If you’re a new Amazon merchant and not accustomed to the Christmas rush, then the sudden increase in demand can catch you by surprise. This can have detrimental effects if you run out of stocks, can’t fulfil orders and then have to deal with negative reviews
During a quarter that should really be one of your busiest, the festive period can signal huge returns, but only if you’re prepared for what it’s going to throw at you. We’ve got 7 tips for you to help you style out the Christmas rush like a boss; without losing out on any profit, or compromising your good reputation.
- If you haven’t already invested in seasonal products, now the time to do it. The closer you get to Christmas, the more urgent demand becomes. It’s just not gifts that sell well in December, but also party products and Christmas decorations.
- Once you’ve decided on the products you’re going to sell, it’s imperative that you move up the Amazon rankings fast.If you don’t already know how to do that, make sure you do your research.
- Christmas shopping for many people is a mammoth task, that will be fitted into lunch hours and when the kids are asleep, which means those buying from you are less likely to be doing so with the luxury of time on their hands. Shoppers may bounce off your site faster than usual. Bearing this in mind, you’ll need to make sure your product listings are written clearly, easy to read and not confusing in any way. See if you can precipitate any questions your customers might ask you about the products and answer them in the listings. This will allow your customer to make the purchase quicker, without having to query anything.
- Your images will ideally have a festive vibe. Even if the product you’re selling isn’t in itself a festive item, placing next to a Christmas decoration, will put the idea in the image viewer’s head that the product could potentially be seen as a gift, or in some way associated with their Christmas. Seasonal winter products such as gloves, hats and scarfs make very desirable gifts.
- Ensure that you have enough products in stock before demand for them increases. In this way you won’t find yourself running low on inventory.
- It’s better to order too much than too little, because you can always offer a discount to get rid of surplus, or save the items for the following year.
- By enabling the gift wrapping and gift messaging services that Amazon offers its customers, you’ll be in a position to offer a convenient service that some of your competitors might not have realised they can offer. It’s worth considering offering free delivery too, to make you stand out from the crowd.
Christmas is fast approaching and for savvy Amazon merchants, it’s a gold rush. Being organised will help you beat the competition and the best way to get organised is through a systematic approach to your sales processes.
You can outsource and streamline how you take orders and fulfil them through an Amazon Business Integration system. It will ensure that you are consistent in your approach and raise alerts when anomalies occur, leaving you free to concentrate on growing your business. If you’d like to find out more about how EDI can grow your business, please get in touch with us.
