B2B on Amazon: Comprehensive Guide
You’re likely acquainted with Amazon’s extensive presence in the e-commerce realm, as it is a dominant force in online retail. However, you may not be aware that Amazon also hosts a dedicated marketplace tailored for business-to-business transactions. Known as Amazon Business or Amazon B2B, this platform holds significant potential to revolutionize your business operations.
What is Amazon Business?
Amazon Business stands as a specialized B2B (business-to-business) marketplace crafted to cater to business clientele within Amazon’s platform. It extends to business customers the same user-friendly purchasing experience available to individual consumers.
For business sellers, Amazon Business offers various features and tools to streamline the selling process.
In the realm of online purchasing, Amazon Business serves as a facilitator for reaching business customers more seamlessly.
Given the substantial number of consumers utilizing Amazon for personal shopping, it’s natural for them to extend this usage to their business procurements. Upon creating a business account, users gain access to a distinct version of Amazon’s website explicitly tailored to meet business requirements.
By listing your products on Amazon Business, you expose them to a vast pool of potential customers, some of whom exclusively rely on Amazon for their purchasing endeavors.
With over one million businesses engaging in transactions on Amazon Business, generating over $10 billion in annualized sales, it’s clear that participating in this platform can be highly lucrative for sellers.
Why Opt for Selling on Amazon Business?
Amazon B2B offers sellers an array of enticing features, including specialized business pricing and volume discounts.
With the option to tailor prices specifically for business clientele while maintaining visibility to all consumers on Amazon, sellers can offer more competitive pricing exclusively to business customers. These prices, visible only to business clients, often come at a reduced rate compared to regular consumers.
By leveraging competitive pricing strategies, sellers can anticipate a rapid uptick in sales.
Furthermore, sellers can configure their Amazon B2B accounts to accommodate bulk sales.
Through volume discounts, sellers can incentivize business customers to purchase larger quantities of their products at preferential rates. Additionally, sellers can extend the option for business customers to request quotes for substantial quantity orders.
Despite selling at discounted rates, the cumulative revenue from bulk orders often matches or surpasses the profits generated from business-to-consumer (B2C) sales.
Moreover, enhanced product features enable sellers to furnish comprehensive information within their product listings on Amazon. Many business clients prefer thorough product specifications before making purchase decisions. These features facilitate the provision of supplementary resources such as CAD files, user guides, installation manuals, and more.
Enhanced transparency, facilitated by providing comprehensive product information, fosters customer trust and loyalty.
Sellers can also showcase their business certifications, attesting to quality and diversity.
Amazon features dedicated pages spotlighting businesses boasting such credentials. For instance, businesses holding certifications like Veteran-owned status gain visibility in search results for products sourced from veteran-owned enterprises.
Amazon simplifies performance tracking for sellers through intuitive visual dashboards. These dashboards offer insights ranging from sales growth and industry breakdowns to top-performing products. Additionally, Amazon provides tailored recommendations for strategies to enhance business performance further.
How to Initiate Selling on Amazon Business
Initiating your business for sales on Amazon Business entails just a few straightforward steps:
- Register for a Professional Selling Account on Amazon. If you already possess one, simply incorporate the Amazon Business features via Seller Central.
- Establish your business profile. Furnish your credentials and certifications to demonstrate to businesses that you are a qualified seller.
- Utilize Amazon’s listing tool to incorporate your products.
- Commence selling!
Becoming a Business Seller on Amazon B2B incurs a cost — comprising a fixed monthly subscription fee and variable referral fees contingent upon the category. The subscription fee mirrors that of B2C sellers; hence, if you possess a Professional Selling Account, venturing into B2B selling incurs no additional expense.
Depending on your chosen order fulfillment method, your shipping may qualify for Prime shipping.
Opting for Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) guarantees Prime shipping for your orders. Conversely, orders fulfilled by yourself do not meet this criterion. Many businesses adopt a hybrid approach, leveraging FBA for some products to leverage their customer value proposition.
Maximize Revenue Opportunities with Amazon B2B
Still undecided on the necessity of Amazon Business?
While it’s feasible to vend B2C on Amazon, as some businesses procure through the standard website, many enterprises restrict their employees to B2B retailers exclusively.
Consequently, failure to engage in B2B selling may result in missed revenue opportunities.
Initiating your Amazon Business Store is an excellent initial step, yet additional avenues exist for maximizing revenue with Amazon B2B. Amazon functions like a specialized search engine, thereby enabling the deployment of SEO tactics to promote product listings effectively.
Moreover, paid advertising opportunities abound on Amazon. Sponsored product ads, sponsored brands, and product display ads, similar to those on Google’s display network, present viable options for augmenting visibility and driving sales.
