Why Add-ons?

If you already know what an add-on product is, you probably already hate them. Why the heck did Amazon come up with the add-on program in the first place and what is it? Best we can figure it, here’s why we think Amazon started the Add-on program:

• The Amazon Add-on program was intended to increase the catalog with a lot of new items which would have been unprofitable for Amazon to sell and ship before due to their small size, low weight and low price.
• Before the program, many of these items were offered in large multi-pack sizes and were not appealing to the average consumer who just wanted one.
• Some of these items were never listed before and Amazon hoped that customers will have a larger range of products available to purchase. The growing catalog size over the past year or so indicates that this might be true.

 

Sellers Hate Amazon Add-ons

If you wake up to find that one of your items has been declared an add-on item, you’ve probably noticed that sales have tanked. Finding an item while scouting that ends up being an add-on can feel like a waste of time.

Rational buyers want to buy what they’re looking for. They don’t want to buy a bunch of extra stuff just to get at the one item they really wanted.

Even more frustrating is that the algorithms used to decide add-on items can be inconsistent. Especially difficult for customers (and sellers) to understand is why some items in a  product line are add-ons and others are not.

However, we do believe that there is at least one advantage for both buyers and sellers. In some cases, it’s more practical for both FBA sellers and customers when it comes to non-bulk products. You now have the opportunity to sell/buy one box of teabags, as opposed to a multi-pack of of several boxes. After all, as a customer you might need just a small quantity.

 

Add-ons Hurt Amazon’s Brand

Since the very beginning, Amazon’s goal has been to put the customer first.

And with very few missteps, they’ve stayed true to their mission.

But the Add-on program has instantly devalued the Amazon Prime program for many customers. Customers who had been members of Prime had become accustomed to making many small purchases for exactly what they needed. Now with the Add-on program, they can’t.

Newer Prime subscribers don’t have this issue, but I was surprised to see Amazon punish its early adopters in this way, even if it made financial sense.

 

Conclusions

On one hand, customers have plenty of new offers, theoretically, FBA sellers can boost sales (although very few have seen this positive effect yet), Amazon Prime members can have the items shipped in no time versus 3-5 days for standard customers, there’s the option on non-bulk items and smaller size/quantity.

On the other hand, most rational consumers who will not spend $25 on cheap products just because they were interested in one item, products from the same brand may be eligible either for Prime or Add-on (often in confusing ways), and there’s a definite fear of losing Amazon Prime subscribers due to changes in the perceived usefulness of Amazon Prime.