If you’ve never used Amazon FBA before, it can seem pretty complex. However, once you start working with the program, it gets incredibly simple to sell products online for a profit. We’ll cover the basics of how to sell on Amazon FBA so that you can determine if its right for you and your business.
How Amazon FBA Works
- You send Amazon your products, which are then stored in their fulfillment centers.
- Your products and inventoried and sorted.
- A customer places an order on the website or app for your product. Amazon handles the transaction through automated processes.
- Your product is picked off the shelves of the fulfillment center and packed then shipped to the customer.
- Your customer receives the product and Amazon follows up with them to make sure everything went smoothly.
Your Role as FBA Seller
From what we’ve just described, it sounds like Amazon does all the work. While they do take care of a lot of the time-consuming tasks, you do have a significant role as the seller. As the FBA seller, you’ll have to:
- Pick Your Products/Decide What to Sell
- Keep Inventory in Stock
- Promote and Advertise
First Steps to Selling on Amazon FBA
Step 1: Open an Amazon Account
In order to become a seller on Amazon, you’ll have to open an account at services.amazon.com. The steps for opening an account are very simple. You’ll click the link and move through the steps they have laid out of you on the website. You will eventually reach a step that allows you to select between two different seller plans.
The Individual Seller plan means that Amazon will charge you $0.99 per sale on every item. If you’re planning on starting out slow and aren’t sure what volume of products you’ll be selling on Amazon, you may want to choose this plan.
The Professional Seller plan charges $39.99/month and is ideal for sellers who plan to sell 40 plus items per month. It does not require a fee per sale like the Individual plan.
After you’ve selected your plan, you’ll fill out all of the required information. When you’re done, you are officially an Amazon seller.
Step 2: Finding Products
There are various methods for finding the right products to sell. These strategies are laid out in detail in Beau’s online course, so we won’t go into too much detail here. However, it’s important to go after items that are in high demand so that you know they’re going to sell and can avoid any long term inventory fees from Amazon.
Step 3: Keep Track of Fees and Inventory
When you become a seller, you’ll be faced with various fees from Amazon. You should always use an Amazon FBA calculator to understand the fees for each product you’ll be listing so that you can price it correctly while still remaining competitive.
One of the fees that can be extremely frustrating for sellers who don’t pay attention is the long term inventory fees. While you’re charged a regular monthly inventory fee from Amazon, they will charge you another fee on top of that for items that sit in their warehouse for longer than six months. This is because space is in high demand, and they need it for products that are flying out the doors.
