalsideofAmazonshipping.YourproductswillneedtobebarcodedbeforetheyareshippedfromChinatotheAmazonwarehouseandthenfinallytoyourcustomersdoor.LabelscanoftenbeconfusingtothosewhoarejustgettingstartedsotheideabehindthischapteristonotonlyfamiliarizeyourwithUPCcodesbutalsotohelpyouunderstandtheentireprocessbeforegettingstarted.

What�Is�a�UPC�Code?�UPCstandsforUniversalProductCode.YouarelikelytoseeaUPConmanyproductsyouuseonadailybasis.Theyareusedtohelptrackproductsmovingthroughoutthenetworkfromshippingtobeingontheshelfatthestoretofinallybeingpurchasedandtakenhomebyyou,thecustomer.

Creatingyourownbarcodesforyouritemsisquiteeasyandinexpensive.Inordertodothis,onewebsitethatwecanrecommendisspeedybarcodes.com.FromhereyouareablepurchaseUPCandhaveitcreatedintoabarcodeonceyouarereadytoshiptoAmazon.Ifyouhavejustasingleproduct,youonlyneedtoworryaboutpurchasingonecodeatthispoint,howeversoonyouwillbepurchasingmultiplecodesonceyouincreaseyourproductrange.

Submitting�Your�UPC�Code�to�AmazonOnceyouhavepurchasedyourUPC,youareabletotakethenextstepandsubmitthistoAmazoninordertoconnecttheUPCtoyourparticularproduct.Todothis,youwillneedtogotothesellercentralhomepageandclickthemanageinventorytab.

Fromclickonthelistingthatcorrespondswiththeproductyouarelookingtolabel.SelectyouritemandclickeditwhichwillopenupanewtabwhereyouareabletoviewtheproductIDwhereyouareabletopasteyourUPC.

Onceyouhavedonethis,youareabletosavethechangesandgobackovertothemanageinventorytab.Hereyouclickonthedropdownnexttoeditandyouwillfindthatyouhavetheoptiontoprintitemlabels.YouwillalsonoticethatyouhavetheoptiontohaveyourlistingeitherfulfilledbyAmazonorfulfilledbymerchant.ByselectingfulfilledbyAmazon,youarethenabletoregisteryouritemtobefulfilledbyAmazonandfromthereyouwillbeabletoselecttheprintitemlabelstab.

Theoptiontoprintyourtimelabelswillbringupoptionstoselectthesizeofyourlabel.Itisbesttocreatequitealargelabelasitwillbeeasierduringfulfillmentandforscanning.ClickprintlabelsanddownloadthePDFfile.Thiswillbethebarcodeforyourproductsowhatyou

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willwanttodoiscopythisinformationandsendthatthatovertoyoursupplierwhowillthenprintthebarcodeandpreparealabelforyourproduct.Thiswillhelpspeedtheprocessupforyouimmenselyasthesewarehouseshaveprocessesinplacetohaveproductslabelledquitequicklyandinexpensively.

Onceyourproductsareindividuallylabelled,theywillneedtobeplacedinalargerboxtoshiptheminternationally.Thiswillrequiretheboxtohaveitsownshippinglabel.Inordertodothis,wewillneedtogobacktosellercentralandbackintomanageinventory.Youwillseethatatfirstitsayszeroavailable,sowewillneedtoclickthedropdownandselectsendandreplenishinventory.Fromthere,youwillbeprovidedwithanotherlabeltoattachtothelargeboxbutbeforeweareabletodothatweneedtoprovidesomeadditionalinformation.

Firstly,youwanttoprovideinformationonhowlargeboxwillbe.Don’tpanicifyouareunsure.Asanexample,let’ssayyouarepredictingaround100products,10by10by10inchesandyouareshipping100itemseachintwoboxes,so200itemstotal.Noweachoftheseneedtobelabelledsothencreatetheshipments.WhatyouwillfindisthatAmazondesignateswheretheseitemswillbeshippedtwoinordertoensurethatyourcustomersarenevertoofarthatproductstakelongerthantwodaystoreachthem.

YouareabletorevieweachshipmentthatAmazonhasprovidedandwhowillbedoingtheshipping.ThegreatthingaboutAmazonisthatithassubsidizedshippingwithUPSandthisallowsyoutohavethebestpriceonyourshipping.Nowtheyaregoingtoneedinformationonhowheavytheboxis,wewilljustsay10poundsforourexample.NowyoucancalculatetheshippingcostonaboxofthatsizeandweightandAmazonwillaskifyouarepreparedtoshipatthatprice.Onceyouhaveaccepted,youcanthenprinttheboxlabelsandattachthemtothefrontofthoseboxeswhichwillthenbeshippedtothecorrespondinglocations.

Tosummarizetheworkflow,youfirstneedtoacquireaUPCwhichwillbeusedtoidentifyyouritems.Fromthere,submitthatinformationtoAmazontoturnyourUPCintoabarcodeforyouritemswhichwillbeindividuallylabelledfromtheiroriginallocationwithyoursuppliers.TheitemswillthenbeplacedintoalargeboxwhichwillyouprovideanadditionallabelfromAmazontodeterminethewarehousestheywillbeshippedto.Thesewillbedeliveredtothewarehousewhereyouwillbeabletoseeinyourinventorymanagementscreenandoncetheyareavailable,yourcustomerscanthenstartpurchasingyouritemsastheyarereadytobeshippedtotheirfinallocation.

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Chapter 8: Connecting with SuppliersYoursuppliersshouldbethoughtofasyourbusinesspartners.Youdon’twanttoworkwithjustanysupplierasyouwillsooncometodependonthemforyourbusinesstorunsmoothly.Thesuccessofyourbusinesswilldependonhowsuccessfulyoursupplierisatmanagingandfulfillingyourorders.Ifyouhavereasontobelievethatyoursupplierisnotwellestablishedorthattheyhaveissuesintheirownbusinessmanagement,theyarebesttobeavoidedregardlessofhowgoodthedealappears.Throughoutthischapterwewillbeexploringthevariousplatformsthatyouareabletocontactsuppliersaswellastheprosandconsofeach.

Youridealsupplierwillbeonthatisabletoofferassistancewhenchallengesoccur,andtheyareabletowalkyouthroughtheprocessofbuildingyourbusiness,asyougrow,theywillgrowandworkingwithsomeoneyoutrustwillexpeditethisprocesssignificantly.

Deciding�on�Which�Platform�to�UseThegoodnewsisthatwiththeecommercesectorgrowingmassivelyoverthelastdecadeisthatmanyfactoriesthroughoutChinahaveadaptedtoproducinganexcessofgoodsatquitelowpricesmeaningtheyareseekingentrepreneurswhoarewillingtobethemiddlemanbetweenthefactorsandthefinalconsumers,whichiswherewecomeintotakeourpieceofthepie.

Withthisbeingsaid,therearemanyservicesthatallowfactoriestodisplaytheirproductsforbulkpurchaseandshipping.Inordertofindthesetypesofwebsitesthatoffertheseservices,yousimplyneedtogoogleprivatelabelandtheproductofyourchoice.Let’s�use�our�splatter�screen example to bring up the results.Youwillnoticethatmanyofthewebsitesthatwillfirstappeararethosethatofferdropshippingandprivatelabeling.Theseare Alibaba,AliExpress,Oberlo,Thomas NetaswellasanumberofsmalleronessuchaseBay and Global�Sources.

Which�Platform�Works�for�You�Decidingontheplatformthatisrightforyoudependsonyourindividualcircumstancesandtheparticularproductyouarehopingtosource.KeepinmindthatsomeofthemoreestablishedservicessuchasAlibaba and AliExpress,havegreaterprotectionsandcustomerservicesthansomeofthesmallerserviceswhichmaynothaveaproventrackrecordforprotectingcustomersaswellastheirsuppliers.

Certainplatformswillalsospecializeincertaincategoriesforexample,Global�Sourceswillbededicatedmoretowardselectronicproductswhichasafirsttimeseller,mightbealittleoutofdepthformostpeople.Thereasonbeingisthatthereisagreaterdealofqualityassurancerequiredandthiscanresultinagreaternumberofreturnsandrefundsforfaultyproductswhichcanaffectyourmotivationasasellerinthebeginning.Itisbesttofocusonsimpleproductsthatyouhaveagoodunderstandingofbeforemovingintomoreadvancedniches.

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Pros�and�Cons�of�Each�PlatformWewillstartwithGlobal�Sourcessinceweareonthetopic.Thisplatformisgreatformoreadvancedusersduetothefactthatitismainlyfocusedinelectronics.Ifyouarelookingforsuppliersinelectricalproducts,itwillworkquitewell,howeverifyouareabeginner,itcanbealittleconfusingastheprocessisabitmorecomplicated.

DHGateissimilartoAliExpressinthatyouareabletopurchaseavarietyofproductsdirectfromChina.Theadvantageisthattheyhavequitealargeselection,representingmanysuppliers.OneofthelargestadvantageisthelowminimumorderquantityorMOQ.Thisiswhereyouhaveanadvantageasabeginnersinceyouareabletodosmallertrialrunsofcertainproductsratherthanhavingtopurchasealargequantityonlytofindthatyourproductisnotperformingaswellasyouhadexpected,oryouwouldliketomoveontosomethingelse.Thepriceswillbehigherperunitwithlowerquantitiespurchased.

AliExpressasmentionedisquitethesame.Thereisahugeselectionofproductswithmanydifferentsuppliersbeinginvolved.AliExpressisquiteeasytouseandgiveyoutheflexibilityofhavinglowerMOQ.Thedisadvantagesherearethehigherpricesperunitaswellasstricterrulesoncustomization.Thismeansthatifyouwanttobringaboutimprovementsonyourproductsyouwillberestrictedinwhatyoucanchange.DHGate and AliExpresswilloffermoregenericproducts.ThisisquiteasignificantdownsidesinceyoursuccessthroughAmazonisbuiltuponhowwellyoucancreateadditionalvalueforyourcustomersandwhatwillallowyourproducttostandoutfromthecompetition.

Alibabaisthelargestofallthesuppliermarkets.Notonlythis,theyalsohaveamuchmorestringentprocessforbecomingatrustedsellermeaningyouhaveagreaterchanceoffindingareliablesupplierthananothermarketplace.Thisalsomeansthatyouareabletoreviewagreatercollectionofinformationoneachsuppliertocometoamoreinformeddecision.Thisisusefulforavoidingfraudandmiddlemenwhoareposingassupplierswithouthavinganyinterestinensuringyourshipmentsarefulfilled.Therearemanycasesofthishappeninginsomeoftheothermarketplacesandthisiscancausehugeheadachesfurtherdowntheline.AlargemajorityofAmazonsellersworkthroughAlibaba.comandforthepurposeofthiscourse,wehighlyrecommendedthatasabeginner,youdothesame.

JoiningAlibabatakesnomorethanaminuteforyoutoregisterandbeginthecommunicationprocess.Beforeyoudobegin,gothroughandhavealookatsomeofthesuppliersofferingproductsinyournicheandstartshortlistingthem,wewilltakeacloserlookatthisinthefollowingchapter,butitisgoodtogettheprocessmovingrightfromregistration.

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Chapter 9: Deciding on A Supplier Nowthatyouhaveagreaterunderstandingofthevariousplatformsavailabletoyoutosearchforsuppliers,itistimetomakenarrowdownyoursearchandcreatealistofsuppliersthatyouwouldliketogetintouchwith.Thisisnosimpletaskandisnotjustamatterofwholooksgood.Therearesomecriteriawhichmustbefollowedtoensurethatthesupplieryoudecideonisabletoaccommodateexactlywhatyourequire,andtheywillbereliableenoughforyoutodobusinesswithonalongtermbasis.

Forourexample,we’llbeusingAlibabasincethisiswheremostAmazonsellersselecttheirsuppliersandisthebestplatformforbeginnerswhoarejustgettingstarted.Whensearchingforasupplier,youwanttomakesurethattheyhaveagoodreputationandyoucanrelyonthem.Todothis,Alibabaprovidesyouwithsomeoptionsthathelpnarrowdownyoursearch.So,whenyouaresearchingforaproduct,youcanrefinethesearchtermsandtheenginewillpresentyouwiththreeoptionsthatcanbecheckedoff.Twoofthoseoptionsarequiteimportantanditwouldberecommendedthatyouselectthemwiththethirdbeingoflessimportanceandinmostcasebetterthatyoudon’tselectit.

Trade Assurance Tradeassuranceisoneofthoseoptionsandisessentialwhenyouarefirstenteringthemarket.TradeassuranceisessentiallyanagreementbetweenAlibabaandthesupplierwhichoffersaguaranteethatifthesellerdoesn’tfulfiltheirendofthebargainfollowingpayment,youwillnotberequiredtopaythatinvoice.Forexample,ifthetradeassuranceis$20,000andyourordertotalsover$20,000andfallsthrough,thatistosaythatsellerdoesnotshipyourorder,youwillnotberequiredtopaythat$20,000.Thisoptionsimplyprovidesyouwiththepeaceofmindthatyouwillnotbeheldresponsibleforamissingorunshippedorder.

MostAmazonsellerswillonlygowithsuppliersthatoffertradeassuranceandIwouldsuggestthatyoudothesame.

Gold�Supplier

Thenextcheckboxthatisofferedtoyouisthegoldsupplierbox.ThisisasupplierthathasmetsomeveryspecificcriteriafromAlibabaandhasearnedtheirgoldsupplierstatus.Thismeansthattheyhavesuppliedtheirfinancialinformationandthereismuchgreaterscrutinyonthissuppliertoensurethattheyareperformingaboveboard.Thismightinvolveinspectionsoftheirmanufacturingplantandtheirorganizationtoensuretheymeetthecriteria.

ThisisalwaysagreatsignofareputablesuppliersincetheyhavelikelybeenworkingwithAlibabaforquitesometimeandtherehavebeenalargemultitudeofproductsbeingshippedfromtheirplantbyagreatnumberofpurchasers.Youareabletoseeexactlyhowlongthe

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suppliershasheldgoldsupplierstatusandwhileyoudon’tneedtopaytoomuchattentiontothelengthoftime,thelongertheyhavebeenagoldsupplier,themorebeneficialtoyou.Forexample,ifyouweretohavetwosuppliersthatwereessentiallyequal,andyouweretryingtonarrowdownyourdecision,withonebeingagoldsupplierfor3yearsandtheotherfor5years,itissafetosaythatthesupplierthathasheldthestatusforlongerwouldbethemorebeneficialoption.

Minimum�Order�Quantity�and�Unit�Price

Thenextsteptowardsselectingyoursupplieristostartnarrowingdowntheresultsofitemsthatareaclosematchtowhatyouarelookingfor.Therewillbeanumberofitemsunderyoursearchtermsthatmaynotbecloselyrelatedtotheproductyouareseekingtoorder,andtheseshouldbelargelyignored.

Thereasonbeingisthatyouwanttohaveasupplierthatoffersaproductthatcanbemarginallyimproveduponratherthansomethingquitedifferentfromwhattheyareusedto.Thiswillnotonlyrequireadditionalinstructionstogettheproductrightbutwillalsobemuchmoreexpensive.

Whenyouseeaproductthatisaclosematch,openitupinaseparatetabandbeginaddingthemtoyourfavorite.YouwillneedtohavealookattheirminimumorderquantityorMOQaswellastheirunitprice.Youwillwanttohavetheunitpricefallsomewhereintherangeofwhatyouwouldexpectdependingonthequantityyouorder.Obviouslythegreaterthevolumeyouorder,thecheaperperunityouwillbepaying.

Youcanalwaysnegotiateonminimumordersdependingonthesupplier.Forexample,ifthesupplierchecksalltheboxesyethasaminimumorderquantityofabout2,000andyouareonlywillingtopurchase1,000foryourfirstorder,letthemknowyouaresearchingforanewsupplierandwouldliketohaveatrialbatchtogetstarted,thereisagoodchancetheywillbudgeespeciallywhenthereisahighchanceyouwillbearepeatcustomer.

Thenextstep,onceyouhaveyourlistoffavoritedsuppliers,istostartcontactingthemthroughemails.Alibabawillsupplyyouwiththeircontactnameandemail.Itisbesttouseatemplatetoavoidgoingbackandforthwithquestionsandconfusiononbothends.Hereistemplatethathasbeenpreparedandalsoputintoaction,ithasbeenfoundtoworkquitewell:

DearSUPPLIERNAME, MynameisSELLERNAME,andmycompanyislookingtoexpandourlineofTYPEOFPRODUCTproductsforcustomersacrosstheCOUNTRY.WehavebeenreceivingquotesonSIMILARPRODUCTSforYOURDEMOGRAPHICandareinterestedindiscussingasampleorderwithyou.ThequalityofyourPRODUCTlooksgreatandareveryclosetowhatourbusinesswouldliketobrandandselltocustomersacrosstheUnitedStates.

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Iaminterestedindiscussingtheideaofworkingtogetherandwouldliketospeakwithyouinregardtotheper-unitpriceforthePRODUCTdesignedlikethepicturesattached,withourcompany’sbrandingandlogosonthePRODUCTandtheOEMpackaging. Colorsforunits:YOURDESIREDCOLORORCOLORSDesignSpecifications:YOURDESIREDPRODUCTSPECIFICATIONS-SIZE,WEIGHT,THICKNESS,MATERIAL,ETC Ourcompany’sspecificlogoandpackagingdesignspecificationswillbeprovidedwhenwereachanagreeablesampleagreement. 1. Howmuchwould2samplescost,includingDHLExpressShippingtozipcodeYOURZIPCODE?2. Howlongwouldittaketoreceive2samples?3. OurfirmwouldliketopayusingPayPalorescrowifitissuitableforyou.4. Howlongwillmanufacturingtakeonceweplaceanorder?5. Couldyoupleaseletusknowthepricingofyourcompany’sproductsperthespecifications

providedabove,inthetableprovidedbelow?

MOQ MAINPRODUCT1 ADD-ONPRODUCT2

DESIREDPACKAGING

(SHIPPINGOPTION1)ExpressShippingtoADDRESS

(SHIPPINGOPTION2)SeaShippingtoADDRESS

500

750

1000

1250

1500

Oncewecancomparetoourotherbids,wewouldlovetomoveforwardwiththeprocessofworkingtogether.OurinitialorderwillbebetweenLOWERRANGEOFMOQandHIGHERRANGEOFMOQunits,withlargerordersafterthatinitialorder. Iverymuchlookforwardtospeakingwithyou.PleasereplytoYOUREMAILtohaveyourbidconsidered.Ifthebidiscomparabletotheotherswehavereceived,wewillreachouttoyouwithinafewdays. BestRegards,YOURNAME

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Asyoucanseefromthistemplate,theconversationisquiteformalandprofessional.Wewillbeexploringcommunicationwithyoursuppliersfurtheralonginchapter11butnowtheideaistopresentyourbusinessandyourselfasanofficialcompanythathasbeeninthissectorforanumberofyears.Thistemplatewillalsoallowyoutogetanswerstoveryspecificquestionsandprovideyourpotentialsupplierwiththeopportunitytogiveyouthebestanswers,movingtheprocessalongatamuchgreaterspeed.

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Chapter 10: Terminology of Private Labeling Beforewegointogreaterdetailofhowtocommunicatewithsuppliers,itisfirstnecessarytogooversomeoftheterminologythatyouwillbeusingthroughoutyourcommunications.Thereasonforthischapteristhatifyouarecommunicatingwithasupplierandthereisapartwhereyoumaynotunderstandwhattheyareasking,itisbesttoeducateyourselfratherthantryandsoundprofessionalbytakingyourbestguess.Thiswillnotonlydamageyourreputation,butyoucouldpotentiallyloseavaluablesupplier.

ThisterminologyisnotjustexclusiveforsellersonAlibabaorthosethatareshippingproductstobefulfilledbyAmazon,itisthelingooftheentirephysicalproductshippingindustry,thereforeitisworthwhilelearning.

Throughoutthischapter,weaimtocoverjustthebasics.Understandthatthereisalonglistofothertermsthatareworthwhileknowinghoweverinordertogetyouupandrunningassoonaspossible,itisbesttocoverthosethatyoumustknowinordertomakeyourfirstshipmentratherthanthosethataremoreforadvancedsellers.

Sourcing Suppliers

MFRThisoneyouwillnoticeisusedquitealot,particularlyonAlibaba.Thisisjustashorthandformanufacturer.TheMFRisanindicationthatthesupplieryouarecontactingisthemanufacturer,ratherthanathirdparty,middleman,tradingcompanyorwholesaler.Youwillideallywanttodealwiththemanufacturerdirectlyratherthanathirdpartysincethiswillbewhereyousecurethebestprice.

WhensearchingthroughsuppliersonAlibaba,ensurethattheMFRtagisusedtoshowthatitisthemanufacturerratherthansomeoneelsedealingontheirbehalf.

MOQYouwillrecallthatMOQisanabbreviationforminimumorderquantityandthatthisnumberwillvaryfromproducttoproductandcompanytocompany.Thisisgenerallythepriceatwhichitwillbeprofitableforthecompanyormanufacturertoproducetheproduct.Anythingbelowthispointisunlikelytobeshippedduetothefactthecompanywillbeunabletomakeasizeableprofittomakesuchanorderworthwhile.

QCThisisqualitycontrol.Thismeansthattheproductsarecheckedandreviewedtoensuretheyareallinworkingcondition,unbrokenandofreliablequality.Ideally,youwanttoworkwithasupplierthathashighstandsofqualitycontroltoavoidhavingtodealwithahighvolumeofrefunds,returnsandinworstcasescenario,badreviews.

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OEMThisstandsfororiginalequipmentmanufacturer.Thisisanindicationthatthesupplierhasdesignedandcreatedtheproductthemselvesmeaningyouareabletousetheirmoldsandessentiallygetcreativewithwhattheyhavebuilt.Youareabletouseyourownbrandingandlogosonthepackagingaswellastheproduct,thisisagreatadvantageinprivatelabeling.

ODMThisisoriginaldesignmanufacturerandsuppliersthathavethistagoffergreaterflexibilityinwhattheycandowiththeirproductssincetheywereoriginaldesigners.Thisallowsyoutosendthroughspecificationswhichtheyarethentaskedwithdesigningandmanufacturingonyourbehalf.Youareessentiallyabletocreateanentirelynewproductorchangeeverysingleaspectofanexistingproduct.Thisismoreforadvancedsellerswhoarehighlyspecializedonaparticularproductandknowexactlywhattocreate.Forbeginners,itisbesttostickwithOEMsuppliers.

Trade AssuranceWetalkedaboutthismuchearlierbutjusttorecap,thisisAlibaba’swayofprotectingtheircustomersandkeepingsuppliersaccountable.Thesetradeassuranceswillvaryfromsuppliertosupplier.Stayatalevelyouarecomfortablewithandavoidgoingoverthatfiguresincethisisaveryimportantforyourprotectionandthehealthofyourbusiness.

Payment�Terms

TTThisisshorthandforwiretransfer.Thismeansthatthefundswillgodirectlytothebankofthesupplier.Thisisoneoftheeasierwaystomakepaymenthoweveritdoescarryadditionalcostsandcanbemoreofthemoreexpensivemethodsofpayment,dependingonthebank.Youwillneedtobecautioustohavethecorrectbankdetails.Manysuppliers,particularlythosethatyouwillbeworkingwithinthelongtermwillpreferthismethodofpaymentsincetherearenofeesforthem.

Western UnionYoumayhaveheardofWesternUnioninthepast,itisaservicethatallowsuserstosendmoneytoanywhereintheworldusingjustanameorabankaccount.Thisallowstherecipienttopickupthefundsataphysicallocationthatisconvenientforthemratherthanwaitingforthemoneytobedepositedintotheiraccountwhichcantakesometime.

WesternUnionisquiteaflexiblemethodhoweverthereareadditionalfeesandtherecanrisksinvolvedsincethemoneydoesnotleaveapapertrial,soitwouldonlyberecommendedifyouhavebuiltupatrustwithyoursupplier.

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PayPalThiswouldbethemostrecommendedmethod,especiallyforbeginners.PayPalallowsyoutosendmoneytoanyotherPayPalaccountandhasadditionalprotectionsforbothpartieswhensendingandreceivingmoney.YourfirsttransactionshouldbewithPayPalortradeassurancetoallowforyoutoeaseyourselfintotheprocessandpreventyoufromfallingvictimtoascam.

EscrowEscrowiswhenfundsareheldinathirdpartyaccountuntilthetransactionhasbeencompletedandbothpartiesaresatisfied.Theideahereistoprotectboththebuyerandselleruntilthedealisdone.Forexample,ifyouwouldliketopurchase$10,000worthofstockandwouldliketomakesureyourshipmenthasbeenfulfilledbeforereleasingthemoney,youcanuseanescrowservicetoshowthesupplierthatyouhavepaidthefundsandwillreleaseitoncethegoodshavebeenreceived.Theescrowservicewilltypicallytakeasmallpercentageofthefunds.

EscrowcanbequiteexpensiveandwhenusingAlibabathereisn’ttoomuchofapointtoitsinceyouhavetheoptionsoftradeassuranceorPayPal.Escrowwouldonlyeverbeusefulforbeginnerssincethehighercashvalueofyourorders,themoreexpensiveandlessworthwhileitwouldbe.

Shipping Terms

FOBYouwillseethistermquiteoften.FOBsimplymeansFreightonBoard.Thisisanindicationthattheproductwillbeheadingtoaspecifiedport.Forexample,itmaysayFOBShanghai,FOBNingboandthiswillshowtheportsthatareincludedinthecost.Thismeansthatifyourproductsaretobeshippedtoaparticularport,youwillberesponsibleformovingitfromthatporttothenextdestination.Thiscouldeitherbethroughanothershippingcompanyorusingafreightforwarder.

Thealternativetothiswouldbecostinsuranceandfreightandwhatthismeansisthatthesupplierwillcoverallthecostsinordertogettheproductsallthewaytoyourlocation.

EXWThismeansthatthesupplierswillproducetheproductsforyouandfromthereitwillbeyourresponsibilitytogetitfromthefactorytotheportandthentothefinaldestination.YouaremorelikelytoseeFOBthanEXWandoccasionallyyouwillhavethesuppliershiptheproductsdirectlytoyourwarehouse.

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Chapter 11: Communicating with Suppliers Nowthatwehaveanunderstandingofthetermsandwehavemadeourfirstcontactwithourpotentialsuppliersusingthetemplate,itistimetoclosethedealandgetstarted.Beforewedothis,itneedstobeunderstoodthatbusinessisdoneinaveryspecificwayinChinaandforthebestresultsandtreatment,youwillneedtoknowhowtobestcommunicatewithyoursuppliers.Thiswillhelpavoidanymisunderstandingsandconfusionbetweenbothpartiesandtomakesurethatbusinessishandledsmoothly.

Cultural�Differences

BusinessinChinaisperformedinaveryformalmanner.WhileinWesterncultures,itisoftenfoundthatcommunicationthroughemailscanbecasualattermsorattheveryleastthereisnogreatimportanceandbeingoverlyformal.InChina,itisalittledifferent,formalityishighlyregardedandforthisreasonitisbesttoaddressallemailswithMr.orMrs.andthesurname.Casualconversationalopeningssuchashisfirstnameorhellofirstnameshouldbeavoided,particularlyinthefirstfewemails.Youshouldalwaysletthesuppliertaketheleadwhenitcomestocommunicationtomakesuretheyarecomfortableaddressingyouinamorerelaxedmanner.

Ifyouareunsureoftheirsurnameortitle,itisbesttoaddressthemasSirorMadam.Thiswillalsopresentyourbusinessinamoreprofessionalmannerratherthanasolooperationwhereyouarejustbeginningsothisisalwaysessentialadvicetofollow.

Thiswouldalsomeantokeepyouremailsprofessional.Avoidincludeanyemojisorhumorinyourcommunication.Thisisavastlydifferentlandscapethanagroupchatwithyourfriends,thereisatimeandaplaceforcasualchatsanddoingbusinesswithChinesecompaniesiscertainlynotit.

Besuretobeclearwithexactlywhatyourequire.IntheUSthereisoftenroomforassumptionsandforyourbusinesspartnerstodeterminewhatitisyouwantbasedonyourcommunicationandexperience.Chinesecultureisalittledifferentinthattheygenerallydon’tmakeassumptionsandinsteadwilltakeeverythingatfacevaluesoforthisreasonitisimportantthateverythingisclearandoutlinedtobestraightforward.

Time�Zone�Differences

Dependingonwhereyouareintheworld,Chinaislikelyinadrasticallydifferenttimezonethanyourown.IfyouareintheUnitedStatesandNorthAmerica,Chinaisgenerallytheoppositetoyourowntimezone.ThismeansthatwhenitisduringbusinesshoursintheUnitedStates,itisovernightinchina.Thismeansthatwhenyousendthroughanemailtoyoursupplier,itisunlikelythatyouwillreceivearesponseanytimesoonsincetheyarelikelytobeoutsideofbusinesshoursandtherecipientisasleep.

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Negotiation�

InWesternCulture,negotiationisoftenfrowneduponforbeingcheaportryingtoriptheotherpartyoffhoweverinEasterncultures,negotiationisexpected.Infirstfewcommunicationswithyoursupplier,youwanttoshowthatyouareseriousindealingwiththemandthisrequiresnegotiationinordertogetthebestdealonyoursupplycontract.

Negotiationstillrequiresabasis.Youwanttoletyourpotentialsupplierknowthatyouhavemanyotheradditionaloffersandsuppliersthatyouarecommunicatingwithandyouarehopingtogetthebestdealbeforesettlingonabusinesspartner.Iftheycomeatyouwithaprice,thereisagoodchancethatthispricewillbehigherthanwhattheyarehopingtosecure.Yoursupplierwillmakeroomfornegotiationandyoushouldletthemknowthatyouhavehadoffersthathavebeenmuchlower.

Youdon’tneedtoberudeorcocky,remembertomaintainyourprofessionalism.Instead,dotheopposite,actasthoughyouwouldliketodobusinesswiththemastheyareastandoutsupplier,butyouhaveastrictbudgetandwouldlikethemtobringthepricedownjustalittlefurther.

Language�Barriers�

Communicationisn’talwayseasywhendoingbusinesswithinternationalcompanies.Languageisn’talwaysstraightforward,andthiscanleadtosomemisunderstandings.WhenPosingquestions,makesurethattheyareclearandstraightforward.Avoidusingtermsthatmaynotbecommonandsticktoaroundthreequestionsinasingleemail.Besuretonumbereachofyourquestionstoletthemhandleeachoneindividuallyandnoneofthemgetlostintheprocessandyoudon’twanttohavetoaskthemagain.

InChineseculturethereisatendency,iftheydonotunderstandaquestion,tosaythattheydounderstandratherthanattempttoclarify.Thisisgenerallymoreacceptedandshowsthattheyaretakinginitiativeratherthanquestioningyourstatements.Thiscanleadtomistakesanderrorssuchashavingaproductproducedthatisthewrongsizeordimensions.Forthisreason,itisbesttolayeverythingoutinyouremailandthenaskthemtorepeatitbacktoyousuchasthedimensions,colorsandtheappearanceoftheproductthensimplyaskthemtoconfirm.Thiswayeveryoneisonthesamepageandnooneisconfused.

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Chapter 12: Tuning Your Company for Success Thiscouldverywellbeoneofthemostunderratedchaptersofthisguide.Forone,mostpeoplewillunderestimatetheimportanceofmanyoftheseconcepts.Itiscrucialthatyouhaveanunderstandingofwhatisexplainedthroughoutthischapter,mainlybecauseitwilldeterminethetrajectoryofyourbusinessperformanceoverthenextfewmonthsandonceontherighttrack,thenextfewyears.

Forthisreason,itisimportanttogetthisrightbecausemanypeopleattempttogetinvolvedinanAmazonbusinessandeithertheygetcaughtupintheearlystageswhiletheyarestilllearning,hitaroadblockandthengiveinortheyarecontinuingwithmediocreresultsandnevertrulygetthemostoutofwhattheysetouttoachieve.Idon’twanttoseethishappentoyousolet’stakealookatwhatitisthatsetsasuccessfulbusinessapartfromthosethatfail.

Why�Do�Some�Companies�Thrive�While�Others�Fail?�

IfyouarestilllockedintofulltimeworkandlookingtostartanAmazonbusinessasameansoftransitioningtoself-employment,chancesareyouarestrugglingtofindtimetoinvestinyourbusiness.Thereisnoshameinthis,youmightdosometasksonyourAmazonbusinesslateatnightonceyouhavefinishedyourdayjob,otherdaysyoumightfeelexhaustedandcan’tputinthesameamountoftime.Perhapsyouputinalongdayovertheweekendandthengoanotherthreedayswithoutputtinganyworkatallin.Thisiswherealotofentrepreneursstarttheirjourneyandisastandardexperienced.

Thisinconsistencyshouldnotbemadeahabithowever.ResearchersJimCollinsandMortonTHansonhadsetouttodiscoverwhatmadesomecompaniesfailwhileotherswereablethrive,regardlessoftheconditionsoftheeconomiclandscape.Whattheyfoundwasthatthosecompaniesthatweremostsuccessfulwerecreatingplansthattheywereabletomethodicallystick,constantlymovingforward.Ontheotherhand,thosethatfailedweremoregeneralintheirapproach,oftenhopingforthebestwhiletheirteamwerelostandunfocused.

WhatdoesthistellusaboutourAmazonbusiness?Havingaplanandstickingtoitwillallowyoutocreateconsistentresultsandreachgoalsthathadbeensetearlierasopposedtosimplydoingyourbest.Thereasonbeingisthatwithaplan,youareabletoworktowardsthatgoalandfocusallyourattentiononitratherthanputtinginworkwhenyoufeellikeitandcheckingtheresultsoffasyougo.Thiscanleadyoutobeingunfocusedanddistracted.

Cultivating�Good�HabitsChangingyourhabitsisasmallstepinthemomentbuttheknockoneffectswillchangeyourresultsdrastically.Thekeytochangingyourapproachistobreakmajortasksintosmallmanageablestepstowardsyourgoaleverysingledayandremainconsistentinthatgoal.Whatyouwillsoonfindisthatyouareabletotackleyourgoalinlesstimeitwouldhavetakenyou

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toapproachinamorechaoticmanner.

Ifyouhappentobeworkingfulltime,setatimewhenyouwillconsistentlyarrivehomeorwhereveryouareplanningonworkingonyourAmazonbusinessandsetacertaindurationthatyouplanonworking.Thiscouldbeanhour,perhapstwoorthree.Startsmallandmanageablesolet’ssay1hour.Youcanalwaysincreasethisifyoufeelthatyoucandomorebuttheimportantaspectistokeepitconsistentsoonceyouincrease,youwillwanttoavoidgoingbackwards.

Fromthere,youcandecidewhatyouwouldliketodowiththisonehour.Ideally,youwillhaveonemajortaskthatwouldneedtobecompletedwithinthathour,thiswillbeyourfocusforthatentirehour.Youwillwanttoavoidgettingtothishourandjusthavingageneralideaofwhatyouwanttoworkonasyouwillfindthatyourmindaimlesslywandersontovarioustaskstokeepyoubusywithoutactuallyachievinganythingsignificant.

Taking�Manageable�Steps�Towards�Your�GoalListtwoorthreeprioritiesforyourhour,inthecasethatyoudon’tgetthemalldone,justallowthemtorollovertothenextday.Aslongasyoumakeacommitmentthatyouwilldoallyoucandogetthemdoneinthathour,youwillstarttoseetheresults.

Takethisbookforexample.Eachchapteroffersatangiblesteptowardsyourbusiness.Ifyouweretotakeanhourtogoovereachchapter,takenotesandcreateactionablestepsyoucouldmakesignificantprocess.Ifyouinsteadchoosetoreaditwhenyouhadsomefreetimeandwantedtorelax,chancesareyouwouldn’ttakeitasseriousandsecondyouwouldbefarmoreinconsistentinyourapproach.Thiswillalsopreventyoufrombeingburntoutearlyonandstrugglingtomakeupforitoverthenextfewdaysandthenfeelingthatstrugglewhichcancauseyoutofallfurtherbehind.

Yournumberoneprioritywillchangedaytodaybutthetimeyouspendonitwillremainthesameandthiswillhelpyouavoidthosedistractionsinceyourbrainwillbetrainedtofocusintentlyinthatsinglehourandhasplentyofopportunitytowonderorexploreotheroptionsafterthathour.Thisiswhyitisalsogreattokeepotherelementsconsistentalsosuchastheroomyouareworkingin,thedesk,thetime,yourlaptopandnotepadevendowntowhatyouweredoinganhourbeforehand.

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Chapter 13: Determining Your MOQ Havingbeencommunicatingwithyoursupplierforsometime,youshouldhavemadesomegoodprogressinhashingoutyourdeal.Thenextquestionyouwouldbeaskingyourselfiswhatshouldyourminimumorderquantitybe?Thiscanbeatrickyquestionsinceitwillbedifferentforeverypersonandeveryindividualbusiness.Itwilllargelydependonyourowncircumstanceshoweverthepurposeofthischapteristoassessyourownsituationanddeterminewhatisbestforyourbusinessmovingforward.

Keepinmindthatmistakescanbemade,particularlyatthisstageandthatthisshouldnotbesomethingyoufear.Youwillbefacedwithchallengesandmakemistakesmoretimesthanyoucancountwhengoingintobusinessforyourselfandthatfearlessiswhathelpsyougrowandlearnfromyourerrors.Thebestcourseofactionhowever,istolearnfromothersandthatiswhatthischapterisallabout.

Risk�Management�

Makingthedecisionofwhichorderquantitycomesdowntoonepieceofyourstrategyandthatisriskmanagement.Thisiswhereyouareabletotakeyouremotionsoutofthegameandassessasituationbasedonyourcircumstancesandwhatwouldbebestforthefinancialhealthofyourbusiness.

Let’stakealookattwooptionsyouarefacing.Oneistotakeasmallerorderquantityof500units,theotherisalittlelargerwith1,000.Themoreunitsyouarepurchasing,thegreatertheriskofyourinvestment.Ofcourse,withalargerorderquantityyoustandtomakegreaterprofitsseeingastheitemswouldbecheaperingreatervolumeandshippingwouldalsocostless.Equally,youcouldbefacedwithitemsthatyouarestrugglingtosell,andyourinvestmentmaytakemuchlongertopayforthemselves,ifatall.

Ifitisaproductthatyouhavenotsoldbefore,asisthecaseherewhendecidingthesizeofyourfirstorder.Whileyoumightfeelresistancetogettingyourfeetwetandplacingalargeorder,keepinmindhowitappearstoyoursuppliers.Theseguysdealwithmultipleorderseverydayaswellascountlessenquiries.Ifyouareplacingasmallorderofsay200to500units,theseguyswon’tvalueyourbusinessasmuchasabuyerwhoisplacinganorderforsay5,000units.Morethanlikely,theyaren’tgoingtotakeyouseriously.

Withsomanyentrepreneursdroppingshippinginrecentyears,theyaregoingtoseeapattern.Withthosethatarefearfulandonlyorderingacoupleofhundreditems,theyknowyouarejustaonepersonoperationandthatthelikelihoodofyoustickingaroundandbeingsuccessfulisquitelowandperhapsnotevenworththeirtrouble.

Let’stalkaboutfear.Fearisoftenabarrierthatkeepsusfromactingandinbusinessfearismoreofahindrancethantheprotectiveinstinctthatitwasdesignedfor.Let’sfaceit,

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inbusiness,mistakesareonlytheretoserveyouandhelpyougrowasapersonandaprofessional.Ifyouarepreparedtotakethisbusinessseriously,youwillneedtoputyourselfonthelineandthatmeanscommitment.

Secondly,withalltheknowledgethatyouhavegainedthroughthiscoursesuchasideaselectionandproductinnovation,youshouldbeassuredthatyourproductwillbesuccessful,ifnot,thenitshowsthatyoustillhavemuchtolearnandthatyouwillcontinuetolearnthroughyourchallenges.

Pros�and�Cons�of�a�Low�MOQ�

HavingalowerMOQprovidesyouwiththeflexibilityofhavingalowerinitialinvestment.Therearemanyconstomakinglowerquantityordershoweversuchasthehigherpriceperunit.Whilethismightnotseemasthoughitwouldbeaproblem,particularlywhenyouarepayinglessforyourinitialbatch,youaredecreasingyourprofitmarginswhichcanaffectthelongevityofyourbusiness.Makinglessprofitcanmeanthatyouhavelesstoreinvestinthesecondorderwhichmeansthenextordermaynotbeaslargeasyouwouldlike,repeatingtheprocess.

Youwillalsoruntheriskofbeingalowerpriorityforyoursupplier.Keepinmindthatyouarenottheironlycustomer,theywillhavehundredsoforderseachmonthtofulfillandifyouareplacingsmallorderswhiletherestoftheircustomersaremakinglargeorders,theyaregoingtoallocatemoreresourcesinservingtheirlargercustomers,leaveyoutobephasedout.

Mostpeoplewouldfeelthathavingalowerorderquantitywillpreventthemfromrunningtheriskofhavingtoomuchstockonhandinthecasetheirproductdoesn’tsell.Whilethiscouldbetrue,youarealmostsettingyourself,expectingeven,toselllessstockthanyouwouldlike.Tounderstandthis,let’sswitchthescenario.Ifyourproductwastosellreallywell,youcaneasilyrunoutofstockwhichwillcausebackordersandcustomerswhoarewaitingforaproductthatcantakeweekstofulfil,causingyourbusinessandAmazonrankingtosuffer.Thisisanincrediblydangerousscenarioandwouldbefarmoredetrimentalthanifyouhadunsoldstockleftoverifwerecalltheopportunitycostsofhavingaproductofftheshelfwhenitcouldbemakingmoneyandevenworseifthatlistingisdriventothegroundbecauseofbackorders.

Pros�and�Cons�of�a�High�MOQ�

Havingahigherorderquantity,whileitmayseemasthoughitisagreaterriskwithahigherinitialinvestment,doeshaveagreaternumberofprosthancons.Theconsarefarandfewbetweenotherthanthefactthatitdoescarrytheriskofhavingaproductthatdoesnotsellaswellasyouwouldexpect,itmaytakeyoumuchlongertoseeareturnonyourinvestment.Itisquiteunlikelythatyouwouldmakealossonyourproducts,giventhefactthatyouwouldhavespentthefirstpartofthiscourseresearchingproductsthatwouldworkwithspecificformulas.

Ifyouhadcarriedoutyourresearchwellandyouhavetheconfidenceandfaithtobring

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yourproducttomarket,thereshouldbenootherreasonnottopurchaseahigherminimumorderquantity.Theprosarenumerous.Youwouldbepayingfarlessforeachindividualitemmeaningyourprofitmarginswouldbemuchhigher.Thisallowsyoutomakeagreaterreturnonyourinvestmentprovidingyouwithgreatercapitaltopurchaseyournextorder.

Furthermore,youwouldalsoavoidtheriskofrunningoutofstockifyouritemdoessellmuchbetterthanyouexpect.Yourreturnsfromthoseinitialsaleswillallowyoutocarryoutanotherordertohavestockdeliveredbeforeyourinventoryisliquidated.Youwillalsobeahigherpriorityforsupplierswhowillbedealingwithmultiplecustomerswithvaryingordersizes.

AhighMOQforyourfirstordershouldbearound1,000to1,500units,certainlynolessthanthat.

Calculating�What�MOQ�Works�for�Your�BusinessAsmentionedatthestartofthischapter,yourMOQwillvarydependingonyourindividualcircumstances,yourproductandyourbusiness.ThereisawaytoworkoutwhatMOQwillworkforyouandgetaclearerpictureoftheriskandrewardforeachshipmentsize.

Youcanworkoutyourinventoryturnoverbytakingyourordersize,say500unitsandthenthendividingthisbyhowmanysalesyouwouldexpecttomakeeachday.Forexample,ifyouwereselling20unitsperday,yourinventoryturnoverwouldbe25days.Thismeansafter25daysyouwouldrunoutofstock.Youshouldhaveanideaofhowlongitwilltakeforyourshipmenttoarriveatthewarehousebeforebeingsenttoyourcustomerandifthisislongerthanyourinventoryturnovertimethenyouwillberunningtheriskofrunningoutstock.

Youwillalsoneedtodeterminehowmuchitwouldcosttoshipeachitem.Thiswillvarydependingonyouritemsizeandweightthereforeifyouarepurchasingsmalleritems,youhavegreaterflexibilityinorderagreaternumberbutifyouritemsarequitelargethanyoumightwanttoorderasmallernumbertobeginwith.

Therewillbeothervariablesinvolvedaswellsuchashowlongitwilltakeyoursuppliertocreateandmanufacturetheitemreadyforshipping.CombiningallthesefiguresyoushouldbeabletohavearoughestimateofwhatwouldbethebestMOQforyourbudgetandriskappetiteandthenadjustthisaccordinglywhenyouhavenoinformation.Keepinmindthatperfectionisanillusionandanymistakesorerrorsthataddtoyourcostscaneasilyberectifieddowntheline,itisallalearningexperience.

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Chapter 14: Managing Your First ImportThisiswherethingsstarttogetreallyseriousbutatthesametime,veryexciting.Yourbusinessisnowinoperation,youhaveplacedyourfirstorderandyoursupplierismanagingyourfirstorder.Thisiswhereyouwillneedtomaintainalevelofcommunicationtokeepyoursupplieraccountableandalsotokeepyourselfinthelooptoensureyourfirstimportrunssmoothly.

Thisisnotthetimetosetbackandwaitforthemoneytorollin,thisiswhereyouwillneedtobedisciplinedfocusedasthereismorethanjustyouinvolved,yoursupplierwillexpectyoutobeoncallincasethereareanyquestionsorissueswhichwillneedtobetendedtowhichiswhereyouwillneedtoestablishamethodofcommunication.

Methods�of�Communication

Thereareanumberofwaysyouwillbeabletocommunicatewithyoursuppliers.Thankfullywearelivinginatimewherecommunicationismoresimpleandeasythanever,youareabletosendamessageandreceiveareplywithinmereminutesanddobusinessfasterthanever.Inthisportionofthechapter,wewillbetakingalookattheprosandconsofeachofthemethodsofcommunication,themainmethodsthatwewouldusedaytodayareemail,Skype,WhatsAppaswellasanumberoflesserusedmethods.

Aswementionedinchapter11,Chinesebusinessespreferahigherlevelofformalitythanbusinessesinthewesternworldandforthisreason,wewouldfirstwanttostartoffwithemail.Wewouldusethisonefirstlytoestablishtherelationshipandwhenfirstmakingcontact,formalityishighlyregarded.Fromthereyouareabletoloosenupabitasyoubecomemorefamiliarwithworkingwithcertainpeopleandgrowmorecomfortabletogether.

Thereasonwhyemailisthebesttousewhenfirstcommunicatingisthatasthelevelofconvenienceandfrequencyincreaseswiththemethodofcommunication,thelevelofformalitywilldecrease.Email,forexample,isnotconsideredthemostconvenientandfrequentlyusedmethodofcommunicationthesedaysthereforeitshouldreadmorelikealetterwhereasprogramslikeWhatsAppisdesignedformorefrequentandaccessiblecommunicationmeaningitwillbemorecasual.

Asidefromconvenienceanotherconsidersyouwouldneedtomakeishoweasyitistotrackcommunicationanddocumentsthatwouldbeattachedwhichemailwouldalsobethebesttousetobeginwithsinceithaseasytousesearchfunctionsandyouareabletocategorizeandrecallthreadsquiteeasily.

Asyougrowfurtherintoyourbusinessrelationshipwithyoursupplier,youwillbeabletouselessandlessformality.Withthis,youarethenabletousemoreconvenientandaccessiblemethodsofcommunicationsuchasWhatsAppandSkype.Eachmethodalsohasit’stimeand

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placeforexample,emailisgoodforoutlininginstructionsandtrackingcommunicationsaswellasdocuments.SkypeisidealforworkingthroughalistofdetailsandhavingameetingthatrequiresdirectattentionandfinallyWhatsAppismoresituationsthatrequireanurgentresponsesuchasgettingshippinglabelslastminuteorafastanswertoaquestion.

EmailTobeginwith,emailisessential.Itwillprovideyourbusinesswithahighlevelofformalityandprofessionalismthatisdifficulttoportraywhenusingtheinstantmessagingapps.Usingemailwillallowyoutotrackandcategorizedocumentssuchasinvoices,messages,certainsubjectsandyouarealsoabletousethesearchfunctiontoreferencesomethingfromearlier.Emailisamuchslowerprocessaswell,givingbothpartiestimetodorespondattheirownpacemeaningthereislessfamiliaritywhichagoodthinginthebeginningiswhileyouarebothstillgettingtoknoweachother. WhatsApp Oncetheformalityhasbecomemorerelaxedandbothpartiesareusedtodealingwitheachother,youcanbeginusinginstantmessagingservicessuchasWhatsApp.Thisallowsyoutokeepintouchwithyoursupplieratamuchfasterpaceandmorefrequent.ThedownsidetousingWhatsAppisthatthereisalackoftrackingmeaningitcanbedifficulttorecallmessagesandimportantdocumentswhichemailisbettersuitedfor.

Furthermore,ifyouweretosendthroughalistofquestions,itmaybemoredifficulttogetaresponsesinceWhatsAppissetupmoreforshortsharpmessagesthereforeyouwouldbebetterofemailinglargercommunicationswhereasWhatsAppissuitedforshorter,fastercommunications.

SkypeThemiddlegroundhereisSkype.Ifyouslowlydowngradingtheformalityandbecomingmorecomfortablewithyoursupplier,considertransitioningovertoSkypeasthisallowsyoutostillaskingagreatnumberofquestionsaswellasattachdocumentshoweveritdoesnotexcelineitherofthosedepartments,insteaditiseasierforasitdownconversationatascheduledtimetoworkoutanissueortogainanunderstandingofsomethingbutnotreallytosenddocumentsorsendashortburstofmessages.

IfyouweretomakeacalloverSkype,youareabletogetstraighttothepointwhenaskingalargelistofquestionshoweveryouwillideallywanttohavethosequestionsrecordedthroughanemailsoonceyouhavethatconversationitisgoodtosendafollowupemailfollowingaSkypecalljusttohaveitallinwritingandtoallowbothpartiestodocumentthecommunication.

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Chapter 15: Sourcing Product Samples

Define�Your�Exact�Product

Thisiswherethingsgetexciting,youarenowpresentedwithanopportunitytohaveapotentialproductinyourhands.Yourfirstproductsamplewillbeuniquelycreatedforyourbrandandbusiness,thiswillbewhatyouareshippingtoyourcustomers,soitisimportantthatyouhaveasampleofaproductthatyoucanbeproudofandyouknowthatyourcustomerswillbesatisfiedwith.

Havingyoursamplebrandediscrucialasthiswillgiveyouanideaofthefinalqualityandifthereareanyissuesthatcouldarise,youhavethechancetorectifythembeforetheproductgoesintomassproduction.

Yourproductneedstostandoutandinordertodothatyoumustletyoursupplierknowexactlywhatitisyourequirefromthem.Withsomanyvariablesworkedintodesigningyourproductthereisahighchancethatthingsmayturnoutnotthewayyouwouldexpectthemtoandthisispreciselywhyyouneedtoorderasampletocheckandmakesureitiswhatyouaskedfor.

Screening Suppliers

Youmightbewonderinghowmanysamplesyoushouldbeordering,andthiscomesdowntoanotherquestionwhichishowmanysuppliersareyouincontactwithandconsideringforthejob?

Whenitcomestocreatinganewproduct,youwillwantasmanydoorsopenaspossibleandthismeanstalkingtoasmanysuppliersaspossible.Ageneralruleofthumbwouldbetoreachoutto10suppliersforeachnewproduct.Thisallowsyoutoscreenyoursuppliersandgetabetterunderstandingofthelargermarketandgivesyouroomtocutsuppliersthatyoufeelaren’tsuitedtotakeontheassignmentorareperhapsdifficulttocommunicatewith.

Comparing Samples

Onesampleisoftenneverenoughsoyouwillwanttoorderatleastthreeasthiswillgiveyouagoodideaofthecompany’squality.Bythetimeyouarereadytoorderthatfirstsample,youshouldhaveagoodideaofthecompanyyouwouldliketoworkwithandthiswillallowyoutocompareeachoftheproductsamplestogethertoseewhichtrulystandoutintermsofqualityandpracticality.

Negotiation�and�Moving�Forward

Havingthreeproductsinyourhandfromavarietyofcompaniesatthetopofyourtalent

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poolwillalsoprovideyouwithsomeadditionalleveragewhenitcomestonegotiation.Youcandescribethebenefitsofeachonetoyoursupplierandexpressthatyouwouldliketoseecertainfeaturesordesignelementsfromtheircompanyinsteadoftheonethatyouhadreceivedasamplefromandperhapstheycanmakeithappenatabetterrate.

Onceyouhaveagoodideaofthecompanyyouwouldliketoworkwith,besuretopurchaseanadditionalsamplejusttogetagreaterunderstandingofthequalitytheyareoffering.Oftentimesthefirstsampleisproducedwithmuchhigherqualityandattentiontodetailwhilethesecondismoreofanindicationofhowtheproductwouldbeoverthelongtermandthisistheproductyourcustomerwouldbereceivingsoitisbesttohavealookoveritandmakesureitisstilluptoyourstandards.

Shippingyourfirstsamplewillrequiresomequestionstobeaskedsuchashowmuchwillitcost,wheredoesitgetshippedto,howwillitbeshipped?Theshippingcostwillfallsomewherebetween$40and$150forasinglesample,dependingontheweight.Thesewillbeexpressedshippedsincethereislittletimetowasteandtheshippingwillbedirecttoyourhomeorbusiness.Youwillwanttoavoidfallingintoabottleneckbycheckingoutsamples,soitisbesttostreamlinethisprocessasmuchaspossible.

PaymentforyoursampleshouldbemadeoverPayPalsinceitisonlyasmallamountandshouldn’tincuranylargefeesaswouldbethecaseifyouwereshippinganentirelit.Fromthereyouwillneedtostartworkingtowardspurchasingyourfirstlotandthelogisticsinvolvedinhavingitshippedtoyourlocation.Yoursupplierswillgenerallyhaveoutlinedtheirpricesinresponsetothetemplatethatyouhadusedearlier.

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Chapter 16: Page Ascension PrinciplesPageascensionprinciplesisanessentialsetofknowledgeforanyAmazonseller.Yourexpertiseinpageascensionprincipleswillmeanthedifferencebetweenyourproductrankingwellorfallingbehindafewpages,notgettingtheattentionthatitdeserves.

Pageascensioniscrucialinthateverysingleproductwhenlaunchedisgoingtostartnearthebottomofthesearchtermrankingregardlessofthesearchtermthatyouhaveused.ThisisbecausetheproducthasneverbeensoldonAmazonpreviouslyandthereisnowayforAmazontoknowwhethertheproductisrelevantforthesearchterm.

Therearerulesyoucanworkwiththatallowyoutoclimbthroughtherankingsandreachthetopofthesearchresults.ThiscouldbeoneofthemosttimeconsumingareasofstudyalongyourAmazonjourney.

Keyword�Density

Thisisessentiallythesearchtermsthatyouwouldbeputtingintoyourlisting.ThisallowstheAmazonsearchenginealgorithmtorelateyourkeywordsbacktothecustomersearchtermsthattheyarelookingfor.Forinstance,ifacustomersearchesforagarlicpressandyouhaveusedthekeyword“garlicpress”throughoutyourlisting,yourproductisfarmorelikelytoshowup.Thisisalsodependentonhowmanytimesyouhaveplacedthesearchterminyourlistingaswellasincertainlocations.

Ideally,youwillwanttohaveyourkeywordstargetexactlywhatcustomersaresearchingforwhichiswhykeyworddensityisincrediblyimportant,weexplorethisalittlelateronindetailbutfornowwewilljustcoverthebasics.YourtitlewillbethefirstpieceofthepuzzlethatAmazonwilltakeintoaccount.Havingatitlethatmatchesthemostimportantkeywordsisessentialtoreachingthetopofthepage.

Thisisfollowedbyyourbulletpointsthenthedescription.Optimizingyourkeywordsthroughoutthelistingtomatchthosethatarebeingsearchedforisthekeytohavingyourproductrankedhighlyandthisinturnleadstoahighernumberofclicksonyourpage.Keyworddensityshouldneverbeunderestimated.

Conversion�Rate

ConversionrateiswhattellsAmazonhowmanypeoplewhoactuallyclickonandvisityourlinkareactuallybuying.Thisisagoodindicationthatwhatthepersonsearchedforwasfoundinyourlisting.Ifyouhappenedtobeusingkeywordsforgarlicpresswhenyouareactuallytryingtosellavegetablepeeler,youwouldfindthatyourconversionratesaremuchlower,andAmazon’salgorithmwouldadjustyourlistingtoappearlowinginsearchtermsrankedwithgarlicpresssinceithasbeenshowntonotmatchupwellwiththesesearchterms.

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Inoptimizingyourconversionrate,youcanadjustthevariousvariableswhicharepresentedonyourpage,splittingthemupandtestingthealterationsyoumaketoseewhichworksbest.Youwillnoticethatmanytimes,conversionrateisaffectedbythekeywordsandsearchtermsyouareusingonyourpage.Thisisbecausethenumberofvisitorsyouhaveonyourlistingisdeterminedbyhowwellyoursearchtermsmatchupwithwhatkeywordsarebeingentered.Thebetterthematch,themoreclicksandiftheyarecloselyrelatedtowhatthecustomerwassearchingfor,youwillnaturallyhavemoreconversions.

Sales Volume

Yoursalesvolumeisarguablyoneofthemostimportantpiecesofsalesascension.Thisismadeupbybothyourconversionandyourkeyworddensity.ThemoreoptimizedyourlistingiswiththeAmazonsearchengineandthehigheryourconversions,thegreateryoursalesvolumewillbe.Therearemanywaysinwhichyoucanincreaseyoursalesvolumeanditwilllargelybearesultoftheprevioustwoelementsofpageascension.

Forthereason,itisincrediblyimportanttogetbothyourtargetedkeywordsandconversionratesashighlyoptimizedaspossibleasthiswillbethedefiningfactorinhowmanyoverallsalesyouwillexperienceonalisting.

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Chapter 17: Optimizing Product CategoriesNowthatyouhaveaproductandarebeginningtosellit,youcanstartfiguringoutwhereexactlyonAmazonitwillfitbest.FindingyourplaceonAmazonisimportantbecauseitdeterminesexactlyhowyou’llcompetewithothersellers.There’smoretoitthanjustchoosingacategory–youhavetochoosethebestpossiblecategory.

Amazonwillhavesomesayoverwhichcategoryyoubelongin,soit’simportanttogetthingsrightthefirsttime.Andifyou’reinthewrongcategory,you’llfailtomovestock,becausepeoplewon’tfindyourproduct.Yourconversionrateandbusinesswillsuffer.Ontheotherhand,ifyouchoosewisely,yourconversionratewillsoar,andyou’llwininvaluablesellertagsthatmarkyouasanexceptionalseller.Asyoucansee,choosingtherightcategoryispriceless.

So,whatgoesintochoosingacategory?Ideally,you’llwanttobefoundbycustomers,you’llwanttobeinacategorythataccuratelydescribesyou,andyou’llwanttobeinacategorythatmakescompetitioneasy.Withoutfurtherado,let’slookatthesethingsnow.

Niche Categories

Onewayofadvancingyourproductistopickanichecategorytobeamajorplayerin--inotherwords,trytobeabigfishinasmallpond.Yourgoalshouldbetocompetewithothers,butalsotofacetheleastamountofresistance.Majorcategoriesareverycrowdedanddifficulttocompetein,soyoushouldlookforasmallerone.Trytochooseacategorythatisn’tcompetitive,butmakesurethatthecategoryisstillrelevanttoyourproduct.

Don’tbeafraidtoleaveamajorcategoryandenterasmallerone,aslongasitstilldescribesyourproduct.Alotofcustomerswillfindyourproductbysearchingforkeywords,aswe’llseelater,soyoudon’thavetoworryaboutpeoplenotfindingthecategory.Furthermore,buyersmightnotseeexactlythesamecategoriesthatsellersdo.So,don’tworryaboutpickingtooobscureacategory.

Seller Tags

OnAmazon,thereare“newreleasetags”tags(alsocalledeithera“#1newrelease”tagora“hotnewrelease”tag)forproductswithanexcellentsaleshistoryineachcategory.Youdon’thavetohavetheverybestsalestogetthattag-thereisa“bestseller”tagforthat.Butit’squitelikelythatyoucanearna“newrelease”tag.

Sohowdoyougetthe“newrelease”tag?Justrememberthat,bypickingasmallerandlesscompetitivecategory,you’remorelikelytogetthattag.Thiswillincreasethetrafficyougetandsalesthatyoumake,andinturnitwillincreaseyourconversionrate.Yourproductdoesn’thavetobeparticularlynewtoearna“newrelease”tag,either-therearenodefiniterulesastowhatqualifiesas“new.”

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Also,besuretoavoidusingmisleadingtags.Somepeopleputfaketagsontheirproducts,which--firstofall--isn’tallowed,andwhich--secondofall--makestheproductlookworse.Don’tfeellikeyouneedtocompetewithsellerswhodothis--theirfaketagsarenotathreattoyourbusiness,andfaketagswon’tearnthemanything.

Finding�an�Ideal�Category

Tochooseacategory,logintoyourAmazonSellerCentralaccount.Gotothecatalogueandaddaproduct,whichwillgiveyouseveraloptions,oneofwhichistoclassifyyourproduct.Youcaneitherbrowseatreeofcategories,oryoucansearchforyourproductnameandseewhichcategoriesaresuggested.Youmightspendabouthalfanhourlookingthroughthesecategories.

Onceyoufindthemostrelevantcategories,useJungleScouttolookupthosecategoriesandfindoutwhichcategoriesaresellingtheleast.Thesearethecategoriesthatyoucancompeteineasily,andinwhichyoumightbecomeafirst-pageproduct.Rememberthatsomecategorieswon’tfityourproductatall.Ifyouchooseacategorythatistoodifferentfromyourproduct,yourproductmaybecorrectedbyAmazon.However,afewcategorieswillfit,andsomecategorieswillbealmostidentical-thatis,onesubcategorycanbeundertwodifferentcategories.

Alsonotethattherearesomecategories,likehealthandpersonalcareproductsorjewelry,thatrequireapproval.Sellinginthesecategoriesisatrade-off;theymaybelesscompetitive,butyouwillneedtowaitafewdaystogetpermissiontosellinthosecategories.

Finally,askyourselfafewquestionswhenpickinganichecategory.Whatisyourproduct?Isitamust-haveproduct,oranoveltyoraluxury?Isitsomethingthatpeoplewillalwaysneed,orisitafad?Isitsomethingthatthereisanaudiencefor,oristhecategorynotcompetitivebecausethereisnoaudience?Inallofthesecases,theformeroptionisabetternichecategory.

Inaddition,rememberthatyourgoalistohelpyourcustomersfindwhattheyneed.Youwon’tdothemanyfavorsbytryingtogamethesystem-sotryandchoosethecorrectproductcategoryfortheirsakeaswell.Thiswillreflectwellonyouandonyoursales. 

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Chapter 18: Product DescriptionsYou’refinallyonyourwaytocreatingadisplaypageforyourproduct.It’stimetodeterminewhatpeoplewillsee,andtodecidehowtomarkettothem.Inthischapter,we’llseethatthereareactuallyseveralpartstoanAmazonproductpage.

Onepartischoosingthecorrectkeywordstodescribeyourproduct.Aswe’llsee,keywordslargelyworkunderthehoodandarehiddenfromcustomers,soyou’llhavetodosomediggingtogetthecorrectkeywordsforyourproduct.It’simportanttousethesamekeywordsthatotherpeopleareusing,sowe’lllookatsometoolsthatallowyoutodothat.Andit’salsoimportanttousekeywordsinanoptimalway.

Theotherpartinvolvescomposingtheinformationthatyourcustomerswillsee,likeyourtitle,description,andbulletpoints.It’simportanttobedescriptive,concise,andreadable,butaboveall,youmustbepersonal.Yourdescriptionisachancetocomeacrossasahumanbeingratherthanafacelesscompany.

Ofcourse,it’salsoimportanttohavegoodreviewsandanattractivepriceforpeopletosee,sowe’lllookbrieflyatthosethingsaswell.

Choosing�Keywords

Onewayoffindingkeywordsandkeyphrasesistosimplytofindyourcompetitors’titles.Aslongasitisnotabrandnameoratrademarkedproductname,itisokaytousetheirtitlesasyourkeywords.Youcanalsousebulletpointsfromtheirdescriptionsasyourkeywords.It’sokaytocopyandpastebecausethesekeywordsaren’tactuallypartofthedescriptionthatyouruserswillsee--they’rejustsynonymsthatAmazon’ssearchengineisusing.

YoucanalsolookatthesuggestionsthatdropdownfromthesearchboxonAmazon,whichwillprovideseveralsynonyms.Thereisusuallyacommontermthatmostsellersuse,andyouwillwanttobeusingthesameterms.However,therewillbesecond-andthird-mostcommontermsaswell.Yourgoalshouldbetofindandincludeasmanyalternatetermsaspossibleinyourkeywords.

YoucanalsouseatoolcalledKeywordInspector(atkeywordinspector.com).You’llhavetocreateanaccountandbuycreditstousethesite,butitisaninvaluabletool.Thissiteallowsyoutolookupproductsandfindoutwhatkeywordstheproductisusing.Youwon’tseethisinformationonAmazon’ssite,soit’simportanttousethistoolifyoucan.

Log�in�to�Keyword�InspectorandgotothereverseASINfunction.FindanothersellerthatsellsyourproductandenterhisASINnumber.Thiswillgiveyouthekeywordsthatthesellerranksfor.Itwon’tgiveyoudetailedinformationabouthistraffic,though.Don’tworryaboutmostofthekeywords;justtakenoteofthemostviewedkeywords.

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Ideally,youshouldhavehundredsofkeywords.They’renotshowingupforyourusers,andarejustbeingusedbythesearchengine,sothereisnodisadvantagetousingalotofkeywords.Theywon’tclutteryourdescriptionordistractusers.They’lljustreturnyourproductmoreofteninsearchresults.

Thereisalotofdebateaboutwhethertousethesamewordtwice.Forexample,ifyouareusing“splatterscreen”and“splatterguard”,thereisaquestionofwhetheryoushouldreusethewordsplattermorethanonce.It’spossiblethatAmazonisonlyoptimizingforalimitednumberofkeywords,sointhatcase,youwouldwanttouseasmanydifferentkeywordsaspossibleratherthanusingthesamekeywordsoverandover.It’suptoyou;tryitbothwaysanddecide.

Optimizing�KeywordsWhenyou’rechoosingkeywords,youwanttodrawinpeoplewhoareactuallylookingforyourproduct.Thiswillleadtoahigherconversionrate.Remember,yourconversionrateisdeterminedbyhowmanypeoplewhoseeyourproductbuyit--notbyhowmanypeoplesimplyseeit.It’snogoodtohavelotsofviewsifnobodywhoseesyourproductwantstobuyit.

Consideranicheproduct.Forexample,withablanketwithapictureofadogeatingabone,youmightwanttooptimizeforthewords“blanket”and“dog.”Mostpeoplewhoaresimplylookingforblanketswillwantsomethingplainer,so“blanket”aloneisn’tenoughtodifferentiateyoufromplainblankets.Andpeopleprobablyaren’tlookingforsuchaminoraspectoftheproductthatthey’relookingforablanketwithabone-iftheysearchfor“dog”and“bone”,they’reprobablylookingforanactualbone.However,theymayverywellbelookingforablanketwithadogonit,soit’simportanttooptimizetheword“dog”asakeyword.Thistakessomejudgment,butitiseasytogetthehangof.

Also,bewareofsynonyms.Youwanttodifferentiateyourproductsfromothers.Ifsomeonesearchesfora“screen”,theycouldbelookingforascreendoororacomputerscreen.Inthiscase,you’llneedmorekeywordsthanjust“screen”nomatterwhatyou’reselling.Ifyou’resellingacomputerscreen,you’dwanttoadd“monitor”asanotherkeyword;ifyou’resellingascreendoor,you’dwanttoadd“door”asakeyword.There’snopointinattractingonetypeofcustomerwhentheyreallywanttheotherproduct.

Thebottomlineisthatyoudon’tsimplywantasmanyviewsaspossible--youwantasmanyviewsaspossiblefrompeoplewhoactuallywillwanttobuyyourproduct.So,optimizingkeywordsisaboutweedingoutpeoplewhodon’twantyourproductaswellasattractingpeoplewhodowantit.

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Creating�a�Title

Whenyoucreateatitle,it’soneofthemostimportantthingsyoudoforyourproduct.Firstofall,yourtitlesimplydisplaystheproducttopotentialbuyers.Remember,therearealotofdifferentwaysofsayingwhataproductis,andyoucanuseanytermyoulike.Trytopickatermthatexplainsbothwhattheitemisandwhattheitemdoesoruseacombinationoftwodifferentterms.Usebothverbsandnounsinyourdescription.Forexample,“SoftSqueezableHand&FingerExercisingBall|StressRelievingTool”isagoodexampleofatitlethatbothexplainswhattheitemis,andwhatitdoes.

Secondofall,yourtitleshouldhavekeyworddensity.Amazonmainlyindexesyourtitleinadditiontoindexingyourkeywords.Youwantalotofkeyworddensity--makesurethatyourtitleismostlykeywordsandhasnoirrelevantinformation.Thekeywordsthataremostfrequentlysearchedshouldbeatthebeginningofthetitle,withthelatterpartofthetitleservingasadescription.

However,yourtitleshouldalsousenaturallanguage.Don’tjustthrowinkeywordsthatmakenosensewhenread;makesurerealpeoplecanreadyourtitle.Usepunctuationandyou’llhaveamorelegibleandsensibletitle.Remember,realpeoplearealwaysontheotherendofapurchaseandyoushouldcatertothem,notjustthesearchengine.

Additionally,youshouldalsomakeclearinthetitleyourUniqueSellingPoint.Forexample,youmightsaythatyourproductisbetterthananyotherorworkswithspecificitems.YourUniqueSellingPointcanbeanythingyoulike,aslongasit’snotthatyourproductisthecheapest--thatwon’tmakeyouanymoney!

Finally,don’tmakesimplemistakesthatareeasytoavoid.Checkthespellingofyourtitlebeforepublishingit.It’snoteasytochangethetitleafterward--you’llhavetogothroughsupport--somakesureeverythingiscorrecttobeginwith.

The�Product�Description�&�Creating�a�Human�Connection

Onceyouhaveyourtitleandkeywordssetout,you’rereadytomoveontobulletpointsandaproductdescription.Thisiseasytodoandwon’ttaketoolong.

UsebulletpointstosetoutyourUniqueSellingPoint.Alistofbulletpointsisanappealingwaytosetoutinformationbrieflywithoutoverloadingthesensesofyourpotentialcustomers.Youcantrytouseiconslikeemojisorcheckmarksasbulletpointstospiceuptheappearanceofyourlist,butmakesurethattheyactuallydisplayproperlyonAmazon.

Whenwritingtheactualcontentofthebulletpoints,don’tspendtoomuchtimedescribingtheitem’sspecifications.Makesureyouwritepersuasivelyandtellyourcustomerswhytheyshouldhaveyourproduct,notwhatitis.It’sallaboutmakingahumanconnection.

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Inyourproductdescription,youcanwritemorein-depthinformation.Noteveryonewillreadthis,butit’simportanttocatertopeoplewhoporeovereverybitofinformationaswellaspeoplewhoglanceoveryourbulletpoints.Intheproductdescription,makesuretoincludetwoorthreesentencesaboutyourcompanyandyourproduct.Again,it’sallaboutmakingahumanconnection:youwantyourcustomerstoknowyou’reatrustworthyanddependablecompanywithrealemployeeswhocare.Peoplegenerallywouldratherbuyfromanactualpersonthanafacelesscompany.That’swhyit’simportanttohavepeoplerepresentedinthedescription.

Reviews�and�Pricing

Relatedtoyourproductdescriptionarewrittenreviewsandyourstarrating.Likedescriptions,theseareoneofthefirstthingsyourcustomerswillsee,butunlikedescriptions,youcan’tjustaddthesethingsdirectly.Ideally,youshouldhaveatleastfourandahalfstars,andhavetwentyormorewrittenreviews.We’llseelaterhowtoincreaseyourreviewsandrating,butfornow,justrememberthatyouneedtohavethemtomakecustomersfeelcomfortablebuyingfromyou.

Alsoconsiderthepricethatyourcustomerssee-youdon’twanttohavethecheapestprice,butifyouincreaseyourpricetoomuch,lesspeoplewillmakepurchasesandyourconversionratewillprobablyfall.We’lllookmoreattheseinlaterchapters,butfornow,rememberthatreviewsandpricingaretwoofthefirstthingsthatyourcustomerswillsee,andthattheyarejustasimportantasyourtitle,productdescription,andkeywords.

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Chapter 19: Creating Images for Your ListingOnceyourdescriptioniswritten,youcanstartthinkingaboutimagesforyourproduct.There’smoretoimagesthanjusttakingapicturewithwhateverdeviceyouhaveathand.So,we’lltalkbrieflyaboutcomposingphotosandsettingthestageforagreatimage.You’llwantanimagethatdisplaysyourproductasmaximallyaspossible,showingoffallofitsgreatfeatures.You’llalsoneedseveralsecondaryphotos.Yourimagesshouldn’trelyonpost-effectsorbeover-designed--theyshouldspeakforthemselves.

Allthisiseasiersaidthandone.Ofcourse,youmightchoosetohaveanimageprofessionallydone,sowe’lltalkaboutthatasaseriousoption,whichwillmakeyourimageevenbetter.Youcanalsousestockimagestosavemoney.TheremaybeatemptationtosavemoneyfurtherbyPhotoshoppingimages,butthat’ssomethingthatyoureallyshouldn’tdo.

Thebottomlineisthatyourimagesshouldbeaseriousinvestment.Imagesareoneofthethingsthatwillreallydrawincustomers,soyoushouldn’tscrimponphotoswhenyougetthem.So,let’slookathowtogetthebestyoucan,andasmuchasyoucan,whenitcomestophotos.

The Main Image

It’simportanttomakeagoodfirstimpression,andimagesareamajorpartofthat.You’llwanttoincludeimagesforyourproduct.Amazonmakesitsimpletouploadimages,butittakestimetocreateadecentimage.So,putalotofthoughtintoyourimages.

Yourproductimageshouldstandoutandbedifferentfromtherest.Don’tnecessarilyuseastillshotoftheproduct–useanimageoftheproductinuse.Ifyourproductcomesindifferentcolors,bydefault,showyourproductinacolorthatisvibrantandeye-catching.

Yourimagesshouldbeaslargeaspossible.Ofcourse,youhaveonlyasmallsquaretoworkwith,butmakesurethattheimagestakeupasmuchofthatspaceaspossible.Also,makesurethattheimageisinhighresolution,sothatwhenpeopleclickonyourimagetheycanseeitindetail.Basically,maketheimageworkinbothlargeandsmallformats.

Ifyoudecidetotakethephotographyourself,makesurethattheimageiscomposeddecently.Don’tuseaniPhonecamera--useapropercamera.Avoidproblemslikegraininessandglare.Ifyouedittheimage,doonlyminortouchups–it’susuallyabadideatoaddextradesignsortext.Rememberthataphotographcanonlylookasgoodasyourproduct.Ifyourproductdoesn’tlookgood,itwon’tlookasgoodinthepictureasyourcompetitors’productsdo.

Betteryet,don’tcreatetheimagesyourself,andhavethepictureprofessionallycreated.Ifyourproductisalreadyinwidecirculation,theremaybestockimagesthatyoucanpurchaseanduse.Butifyourproductisdifferentfromothers,youmayhavetoactuallyhavea

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photographtaken.Hireaprofessionalphotographerifpossible.

Secondary�Images

Amazonallowsyoutouseuptosiximagesonyourproductpage.Ideally,youshoulduseamixtureofonwhiteimagesandlifestyleimages.

Onwhiteimagesaresimplypicturesofyourproductonawhitebackground.Thesearegoodbecausetheysimplydisplaytheproductasitis.It’simportantforpeopletoseeallthefeaturesoftheproduct,soit’sgoodtohaveacloseupoftheproductfromafewdifferentangles.Alsomakesurealloftheproducts’partsareshown.

Lifestyleimagesarepicturesofyourproductinuse.It’simportanttoshowtheproductinactualuse,don’tusePhotoshoptocomposeafakepictureofyourproductinuse.Unlessyou’veinvestedinanexpert,peoplecantellwhenyou’vePhotoshoppedyourimages.Peoplewanttoseeyourproductactuallybeingused.Also,ifyoushowtheproductinuse,trytoavoidshowingthingsthataren’tincluded.Forexample,don’tshowflowersinavaseifthevaseisn’tincluded.

Again,photographsareoneofthemostimportantinvestmentsyoucanmake,somakesureyougetseveralgoodimagestoworkwith.

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Chapter 20: Launching Your Amazon ProductYou’realmostreadytogolivewithyourproduct.Inthischapter,we’llshowyouhowtobuildmomentumduringyourinitiallaunch.You’llbebuildingasnowballthatwillaccumulateandlaunchyoudownahillattopspeed.Duringtheinitiallaunchperiod,you’llwanttogetasmanysalesandreviewsasyoucan.It’sallaboutreachingouttopeopleandusingyourconnections.

First,we’llshowyouhowtousecouponcodesanddiscountsasawaytoattractcustomers.Inturn,you’llgetintothebestsellerranksandcomeupearlierinsearchresults.Thenwe’llshowyouhowtogetreviews,whichareadrawtocustomers–peopletrustothercustomersmorethananything.We’llseehowtodoallofthisinaccordancewithAmazon’srules–givingoutgreatdealsinexchangeforthecustomerfeedbackyouneed.

Inthebeginning,thismaycomeatacost,andyou’llbespendingmoneytogainsalesandreviews.Aftertheinitiallaunch,you’llbeworkinghardtomaintainthecustomerbaseandsalesratethatyou’vebuiltup.So,let’slookathowtobuildupyoursnowballandlaunchyourproduct.

Amazon�Snowball�Launch

TounderstandhowAmazonsellers,reachthebestsellerrank,it’simportanttounderstandtheconceptofasnowballlaunch.Thesnowballlaunchissimplyanaccumulationofinitialsalesthatpropelyouintothebestsellerranks.

Firstofall,youneedtohavealotofinitialsales.Youwanttospendmoney,time,andresourcesinthebeginninginordertosellyourproduct.You’llhavetoputmoneyupfrontbeforeyousellaproduct.Don’texpecttomakeaprofitintheverybeginning.Thegoalistomakeenoughsales,packedtogetherlikeasnowball,torolldownthehillandmakeitintothebestsellerrank.Ideally,youshouldhavebetween5000and10,000salesduringyourlaunch.

Afterthefirsttwoweeksofyourlaunch,you’llenterastagnantphase.Youprobablywon’tbeabletoincreaseyourdailynumberofsales,andyou’llbeworkinghardtostayinplace.You’llrelyonadvertisingandotherthingstodoso.It’sallaboutkeepingupsteadyandcontinuoussales.Butbeforethinkingaboutthat,focusonyourinitiallaunch.Thebottomlineisthatit’simportanttomakeasmanysalesaspossibleintheinitiallaunchperiod.CriticalLaunchFactors

Thetwomostcriticallaunchfactorsaresalesandreviews.Aswe’vealreadyseen,initialsalesdeterminethesizeofyour“snowball”andhowfaryou’llrolltowardsthetopofthebestsellerranks.So,remember,initialsalesareoneofthemostcriticallaunchfactors.

Reviewsarethesecondcriticallaunchfactor.It’simportantforcustomerstohearaboutyour

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productfromsomeonewhoisindependentofyou,theseller--naturally,customersputalotoftrustinothercustomers.You’llwanttouseacombinationofpromotionalgiveaways,socialmedia,andpayperclickadvertisingtogainreviewsandsales.

However,reviewsandsalesworkdifferently.Makingmoresaleswillgetyourankedhigher.Earningmorereviewswillnotautomaticallygetyourankedhigher;someitemsyouseeonafirstpagewillhavehundredsofreviewsandotherswillhavenoreviews.However,reviewsareimportantbecauseyouneedreviewstomakesales.Peoplewillprobablynotbelieveinaproductthatnobodyelsehastakenthetimetoreview!

Discount�Coupons�for�Launch

Onewayofgainingsalesandreviewsduringtheinitiallaunchperiodisbygivingyourpotentialcustomersaniteminexchangeforareview.Unfortunately,Amazonnolongerallowscustomerstoleavereviewsforproductstheyreceivedforfree.However,youcanofferhighdiscounts(upto90%)instead.You’revirtuallygivingtheproductaway,butAmazonstillmakessomemoneyonthetransaction,andyougaincustomers.

So,youcanmakeacouponcodethatoffersadiscountinyourAmazonaccount.LogintoyourAmazonSeller’spage,gotothe“Promotions”page,andchoosethe“PercentOff”coupon.Makesureyoucreateasingleusecouponcode,notaregularcoupon.

Youcansetthepercentrateofthediscountyouwanttooffer,andyoucanalsosetthemaximumnumberofcoupons.Asaguideline,beginwithdiscountsof50to90%,andlimitthenumberofcouponsto100orso.

Beware!Ifyoumakethewrongtypeofcouponorforgettolimitit,itcanbeusedoverandover,andyourentireinventorywillbegoneveryquickly!

Amazonwillletyoudownloadafilefullofyourcouponcodes,whichyouwillthenhavetodistribute.Onewayofdoingthisistodistributethecodesmanuallyonsocialmediaorbywordofmouth.YoucanalsousetoolslikeAMZ�Trackertodistributecodes.Itcostsmoneytoregister for AMZ�Tracker,butitmakesiteasytoautomatethedistributionofcodes.Youcanchoosehowmanycouponcodesareissuedeachday.Don’tbecomeaspammer--trytolimitthecouponsyougiveouttoafewperdaysothatyoudon’tviolateAmazon’srules.

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Chapter 21: Launch Marketing

Asyourlaunchperiodgoeson,you’llneedtofindnewwaysofbringinginsalesandreviews.Youalreadyknowhowtousediscountstogainthesethings,sointhischapterwe’llexplorealternatestrategies.

First,we’llseehowtocreateadstherightway,andhowtofinetunethemsothatyou’respendingtherightamountofmoney.Amazonoffersagreatadmodelthatletsyoubidonadspace,butonlymakesyoupaywhenyouradsareclickedon.Usingadsincombinationwiththerightkeywordswillbringintonsofsales,whichisinvaluableduringyourinitiallaunchperiod.

Thenwe’llseehowtogetreviewsfromyoursocialcircles.Thisincludesfriendsandfamily,aswellasexistingcustomers.Italsoincludessettingupaphysicalstorefrontifyoucan,evenifit’sonlyatemporaryone.Anywhereyoucanreachouttocustomersgivesyouaplacetoaskforreviewsandoffersomethinginreturn.Rememberthatreviewsarewhatyourcustomerswanttoseeandwillgivethemtheconfidencetobuyfromyou.

Sonowlet’sseehowtoheaddeeperintoyourlaunchperiodandkeepupyourmomentum.

Pay�Per�Click�AdsAdsareanimportantwaytoincreaseyoursalesandbuildthesizeofyoursnowball.Remember,makingmoresalesmeansthatyou’llberankedmorehighlyinAmazon’ssearchresults.So,withoutfurtherado,let’slookmorecloselyandseehowtoplaceadsonAmazon.

Thefirstthingtoknowisthatwhenyourun�an�ad�on�Amazon,youwillhavetosetadailybudget.Thatmeansthatyoupayonlywhenyouradisclickedon,soyoumightnotspendyourentiredailybudget.Butatleastsomevisitorswillclickonyourads.Considerstartingwitha$100adaybudget,whichyoucanraiseandlowerdependingonhowmuchyouarecomfortablewithspending.Youcanexpecttoearnsomeorallofthisback.Evenifyoudon’tmakeaprofit,alittleadspendingisanacceptablelossinexchangefortheinitialproductsalesthatwillbuildupyoursnowball.

Amazonwillshowyouyouradrevenueindollars,butthiswon’ttakeintoaccounthowmuchyou’vespent,soyou’llneedtocalculateyourtotalprofits.It’smoreimportanttolookatthepercentageAmazonshowsyou,whichwilltellyouhowmuchofwhatyou’vemadeyou’vespentonads.Remember,evenifyoudon’tmakealargeprofit,you’llbebuildingupyoursnowballandbringinginsales,whichwillincreaseyourpositionintheAmazonsearchresults.

You’llalsobebiddingonadspace,whichdetermineswhereyouradsappear,andwhetherthey’llshowup.Typically,yourbidwillbearoundoneortwodollarsforadspace.Thecostvaries,though--thereareaboutfourdifferentspacesonAmazon’spagesthatyoucanbidon,andeachwillcostadifferentamount.Naturally,lessvisiblespacesarecheaper.Again,you

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mightnotpayyourentirebid--howmuchyoupaydependsonwhatotherpeoplearebidding.

Youhaveafewdifferentchoiceswhenitcomestotargetingyourads:youcanchoosebetweenautomatictargetingandmanualtargeting.Automatictargetingpullsindataandwillsuggestkeywordsforyouradtoshowupunder.So,inthatcaseAmazonisbasicallysuggestingsearchtermsforyoutobidon.Manualtargetingletsyouenteryourowntermstobidon.Youalsohaveachoicebetweenyouradshowingupforaphraseandshowingupforexactkeywords.

Don’tworryifyoupaymorethanyoumakeback.Inthebeginning,earningatoprankisasimportantasmakingaprofit,soit’sokaytopaymoneytomakeasale.Youneedtogetyourproductoutintheopenandbuildyoursnowball.

Getting�ReviewsGainingreviewsisthesecondpartofbuildingupyoursnowball.Remember,reviewswon’tgetyouplacedhigherinAmazon’ssearchresults.Whattheywilldoisincreaseyourconversionrate:peoplebuyproductsmuchmoreconfidentlyandmoreoftenwhenaproducthasalotofreviewsthanwhenaproducthasnoreviews.So,gainingreviewsshouldbeoneofthethingsyouputthemosteffortintoduringtheinitiallaunchperiod.

Onewayofgainingreviewsisbyspreadingthewordtoyourfriends,family,andimmediatecommunity.Amazon’srulesarebecomingstricter,andtheynowdisallowreviewsfromfamily,butitshouldn’tbedifficulttofindsomepeopleinyoursocialcircleswhoarewillingtoleavereviews.Thekeyistoonlygivetheproducttopeoplewhoactuallywantit,andtonotobtaintoomanyreviewsatonce.Evenifyouonlygetfivereviewstobeginwith,thatisbetterthannoreviews.Overtime,youcanslowlyreachmilestonesinwhichyou’llhavedozensorhundredsofreviews.

Don’tworrytoomuchabouthowmanyreviewsyouhave.Justthinkaboutfindingpeoplewhoareinterestedinyourproduct.Youcanusethenetworksyou’vebuiltupacrosssocialmedia,butyoucanalsosearchforgroupsrelevanttoyourproductandjointhem,thenofferyourproductsatadiscount.Alsolookfordemographicswhoaretypicallyinterestedinyourproduct.Ifsomeoneasksaboutyourproduct,givethemafurtherdiscount.Becreativeandinteractwithpeoplewhereverandwheneveryoucan.Beextremelyreliantonsocialmediaandwordofmouthtospreadnewsofyourproduct.

Themorepeopleyouinteractwith,themorepeopleyoucanasktoleaveareview.Again,you’renotallowedtogiveawayitemsinexchangeforareview.Butaslongasyoudon’trequirepeopletoleaveareview,it’sokaytoaskforone.Simplybehelpfulandgenerouswithyourdiscounts,andpolitelygivethecustomertheoptionofleavingareview.

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Leveraging�Existing�Customers

Everyconnectionyouhaveinthebeginninghelps,sogatherlistsofpeoplewhoareyourexistingcustomers.Itdoesn’tmatterifyouhaveanalreadyexistingonlinestoreorjustafewcustomersfromsiteslikeCraigslist--everyconnectioncounts.Offerthosecustomersadiscountcodeonyourlatestproduct,andyou’llbuildupabaseofdedicatedcustomers,increaseyoursales,andincreasethesizeofyour“snowball.” Sosimplyofferingpromotionsanddiscountstopastcustomersisonewayofgettingmoresales.Youcantakethisastepfurtherandmakedealsforcustomerswhoreferafriend.Tellyourcustomersthattheirfriendcanreceiveadiscounttoo,andthatifboththeyandtheirfriendmakeapurchase,they’llbothgethigherbonusdiscounts.Oryoucanrunacontestandofferaprizeforwhoevercanreferthemostfriends--thisisusefulifyoudon’thaveanylargelistsofexistingcustomers. Ideally,youshouldcontactpeoplebyemail,notviasocialmedia.Peopleareusuallyslowtorespondonsocialmediaandaremorelikelytorespondtopersonalemailmessages.Asalways,it’simportanttobepersonable.Butifyouhaveexistingcustomersthatyoucanonlycontactonsocialmedia,contactthemthatway.We’lllookmorecloselyathowtotakefulladvantageofsocialmediainthenextsectionbutnotefornowthatsocialmedia’susefulnessislimited.Usesocialmediatocontactcustomersonlyifit’syouronlyoption,orifyoualreadyhaveanexistingpresencewithalotoffollowers. Ifyouhaveaphysicalstorefront,youcanalsorunpromotionsthere.Youdon’thavetohaveabuildingorastoreinamall--youcouldhaveaboothinafair,alotatamarket,orsomeotherinexpensivetemporarylocation.Youcanofferdiscountsandfreeextras,andyou’llbesuretoattractevenmorecustomers,sincetherewillbealotofpeoplebrowsingfordeals. Thebottomlineis,asalways,this:bepersonalandpersuasive.Offeragreatdealandyou’llturnyourexistingcustomersintoalargercustomerbase.Onecontactcangeneratemultiplesales.Makesuretofollowupwiththem,offerthemfurtherdiscountsonfutureproducts,andaskforreviews.

Social MediaSocialmediaisuseful,buttherearesomedownsides.It’stimeconsumingtobuildupasocialmediapresenceduetothesheernumberofplatforms,andit’smoredifficulttobuildupanaudienceonsocialmediathanitistodosothroughadvertisingandpromotions.So,it’sprobablynotworthinvestingalotoftimeinrunningasocialmediaprofileforyourbusiness.Youcanifyouwantto,butit’snotasvaluableassomepeoplemightclaim.Ofcourse,ifyoudohaveasuccessfulsocialmediapresencealready,useitasmuchasyoucan. Butwhatifyoudon’thaveasocialmediapresence?Instead,youcanleverageotherpeople’ssocialmedia.Findasuccessfulsocialmediaaccountandoffertopaytheusertoposta

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recommendationforyourproduct,oranimageofyourproduct,withadiscountcode.Letthemproposethepricefirst,ifyoucanaffordtodoso.Otherwise,makeanoffer.Thisstrategywillprobablygooverbetterwithgroupsratherthanindividuals,butdon’tbeafraidtoask.So,findyourtargetdemographicandofferthemcashinordertoborrowtheirsocialmediapresence.It’sfarmoretimeeffectivethanattractingfollowersyourself.

Marketing�MaintenanceThereareafewthingsyoushouldcheckonoverthefirstfewweeksofyourlaunch.Ofcourse,you’llwanttomonitorandtakenoteofyournumberofsales,andyou’llwanttowatchtoseehowmanyfour-andfive-starreviewsyou’regetting.Also,besuretocheckonyoursalesrank--yourgoalshouldbetoreachthetop10,000to5000. Ifanyofthesenumbersenteradecline,fallbackonthestrategieswe’vealreadycovered.Double-downonpayperclickadvertising.Keepdistributingdiscountstomorepeopleandleverageyourexistingcustomers.Ifyoudon’thaveenoughreviews,givebetterdiscountsandbetterincentivesforcustomerstoleavereviews. Trynewwaystogetmoresalesandreviews.Becreativeandtakeadvantageofwhateverpersonalconnectionsandplacesinyourcommunityyouhaveaccessto.Atthispoint,youshouldbedoingeverythingyoucantokeepupwhatyou’veaccomplished.

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Chapter 22: Taking Care of BusinessYou’resuccessfullysellingyourproductsandyou’reatruebusiness!Butthere’smore.Youhavetodeclareyourselfabusinessanddoalltherequisitepaperworkandjumpthroughthelegalhoops.Youalsohavetopaytaxes.You’realsoprobablythinkingabouttrademarkingyourbrand.Ifyou’resellinginternationally,there’sevenmoreyouhavetodo.Thisisallahassle--youdon’twanttowastetimeonitwhenyoucouldbeouttheremarketingyourself.

Butdon’tdespair–thiscanallbemadeeasy.So,inthischapter,we’llseehowtotakethepathofleastresistanceandbecomearegisteredbusinessinthesimplestwaypossible.We’llalsoseehowtoorganizeyourbankaccountstomakeiteasytodotaxeswhenitcomestimetodoso.You’lldothebareminimumofworkbutgetallofthenecessarybenefits.Youcansavetimeandgetbacktorunningyourbusiness.

Structuring�Your�BusinessSoonerorlater,you’regoingtohavetostructureandregisteryourbusiness.Thisislesscomplicatedthanitsounds.Whenyou’refirststartingabusiness,andnotmovingalotofproduct,youdon’tneedtodoverymuchinthisregard.Youdon’tneedtoincorporateorregisterasanLLC,althoughyoucandosointhefuture.Inthebeginning,allyouneedisasoleproprietorship. So,whatisasoleproprietorship?It’salegalstatusthatgetsyouaccesstovariousbusinessservicesandpractices.HavingasoleproprietorshipwillallowyoutogetanEIN,oremploymentidentificationnumber,whichwillallowyoutoreportyourincomeandgetbenefitslikebusinesscheckingaccountsandbusinesscreditcards.AsoleproprietorshipwillalsoallowyoutouseAmazon’staxservices.Inshort,itwillgiveyoueverythingyouneedtorunabusinessonAmazon. It’sfairlysimpletoregisterforasoleproprietorship.Ifyougotoyourstate’sDepartmentofRevenue,itshouldgiveyoudirectionsonhowtocompletetheprocess,andyoucanusuallydoitonline.Ittypicallyonlytakesaboutanhourandahalf.Ratherthannavigatingyourstate’swebsite,youcanjustGooglethenameofyourstateand“soleproprietorship,”andyoushouldfindadirectlinktotheregistrationpage. Additionally,yoursoleproprietorshipappliestoanybusinessyourun.SoevenifyouendupsellingbeyondAmazon.you’llstillhavesomethingvaluablewhenyouregisterforasoleproprietorship.Youcanuseitnomatterhowyou’rerunningyourbusiness.So,gettingasoleproprietorshipisanimportantfirststepinrunningyourbusiness,andyoushoulddoitassoonaspossible. Ifyoudon’thavetime,ordon’twanttoregisterforasoleproprietorshipyourself,youcangoto LegalZoom or Nolo,whichwillcarryouttheregistrationonyourbehalf.Youjusthavetofill

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outafewforms,whichtheywillcheckandforwardtotherelevantgovernmentagencies.Thenthey’llsendyoubacktheresultingdocuments.Thesesitesarevaluabletimesavers,sothere’snoreasontoputoffregistration.Doitassoonasyoucan.

Trademarks�and�PatentsPatentsprotectyourintellectualproperty.Ifyouinnovateandintroduceaproductwitharadicalnewfeature,youwouldpatentthosefeatures.So,inactualfact,youdon’treallyneedapatent.Youonlyneedapatentifyouarecreatingarevolutionarynewproduct,andthetruthisthatyouareprobablysellingsomethingthatplentyofotherpeoplearealsoselling.Neitheryounortheyneedapatentatall;instead,youneedauniquesellingpoint. Trademarks,ontheotherhand,protectyourlogosandslogans.It’sreassuringtothinkthatnobodycanusethebrandingthatyou’vecreated.Butthetruthisthatyouprobablydon’tneedatrademark,either.Peoplewhoaremakingmoremoneythanyoudon’thavethetime,oranythingtogain,fromstealinganewseller’sbranding.They’vealreadyaccomplishedalot,andtheydidn’tgettherebystealing. Theonlypeoplethathaveanincentivetostealyourbrandingaren’tmakinganymoney,andtheyprobablywon’tgetveryfarbytryingtodoso.You’llbefaraheadofthembecauseyou’veactuallyspenttimemarketingyourproductinthemosteffectiveways. Attheveryleast,youdon’tneedatrademark,notatfirst.Onceyoustartmakingseveralthousanddollarsamonthinprofit,itisanappropriatetimetotrademarkyourbrand.However,makesurethatyouactuallyhaveabrandworthtrademarking!Makesureyouhavealogoandsloganthatyou’regoingtostickwithandthatpeopleactuallywant.Abrandisworthnothingunlessyou’vedonethemarketingbehindit. So,untilthen,don’tworryabouttrademarking.Thebottomlineisthatyouhavebetterthingstospendtimeonthandrawinglegalboundariesaroundyourself.Ifallyoudoisbuildlegalfences,you’llhavenothingtoshowforitbutthosefences.So,focusonyourlaunchandfocusongainingsalesandreviews,andafterthat,focusonreachingouttocustomersandrunningaqualitybusiness.

Income TaxNobodylikestopayincometax,buteveryonehastodoit.Remember,thegoodthingabouttaxesisthatifyou’repayingtaxes,thatmeansyou’remakingmoney! Thatdoesn’tmakeitanylessunpleasantwhenitcomestimetofileyourtaxreturn,though.Therearewaysthatyoucansavetimeandhassle.Thebestthingyoucandoistogetabusinesscheckingaccountandbusinesscreditcard.Thatmeansthatyoudon’thavetogothroughyourpersonalaccountseveryyearandtrytofigureoutwhichexpenseswerepersonal

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expensesandwhichexpenseswerebusinessexpenses. Onceyougetyourbusinessaccounts,setrulesforyourselftofollow.Makesurethatyouactuallyspendonthingsyoucanjustifyasbusinessexpensesonthebusinessaccount,ofcourse.Butdon’tspendbusinessexpensesonyourpersonalcardjustbecauseyoukeepithandy.Ifyoudon’tfollowasystem,you’llbebackwhereyoustarted,andattheendoftheyear,you’llhavetoseparateallofyourpersonalandbusinessexpenses. IfyouhaveyourEIN,oremploymentidentificationnumber,you’rereadytogetyourbusinessaccounts.Togetacheckingaccountandabusinesscreditcard,allyouhavetodoisgotoyourbank.YoumightalsowanttosignupforaseparatePayPalaccountforbusiness.Afterthat,it’sjustamatterofredirectingyourAmazonincometothoseaccounts. Additionally,youcanhiresomeonetodotaxesforyou.Onewayistohireapersonalaccountantthatyouknowhowtoworkwithandgetalotoffacetimewith.AnotherwayistouseaservicelikeGreenback,whichwillautomateyourtaxfilingforyou.Someservicesandsomepeoplearebetteratbusinesstaxesthanothers,butthereareplentyofservicestochoosefrom.Don’tbeafraidtospendmoneyonthis;remember,thetimethatyousaveontaxesistimethatyoucanre-investinrunningyourbusiness.

Becoming�an�International�Seller

YoucansellonAmazon.comevenifyoudon’tliveintheUnitedStates.YoucanvisitAmazon.comandfindalistofcountriesthatyoucansellfrom.Ifyouliveinoneofthosecountries,you’repermittedtosellasanInternationalSeller. YoudoneedafewthingstobecomeanInternationalSeller.Firstofall,youneedaUS-basedphonenumber,amailingaddressintheUnitedStates,andaU.S.bankaccount.YoucangetaphonenumberthroughSkype,anaddressthroughmyUS.com,andabankaccountatPayoneer.Allofthiscomesataprice,butit’sanacceptablepricetopayinordertoparticipateinamarketaslargeasAmazon. Alternately,youcansetupabusinessthroughLegalZoom.Thissavesyoualotofeffort,andallyouhavetodoiscontactthemandtellthemthenameofthebusinessyouwanttosellunder.Providethemwithalittlemoreinformation,andthey’lldotherest.

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ConclusionThroughthiscomprehensiveguide,youhavelearntandgainedanunderstandoftheinsidersecretstoestablishingandsuccessfullygrowinganAmazonbusinessaswellasaprivatelabelbrand.Theknowledgethathasbeenpassedovertoyouisdesignedtoallowyoutoestablishyourselfinanichemarketandsetyourselfapartfromcompetitorsofferingsimilaryetsubstandardproducts.

Thisisapowerfulaccomplishmenttohavereachedthisfarinstartingyourownbusiness,youhavelikelymetmanyobstaclesalongthewaybutisthestepsthatyoutakefromherewhichwillbethedrivingforceofyoursuccessandthebaseinwhichyouwillberewardeduponyourachievements.

Throughoutthisguide,youhavediscoveredhowtoidentifypotentialmarketsinneedofinnovationandimprovementoverwhatyourcompetitorshaveoffered.Youhavelearnthowtovalidateanideathroughthevariouschannelsaswellashowtoredesignandrecreateaproducttoaddauniquesellingpositionwhichwillbethebackboneofwhatsetsitapartfromthecompetition.

Fromtherewedealwithnegotiationandcommunicationwithsupplierstoestablishlongtermsuccessfulrelationships.WethenmovedintocreatingyourfirstlistingandhowyouareabletorisetothetopoftheAmazonsearchengineusingtargetedkeywordsandeffectivesalescopy.Thiswasfollowedbycreatingimagestocapturecustomerattentionandhowtoutilizemarketingavenuestocreateprofitableadvertisingcampaigns.

Towardstheendofthisguide,youweregiventhefinalwordsonhowtostructureyourbusinessandestablishlastingsuccessinnotjusttheAmazonmarketplacebutalsoinbuildingabrandthatyourcustomersknowandtrust,allowingyoutocontinuegrowingyourbusinesswellintothefuture.

WewishyouthebestofluckinthisjourneyandrecommendthatyousignuptoAmazon�Code�ProandtakeyourAmazonSellingtothenextlevel!