In 2022, anyone can be an entrepreneur. Even if you don’t have much capital, you can open a business and make it successful—all you need is passion, dedication, and access to resources to generate sales on selling platforms.
Amazon is one of the most accessible roads to your dreams of being an entrepreneur. On this giant international platform, you can build your business even if you spend only one hour a day and invest less than $2,000.
Here’s what you need to do to start a successful Amazon business:
Decide What and How to Sell
First, identify your target market and what products you want to sell to them. Then, consider one of three options for selling: drop shipping, online arbitrage, or private label.
Your choice largely depends on your starting capital, the time you have to create and market your products, and your target profit.
Drop shipping
Drop shipping entails purchasing inventory from a third party that ships products directly to the customer. Product pricing is based on the supplier’s pricing plus your overhead and profit margin.
This method is perfect if you do not have much capital and don’t have time or the inclination to make your own products.
Online Arbitrage
Online arbitrage (OA) involves purchasing products from other online retailers with the intention of selling them at a higher price. Common online marketplaces are eBay, Amazon, and even Facebook.
If you’re wondering how to do online arbitrage, you just need product ideas with high potential profit and sell them at a very attractive price.
OA is a fantastic selling method if you have more than $100 of capital for inventory and you have the time to do intensive product research.
Private Label
With private labels, entrepreneurs can look for a product they could put their brand on and sell as their own.
The capital for this method of selling is around $1200 to $5000. You need to spend on advertising, photography, design, and packaging to make your brand unique and recognizable.
How to Start a Business on Amazon Easily
Step 1: Find a Product
Choose a product that suits your sales model and investment capital. Use apps such as AMZ Scout OA and Drop shipping extension to analyse which products can generate interest and are suitable for reselling.
Step 2: Open a Seller Account
Choose between two selling plans on Amazon: Individual or Professional. The Individual plan charges $0.99 per sale, and the Professional plan costs $39.99 per month. This rate will not change no matter how many items you sell on Amazon. Consider how many items you aim to sell in a month, and choose which plan suits your business plan.
You also need several credentials to complete your registration, including:
- Bank account number
- Bank routing number
- Credit card Government-issued ID
- Tax information Phone number
Step 3: Source Your Products
Look for suppliers, third-party sources, white-label manufacturers, online stores, and even brick and mortar suppliers that will give you the high-quality products you need for your online retail business.
Step 4: Choose: FBA or FBM?
Next, choose your warehousing and delivery fulfilment service. With Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA), you send inventory to an Amazon warehouse and the platform will ship the orders to your customers. Amazon will charge shipping and storage fees.
With Fulfilled by Merchant (FBM), you are responsible for storing, shipping, and fulfilling orders. You have the freedom to choose or outsource your fulfilment methods, whether to a third-party provider or directly delivered from your supplier.
Step 5: List and Promote
You can now list your products on Amazon. If you have a professional seller account, you can list your products in batches through inventory management or bulk uploading. Individual sellers can list products one at a time.
If you are reselling existing products rather than opening your own brand, then you will need a UPC code for Amazon. If you’re buying products from drop shipping or wholesale suppliers, then your items will already have a scannable UPC code on their packaging. In this case, your products will probably be in Amazon’s system already and you’ll need to add yours to the existing product listing.
Be the Entrepreneur You Want to Be
You don’t need to be Elon Musk to create a retail empire. You can start an online business with as little as $100 and sell your products to millions of customers worldwide through Amazon.
