Hi,

This issue has practical info for both new and experienced sellers.

Most Amazon sellers encounter the same issues. I receive from 2 to 20 questions daily and have found that there are several common questions that are repeatedly asked. Because of that, I've started a new section - Amazon FBA Guide - on jasontayonline to answer these frequently asked questions, cover important topics and explain key issues.

1. Clearing the Confusion of UPC vs Amazon Barcode Label
One of the first of issues for new sellers is the confusion over barcodes. Understanding what UPC barcodes and Amazon barcodes are, their differences, and how to correctly use them when sending products to Amazon for FBA is one of the most common points of confusion for a new seller. I’ve even seen some paid courses where the “gurus” are themselves confused and teach wrong information. Read the guide to codes here: http://www.jasontayonline.com/code-confusion---understanding-upc-and-amazon-barcodes.html

2. Continually Moving Along The Amazon
Blog update - March brought a shocker, my biggest wholesale supplier gave me 1 week's notice that they will no longer be supplying to Amazon resellers! That spurred me to take some action.

I also added an additional Amazon based income stream by opening and running an Amazon Seller Account for an Australian company. My fees are 25% of their Amazon payouts. Read about it on my latest blog post: http://www.jasontayonline.com/blog/continually-building-on-amazon
​
3. Keyword Inspector - A Very Useful New Tool
I have been using Keyword Inspector for the last 3-4 months and it is has helped me create many successful listings with very good performance from Amazon Sponsored Ads. Check out the video on keywordinspector.com to learn more about this powerful tool. I also like that it's pay-as-you-use credits rather than a monthly subscription.

Hi

Starting with this newsletter, I hope to include either or both of these in every email I send you.

1. Useful news, updates, reports.
2. Reviews and recommendations of useful of resources, software, services, apps, extensions, etc. Many will be free and if they aren't, they must be well worth the price in order to make it through my filter.

Updates
You're going to hear me say this repeatedly - TAKE ACTION!

For newbies, I received an email this week from someone who is thinking about starting to sell on Amazon who asked what I think is the biggest obstacle to a newbie. My answer was paralysis by analysis. Many of us want to know too much before we take action. But the reality is you only need to know enough. Enough is what you need to take the first action steps. For me that was going through the first 2 sections of the Proven Amazon Course, asking a few questions in the members' forum and FaceBook group, ordering online, sending the products to a prep company and making my first sale on Amazon.com - all within less than a month. I also found that many uncertainties are cleared only as you actually go through the process of DOING the work. In other words, TAKE ACTION!

For those who have started selling on Amazon but are fairly new, we're well into Q4, which is the hottest selling season. When it comes to selling on Amazon this time of year, if you still have inventory that's waiting to be sent into FBA, you need to send it in ASAP! The 4th quarter is technically Oct to Dec, but in terms of retail sales, I classify Q4 as Nov-Jan.  In fact Jan was my best month during the last Q4 season. I suppose people start to shop for Christmas from Nov through Dec. Lots of people also receive Amazon gift cards for Christmas (for example I give my sister an Amazon Gift Card every Christmas!) which gets spent end Dec through Jan.

What does this mean for you? Continue to send your stuff in! TAKE ACTION!

Resource Recommendations
1. Silent Sales Machine by Jim Cockrum is one of the most straightforward, honest, practical and applicable books when it comes to online business. In fact, some of the most successful people I personally know credit this book as the key that changed their business. The paperback edition is a top selling business book on Amazon where the paperback edition retails for USD29.97. However due to a special arrangement I have with Jim Cockrum, you can download the softcopy absolutely FREE at http://silentsalesmachine.com/jason. So no need to think twice, TAKE ACTION and download it.

2. Another new resource I highly recommend is Proven Performance Inventory (PPI) developed by Brett Bartlett and his team. In case you don't know, Brett started out selling on Amazon with a new family to support and only $400 in capital a few years ago. He now has a team of almost 50 people working for him. Because his family and now his staff's livelihoods depend on his business, Brett has built an online empire with a very risk averse approach of always testing and validating sales data before he invests heavily in any products. PPI was launched 12 days ago and has had extremely good results from the early adopters who have put Brett's strategies into action.

As with my personal policy of only recommending things I would actually use myself, I didn't promote PPI when it launched because I wanted to go through the content, try it myself and check out other's real-life feedback. Now that I have explored it in depth, I can say this is one of those rare online strategy gems that can really take you to another level. I have been applying parts of the strategy to one of my unique products and it has doubled sales in the last 2 weeks. The strategy enables you to find out beforehand exactly what buyers are searching for and the gaps available for you to fill through creating unique bundles or private label products.

PPI also has a closed FaceBook group where Brett, his team and other members have been sharing and helping each other very actively. In order to maintain the quality of service and interaction, sign-ups for PPI will close in less than 24 hours on Wed, Nov 25 at 12 noon EST. To find out more and sign up, go to Proven Performance Inventory. Or if you've been thinking of getting the Proven Amazon Course (PAC), the PAC+PPI combo is a great deal which you can check out here. (You can read my PAC review at http://www.jasontayonline._com/proven-amazon-course-review.html).

Remember, the key is to TAKE ACTION!

All the Best,
Jason Tay
www.jasontayonline.com

Hi,

Just want to bring 2 topics and 2 books that warrant your attention this week.

Free Bestselling Silent Sales Machine eBook
From now Feb 25th 2015, Jim Cockrum is celebrating his birthday by giving away his best selling 'Silent Sales Machine' ebook! This book has been the foundational starting point of thousands of online businesses. This limited promotion is for the ebook/kindle version only (usual $5 for the ebook and $25 for the printed version). The promotion includes full professional audio of the book as well (recently added).

If you are in a country that does not have access to Amazon Kindle, you can still access Kindle content with the following steps:

1. Use a VPN service like TunnelBear or FreeVPN
2. With your VPN on, open a new Amazon account - just make sure you do NOT input your local credit card info and use a US address (get one free from one of the numerous consumer shipping services like Viabox).
3. Download and install the Kindle App on your computer, iPhone, iPad or Android device. If you can't find the app in your device due to the local app/play store restrictions, Google for Kindle app download for PC, iOS or Android.
4. With your VPN on, go to the Silent Sales Machine Amazon Kindle product page here and download the eBook.
5. As a bonus, you will now also be able to access any Kindle book using the same method. If payment is required, simply log in to your other Amazon buying account, purchase a gift card and email it to your new US Amazon account to make payment.

Real Wholesale Sources
Following up from my last email about the Proven Wholesale Sourcing course...
(Update June 2015: Proven Wholesale Sourcing has just been added to the Proven Amazon Course!)

Many non-US based sellers have asked about the need for a US Tax ID/Resale certificate/EIN when applying for wholesale accounts with US suppliers. The simple answer is there is NO need. In the last week I have registered for 3 wholesale accounts and when asked for any of those numbers, I simply provide my Singapore business registration number. This is called a UEN in Singapore or an ABN in Australia. If needed, I explain that we are headquartered in Singapore but all orders can be shipped to our warehouse/freight forwarder in the US (which would be any of the FBA prep companies you use).

The 2 other common questions are how to find wholesale sources and the typical minimum order quantity (MOQ).

I've found that many wholesalers have an MOQ of either 1 case (which could be 6 to 24 units per case) or a dollar amount ranging from $100 to $1,000. Many offer free shipping with a minimum order amount such as $300, $500 or $1,000.

For wholesale sourcing, there are several ways to do it.

The simple FREE way is to Google. Just type product name or brand wholesale. For example: Avengers action figures wholesale.

Another usually free method is to register for a tradeshow. You can easily find all the available tradeshows in the US or UK again with a simple Google search. Pick a tradeshow, register for it and you'll have access to the directory and contact info of all the vendors. All you have to do then is contact them, say you got their infor from XYZ tradeshow and ask for an electronic price sheet (ak an emailed softcopy).

If you want a compiled list of wholesalers in a one-stop shop directory, Ryan Reger has just released the updated 2nd edition of a book he first wrote last year called Real Wholesale Sources that sold thousands of copies. In it is a list of over 200 wholesale companies that you can purchase from for your Amazon, eBay, or even offline business. You can get the updated version for only $9.99 here. I just bought mine yesterday, then realized that this book is one of the resources included in the Proven Amazon Course!

Take action & have a great week!

Jason Tay
www.jasontayonline.com

P.S. As you might have noticed, the Proven Amazon Course includes lots of the resources that I use. That's why I always strongly recommend it as the best one-stop lifetime Amazon selling training which has thousands of dollars worth of resources in one package for a cheap one-time price of $299...and there are continual free updates for life.

Hi

2 quick things for your info, consideration and action.

First, I just wrote about FBA prep services - why they are essential for international FBA sellers as well as why they can be a simple solution for domestic sellers to outsource time and energy sapping labeling and boxing so they can focus on scaling their business.
http://www.jasontayonline.com/amazon-fba-prep-companies.html

If you've missed the previous newsletters, I've also written the following in the last few months:
Payoneer and WorldFirst - solutions for getting paid in the US and UK
How My Amazon FBA Sales increased by 2162% from Jan 2014 to Jan 2015

If you're new to FBA go through this: http://www.jasontayonline.com/my-toolbox.html

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Secondly, is a time sensitive piece of news.

I will be flying over 20,000 miles for 24 hours and spending close to $3,000 to participate in CES3 in September. If you ask my close friends, I am not one to attend conferences at all. In fact I am averse to 99% of conferences. I'm also invited to speak at various conferences all over the world and almost always turn down the invitations. There are only 2 conferences I actually look forward to and CES is one of them. Last year was my first time at CES and it was a literally life-changing experience where I had the chance to not only hear and learn but actually meet the many people I had come to know online in the MySilentTeam community. CES is much more than a business conference, it is a unique gathering of probably the most down-to-earth, honest and helpful community of online entrepreneurs. By the way CES stands for Consult Expand Sell which are the 3 businesses that you can develop. First you start selling, then you expand, then you can provide consulting services.

Below is a question from one of my coaching students in China and my reply.

Q: "I am thinking of joining CES III in September. Do you think it will benefit greatly for a beginner like me?"
A: This is a tough one to answer. It definitely benefited me as I made some fantastic connections and learnt some actionable strategies. However those strategies can learnt by simply watching the video recordings. The main thing is really meeting people and building relationships. For example I bumped into Jim Cockrum in the lobby the night before the conference and ended up going for supper with him, 2 of his 5 kids (one is adopted from China) and John and Esther Bullard. I also bumped into Diana Ratliff and a bunch of people having dinner in the hotel and she ended up doing my PremaTouch.com website. Then I had breakfast with Todd Lammi who just sold $63,000 last month alone (Apr2015) doing FBA part-time. Also had a meal with Bob Willey who then recommended me as a coach to Jim (I think). Went on a scouting trip with Bob & Kat Simpson, who then had me on her radio show. Went scounting with Chris Green. Met Brett Bartlett and Dean Soto who are helping me create a private label product now, etc. Had breakfast with the CEO of Seller Labs who I now use for feedback. Became friends with Ryan Reger and his wife Melane who I am now working with on several FBA and social projects. Met Lance Wolf, Barrington McIntosh and Duane Malek and got to thank them for sowing into my FBA journey. Met Eric and Jennifer Hardwick who went on to help with PremaTouch.com. Met Chris Leake who is a phenomenal Jim Cockrum Coaching student who grossed over $93,320.80 in 30 day sales last December and also spends alot of time in the mission field. Met Danni Ackerman who helped me set up on Etsy. Met Jason Miles who is an expert on social media marketing and published numerous bestsellers on Kindle and has since shared many of his resources with me. I could go on...

So was it worth my flying around the world last year to CES2? I should think so! And I've already got my seat and booked my hotel room for CES3 this year!

Get the details and register for CES3 here.

Note that tickets open for sale on May 11th at 12 noon Eastern time. Why is the date and time important? Because tickets sold out in less than a day when registration opened last year and everyone who went last year is super looking forward to this year's event. Plus last year there were only 6,000 members in the MySilentTeam Facebook Group but right now there are 14,222 members, so expect tickets to be sold out in a flash.

That's all for now... I'm gonna get busy prepping to contribute to Ryan Reger's Private Label The Easy Way Mentoring Group.

Have a great week!

Jason Tay
www.jasontayonline.com

PS. If you are a Jim Cockrum Coaching student you should have received a special email invite to pre-register for CES3.

Hi

I wanted to take some time to share 2 things with you. Firstly, I recently wrote a detailed blog post comparing my Amazon sales for January 2014 with Jan 2015 and shared 3 simple steps that contributed to the 2,162% increase in sales from $962.56 to $21,771.47. 

This post has received tremendous positive feedback. Such as the one here that was shared in the Mastermind group that I'm part of: "Just read Jason's blog post and wanted to make sure you all saw it. Excellent post! Great information. We might be aware of these ideas but Jason, you have really brought them to the forefront of my mind with compelling reasons. Thanks so much!!"

Even Skip McGrath, who I consider a true great at online retail, mentioned this post in his latest newsletter saying: "Jason Tay is a prolific and successful Amazon seller. Last week he did an excellent blog post that we can all learn from...and is well worth reading if you sell on Amazon." I'm humbled that he even read my blog let alone found that he had something to learn from it!

Secondly, I would like to highlight a time-sensitive piece of news. Proven Private Label (PPL) has just been added to the Proven Amazon Course (PAC). As a result, the price of PAC will be increased significantly at the end of this month. I don't know what the price increase will be, but I do know that PAC was already a tremendous value even before PPL was added. IMHO PAC has been way underpriced and Jim Cockrum could could easily charge at least 2 to 3 times more. The price has not changed since I bought it in Oct 2013 even though a slew of updates is continually added to PAC. For example Proven Wholesale Sourcing will be added in about 2 months. A good thing about PAC is the low cost, one-time purchase provides a lifetime ofproven sourcing and selling strategies instead of the expensive, hyped-up internet marketing ideas many "gurus" peddle.

Click here to read my latest blog post on COMPARING AMAZON SALES FROM JAN 2014 AND JAN 2015 - RESULTS AND LESSONS LEARNT

Click here to find out more about and purchase PAC which includes PPL now at $247. (I'm guessing it will go up by at least $50 or more once March ends)

Or read my mini review of why I say PAC is the most important investment I have ever made in my life at http://www.jasontayonline.com/my-toolbox.html.

Wishing You All the Best!

Jason Tay
www.jasontayonline.com

Update: Proven Wholesale Sourcing has been added as a module in the Proven Amazon Course (PAC). You can access this excellent module as a standalone for $97 or get the much better value deal with PAC.

Hi,

One of the most common questions people ask me is where to find profitable inventory. Personally I have 3 sourcing streams - Online Arbitrage (OA), Wholesale and Private Label (PL). Online arbitrage is low risk but can seem like looking for a needle in a haystack and if you buy clearance or on sale items you can't replenish your inventory and have to start treasure hunting all over again. On the other hand, private label is high risk and requires a lot more capital, research and planning with no guarantee of success.

I was feeling burnt out after 4 months of growing sales from a few hundred to between $6,000-$8,000 through online arbitrage, which is when I decided to look at wholesale sourcing, for products that can be reordered easily over and over again. In about 8 months, I opened over 10 wholesale accounts and products from those wholesale suppliers have tripled my Amazon sales! Wholesale sourcing is also my favorite as it takes the least time and effort to scale once the initial work of finding and opening an account is done. (Fyi, at the moment OA accounts for about 30%, PL 10% and Wholesale a whopping 60% of my sales)

Earlier this week I attended the "live" webinar preview of Proven Wholesale Sourcing and literally felt the excitement welling up within me as I saw the content that is going to be covered. The approach is very much in line with my own to wholesale sourcing and I am looking forward with great anticipation to jump into the "live" sessions which I am sure will sharpen my wholesale sourcing skills. That in turn should help me achieve the goal of doubling my 2015 sales from last year.

If you would like to venture into wholesale sourcing, check this out now, because the first "live" session starts today in a few hours at 7pm EST (8am on Friday for me here in Singapore).

Happy Wholesaling!

Jason Tay
www.jasontayonline.com


P.S. If you can't make it for the timings of the "live" training sessions, the recordings will be uploaded about 2 days after each session. You also get permanent access to the closed Facebook group with the wholesale trainers.


P.P.S If you aren't ready to pay for the course at the moment, good news for Proven Amazon Course (PAC) members, the recordings will be added to PAC in about 4-6 months but with no access to the Wholesale Facebook group.

P.P.P.S If you are a coaching client of Jim Cockrum Coaching, your coaching fee includes lifetime access to this and all resources/courses produced by My Silent Team/Jim Cockrum and you should have already received the private link from me to join in the "live" sessions.