If you're selling a product online — whether it's a physical product or an ebook — you just about have to be on Amazon.
There's no way around it.
Even if you have a beautiful website of your own that showcases all your awesome products, people in a buying mood will often to straight to Amazon first.
So to play the ecommerce game, you've got to master Amazon too.
If you're new to online retail, it can get a little confusing.
There are quite a few sneaky little pitfalls lurking in the shadows, just waiting to trip you up and tank your profit margins.
And when they get you, you end up wondering what you're doing wrong, and why you're not making the money you thought you'd make.
Most of the time, these problems are totally accidental, too.
It can take a while to really learn the ropes of Amazon selling.
In a recent blog post — part of a longer series about how to sell on Amazon — ecommerce platform Shopify lists some of the most common things beginners do wrong.
Product Misrepresentation
A study by Shotfarm found that 87% of consumers are unlikely to shop with a brand again after purchasing an item misrepresented but its product description, and 42% of US consumers have returned something due to discrepancies in product descriptions.
Avoidable Out-of-Stocks
Unless there is a supply shortage on your end, going out of stock kills your momentum, rankings, and sales potential.
FBA short-term storage fees are cheap, especially for small products, and in almost every case it is worth having excess inventory available at Amazon Fulfillment centers to buffer spikes in demand.
There’s also the backup option of Fulfillment by Merchant. Do what you can to avoid going out of stock.
Not Responding to Customer Inquiries
You have 24 hours to respond to a customer, and there are automated tools out there that can help you with at least providing an initial response.
If you do not respond in a timely manner to customer and Amazon inquiries, you risk getting negative feedback as a seller and to your product.
If you are going out of town or unable to be responsive for a short period of time, update your listings to vacation mode and have someone else jump in and ensure that customer inquiries are being responded to.
You can read about more misconceptions, myths, and pitfalls concerning Amazon sales over at the Shopify blog.
CHALLENGE Yourself to Profit!
Free Download: Build Your Profit-Generating Online Business With This Free Blueprint
Sign Up, follow the easy steps and You'll get the tactics, strategies & techniques needed to create your online profit stream. It's free!
