Amazon’s entrepreneurial ecosystem is baffling to most and a complete mystery to many, especially when it comes to the revolutionary Amazon Prime service. Being able to piggyback on the success of this exclusive subscription-only service is every Amazon seller’s dream, but could you be a Prime Merchant, and is it all it’s cracked up to be?
What Sellers Get Out of Amazon Prime
It goes without saying that becoming Prime eligible means gaining access to an entirely new clientele. Some FBA items will automatically become eligible for Amazon Prime when they’re shipped into a fulfilment center, so eligibility is not that great of an issue for FBA sellers.
If you don’t use Fulfillment by Amazon services, or you have specific products you’d rather not send into a fulfillment center, Amazon Prime can still be an option for you. Amazon.com extended the program to third-party sellers, but on an invite-only basis. The same is likely to happen in the future on other platforms.
Here are some of the perks:
- A Prime badge reels in more customers
- You’re given Buy Box priority as a Prime service provider
Things you should know if you’re a seller:
- To be invited and to keep your membership, you must have stellar metrics and excellent delivery rates.
- You must go through a 30-day trial period, during which time you need to fulfill at least 30 orders shipped in 2 days or less.
- The amount you can charge customers for shipping is capped, so you’re better off not listing heavy, bulky items.
- You can restrict orders from customers who are too far for on-time delivery by setting your own delivery areas.
- Listing Prime products would be going toe-to-toe with large-scale sellers who already had excellent timing on their deliveries.
What Customers Get Out of Amazon Prime
A recent survey carried out by Cowen & Co. suggests that there are currently 41 million Amazon Prime members, Fortune reports. On top of that, the same survey finds that the 2,500 customers who participated have a higher household income than most other Amazon customers, and those of other online retailers, for that matter.
To some, signing up for Prime membership is a no-brainer. However, the cost will depend on the location, and so will the perks. An Amazon Prime membership will set you back $99 per year if you’re a US member, £79 if you’re in the UK, €19.99 if you sign up for it in Italy, or €49.99 if you’re a French or German member.
Here are some of the perks:
Things you should know if you’re a customer:
- the yearly membership rate can’t be spread out into monthly installments
- customers in some US states pay sales tax on their membership
In a nutshell, if you’re an Amazon seller, your only chance at the Merchant Fulfilled Prime program is to have impeccable performance metrics as well as the logistics involved in delivering as efficiently as Amazon does. Then and only then can you hope to become part of the Amazon Prime program, this honeypot for affluent online shoppers.