Another year, another dollar... Or another billion dollars, that is. It’s nearly that time of year again, where Prime Members open their wallets, delivery services scramble, and Amazon Sellers thrive.
Saying that Prime day 2020 was a huge success is an understatement. According to reports from last year, Amazon announced that third-party sellers on its marketplace earned more than $3.5 billion, which is a clear testament to how successful Amazon Sellers could be on Prime Day, should they seize the opportunity.
Amazon has not set the dates for when Prime Day will be; however, there is some speculation for mid-July. That said, Summer is approaching, and if you’re looking into participating in this year’s Prime Day, you ought to get your promotions, listings, and inventory straightened out ahead of time so that you, too, could thrive on Prime Day.
Mark Your Calendars
Deadline to Submit Lightning Deals
Deadline to Submit Coupons
FBA Inventory Cut-Off Dates for Sellers
Prepare Your Prime Day Objectives
Plan your Promotions: Get familiar with the different types of promotions you can take advantage of during Prime Day to see which one suits your sales goals best. There are various types of deals to profit from, from Lightning Deals, Coupons, Prime Exclusive Discounts, and more.
Optimize your Listings: Prime Day will bring in more shoppers than usual, so make sure your product page is well optimized to grab their attention and reel them in. Your product images need to be in tip-top shape. Assume that your photos are viewed before the text is read, and get those high-quality, value-adding images uploaded.
Outside Amazon Promotions: Promote your deals outside of Amazon - whether that be to an influencer popular in your niche, website promotions, social media, or email. Using these channels to share your Prime Day Promos could drive more traffic to your Amazon listing and increase your chance for sales.
Run PPC Campaigns: Anticipate the crowd coming through for Prime Day and be wary of the budgets you set on your PPC campaigns. Ensure your campaigns are prepared for higher traffic to determine advertising performance better.
Having a clear idea of how you’re going to approach Prime Day will contribute significantly to a winning strategy. Ensure that you’re on track with Amazon deadlines and know your goals for this deal day to set your brands up for success.
THIS WEEK'S BITES
IMPORTANT DATES
April 5, 2021 - Carrier Names Required: You will be required to provide the carrier name (that is, the carrier-code field) when you confirm shipments via bulk feeds, APIs, or integrators. Some of the commonly used carrier names are USPS, UPS, and FedEx.
May 3, 2021 - Upcoming changes in shipment confirmation: Amazon will validate tracking details (including the carrier name and tracking ID) for all seller-fulfilled orders and show warnings for invalid tracking details.
May 31, 2021 - Extended disbursement reserve period: Sellers who continue to use a bank account from a non-participating PSP after this date will be subject to an extended disbursement reserve period of up to 21 days after the latest estimated delivery date.
June 21, 2021 - Update to Amazon US referral and FBA fees: Amazon is making modest increases (about 2-3% on average) to fulfillment fees, in line with or below industry averages. We will also reduce certain fees, like the returns processing fee.
July 15, 2021 - Disbursements stop for non-approved PSP to sellers using non-participating PSPs until they switch to a participating PSP or use a bank account directly issued by a deposit-taking bank
NEW ON AMAZON
Limited understanding of a product can often lead to one of two situations - a product return or a missed sales opportunity. Neither one of these scenarios are ideal, and one of them could result in a negative review. Fortunately, Amazon has released a feature to sellers called the Product Documents Program.
What is the Product Documents Program
This new feature allows sellers to upload supplementary products to their product listing pages to inform shoppers about their products better. Documents could be in the form of a manual, product guide, brochure, etc. Having this additional product information could be the deciding factor for shoppers to select your product over a competitor.
"Brand owners can now upload product documents like installation manuals, compatibility guides, and troubleshooting guides so that they will be available to customers on the product detail pages. Customers will benefit from this content pre-purchase to make shopping decisions and post-purchase to make the most of the products that they buy. Brands can reduce customer service calls and product returns, and increase customer satisfaction via this program that is free and open to all brand owners."
Here are some of the documents that this new feature supports:
Remember, there are a few restrictions and guidelines as to what can be featured on these documents. Read up on the specifics of what can or can't be included as part of Amazon's Product Document Program.
TRENDS TO FOLLOW
We’ve all come across those stubborn ASINs that simply refuse to sell, and inventory sits there for what seems to feel like forever. No matter what efforts you put into it, whether it be a price chance, promotions, advertising - it simply won’t budge. Solution? Amazon Outlet.
What is an Amazon Outlet?
Amazon Outlet is an excellent strategy for sellers to sell through any excess or overstock inventory. It provides a solution for sellers who want to get rid of sitting stock and still make some money. To Amazon shoppers, this is a great place to get outstanding deals and items highly discounted. Win-Win. During the 2019 beta for this program, a survey was conducted, and 77% of sellers participating saw an increase in their unit sales after using Outlet. 38% of those surveyed doubled their sales, so it’s no doubt that this strategy works.
To participate in Amazon Outlet, your ASINs need to meet the following criteria:
If you have eligible ASINs, you’re good to go! Reduce your excess inventory, and avoid annoying fees accumulated from sitting stock. Watch your sales soar with Amazon Outlet and clear out problem inventory in a jiffy.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
We all know the importance of product reviews, but let's not neglect Seller Feedback's role in this marketplace. Seller feedback displays the customer's experience with you as a seller, unlike product reviews meant to judge the product's quality. Having a high seller rating is extremely important because it shows you as a reliable, responsive, and helpful seller if anything goes wrong or if there are any questions or concerns with their order. Always remember to monitor your seller feedback and to address negative feedback ASAP. Positioning yourself as a reliable storefront will increase new and repeat customers' likelihood.
Use these tips to start cleaning up your seller feedback and addressing customer concerns!