Many people dream of becoming an entrepreneur. But when your juggling your day job, personal life, and other responsibilities, starting your own business can seem impossible.
One solution for the busy aspiring entrepreneur? Launch an Amazon FBA business. Amazon automates much of the process, and by incorporating additional Amazon automation practices, your business will be running itself.
Check out this blog post to start your journey of launching a business on a busy schedule. We cover what is Amazon automation, the top tips for putting your business on autopilot, and more.
What Is Amazon Automation Business?
Automation is just how it sounds — the process allows you to run your business more hands-off by automating repetitive tasks. Automation is possible in many types of business models like Walmart Marketplace, but it’s most common among the Amazon Marketplace.
The Amazon FBA program takes care of much of the process, as you’ll see later. However, third-party sellers can also implement software, outsource tasks, and take other measures to further streamline your Amazon operations.
Note that while Amazon automation is a lifesaver, it doesn’t make your Amazon store 100% self-sufficient. You will need to put in some serious time and money to set everything up. Even when you get things going, you will still have to oversee the software you incorporated, the freelancers you hired, etc.
Why You Should Automate Your Amazon FBA Business
There’s something rewarding about growing your Amazon business from nothing. In the beginning, many entrepreneurs work non-stop and handle pretty much every step of the process on their own.
However, there comes a point where you need to accept help. Amazon automation has tons of benefits that make its initial startup costs worth it.
Not convinced of the power of sitting back and letting your business run itself? Here are the top benefits of joining Amazon’s fulfillment network.
You Free Up Some Precious Time
Like other busy entrepreneurs, you know that your Amazon business tends to spread you thin. If you find that tasks are pulling you in every direction, Amazon FBA can go a long way in freeing up your precious time.
The program takes care of mundane tasks, allowing you to attend to more important matters that require your attention. You’ll even find yourself with more time to spend with family and doing what you love.
You Receive Passive Income From Your Amazon Store
The Amazon FBA fulfillment process helps you generate sales and facilitates passive income. In other words, you’ll earn money without having to lift a finger!
More money with less work means that you can work towards financial freedom. A business owner might use the funds to invest in other ventures, save for a big purchase, or even quit their 9-5 job.
Your eCommerce Business Becomes More Successful
While an automated business is bound to generate more sales, more money isn’t the only measure of success.
Your business will have all the ingredients it needs for success. For instance, when you streamline your customer service through FBA or outsourcing, you’ll build better relationships with customers.
You’ll also improve your relationship with Amazon as the site will see that you’re an A+ seller. The site may reward you accordingly via perks such as the buy box and better product rankings.
Most importantly, you’ll have all the tools you need to keep up as your business grows. You’ll be able to accommodate more customers and shipments without sacrificing quality service.
How to Automate Your FBA Business
When you join Amazon FBA (fulfillment by Amazon), the program will begin automating a majority of your business. Here’s a look at what sellers can expect when they rely on Amazon’s fulfillment centers.
Storing Your Inventory
A business owner can order inventory from their supplier and ship it to Amazon’s storage facilities. If you don’t want to handle the products, you can even have your supplier ship them directly to the storage facilities.
Shipping Individual Orders
When a customer places an order, the fulfillment center closest to their location will pack and ship the product for you. This order fulfillment service prevents you from having to store products and run to the post office every day.
Handling Returns
Entrepreneurs selling on Amazon know what a hassle returns can be. Luckily, Fulfillment by Amazon FBA ensures all returns and refunds are automatically processed. With this task off your plate, you can focus on building your eCommerce business.
Managing Feedback and Customer Support
When you trust a third party to send out your orders, you might worry about how its service will reflect on your Amazon business. Luckily, the FBA program manages all negative feedback concerning the fulfillment experience. You won’t take the hit if there’s an issue with a product’s shipping.
Because the FBA program is responsible for shipping your products, they’re also responsible for all related customer support. The team will field questions about the order status, handle complaints about refunds/returns, etc.
How Do I Use Amazon Automation?
All of these services sound nice, but how do you access them and start selling products, hands-free?
First, you’ll need to sign up for an Amazon seller account. From the Seller Central dashboard of your Amazon account, you specify which products will be part of your FBA inventory.
Then, you ship your products to the appropriate warehouse. The team will send out packages when your customers start ordering.
Of course, you’ll have to pay to be part of the FBA program. More on the fulfillment fee and other associated costs later.
Other Ways to Use Automation to Create a Successful Amazon Business
The FBA Amazon program takes care of many mundane and repetitive tasks. However, you must realize that the Amazon automation service doesn’t take care of everything.
You may need to enlist the help of other third-party services to fill in the gaps. Here are some of the most important tasks you can outsource:
Product Research and Sourcing
Even the most successful Amazon sellers can have a hard time finding the most profitable products to sell. To stay competitive and optimize profit margins, you should use a seller tool like Helium 10.
These tools let you compare product prices and find the best price. They also help you figure out which products customers are eager to buy, determine where to source your products from, send automated emails for marketing campaigns, and much more.
Graphic Design/Photographers/3D Product Renders
It’s common sense that customers want to see what they’re buying before they fork over their money. Unfortunately, too many eCommerce businesses fail to recognize the importance of product images.
Stay one step ahead of the competition by adding pictures to your listings. But don’t add just subpar pictures that you took with your smartphone — add pictures that will sell.
Consider hiring a professional photographer to get compelling product images. You might even consider 3D renders to show consumers exactly what they’re getting.
Copywriters
Ultimately, good copy will lead to increased sales. Purposeful content will serve you much better than just stuffing your listings with keywords in an attempt to rank higher.
Unless you’re well-versed in writing compelling copy, it’s best to hire a copywriter. Interview a couple of freelancers to see which can convey your voice and connect with your customers.
You can find qualified virtual assistants, copywriters on sites like Upwork and Fiverr, but try to choose one who has experience with product listings. Even better, they should be familiar with your niche so that they understand your target audience.
Note that there’s a surprising amount of writing that goes into an Amazon business. Beyond your listings, you’ll need well-written content for email campaigns, social media accounts, blog posts — you name it.
Listing Optimization
Seller tools like Jungle Scout can help you with listing optimization. When you find and implement the best headings, descriptions, and keywords, your products will rank higher and appear in front of more potential customers. Most importantly, your listings will stand out from the competition and ensure customers recognize your unique selling proposition.
Social Media
Social media can be a powerful way to advertise your products. But as an FBA seller, you might not have the time nor expertise to run your accounts.
Consider hiring someone who can take advantage of the power of social media and develop effective marketing strategies. By keeping your accounts active and engaging, they can help you meet your target audience where it spends much of its time.
Customer Service
Amazon does provide customer service but only for shipping, returns, and refunds. Any complaints about the quality of your product fall on you.
The last thing you want to deal with is unhappy customers screaming at you. It’s a good idea to hire a virtual assistant that can handle these complaints and keep the integrity of your online business intact.
PPC
If you’re selling on Amazon, you want to optimize your organic traffic. Many of the things we already talked about (optimizing your product listings, advertising on social media, etc.) serve to help customers naturally find your products.
Organic traffic is important, but you may need a little help. Ads are the perfect way to boost listings that aren’t quite ranking yet.
If you’re running PPC campaigns, Amazon automation is the way to go. The right management software will adjust your bids for keywords and help you make the most of your advertising budget.
Split Testing (Splitly)
A successful Amazon seller should be taking advantage of split testing. By using split testing platforms like Splitly, you make data-backed decisions on which listings to use.
Inventory Management Software
As we mentioned, Amazon automation takes care of inventory storage. However, the warehouse won’t tell you when your products are running out.
Managing inventory is crucial for staying on top of orders and keeping customers happy.
So, consider investing in inventory management software. It will keep track of how much inventory you currently have and when you need to order more. It can even trigger an order when you’re running low to prevent you from missing out on potential sales.
Bookkeeping and Payouts
As an entrepreneur, you know that you should keep track of your finances. You’ll need records of your revenue and expenses to not only calculate your profits but also properly file your taxes.
While bookkeeping might sound like a do-it-yourself task, it can quickly become overwhelming. It’s also easy to fall behind — before you know it, it’ll be tax season and you won’t have all the documentation you need.
Save yourself the stress by outsourcing your bookkeeping. An expert will dedicate themselves to keeping track of the financial health of your Amazon business. Thus, you’ll have more time to dedicate to other matters.
Additionally, like all Amazon sellers, you want to get paid. Unfortunately, managing the payment process yourself can lead to delayed payouts. You may also be unable to access the funds you need to pay for business expenses.
To make the payment process easier, use a tool like Payability. Cash flow won’t be a problem as you can automate profits, schedule instant payments, and easily transfer funds.
How Much Do You Make With Amazon Automation?
When you automate your Amazon store, you’re probably wondering how much money you can make.
The answer depends on factors beyond your control such as product prices, profit margins, how steep the competition is, etc.
To determine if Amazon automation is worth it, start by calculating your current sales and profits. Then, calculate how much more sales automation would generate for your Amazon stores.
You’ll also need to consider how much money automation will cost. Sellers must pay for a selling plan (either $0.99 per unit or $39.99 per month). Other costs include the fulfillment fee, referral fees, storage costs, refund administration fees, software for inventory management and PPC campaigns, etc.
If Amazon automation significantly increases your sales, then the cost of automation is well worth it. Most large businesses will find this situation to be the case. However, smaller businesses that value their time can also benefit from Amazon automation.
What Is Amazon Automation and Why You Should Automate Your FBA Business?
The FBA business model practically lets you sell on Amazon hands-free. Now that you’ve read our guide, you should have a better understanding of what FBA already automates. Perhaps more importantly, you know how to fill in the gaps by outsourcing tasks and implementing automation software.
Use this guide to take advantage of the huge opportunity that is Amazon automation! In no time, you should have a successful business that practically runs itself.
