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jasontayonline Blog

Chapter 11: Continually Building On Amazon

31/3/2016

14 Comments

 
 When I first started on the entrepreneurial journey, I wanted to build a business on the principle of exponentially scalable income streams.

At the same time my business objective is not to be super rich but rather to be self-sustaining so I can live my lifestyle of choice, including having flexibility of time for family and to help others. My business streams have been doing well enough, so I have not been very focused on growing my Amazon business for several months. Last month I received a little kick in the "a".  My number 1 wholesale supplier gave 1 week's notice that they were no longer selling to Amazon resellers because they have decided to sell directly on Amazon themselves. The bad news provided a much needed jolt.

I was also reminded of another successful seller I know who tries to add 20 new SKUs ever month.

So I took ACTION and the result is I created 8 new replenishable listings in 1 week - 4 SKUs from an existing private label supplier, 3 SKUs from a wholesale account and 1 bundle combining a private label with a wholesale product that I currently sell over 100 units of a month. As I write this, 3 have been received, 1 has started selling, 4 are en-route to fulfilment centers and 1 is being processed by the supplier.

One tool has been really useful for helping to decide what to sell, and finding keyword search terms to optimise listings and sponsored ads - Keyword Inspector. You can have a look at the video to understand how that works. Essentially you spy on a listing's search terms, which shows you what buyers are looking for. You find gaps where there go out to source product and create bundles relevant to those search terms to meet that demand.

While the above was happening, I also landed a new client whom I will work with on what the Proven Amazon Course calls Product Partnering. The client is an Australian company and I am working with them to launch, manage and optimise their Amazon sales. Payment terms are 25% of all Amazon payouts, making this completely performance based - the client pays nothing till they get sales (a strong selling point that proves we are confident about getting results) and the more I help them sell, the more I get paid. It's a great way to build an additional income stream for those with Amazon selling experience and a working knowledge of how to effectively thrive on Amazon. To learn more about the Proven Product Partnering Course click here. It's also included in the Proven Amazon Course (PAC), so you already have access to it, if you own PAC, which is the much better deal.
14 Comments
Shawn
8/4/2016 10:43:18 am

Hi Jason,

i live in Singapore and i am trying to start selling in Amazon. big challenge of course.
i spent hours and hours reading. However i can't seems an answer to a basic question.
If i order for Alibaba/China supplier. Do i get them to ship to amazon directly ? and who will receive the goods at Amazon ?
Do i create a shipping plan in seller central before shipping to Amazon ? Am i suppose to ask the supplier UPC for the product after placing the order ? seems like a ton of question

Thks
Shawn

Reply
Jason Tay link
9/4/2016 08:29:18 am

Hi Shawn,
Based on your questions, it looks like you are completely new to selling on Amazon and therefore I would strongly advice against ordering and shipping from Alibaba/China to Amazon for a start. It is fine to do that, but best after you are familiar with the process and requirements of FBA.

1. It is generally not advisable to ship products from China straight to Amazon for two reasons. One, it's best to inspect them first. For example I sent my latest my shipments from China to FBA Inspection (a prep service) who found that 83 of my product packages were damaged and I managed to get the supplier to FedEx 100 replacement packages at no additional cost to the prep service so they could replace all the damaged boxes. If I had sent straight to Amazon then those 83 would not be sellable and either disposed of or returned to me by Amazon - a huge waste/extra cost. Secondly, I incurred customs duty on the shipment which by default is billed to the consignee (aka recipient). If it had gone to Amazon, their policy is they will NEVER pay any duty on your behalf meaning the shipment won't clear customs and be returned to sender at your expense! However my prep company paid the customs duty on my behalf and I simply reimbursed them through PayPal. I almost always recommend that new sellers start with a OA (online arbitrage), meaning sourcing from online store in the US and shipping to a prep service for a few rounds before they try wholesale or private label. This process has 2 purposes, firstly to learn how to analyze what profitability, sales velocity (sales volume over time such as per month or per day), and competition (other sellers) and secondly to be familiar with FBA labeling and prep requirements and develop a workflow with 1 or 2 prep companies.

2. Yes, you must create a shipping plan before sending anything to Amazon FBA so they can assign which warehouse your shipments are assigned to and then you can download the PDF file of the shipping label. You must paste this on every shipping carton as the barcode/QR code on the labels are how Amazon identify the goods as yours. Otherwise it will be just an unidentifiable box amongst the millions they receive everyday. All shipments meaning EVERYTHING sent to Amazon must have an Amazon box label (aka shipping label) affixed.

3. You can buy UPC codes on eBay. I buy 1000 at a time from levectec or LeadingEdgeCodes. The price usually ranges from $1.99 to $3.99 for 1000. Please read my guide on code confusion in the Amazon FBA Guide section form the menu (http://www.jasontayonline.com/code-confusion---understanding-upc-and-amazon-barcodes.html).

4. The Amazon FBA 101 page also under the Amazon FBA Guide, will help provide guidance on the steps when starting out: http://www.jasontayonline.com/amazon-fba-101.html

Lastly lots of these questions are asked and answered by our Singapore and International FBA sellers group on FaceBook. Feel free to join in at https://www.facebook.com/groups/MySilentTeamSG/.

Reply
Shawn
9/4/2016 10:09:25 pm

Hi Jason,

Thanks for responding. Yes, i am a complete newbie.
your suggestion on Starting with OA is great. BTW, should we pay for services that provide you the top 10 best product for OA ?

Jason Tay link
10/4/2016 10:19:43 am

That's a question where there is no straightforward answer! Yes and no. There are many list providers and each provider might also have different lists (sent to 10, 25, 250, free unlimited, etc.). The main problem with ALL lists is that once they are sent to a bunch of subscribers whether it is 25 or 250 people or unlimited free, the competition will increase and therefore selling price on Amazon will drop. Simple demand and supply.

However I have found lists to be useful to discover stores that might have products for arbitrage (buy low, sell high). I used to subscribe to a couple of lists. In 2014 I started with a cheap list that went to 250 people and found that practically everything was loss making because the time 50 other people from the list started selling the same thing! Then I tried a $198/month list that was limited to 25 subscribers. That was a bit better. Finally I shared a VA with a 5-7of my mastermind members for $60/month each which we all eventually stopped.

Can you succeed with OA, lists and VAs? Yes, but it is pretty tedious and not my preference. I do have a grandmother in my mastermind who was wheelchair bound for 6 months after a fall. During the 6 months stuck at home she started OA and grew to $30,000/month is sales from OA without any list.

More important than lists is to learn the 3 fundamental skills that will be applicable to all Amazon related selling and sourcing whether OA, wholesale or PL - learning to analyze:
1. Price and profit
2. Sales velocity
3. Competition

That is too long to explain here. It's usually the foundation of what I cover in coaching and takes 2-5 sessions depending on the student's experience and effort. I might write a post about it the AMAZONO FBA GUIDE section of www.jasontayonline.com later this month or in May.

Reply
ukulelemononoke
6/5/2016 11:58:22 am

Hi Jason,
Your posts have been very helpful for amazon newbies like me. This may not be relevant to this post as I have questions about Payoneer and Worldfirst services.
I am interested to start with OA and have already set up pro seller account as well as Worldfirst, to have the Amazon sales payment to go into the worldfirst account. I intend to apply for payoneer to use the mastercard for my purchases in US since most US sites only accepts US credit/debit cards with US addresses. In a nutshell, I intend to only use worldfirst to receive payments from Amazon and payoneer to make payments such as purchases and to prep centers. Does this make sense? or should i only use only payoneer for receiving and making payments?

Ukulelemononoke

Reply
Jason Tay link
17/5/2016 04:57:41 pm

Hi Ukulelemononoke

Yes, it makes sense to use Payoneer for payments. However you will need to load the Payoneer Mastercard before you can use to pay for purchases as it's a debit card. So in my case, I alternate Amazon disbursements between my WorldFirst and Payoneer accounts that are both saved in my Seller Central Account settings. It's explained in the section on this site. Go to REVIEWS>Payoneer vs WorldFirst.

Reply
ben
16/5/2016 11:34:47 pm

Hi Jason,

Is it possible to sell as an individual seller instead of registering a company in Singapore for Amazon FBA PL? Also, Singapore is under countries and Currencies supported by Amazon Currency Converter for Disbursement. Do I still need to go through an intermediary party like world first and payoneer to get the money paid from Amazon? Really appreciate your help

Reply
Jason Tay link
17/5/2016 04:51:33 pm

Hi Ben,

You can register for and Amazon Seller Account as an individual or company. Then you also have to select either an Individual or Professional Seller Account. Do not confuse the 2 different things! Although Singapore is supported I still choose to always use WorldFirst when I want the disbursement to reach me in Singapore in SGD and Payoneer when I want to keep it in USD to use for supplier payments. The main reason for WorldFirst instead of using Amazon's currency convertor is to save on currency conversion fees. Amazon's exchange rate (~4%) is about double that of WorldFirst (~2%), so for example for every $10,000 disbursement I will lose $200 in exchange fees to Amazon. For more details, please refer to my review page: http://www.jasontayonline.com/payoneer-vs-worldfirst.html

Reply
Shawn
21/5/2016 09:25:42 pm

Hi Jason,

How do you deal with tax setting in seller central ? do you collect tax from buyer ? it is very complicated stuff . PAC don't seems to highlight this.

Reply
Jason Tay link
21/5/2016 10:49:55 pm

You can leave that field blank unless you want to pay Amazon to collect sales tax on your behalf. Sales tax is a whole other minefield of a topic that is to complicated to answer here and best decided after you do your own due diligence. There is a webinar in PAC about sales tax with a US tax company called Taxjar.

Reply
Sally
29/6/2016 09:03:58 am

Hi Jason, I like to know if it is better to have experiences in niche site before progressing to be Amazon seller? I have very little experiences and success with niche sites and wonder if this matter if I want to be a Amazon seller.

Reply
Jason Tay link
29/6/2016 12:35:02 pm

Hi Sally,

Selling physical products on Amazon is completely separate and different from niche site marketing. You do not need any niche site experience to sell on Amazon.

I do both and have interacted with hundreds of people in these areas - Affiliate marketing through niche site is much more difficult to succeed in compared to selling physical products as a seller on Amazon.

I have earned low 4 figures total after 5 years with several niche sites. I got the Proven Amazon Course at the end of 2013 and by end 2014 had sold well over 6 figures of physical products on Amazon.

Selling on Amazon also helped me make full upfront payment in cash for a new vehicle (if you're in Singapore you'll know how much that costs!) in Dec 2015.

My own sister found out about PAC last month and asked me about it. I told her to get it with my 100% recommendation cos the ROI has been far better than my Bachelors and Masters.

Reply
Jeff
14/3/2017 08:13:15 pm

Hi Jason,

I've been researching on selling on Amazon and your blog is very informative. Thanks a lot!

May I seek your advise as to whether I should register a business when starting or I should simply register under my personal name?

In your view, much much capital would I need for s start?

Thanks!

Reply
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  • About
  • Amazon FBA Guide
    • How to Register an Amazon Seller Account
    • Amazon FBA 101
    • Amazon Professional vs Individual Selling Plans
    • How to Sell On Amazon From Outside the US
    • Amazon FBA Prep Companies
    • Best Tools for Amazon Sellers
    • Code Confusion - Understanding GTIN, UPC and Amazon Barcodes
    • Amazon FBA Fees Explained
    • Amazon Coupons vs Prime Exclusive Discounts
    • How to Create Amazon Coupons
    • How to Increase Amazon Sales - Traffic, Click-throughs and Conversions
    • Optimizing FBA Inbound Shipping
    • Product Images and Photography
    • Amazon and Taxes - Income Tax, Sales Tax, and VAT
    • Amazon PPC Advertising
    • Insurance for Amazon Sellers
    • Amazon Seller FAQ
  • Reviews
    • Payoneer vs WorldFirst vs TransferWise vs OFX vs Airwallex
    • Helium 10 Review and Discount Codes
    • SKUdrop Review
    • Proven Amazon Course Review
    • Amazing Selling Machine Review
    • Amazon Advantage Review - How to Optimize Copywriting for Amazon Listings
    • Amazon FBA Reimbursement Guide Review
    • Rebate Programs
  • Training
    • Amazon Seller Live Training
  • Blog
  • Newsletters
  • Q&A
  • SSF2024