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Selling on Amazon is generally perceived as a ‘passive’ activity: you list an item and wait for it to sell.

On a market stall - which is dependent on footfall - you can draw attention to your wares by calling out to buyers. Buyers can touch products, see items and generally be seduced into buying products they may not necessarily need. (Also, if your stall is the only one of its type on the market, you have an advantage of not having competitors!)

Compare that to eCommerce sites, such as Amazon, where there is usually lots of competition and buyers have a choice as to from whom they buy. Is it just down to luck whether they choose to buy from you?

In some ways the answer is yes, but hang on, what about USPs (Unique Selling Points)? Do they apply to you when selling on Amazon?

I think that this is not only possible but a must in such a competitive marketplace.

How do you access the power of USP?

As you know making a sale does not always come down to who has the lowest price. Yes, it can be a unique selling point to have the lowest price, but this is not the only possibility. In fact, when profits are the name of the game it is not always in your best interest to have the lowest price as it could mean you make little to no profit from a sale.

Here are some suggestions to providing a USP and increasing sales n the process.

• Offer Expedited shipping service

• Offer a Gift wrapping service

• Write a honest description of your item in the comment box

• Ensure you only list products in the best condition e.g. good or above

• High feedback rating

• Choose to send to Europe or further afield

• Post sales quickly increasing your feedback rating and increasing feedback rankings

Of course this is not a definitive list and as yet I have not mentioned the best way I know to offer a USP and stand out from the ‘crowd’…

In fact, although I use all of the above to sell my products, I truly believe that the best USP you can have as a seller on Amazon is to become a FBA seller (Fulfilled by Amazon) - find out how I made the change here.

Amazon FBA sellers can take advantage of all the services Amazon offer, such as:

• Gift Wrapping
• Use of gift cards
• Quicker postage options
• World Wide postage options (26 countries)

In most cases I ensure my products are on the top page of the selling page, just by reducing my selling price by 1p.

As an FBA seller my products are often advertised in the ‘Buy used box’ situated on a products description page. Placed so prominently buyers click and buy from this box, thus bypassing competitors.

Buyers can also add my products to their ‘basket’ and carry on shopping paying just one payment to Amazon, not several to lots of marketplace sellers.

But, one of the greatest advantages have as an FBA seller is that in many many cases I actually sell my products for a premium. Sometimes buyers will pay many many times over the lowest price to take advantage of FBA buying status. No matter how low or high my product is on the selling page.
As an FBA seller I ensure that I:

• Write a honest descriptions of an item in the comment box
• List products in the best condition e.g. good or above
• Receive high feedback ratings and rankings

Here a few examples of my products selling for a premium price. In many cases the premium is quite small, perhaps a few pennies or a couple of pounds but it all adds up. Couple this with cheaper postage rates from Amazon, profits are considerably more than if I were to sell these items as a merchant seller:

New Selected Poems, 1966-1987
Available from  £2.81: I received £3.50

Weights for Weight Loss
Available from £2.81: I received £6.99

Build Your Own Garden Brickwork
Available from £2.81: I received £6.00

In most cases it was my FBA seller status that prompted buyers to purchase from me. Especially in cases where I am the only FBA seller selling a copy of a particular title (regardless of how many merchant sellers are selling same product cheaper).

For low value items, no matter how many copies are for sale, by pricing my copy 1p less than competitors, my copy generally will sell quickly, regardless of how many merchant sellers are offering the same product for 1p plus £2.80.

Indeed even if other FBA sellers price their product cheaper than my copy, I know my copy will sell if I use other USP criteria as mentioned above such as condition and feedback ratings.

So if you are keen to sell sell sell, and beat off the competition, then consider these options to increase services to your customers, taking into account that the best way to do this – bar none – is to become an FBA seller.

by Sharon Fussell Amazon Trading Expert Sharon Fussell is the editor of Bookseller's Profit Club and helps people to become successful Amazon pro-merchants You can sign up for her free weekly eletter here: Recent Articles by Sharon Name Email

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