What is an Amazon FBA business?
Step One: Pick Your First Product
The first step in this process is the hardest (and can be pretty time-consuming), and it’s picking your first product.
Not to put too much pressure on you, but choosing the right product to start with will make or break your business.
Okay, it probably won’t break it, but if there is little or no demand for your first product, if it is competing in an ultra-competitive market, or if it is expensive to purchase in bulk, then you may not see the profitable returns you were hoping for.
You can avoid that heartache by taking the time to brainstorm, do market research, and explore different supplier options (we’ll get to them in the next step).
Remember: this first product might be the start of an ongoing process of trial and error. Even if you try your best to pick a product that feels like it will be a winner, there will always be better products to list or better ways to supply or market it. But you gotta start somewhere, right?
Brainstorm Your Passions and Pick a Niche Market
Start with what you’re passionate about and brainstorm product ideas. When you’re brainstorming, don’t limit yourself. It’s best to think broadly and outside the box; you can narrow your ideas down later on.
Do Market Research — and Lots of It!
Once you’ve picked something you’re interested in, start doing some preliminary market research—then dive a little (or a lot) deeper.
Avoid Competing with Brand Names or Super Well-Established Products
Especially for your first product, go with something that doesn’t have a crazy amount of competition in the form of brand name items. Keep this in mind while doing your market research—is a product (or its category) trendy simply because of its brand name? If so, this could indicate that the market won’t be as competitive as you’d think (because people love their brand names). If you want to break into a market that’s dominated by a major brand name, your product will need to be pretty revolutionary.
Find a Supplier
Since cost will drive where and how you supply your product, it’s a good idea to consider sourcing your product from outside the U.S.
If you’re searching for domestic suppliers in the United States (or you prefer using companies in your area), purchase a trade magazine online or at your local bookstore, or use Google to find local tradeshows that plan on hosting the big-hitters in the industry.
Perusing the pages of a trade magazine or wandering the sea of tables at a trade show might lead you to a supplier that distributes exactly the product you’re looking for.
When considering different suppliers, check to see if they manufacture other products you could potentially list in the future (since you’ve picked a competitive niche market). If they do, try to establish a positive relationship with them from the beginning to ensure long-term success.
“Ship” Your Product
Figuring out how to source your product will also involve considering if you can afford to source your products by boat, by air, or by train (which will also affect whether you’ll source your product overseas or domestically).
There are so many rules and regulations governing every method of shipment, but there are even more involved with receiving products from overseas.
Shipping by train is typically used when transporting goods from a port, and it can be especially helpful when transporting items over long distances. While it’s not as flexible as transporting items by truck only, which is another land-based method you can choose from, it can be a good option for larger bulk items traveling domestically.