EPTPM is cool too.
I'm already a PowerSeller/Top Rated on eBay.
What are the fees like on Amazon? Is it directly linked to PayPal like eBay?
Pros/Cons?
What does it take to become a featured merchant?
So I made Featured Merchant on Amazon yesterday. - Page 3
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mlee
United States116 Posts
PM is cool too. I'm already a PowerSeller/Top Rated on eBay. What are the fees like on Amazon? Is it directly linked to PayPal like eBay? Pros/Cons? What does it take to become a featured merchant? | ||
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Sky101
United States1758 Posts
On September 22 2011 13:24 HardMacro wrote: How long since you first started getting into the business until now? Edit: Also, due to my limited internet shopping history, I wonder how a merchant stays competitive in such a cut-throat business? I mean, the cost of opening an internet store is much lower than the cost of opening a physical store, not to mention the ease and convenience so entry into the market is very easy. Also, since I'm buying big brand products (identical from store to store) online, all the physical shopping factors such as store location, atmosphere, etc. become irrelevant so my only real concern is price. Moreover on this point, due to the wonders of the internet, I can price discriminate perfectly. So what's stopping other stores from lowering their price of an identical product and attracting all your customers? Is it selection and trustworthiness or something else? For example, a quick search of your product "Olay Professional Pro-X Advanced Cleansing System" yields many hits, some cheaper than yours from other stores. This is probably true for most of your other products as well, someone's bound to be more competitive in pricing. So how much of that product are you selling and when? After all the stock has been depleted from cheaper stores? What's even more puzzling to me is the fact that internet merchants are able to secure products at a discount deep enough from wholesalers to make a profit. In traditional sales requiring a physical storefront, deep discounting to merchants is justified because the time/money that a merchant spends distributing products warrant their profits. However, there is no storefront costs, no transportation costs or any other significant distribution costs that internet merchants have to cover. So why don't wholesalers have their own internet stores selling products for cheaper? And if there are, then how are internet merchants still making a profit? Thanks, I'm studying this topic and also want to start an internet business myself. Cheers. I'll pm you when I have more time. On September 22 2011 14:51 mlee wrote: Got a question if you don't mind answering/if you got the time. PM is cool too. I'm already a PowerSeller/Top Rated on eBay. What are the fees like on Amazon? Is it directly linked to PayPal like eBay? Pros/Cons? What does it take to become a featured merchant? Sure. Amazon's fee (15%) is actually lower than eBay after you factor in everything. I know because I sell on eBay too. I believe it was something like $0.50 for a fixed-price listing, plus like 9% or 12% I can't remember when my products are sold, plus PayPal fee. After everything adds up, it came out to more than 15%. Amazon pays you directly (ACH Transfer to your bank account) which is really convenient. Amazon pro's: slightly lower fee (generally) compared to eBay. Massive retail customer base (vs eBay which I think is more auction oriented??? I know there are many retail stores on eBay, but overall it just feels that Amazon is a bigger online retail entity than eBay). Listing a product is MUCH easier (which helps if you have nearly a thousand items like me. I know my store says I only got nearly 700, that's because the rest is temporarily out of stock :D ). Plus everything just seems more intuitive and user friendly (the interface, the whole process, etc..). Cons: Err maybe 15% is still too high? :D Super competitive, so much more than eBay, in the way that Amazon listings work, you compete directly with other merchants. I can't exactly put it into words, but if you ever start on Amazon, you'll see what I mean. What it takes to become a featured merchant? Well, generally, just be outstanding in every aspect  but the most important thing is: Volume (the more you sell, the faster you can become a featured merchant). Also they take into consideration your cancellation rate, feedback, refund rate, late shipment rate, response rate to customer emails, and many other things... But those are what come to mind first. | ||
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Zorkmid
4410 Posts
On September 22 2011 09:54 Sky101 wrote: Hey I was a slacker just like anybody else when I was younger. It took me a while to realize what I really wanted to do. Once figured out, everything will eventually fall into place. 1st update on being a Featured Merchant: My sale revenue was nearly $2,400 yesterday. That's roughly 5 times my usual. Can't wait to see what today holds. Sweet man, can you describe exactly what it is you do and how you came to start doing it? September 20th, 2011 will mark a major milestone in my life. | ||
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OmniEulogy
Canada6600 Posts
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cascades
Singapore6122 Posts
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HardMacro
Canada361 Posts
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FFGenerations
7088 Posts
On September 22 2011 12:36 Sky101 wrote: I don't understand your post. If my blog came off too flashy-showy that it had to trigger a condescending mockery like yours, then I think you're reading my blog wrong. I don't know if I should address every single point in your post, because I'm not sure if you wrote it in an inquiring manner or just plainly mockingly. Maybe all the praising replies angered you so, that you couldn't just see a guy simply happy because all his work is paying off? lol noooo, i was genuinely super impressed about what you'd done and wanted to get the exact specifics of what exactly you'd done and how you'd done it. you guys totally mis-read me, i wasnt being sarcastic or whatever edit: i had some weed so the concept (and the super success you were describing) sounded seriously awesome to me, hence the "good god" after/before i read your post i was watching dragons den uk s9, i love business stuff tho ive never been involved in it! | ||
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itzme_petey
United States1400 Posts
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Kojak21
Canada1104 Posts
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Sky101
United States1758 Posts
Peter <3 what you been up to? Update on yesterday: Sales were around $2,900, which is a nice increase from my 1st day of being a Featured Merchant. But today felt slow (relative to the first 2 days) so far, let's see how it's gonna end. Vent: So there is this jackass called Warren Dyer who purchased 2 items from me. Normally a lot of merchants on Amazon don't give discount for additional items purchased within the same order (for example: I buy 3 items at $1 each and $5 shipping. The total normally would be $6 x 3 = $18), but I do. Every additional item purchased in the same order will only be charged a $3 shipping (vs my standard shipping rate of $5.49). So anyway, this Warren only found out about that after he already placed the order. So he sent me an email begging me to give him discount on 1 more item that he wanted to purchase (separate order). To be honest, it's only a couple bucks, doesn't make a dent in my pocket. But I explained to him that because the way that Amazon works, additional item discount doesn't work for separate orders, and if I wanted to give him the discount (I really did) I would have to do a partial refund on his new order. The thing with Amazon is, they generally discourage refunds (partial or full, doesn't matter). Every time a merchant issues a refund for whatever amount, the refund rate in the merchant performance chart goes up. Now if you just want to sell a few items, no problem. But if you want to have the best score possible to achieve (and to maintain) Featured Merchant status, you better keep those grades up. Having a high refund rate hurts your score, and in turn, hurts your status. So long story short, I told him I really wanted to give him the discount, but Amazon has my hands tied. Then the dude emailed me back, calling me a liar basically. He claims he himself is also an Amazon Merchant, and he says there is no such thing as refunds hurting your score. So I replied, pointed this dumbass to the exact score chart. And after that he's all, "Oh thank you for telling me all that..." blah blah blah Long story short, I've been very polite and elaborative with him. After seeing his last reply (see line above) I was generally pretty satisfied thinking to myself even though this guy is probably disappointed I couldn't give him the discount, at least now he knows why, and would appreciate my time spent explaining to him how Amazon works... So today he left me a 1 out of 5 star feedback, this is his exact word: I will never purchase anything for from this company it is a scam. The prices are not as it seems the shipping cost is 4 times the amount for the product . Which is how the seller gains there money. You would do better going into the store and purchasing the product it will be cheaper. The dude purchased 2 Neutrogena face wash for $1.97 each. His grand total was $12.43 total for something that retails anywhere from $6 to $8 each plus tax ($12 to $16 total before tax). Seeing how he penny pinched me for a couple bucks of discount, I doubt that he would have purchased my items to begin with if he didn't know for sure it was the best price possible. On top of that he also claimed he received no customer service from me. Kinda made me regret ever spent time explaining to him over several emails at all. Some people are wired differently I guess. Geezzz... | ||
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Sermokala
United States14220 Posts
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