A Complete Guide to Starting an Amazon Private Label Business
Starting a business is a very great way of starting a business with a low income. This is a good idea for entrepreneurs who are looking to start businesses and they do not know how to go about it. They just have to get their little capital available for branding and since Amazon is an online store of its own, you do not need to bother about having a physical store or even having funds for marketing as this will be taken care of by the website, you just have to focus on branding.
What is Amazon Private Label Business
A private label business is a type of business where a company produces a private label product and sells it to other companies who buy it and brand it, then sell it off to the market as their product. The company gets to decide the design and colour and the producer does not have any right to determine the branding of the product and cannot determine the price at which the branding company is selling off the product.
These private label companies' products might be custom, particularly for the company or can be for any company that is interested in the product. The private label company may be a one-product company or may also produce other products which might or might not be privately labelled. Sometimes some of these privately labelled companies also brand some of these products before giving out the excess or as custom orders.
Amazon's private label business is, therefore, the buying of private label goods or products from suppliers and selling them out on Amazon with your professional branding and as your product from your company. This helps you create a long-term business on Amazon without an offline store and with very little capital needed.
Advantages of Private Label Products on Amazon
- Credibility: since you're selling these products on Amazon, there is increased credibility for the product and also increasing your brand's credibility just by selling non-branded products that have been branded as yours.
- Profit: these private label products usually go for low prices and when these businesses purchase them, they can then brand them and sell them off as their products. Since the prices are low, it is easy to make a wide profit margin. As a young entrepreneur seeking to go into business, you can try out Amazon's private label businesses as they give you a wide margin of profit even with a very small capital.
- Exposure: Amazon exposes you to a lot of potential customers and also helps expose your busin5ti a larger audience. On Amazon, the marketing is carried out by the Amazon team for your products and the customisation of the products and descriptions will help you get more visibility to your products.
- Customisation: if you're into the private label business, you have a wide variety of customisation options for your branding. You get to choose your product design, colours or even the brand name you want to give to your products. You can also give it a better customisation to add the attractiveness of the product to customers. Customisation is very important when it comes to new businesses and private-label products, all you need to do is create your design and branding and customise the product to fit your branding. Most times, this is because your business might not be the only business receiving that private label product from the supplier so you have to make yours different.
How To Start an Amazon Private Label Business
Most companies and businesses would prefer to get quality products from manufacturers and rebrand them to become theirs other than starting afresh. This is because of the high cost of starting up the production of that particular product. To start an Amazon private label business, you need to go through the following process. However, these processes must not be followed in the same accordance as long as you consider every step.
Some popular private-label products include groceries, electronics, household items, and clothes. The steps involved in starting a private label business include
1. Product Research
Before you start any business, it is very important to run research on that product to know if it is suitable for your catalogue, you can choose to research many products to pick the most suitable product for your business.
When researching products, you should also run market research for the product to determine the market structure of that product and the target audience for that product. All this will help you in the marketing of these products off Amazon.
When researching products, you should start with a broader list and less risky goods. This will help you outline the possible risks and limitations of the business during your time trading. As a new entrepreneur in the business, it will take you a longer period to get your first product and this is because you have to study and carefully choose the product you want for your business.
It is good to start with small and lightweight products to reduce the cost of shipping the products to your location, goods that are easy to sell off and on Amazon and products that do not need any complicated process for purchasing.
Also, seasonal products should be avoided by all means, as the market for these products is not stable and fluctuates with their seasons. Examples of these seasonal products include Christmas tree decorations, Christmas toys, and winter clothes.
2. Supplier
Your supplier has a great effect on your business. If your supplier delivers a bad product, it will greatly affect your business, especially as a new entrepreneur starting the business. You can choose to go straight to the supplier and request a custom product or an order or you can choose to buy from a popular marketplace like Alibaba or AliExpress if you don't want to directly contact the manufacturer.
Even as a first-timer, it is very important to negotiate prices and compare the prices and quality of the products to determine the best choice for your business. To be on the safer side, you can request a sample of the product, even if this might cost you money, but it is very important to ensure you are getting what you ordered and to build trust between you and your customers.
Always choose a good and reliable supplier and always try to consider the cost of labour, resources and shopping when negotiating prices with your suppliers in order not to underprice a supplier's product. You should also make sure to consider the currency you are buying and that which you are selling the products. It will help in efficiently calculating your expenses and profits after sales.
Do well to research manufacturers and suppliers who produce products you want or similar items. If you can visit the manufacturing site, it will be good to go there and see the condition of the area where your goods will be produced. Always contact experienced and good manufacturers when starting your business and do well to have a conversation with them on the phone if you're not close to the production area.
Make sure all your negotiations have come to an end before going ahead to order the products from the suppliers to avoid delays in delivery or misunderstandings between you and the supplier of your products.
3. Branding
The most important of these processes is the branding. Without the branding, you're also likely selling a private-label product. Good branding can also help to market your products even without you engaging in serious marketing.
Brandon includes colours, and use of shapes for logos, names, and packaging. All these contribute to how well the product will look to your customers. This branding helps give you a face different from that of your competitors and gives your products a unique look in the market.
During packaging, he is sure to add the benefits of using your products to be able to convince your customers to patronise your business. Include good and attractive colours, fonts, shapes and attractive business logos to be able to attract your customers. These elements are very important for your product's packaging.
Make sure your use of colour and packaging goes in line with your target audience. For makeup products, bright colours like pink which is a feminine colour will suit the packaging for the colour and if it is a grocery with a flavour, the colour of the packaging should in one way or the other reflect the flavour present in the product.
4. Sampling
Requesting a sample of your product is very important as a start-up business owner. This is to ensure credibility and quality control. Your samples can also be used for product photography and marketing of advertisements.
After you have received your sample, use your branding to package the product and send it to your friends and potential buyers. This is your prototype to use for marketing and drawing attention to your business. Before your first official order, you might already have tons of orders on the ground
People only believe and buy when they see samples, so you have successfully convinced your customers that your business is real and they should order.
5. Amazon Strategy
Once you have gotten all your branding ready and at this moment, you are ready to start ordering, you can then strategise how to go with your Amazon marketplace.
You can choose to find an outside shipping service to ship your products to your vicinity or better still ship them from Amazon. You have to do research on the nature of the products before choosing a shipping option for your product. Fragile products should be taken with care to avoid damage during shipping.
Before deciding on the shipping method of your product, you need to ask yourself the following questions.
- How fragile is my product?
- Is my product temperature-sensitive?
- So you want an Amazon Prime badge on your products?
- Would you prefer Amazon handle your logistics or you can do them yourself?
These questions will determine if you will handle your shopping and logistics or if you can handle them yourself. The nature of the product must be taken into consideration as well as the period of shipping about the time the product is needed. Always consider the cost and the amount of products you are ordering and also the time necessary for the production of the product by the supplier and proper packaging and branding of these products.
6. Amazon Listing
After deciding on the nature of your product, price and order method, you have to create your product listing on Amazon so you can put out your products for sale on the platform. You should research high-ranking keywords for your products and also do well to provide clear and high-quality images for your products when creating a product listing on Amazon.
Your product listing should contain a good listing title, keywords, and a little benefit of your product to the consumer. You must write this in a way that can convince the customer to buy the product without doubts or fear.
Tips for Selling Your Products on Amazon as a Private Label Business Owner
1. Order Fulfillment with Amazon FBA
By fulfilling your orders with Amazon, Amazon takes care of the responsibility of customer service for your business and reduces the risk of responsibility for handling your business. This method is stress-free compared to monitoring your products by yourself.
This method also allows you to send your shipping inventory to Amazon's warehouse and then send your customer's addresses so Amazon can store, pack and ship your products directly to your customers without you having to go through the stress of monitoring your inventory. In this case, Amazon takes care of the returns and refunds of your company.
But as an entrepreneur who wants to have total control over their products, you can choose a different fulfilment method so you can personally handle the shipping and delivery of your goods which is good for entrepreneurs who brand their products intensely.
2. Pricing
There is high competition on Amazon and this makes it difficult for an entrepreneur to navigate the market for the first time. You have to understand that there are time-to-time changes in demand, market fluctuations and other factors that might affect your sales on Amazon.
Always price your goods to make sure you don't lose but make a profit and also to be able to compete in the market with your competitors. Your pricing should not be too low, so as not to result in loss and not too high so customers will not move to your competitors instead of getting the product from you.
3. Branding
Your brand doesn't only speak about you but speaks more about your products to the market. Always make sure to use good colour combinations when choosing colours for your brand and make sure to use shapes that relate to your products.
Invest in a graphic designer for unique brand graphics and logos. If your packaging is attractive, customers will want to know what is contained in the packaging and patronize your business. Always take your time when branding as this is the identity of your business and can easily give off a positive or negative image of your business.
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Conclusion
Starting an Amazon private label business might sound easy but is not as easy as it seems and it needs a lot of attention and dedication to put through. Even if this business model can be started with low capital, there is a possibility of making profits from the business also.
You have to follow the processes mentioned in this article and you'll be on your way to establishing a successful Amazon private label business. You must thoroughly do research about the product, the market and the supplier or manufacturer of the product before going ahead to order the product.
Lastly, branding is very important and should be taken very seriously when it comes to a business like this to make sure you give your product good designs and packaging to attract customers. do you have any questions about starting an Amazon Private label business? If yes, Kindly contact us here, and we will do everything to help you.