7 Top tips for selling on Amazon in 2023
Amazon is the biggest marketplace in the world, so it’s not surprising that so many e-commerce businesses have an Amazon store. It’s the first place most people go when they want to buy something online, but its popularity means that selling there keeps getting more competitive.
There are millions of Amazon sellers worldwide, and you’re trying to get seen and make sales within that crowd. It’s not easy, but don’t give up — you can succeed in selling on Amazon in 2023 and build a profitable e-commerce business, as long as you know the right tactics.
Here are 7 tips for succeeding in selling on Amazon in 2023.
1. Make the most of SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
SEO keywords are what help you appear at the top of Amazon’s results page, so that people looking for e.g. yoga mats buy from you and not from one of the several thousand other sellers.
But SEO is never a once and done thing. You need to keep doing keyword research to see how word choices have changed. Amazon is the best place for keyword research — type “yoga mat” into the search bar, and see what Amazon suggests to complete the phrase.
Include top keywords in your product title, but don’t overdo it because Amazon doesn’t approve of keyword stuffing. Instead, use long tail keywords like “yoga mat for men” or “yoga mat 1 inch thick” in other parts of your product description.
2. Double down on customer service
Price matters, but it’s not everything. People want a good shopping experience where they can find the information they want and receive their orders on time. You need to be transparent about your products and delivery times, and answer questions quickly.
Most importantly, don’t disappoint customers by running out of stock. Nothing is more frustrating than placing an order and then getting a notification that the product isn’t available, so keep your inventory high enough to meet demand.
Payoneer offers a Capital Advance program which gives Amazon sellers access to working capital, in exchange for a small percentage of your future payouts. This helps you fill any gaps in your cash flow and maintain the right stock levels.
3. Collect reviews
Reviews and recommendations are extremely important to people’s purchase decisions. They know there are loads of sellers out there, and they want to buy from someone who is reliable and trustworthy, so they look to reviews to help them. 98% of consumers say reviews are essential for helping them decide whether or not to buy from an online store.
The more reviews and ratings you have, the better. People are more likely to buy from a store with over 100 reviews than one with under 20. Amazon also uses reviews as a factor for the buy box, so encourage customers to rate your service and leave a review.
4. Prepare for winter holiday shoppers
You want to prepare early for the winter holiday shopping season. People start shopping sooner than you think, and if your winter stock is ready, you’ll be well placed to boost sales. Suppliers also push their prices up as winter approaches, so if you place orders sooner you can offer bigger discounts than your competition. Plus, when you order early you don’t risk your shipment arriving late and causing you to miss out on sales.
One thing that holds sellers back from early orders is cash flow. They’re waiting for revenue so they can use it to pay suppliers and place their winter orders. Payoneer’s Capital Advance can give you the funds you need to expand your inventory before the rush and capture more winter shopping profits.
5. Improve your images
People are more likely to buy if your product image is sharp and shows the product from every angle, because they feel more confident that they’ll get the item they expect. It can be worth buying a better camera so you can take HD photos.
Last year, Amazon added Product Videos to their seller tools. 88% of consumers say they were convinced to buy a product after watching a video, and 73% prefer to watch a video than read a product description, so using videos can help. You only need a simple 360-degree video showing the item from all angles or demonstrating the product in use.
6. Expand into new marketplaces
Amazon has 20 marketplaces around the world, including the US, Canada, Singapore, Australia, Japan, France, Germany, and more.
Because they all use the same Amazon infrastructure, it’s easy to add another store in a new country. You just need to research local shopping preferences and adapt your inventory to match. Using Capital Advance to scale into another country or region can enlarge your reach to more shoppers and grow your revenue.
7. Use FBA
Fulfilment by Amazon, or FBA, is Amazon’s in-house fulfillment and shipping service. If you use FBA, you’ll be able to offer Prime users free shipping, and take advantage of Amazon’s help in managing fulfillment and returns.
Time and again, research has shown that people prefer free shipping to a moderate discount on the price itself. FBA is an easy way to include free shipping as part of your great customer experience.
You can make more sales on Amazon
Selling on Amazon can be challenging, but when you take steps like improving your SEO, images, and customer service levels, offering free shipping, getting more reviews, planning ahead for busy shopping times, and scaling into new areas, you can see your Amazon business take off.
