Amazon is a marketplace that gives you access to millions of potential customers. That’s why selling on Amazon is a great idea, and it’s actually fairly easy to get started. In fact, you can even start an Amazon business without any money. Does that seem too crazy to be true? Believe it or not, that’s a true possibility. Here are the steps you can follow.
Find free products that you can sell on Amazon
Before you start selling, you will want to figure out what items are suitable to sell on the platform. The truth is that you can sell a wide variety of things. You can start by going through your items at home, seeing what you might want to sell, then check Amazon to see if they feature that item. A good idea here is to try to find items that are in good condition. While you can sell used items on Amazon, you want to avoid selling them damaged.
Create a list of the items that you want to sell from within your home, this way there are no acquisition costs. You can get started selling on Amazon for free, and that alone can be very helpful. Another thing to note is to rate the condition of the item. Be objective, because you don’t want to oversell the condition as being great, when the item is scratched for example.
Creating a seller account
Now that you have several items that you want to sell, you will need to create your own Amazon seller account. What’s interesting is that you can sign up for free, and you don’t have to pay any upfront fees. There are fees to pay, but those are paid only when you sell items. If you go for an Individual seller account, you will pay $0.99 for every item you sell. On the other hand, you are limited to 40 items sold per month.
If you want to sell more than that, you will have to sign up for a Professional seller account. That type of account costs $39.99 per month, however you don’t have any limitations when it comes to how much you can sell. As a beginner, the best approach is to start with an Individual account, then if you start selling more and more, you can eventually change over to a Professional seller account.
List your product on Amazon
As mentioned earlier, it’s a good idea to perform some due diligence and see if the product is already listed. It is possible that you don’t have to create your own listing. If the product is already listed, then you must add your name to the list of sellers offering the product. You will need to figure out the price to charge for that specific item.
A good idea is to stay competitive. Some will try to underprice the competition, but at the same time you also want to make a profit. Figure out what you have invested in it (the purchase cost plus any improvements you have made), then calculate the profit margin that you would like to have. Trying to get as close as possible to the lowest price will help you sell the product quicker, so that’s definitely an important thing to keep in mind.
Things to consider to make sure that your store front is ready
If you have a seller account, you can easily browse Amazon to find the product you own, and if you do find it, check for the Sell on Amazon button which is usually towards the bottom right part of the page, right under the price and purchase options.
There are a few things to keep in mind when you list a product for sale on Amazon. Aside from pricing, which we already covered, you also want to ensure that you correctly listed the condition of the item. If it was already used even a small amount, then list it as used. It can’t be listed as new. You can also add the fulfillment method and quantity.
Ship the sold item
Once you list the items you want to sell on Amazon, all you have to do is to wait until one of them is sold. Whenever you receive a sale, you will need to then ship the item to your customer. The entire process is fairly simple. It’s recommended to ship the product as quickly as possible, so you can have a happy customer and a great review in the end.
Other product options for selling on Amazon
If you are good with design, then you could try out Merch By Amazon. They will print your designs on all kinds of merchandise, and you can receive a portion of the profits. In case you are a crafter and like to create your own products, you may want to consider Amazon Handmade. In this case, aside from the materials you use, there won’t be any specific investments.
Of course, you can also talk with family, friends, or colleagues to let them know you can take any of the items they don’t need anymore. Going to garage sales can be another way to find products inexpensively that you can then sell on Amazon. Even online donations from people that want to get rid of products can be a good option. There are all kinds of opportunities, you just need to find what works best for you.
It’s also a good idea to check the best seller rank for the product. Obviously, the higher the best seller rank you have, the better it will be. The important thing here is to check it for yourself and see whether the product sells quickly or if it does take a while. With patience and time, you can develop the skills that can help you sell your products in your storefront.
Conclusion
As you can see, it’s possible to start selling products on Amazon without any substantial initial investment. The best thing you can do is to sell items you already own. Then, you can start going to garage sales or purchase affordable items locally that you can re-sell for a profit. The possibilities are limitless. All you have to do is to get started, and keep making improvements in yourself and your products as you go!