With 55 per cent of all online product searches beginning on Amazon, creating an effective presence on Amazon is crucial for ecommerce retailers. Enabling access to more than 54 million Amazon Prime members, having your own Amazon store allows you to reach customers from around the world and close to home.
While some online retailers have concerns over Amazon cutting into their profit margins (and in some cases these are justified), selling products online without using the platform is increasingly difficult due to its strong market share and popularity among customers. With almost all online retailers using Amazon to sell their products in one way or another, competition for getting your product in front of potential customers can be fierce.
However, there are a few ways that you can improve your odds. Many smaller retailers have been able to outpace their larger counterparts in sales by understanding various ways to tilt the algorithm odds in their favour – and you can do the same.
Reviews, Reviews, Reviews
It’s a simple fact that the products with more (and better) reviews sell well – and those without them, don’t. Without a product to feel in our hands or a sales associate to seek advice from, as customers we tend to see what others are doing, and base our buying choices on their experiences.
Similar products are usually just a click or two away, and potential customers won’t hesitate to look elsewhere if your product doesn’t have the positive reviews they rely on to make a purchase. Find ways to encourage your customers to leave reviews by following up with them after they receive your product. You can also use the ‘request a review’ button in Amazon Seller Central to send out an email asking for seller feedback.
Optimization
Just like how Google and other search engines direct users to particular websites based on their quality and ease of use, Amazon uses its own search algorithm to link customers with the kinds of products they are looking for. Things like titles, subtitles, descriptions, questions and answers, and even pictures all factor in on how a product will rank on Amazon.
Paying close attention to the keywords your potential customers will be searching can be very beneficial as well. Having plenty of reviews with an average score between 4.5 and 5 will help make sure your products appear near the top of your potential customers’ searches. Product descriptions are important, too. By making long and detailed product descriptions featuring your keywords, you’ll be able to help sway both the algorithms and your customers toward your products.
Diversify
Make sure your ecommerce business is more than just an ‘Amazon brand’. While Amazon is an excellent (and bordering on essential) platform to use in order to enable strong sales, it isn’t the be all end all of online retailing. Make sure you continue to pay close attention to your other online presences – websites and social media in particular. Your customers might buy your products on Amazon, but they will look for you in other places in order to determine your legitimacy and quality as a brand. Just because you’re selling on Amazon doesn’t mean that you can’t promote the products with effective social media content and advertising elsewhere.
Your passion for your business is the key to your success – and we want to share that passion with your customers. Through building captivating websites and dynamic social media content, we can connect potential customers to you and provide you with the online presence for your business that you’ve been seeking.
Based in Nanaimo, Evolution Business Marketing & Communications is your Vancouver Island full-service digital marketing agency. We have the knowledge and expertise to help your business continue to grow in the digital marketplace. Call us at +1 (250) 740-1844 or email us at info@evolutionbusiness.ca today to find out how we can help take your business to the next level.
