To secure a mortgage, prospective homeowners need to prove their creditworthiness and financial health with a strong FICO score. A FICO score is the three-digit number based on one’s credit reports that help creditors assess how likely one can repay debt.
E-commerce could learn a thing or two about ratings to determine one’s success — especially working with Amazon. The retailer’s sheer size and volume make it an e-commerce platform like no other that we have ever seen. What’s more, no one brand or company has created the ideal formula to sell their products on Amazon.
My team has measured the successes and failures of hundreds of SKUs/brands and have realized that by amplifying specific components of one’s Amazon strategy, a brand or manufacturer can achieve unforeseen gains.
The sum of the parts is greater than the whole
According to industry reports, global e-commerce will reach $4.5 trillion by 2021. What’s more, Mary Meeker’s latest Internet Trends Report cited that 49 percent of product searches start on Amazon. It makes sense that products should have a presence here, right? Not so fast.
Far too many companies believe that selling on Amazon is like approaching any other distribution channel. They see the potential of reaching more customers, but they don’t appreciate the numerous departments, relationships and interconnectivity needed for a product to achieve Amazon success.
Marketers and e-commerce executives need to do their homework on Amazon’s vast number of moving parts. If you don’t have the right assets at your disposal to not just sell products, but to negotiate the right distribution and fulfillment, shoppers will move to another product to fulfill needs.
My team quickly realized that we could “grade” companies and brands for how strong they present themselves based on what successful brands do on Amazon. But we wanted to take things a step further. We wanted to create a summarized rating of the potential of individual products and identify areas where we could improve awareness and drive sales. Improving the health of a brand on Amazon and making it healthy charts a long-term path of wellness and well-being in much the same way a doctor charts out a patient’s success for long-term health.
5 components every Amazon presence must address
The basis of the methodology is helping any brand or product diagnose symptoms of their Amazon account based on the five most important asset classes that matter most. Here’s how you can access your own Amazon “health.”
Creative. First and foremost, a brand or SKU must review its creative assets (e.g., product images, lifestyle images, videos) that depict the usage of the product. Whereas many companies post these assets as if they were utilizing a brochure, those wishing to sell on Amazon must base them on what works and doesn’t work on Amazon and (in tandem) address the creative objective of the product being showcased.
Search Engine Optimization. Many marketers tend to forget that Amazon is a giant search engine and requires a constant review of a product rank when customers search using relevant keywords. Consistent analysis of keywords and content goes a long way to ensure one’s product health success because those keywords are the “diagnostic” tools in which Amazon works.
Inventory Management. One of the most important assessments is to look at the logistics and supply chain operations to assess the likelihood that a product will have enough inventory in-place, or if it will be out of stock based on projections or seasonal forecasts. Ultimately, if your goal is to drive Buy Box ownership; not having the right amount of inventory will deplete this part of the ranking.
Third-Party Sellers. Measure the number of third-party sellers and the activity they play on direct sales. Many manufacturers are surprised at the number of outside parties selling their products. In some cases, this analysis uncovers such issues as counterfeiting and sales of older goods.
Merchandising. Look at various marketing and merchandising efforts that are available — both on Amazon as well as on the outside of it. Amazon Marketing Services are powerful tools to utilize if you know how to use them properly. Review competitive products and their health scores to address best practices of particular categories to reach consumers.
Should you wish to put your products on Amazon, it pays to assess your health on the platform. Otherwise, you will be sickened by how you are losing to your competition.
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