Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) launched this week and Prime will hit the market mid-year. Whether you’re yet to launch on Amazon or you’ve been on the third party marketplace since the outset, it’s essential to understand the impact of Prime and FBA and what the evolution of Amazon means for you.
To help retailers prepare, we held a webinar focusing on on these topics so that you’re ready when Prime and FBA arrive to Australia. Below are some of the major points covered from our presentation.
Why?
Amazon is famous for being a customer-centric company. Almost every program or innovation it makes can be traced back to improving customer satisfaction. To put this mission into practice, Amazon has identified the three things that they believe customers seek:
1. Price
2. Selection
3. Convenience
Essentially, Prime and FBA are extensions of Amazon’s initial offering, aiming to ensure complete customer satisfaction.
What are Prime and FBA?
Prime is Amazon’s customer paid membership program. Prime Video and Prime Twitch are already available to Australian consumers, but it’s Prime’s delivery and shopping options that have consumers particularly excited. Members of Amazon Prime are eligible for free one- or two-day shipping on most items as well as other perks and special offers. According to recent estimates, there are 90 million Prime subscribers in the US alone.
Using the FBA program means that Amazon picks, packs, ships and provides customer service (including returns) for FBA approved products. Essentially, it means that you have access to one of the most advanced fulfilment operations in the world to store and ship your products. For products to become Prime eligible, they also need to be fulfilled by Prime, which is how the two programs work together. While Seller Fulfilled Prime may be rolled out in Australia at a later date, to initially leverage Prime, you need to be prepared for FBA.
Are they for me?
For consumers, its success centres on eliminating the uncertainty about shipping costs and shipping times. Historically, these challenges have been a huge factor in cart abandonment. It has also been reported that nearly 90% of Amazon sales occur through the Buy Box, and we know that using FBA increases a seller’s chance of Buy Box placement. This is why retailers should be excited about this next stage of Amazon too!
We know that many sellers are just getting their heads around listing on Amazon and adapting for FBA and Prime seems like another challenge. However, the benefits for retailers are enormous. Check out this revenue calculator to see see real-time cost comparisons between your fulfilment and Amazon’s offering for customer orders using FBA.
The ChannelAdvisor dashboard allows for sellers to optimise, automate, streamline and expand their inventory through these new Amazon programs. We only need to look to the US and UK to see how these offerings have completely revolutionised the consumer experience and how shoppers interact with brands online.
What to know more about what to expect? Contact us today with any questions you have about your Amazon strategy and the impact FBA and Prime might have on your business.
