You’re not selling on Amazon as a last resort. And you’re certainly not selling on Amazon simply for fun. No, you’re selling on Amazon because it’s one of the most profitable and visible locations to showcase your product line.
But you probably didn’t realize just how hard it was to manage your Amazon presence.
We can’t necessarily blame you. Despite the fact that we’re fervent Amazon evangelists, we also realize that it can come with an entirely unique set of challenges for vendors. After all, its focus since day one has always been firmly with the customer in mind. And while we also can’t fault them for maintaining that focus, we’re also aware that it can sometimes leave sellers behind.
Some of us have close to two decades worth of experience in selling on Amazon. And in that time, we’ve shared some of the same frustrations you feel about their constantly changing approach to vendors. Here’s some of the top reasons why managing your Amazon business on your own can be an uphill battle.
1. 200 Million Visits A Month—200 Million Problems
When you stop to think of it, the sheer size of Amazon alone would make anyone stop dead in their tracks. While they themselves have always kept their traffic a secret, most sources indicate the number is close to 200 million unique visits a month. And with over 8.2 million active sellers, what could possibly go wrong?
Anything and everything. Order fulfillment. Inventory management. Advertising. Supply chain delivery. Strategic placement. Communication. Sales management. Optimization. And competition. Over $87 billion worth of competition.
2. Policies Change Faster Than You Think
Guidelines and protocol on Amazon change so rapidly it can be hard to keep up with. And to make matters worse, they’re not always active in informing sellers of these changes. In fact, some of them have been rolled out completely unannounced, leaving many vendors entirely in the dark until it’s too late!
Many vendors don’t always have the time to keep up to date with the latest changes Amazon makes on a seemingly monthly basis. But many of those policy changes can directly affect your sales tactics. Violating just one of them could be grounds for account termination—even if you were entirely unaware of the change. Outside agencies, on the other hand, make it a point to keep up with the latest changes and can help make sense of how they affect your sales and marketing strategization.
3. You Don’t Have The Time To Optimize Your Amazon Presence
Nor do we blame you! You have the big picture in mind, not the day to day minutiae of how you can better optimize your eCommerce platform.
But jJust as quickly as policies can change on Amazon, so do new tools and solutions that can help drive both visibility and conversions. But they may not always be better suited for your business. A qualified digital agency with a proven track record will know just what Amazon tools are aligned with your mission and what solutions work best, regardless of your size.
4. Amazon Is Not A Rational Marketplace
If you thought trying to understand how SEO ranks on Google was fun, try understanding how Amazon’s a9 algorithm works.
Amazon didn’t just become the largest digital marketplace simply based on customer focus alone. They had to set themselves apart from their competitors, which meant developing their own search engine. But this also meant strategization and tactics which rank on other search-driven platforms aren’t going to achieve the same results on Amazon. It’s not just an entirely different playing field. It’s an entirely different ballgame.
5. You Need Results
You may need to justify your ROI, but just how are you measuring it?
Were you aware that PPC can bring as much as a 200 percent ROI? Were you aware that Amazon even offers it? There’s a host of conversion-driven features on Amazon that many businesses still remain entirely unfamiliar with. But failing to integrate them into your marketing campaigns doesn’t just affect your sales. It affects your ability to navigate the digital landscape. Amazon’s share in the eCommerce marketplace isn’t going to be changing any time soon. And as eCommerce is poised to grow to 17 percent of all retail sales in the U.S. alone by 2022, it’s not a question of riding the waves. It’s a question of knowing how to keep your head above the water.
Color More Lines provides white glove, global account management of your ecommerce platforms so mission-driven companies can focus on new product development, branding and growth strategies. Find out more at Color More Lines.