Amazon and eBay both online markets seem to be very beneficial. Ecommerce business owners get a huge exposure. Even the marketplace gets a good range and variety of products without increasing the inventory.
Apart from just the mutual benefits there is still the dilemma that whether one should increase its presence beyond its online store and start selling on Amazon and eBay.
It all actually depends on the marketing strategy. It might prove successful for some and may prove a complete failure for some. There are a lot more factors that have to be studied before starting your business on Amazon and eBay. Even the type of product you wish to sell. One has to learn about the competitors in their category, the market and its prices and restriction and much more.
There are a few pros and Cons, which we would be discussing further in this article, which will help you, decide whether to sell on these online market places.
The Pros of Selling on Amazon and eBay
Selling On These Marketplaces Helps in Increasing Sales
Amazon and eBay has a huge exposure and high footfall. Selling on these markets will bring a good exposure to your products. Amazon approximately draws 184 million visitors in a month and eBay has 164 million buyers. This is a huge number and this number can bring you good business and sales.
Amazon executive reports that when a seller joints Amazon he tends to increase his sale by 50%.
Gain New Customers
Visitors or viewers on Amazon or eBay come looking for products and end up discovering your product, which may be different or they have purchased from some competitor.
Once the customer purchases your product, you have full opportunity to gain more business from the same customer, so you may prove yourself with your excellent services.
Many People Still Prefer Shopping Via Market Places
Market places have good numbers. This is applicable for online markets also as it is for real markets. A marketplace has good variety and you get all at one place. The same way even online market place is one stop shop solution. This kind of experience with single checkout system and with good customer service gives a huge experience for buyers.
Cons on Selling on Amazon and eBay
There are some drawbacks on selling on online marketplaces, let us see and consider it.
Marketplace Fees
When you start of a business, you plan to set a new shop, which would increase good sales but increase your marketplace fees also. The fee is generally deducted on sale percentage and this varies from site to site and category to category.
In low margin categories, the numbers may not add up. Before starting your business, you should know well about your margins and fee structure.
It Has Limited Control
The market places come with benefits but they come more to help themselves rather than you. They believe that the entire focus should be on the products rather than the seller. They restrict the seller’s presence and reduce your conversation with your customers. They control on items that you may sell or you may not.
Keeping Record of Your Inventory
Market is undoubtedly a second point of sale. Your inventory and shopping cart cannot be synced with one another making it very difficult to understand stock levels without manual counting.
How to Choose a Marketplace
Once you finish reading and analysing the pros and Cons, you may now decide on which market place to choose. The answer is quiet tempting, as you may want to join them all. However, each market place is different and has its own system, limitations, and process. Learning steps of each market place can be a time consuming task and you may not have enough time. It would be wise to select one or two at max.
Amazon and eBay are the largest and most popular marketplaces.
Amazon
Amazon has sharp retail tricks, as Amazon being a retailer itself it provides good tools to third party sellers to be a part and provide seamless shopping experience to their customers.
A Few Things You Need To Consider Before Selling On Amazon
- You should stock your entire inventory and then hand it over to Amazon and let it handle the entire shipping and fulfilment.
- Amazon prime membership helps the shoppers with 2 day free shipping along with a fast and complete fulfilment of their order.
- Built in comparison shopping brings you out and better than other sellers.
- There is a monthly fee that is levied on listing your products on Amazon, other fees like referral are charged only on sales and may vary from product to product.
- Before selling on Amazon understand your margins and other factors and then decide whether you can sell on Amazon or not.
Ebay
Ebay is one of the most biggest and popular online marketplace. The products are sold and bought on a fixed price through an auction system. Ebay believes in providing seller with features that would help them present themselves as a brand on eBay.
Consider A Few Points before Selling on eBay.
- Ebay allows you to put your product for auction to the highest bidder, which will help in attracting many shoppers who search unique, used or different products. Sellers are at benefit as they can sell products on fixed prices.
- On eBay, you need to find your own way for shipping and fulfilment or you may opt for a third party.
- Selling a product on eBay one has to pay insertion fee per listing and according to the category. Sellers also get a fixed free listing every month; this depends on the type of eBay account.
- Make sure you check all the fees listing before you start selling on eBay.
Conclusion
When you plan to sell online it depends a lot on what you are selling and the scale of your business to choose one Market place between Amazon and eBay. Selling in your own store and expanding your business is a good growth and exposure to your products. It will bring in a lot benefits. It is better to select and learn one at a time.
