Explained For Beginners

I watched a video about FBA from Amazon's own YouTube channel, and this quote stood out:

"FBA Makes your products more visible to millions of loyal, happy Amazon customers while providing the world class fulfillment, fast shipping, and acclaimed customer service that can take your business to the next level"

As someone operating a business as a one man show, I need things to be scalable. That means outsourcing things like inventory storage, order fulfillment, and customer service, making FBA a strong candidate for consideration.

In the same aforementioned video, they boast that using their services allows sellers to

• make more money
• grow your business
• save time
• delight your customers

And surprisingly, I'd have to agree with all of the above - even the "delight your customers" part. Here's why.

While Amazon FBA isn't the only viable solution for my needs (there are many third party logistics solutions out there), it boasts one huge advantage over the competition: products that are fulfilled by Amazon are Prime eligible.

In April of 2018, Jeff Bezos revealed that Amazon's Prime program has over 100 million subscribers globally, which is important because analysis has shown that Prime members spend on average about $1,300 per year, compared to about $700 per year for non-member customers.

As sellers, we want to take full advantage of this opportunity and maximize our sales potential!

Amazon FBA Fees

If you opt to use Fulfillment by Amazon, there's two primary fees you'll need to be aware of:

1. Fulfillment Fees: This is the fee paid to Amazon for each sale, including referral fees, pick & pack, inner packing + boxing, & shipping costs.
2. Storage Fees: Measured in cubic feet, you'll pay Amazon a monthly fee for the amount of space your inventory occupies in their warehouses. Inventory that sits on the shelves for too long may be subject to long term storage fees which will cost you more money on a per-unit basis.

Due to FBA's popularity, the number of warehouses across the world have grown exponentially. Fees have also risen steadily over time, reducing seller profit margins.

Interested in calculating a product's FBA fees? Check out the free FBA Calculator for Amazon Chrome extension.

* Note: One of the perks of joining my Amazon FBA course is that I share my formula-driven spreadsheets with you, allowing you to easily estimate the profitability of products.

Amazon FBA Review

Selling on Amazon is a great way to make money if you have money.

I've been selling on Amazon since April of 2017, and as you can see by my public income reports, I've done relatively well for myself.

In my opinion, the most dangerous threat to prospective Amazon sellers is the number of fake guru's that exist online, pretending to have made million(s) in profit, and gone from rags to riches.

The truth is, selling on Amazon is highly competitive, and it takes tens of thousands of dollars to bankroll an FBA business.

I will write another article in the future where I go more in-depth about the financials, but understand that Amazon pays sellers twice a month, so you will likely be out-of-pocket when you pay suppliers & freight forwarders for re-orders of new products the first few times. Not to mention profit margins are getting smaller and smaller as Bezos forces sellers to pay higher and higher FBA fees and advertising costs.

That said, if you hit the ground running and are able to get a few products selling organically, it feels absolutely AMAZING.

Once you have a few winning products, The income stream can become truly passive outside of restocking inventory & monitoring customer support emails (all of which can be outsourced to virtual assistants).

The hardest part about the entire process was going through it the first time.

I've mentioned that I paid a coach $2,500 for one-on-one weekly meetings and support as I launched my first product.

I also supplemented their guidance by listening to podcasts and YouTube videos whenever possible, listed below.

Whether you decide to pay a coach, enroll in a course, or go about it on your own, you will need to completely dedicate yourself to the endeavor & most importantly: be methodical & keep pushing!

How FBA Works

Figuring out how FBA works is a pain in the butt because there's no single resource that I've seen that walks you though the process at a high level, so allow me to attempt to do so:

1. Open your Amazon seller account
2. Find the product you want to sell in their catalog, or create a product listing & change it to Fulfilled by Amazon
3. Create an inbound shipment for your goods (Inventory > Manage FBA Inventory > Send/Replenish Inventory)
4. Send the product + shipping labels from your inbound shipment to your supplier to place on the goods + master cartons
5. When the goods are produced, have your freight forwarder pick them up & ship them to the FBA warehouse specified when you created the inbound shipment
6. Once they're received by Amazon you will get an email notifying you. It can take between 3-7 days for the goods to show up as "in stock" on your listing from that time
7. As you get sales, you'll be able to track your revenue in seller central in the "Sales Summary" panel.
8. You'll get paid twice a month

I visited an FBA fulfillment center in 2017!

Amazon FBA Communities & Resources

The FBA landscape is constantly changing & evolving, and saying that it's a lot to take in would be an understatement. That said, joining an active community of FBA sellers is a great way to stay in the know.

Here's a list of some recommended Amazon seller online communities & resources:

• * Facebook Group: Ryan's Method
• * YouTube: Ryan's Method
• Amazon Seller Forums
• Reddit Community: /r/FulfillmentByAmazon/
• YouTube: The Amazing Seller
• YouTube: Jungle Scout
• YouTube: Seller Sessions (Advanced)
• Facebook: Anthony Lee of SixLeaf.com (Advanced)

Ryan's Method: Amazon FBA Course

I kept very meticulous notes as I went through my first product launch, as I wanted a well documented reference of the entire process that I could use as I went through the process of launching future products.

In doing so, I ended up inadvertently creating a curriculum for a course that teaches you how to sell on Amazon.

So after spending another 100 hours writing content, drafting images & how to-guides, & recording video walkthroughs... the course was finished!

Here's was you can look forward to learning from it if you choose to enroll:

1. Creating a digital workspace optimized for long-term success
2. Tools that help you succeed
3. How to find & validate your private label FBA products
4. How to find a supplier, order samples, & place your first order
5. How to create a product listing & create an inbound shipment for FBA
6. How to optimize your product listing
7. How to set up sponsored product campaigns
8. BONUS MATERIAL: automating your FBA business; selling on Amazon's international markets; selling on your own website; brand registry + enhanced brand content; inventory management advanced strategy