Why All Companies Should be Selling Online and Why Amazon is the Way
The coronavirus pandemic created a boom in online shopping and purchasing and is showing no signs of slowing. The global online shopping market is predicted to reach $4 trillion in 2020. eCommerce is clearly a must for anyone selling a product.
This is not limited to retailers; it applies to manufacturers, distributors, and everyone in between—and you need to be there, too.
But how do you start? Don’t shy away because of logistics or cost. Amazon has worked hard to take on the logistics end and more—and with a goal to offer more products to their customers, they need to bring on more sellers—which means you—so they make it as smooth as possible for you to join them as a seller.
This blog series discusses why you should start selling online as soon as possible and why you should sell through Amazon. It also discusses how Amazon works with sellers and how ArcherPoint can help. Be sure to read the first two blogs in this series before reading this blog to get up to speed on the conversation:
Part 1: Why Sell Your Products Through Amazon
Part 2: Three Ways You Can Sell Your Products on Amazon
Now that you’ve read the first two blogs in this series, we assume you’re familiar with the following: 1) You need to start selling online NOW; 2) You need to sell through Amazon; and 3) there are multiple ways to do it. This final blog discusses how to get started and if you’re using Microsoft Dynamics NAV or Business Central, how ArcherPoint can ease the transition.
As a reminder, here is an at-a-glance of the two options (in addition to the Direct Model) offered by Amazon to sellers:
| Feature | FBA | FBM |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic Prime eligibility |  |  |
| Amazon fulfills and ships | | |
| Highest potential margins | | |
| Most access to inventory | | |
| Free and easy returns | | |
| Fewer Amazon fees | | |
REMEMBER: If you think you’ll save money by avoiding fees for using these models, Amazon is more efficient and effective than most of us at logistics.
We won’t repeat in this blog what is explained thoroughly by Amazon: The Amazon Marketplace Web Service (MWS) walks you through the process. If you want to integrate with your back office, however, that can be a bit confusing. APIs are the way to go…but you don’t want to stop there. We highly recommend you integrate your accounting, inventory, and operations applications (ERP, etc.), so you can optimize and manage your eCommerce line of business, ensuring it is an integrated component of your organization’s big picture.
NOTE: If you do not absolutely need back-office integration, a simple to use and understand option is the Amazon Seller Central Portal.
As we’ve discussed in this series, Amazon has done a great job making the process of setting up an online storefront as painless as possible. However, it is not accurate to say it’s easy to integrate with the back office. You also need to get your company’s product information, pricing, available inventory, order processing, and more flowing seamlessly between your ERP and Amazon’s Marketplace.
This is where a knowledgeable partner with the right tool comes in handy. At ArcherPoint, we have a deep understanding of the innerworkings of Amazon’s APIs. In fact, we have an application that integrates Amazon MWS with Microsoft Dynamics NAV and Dynamics 365 Business Central.
Channel Sales Manager (CSM) takes care of the details of connecting NAV or BC to Amazon (and Magento, Shopify, Miva, and more). CSM connects arguably your two most critical systems for truly centralized management, control, and visibility—retrieve, create, and post sales orders automatically, send order shipment tracking info instantly, and more. This means faster processing with fewer errors and happy, loyal customers.
The Bottom Line: You Need to Be Selling Online…Through Amazon…with Support from ArcherPoint
The three big takeaways from this series are:
- You need to be selling online; otherwise, you are missing out on a potentially huge revenue stream.
- Amazon is arguably the logistics leader, so it makes sense to use them.
- If you’re on Dynamics NAV or Business Central, ArcherPoint can help you link it to your eCommerce system—a major component of successfully selling online.
To learn more, download our latest eBook, Why Manufacturers and Distributors (and Everyone Else) Should Be Selling Online and…Why Amazon is the Way to Do It.
Then learn more about Channel Sales Manager for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and Dynamics NAV.