10 Things You Should Do When Starting an Amazon Store

Starting an Amazon store is exciting because it's a distribution method that offers potential for eCommerce success. With millions of customers browsing Amazon every day, establishing a strong presence on this platform can significantly boost your sales and brand visibility. Whether you’re a new seller or transitioning from another platform, here are ten essential steps to take when starting your Amazon store.

1. Conduct Market Research

Before diving into selling on Amazon, conduct thorough market research to identify profitable opportunities and understand your competition. Analyze trends, customer preferences, and popular products within your niche. Use tools like Jungle Scout, Helium 10, or even Amazon’s own search and category rankings to gather insights. It's useful to look at the reviews customers leave on competitors products, make a note of the positives and negatives and you can use these when writing your own product listing.

You can learn a lot about what customers want this way and it allows you to hit the ground running especially for existing products that you may have.

2. Choose the Right Product Category

Selecting the right product category is crucial for your success on Amazon. Choose a category that aligns with your expertise and interests, but also consider factors like demand, competition, and profit margins. Narrow down your options based on market research and potential profitability.

The ideal scenario would be to find a niche product that is gaining popularity, one tactic that many successful sellers use is finding a unique product that is selling well and then 10x the product marketing and product listing description. Many customers buy based on the visuals so if you can improve the product photos and use the right words in the ad, you're already steps ahead. AI can help you significantly improve both with tools like caspa AI for your images and chatGPT for your text.

3. Set Up Your Amazon Seller Account

Create an Amazon seller account that suits your business needs. Choose between an Individual or Professional selling plan, depending on the volume of products you plan to sell. Follow Amazon’s guidelines to complete your account setup, including providing accurate business information and verifying your identity.

4. Optimize Your Product Listings

We wrote a blog about how you can improve you Amazon listings here. Ultimately, optimizing your product listings can improve visibility and attract more customers. Write compelling product titles, bullet points, and descriptions that highlight key features and benefits. Use high-quality images that showcase your product from different angles, including lifestyle images to help customers visualize its use.

5. Price Your Products Competitively

Research your competitors’ pricing strategies and set competitive prices for your products. Consider factors like production costs, shipping fees, and profit margins when determining your pricing strategy. Monitor market trends and adjust your prices accordingly to stay competitive.

Amazon is a very cutthroat marketplace for sellers, you need to stay on top of the latest pricing based on season and demand and you can do this by assessing competitors product listings too.

6. Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) or Self-Fulfillment

Decide whether to use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) or fulfill orders yourself (Merchant Fulfilled). FBA can simplify logistics by allowing Amazon to handle storage, packaging, and shipping, while Merchant Fulfilled gives you more control over the fulfillment process. Choose the option that best fits your business model and resources. Often the biggest complaint about FBA are the fees associated, this pushes sellers to consider private labelling and merchant fulfilled sales.

7. Create a Marketing Strategy

Develop a comprehensive marketing strategy to promote your Amazon store and products. Utilize Amazon Advertising (Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and Sponsored Display) to increase visibility within Amazon’s search results. Leverage social media, email marketing, and influencer partnerships to drive external traffic to your Amazon listings. Recently, TikTok has been a solid platform to promote and share your products, consider partnering with influencers and user-generated content to help your product and brand awareness grow.

8. Monitor Performance and Analytics

Use Amazon’s Seller Central dashboard and tools like Google Analytics to monitor your store’s performance. Track metrics such as sales, traffic sources, conversion rates, and customer behavior. Analyze this data to identify trends, optimize your listings, and make informed business decisions.

9. Provide Excellent Customer Service

Prioritize customer satisfaction by offering prompt and helpful customer service. Respond to customer inquiries and issues promptly, and provide clear communication throughout the buying process. Implement a customer-friendly return policy to build trust and encourage repeat purchases.

10. Continuously Improve and Adapt

Stay agile and responsive to changes in your market. Continuously test and refine your strategies, products, and listings based on customer feedback and market trends. Stay informed about Amazon’s policies and guidelines to ensure compliance and avoid potential issues.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Starting an Amazon store requires careful planning, research, and execution. By following these steps as a beginner getting into the space, you will be strongly positioned for a good start. From conducting market research and optimizing your listings to implementing a robust marketing strategy and providing excellent customer service – you can establish a strong foundation for success on Amazon.

At Caspa AI, we understand the challenges eCommerce sellers face trying to stand out on Amazon. Our goal is to help sellers create high-quality ultrarealistic lifestyle images with human models quickly and efficiently, to ensure your product listings are visually appealing and professional.

For more tips and insights, stay tuned to our blog, where we share the latest trends and strategies in eCommerce and AI technology.