Gaining financial freedom can be a huge challenge, but it is not impossible. But your journey to gaining financial freedom can be faster if you find ways to make money and save time. In other words, earn passive income. One of the best ways to do this is to sell products online.
Starting a business is not something you should do without learning the ropes. If you want to start an online business, you have to learn how to sell products online.
Thus, if you wish to learn how to sell products online, you are at the right place. No worries. We will untangle all the complexities. This way, all your questions about how to sell products online will be answered. Let’s dive in!
Table of Contents
Ways To Sell Online
Everything can be done online these days. So if you have thought of starting a business. Then you have probably thought of selling online. Setting up your business on the internet is easy. The possibilities and options are limitless. There are many ways to sell products online. Here are a few of them:
- Use eCommerce Store Builders e.g Shopify
- Sell on social media
- Set up your own eCommerce store
- Join a marketplace
E-Commerce Store Builders
E-commerce store builders are digital platforms that provide apps for online selling. Sellers can merge their online stores and social media platforms with these apps. This way, your social media audience can access the products listed on your online store.
Also, when you put up a product on your online store, it’ll be automatically uploaded to your social media page. If you like the idea of being able to manage your business in one place, then this option is ideal for you.
2. Sell on Social Media
Social media is no longer just a way to pass the time. It now doubles as a way to earn passively. Thousands of people are already earning from selling on social media. You, too, can join this category of people. Even better if you already have a large following on social media.
Almost everyone is on social media these days. So you most likely have an account already. If you do, then you’re halfway through. All you need to do now is upload product images and prices. Then watch orders roll in.
Most social media platforms allow you to create business accounts. This feature enables you to run ads and reach your target audience better. It’s easy to run an eCommerce business successfully on social media. Here are a few tips:
- Post entertaining content:
People don’t just want you to be in their faces. So ensure you try to post content to distract people from your products once in a while.
- Run promotional ads:
Facebook and Instagram allow you to run ads. So if you want to reach more people and make more sales, consider running ads.
- Upload high-quality product images:
Posting pictures of your products is the catch if you want to sell on social media. What you shouldn’t do is post low-quality product images. Also, avoid overdoing it. You don’t have to post too many times in a day, find the times when your followers are the most responsive.
With social media, you will have to respond to customers manually and on time. So if you don’t have much time on your hands, it may be a bit of a struggle.
3. Join A Marketplace
Online marketplaces are the easiest way to start an online business and reach a global audience.
With online marketplaces, you can sell as many products as possible. And your location is not a barrier. But there are many processes involved. Product research, keyword research, and listing optimization are at the core.
There are tools to help you execute these tasks. So you won’t have to worry about them. The competition on most online marketplaces is stiff. Hence, you will also have to run PPC ads to make sales.
The good thing about selling online is that you can use as many channels as possible. Social media and online marketplaces give you access to a large audience. But, managing a business across several platforms can be difficult. E-Commerce store builders can help you save time.
There are tons of online marketplaces that you can join. They include Amazon. eBay, Etsy, and Walmart. But in this post, we will talk about Amazon.
Related: Amazon vs eBay
4. Set-up Your E-Commerce Store
If you would love to be an independent seller, this option is for you. Setting up your eCommerce storefront allows you to play by your own rules. You will not be subject to an unfavorable algorithm or site updates. You can remove or add any feature you want.
Although this idea looks easy on paper, it may be difficult to pull off. This is because it is expensive, especially for beginners. So if you are on a budget, it may not be your best bet to sell products online.
If you cannot set up your eCommerce store, you should consider selling on Amz. Statistics show that:
- Of the above figure, 83% are profitable
This means that it is almost impossible to sideline Amz if you intend to start an eCommerce business. You can earn a significant amount of money every month if you learn the ropes of this platform.
How to Sell Products Online
Trying to figure out how to be successful online can be tiring. But you can end the struggle now. In this guide, we have provided a step-by-step process to walk you through the process of selling products online.
1. Decide How To Sell Online
If you want to sell products online, you will first have to decide what eCommerce platform you want to sell on. AMZ is the best choice for you. Especially because of the various fulfillment options that the platform offers.
AMZ also allows you to sell across many channels or marketplaces. If you do this, you can still use their fulfillment options. In this guide, we will focus more on selling on Amz.
Related: Amazon fulfillment options
Selling on AMZ
Selling on Amazon is very easy. It is as simple as this:
- Create an account and choose a selling plan
- Create product listings (descriptions, images, and price)
- Choose a fulfillment method
- Make sales and accept payment
- Fulfill orders
It is that simple.
The AMZ marketplace is quite versatile. You can buy almost anything on the platform, the same goes for selling. But if you will be selling products on AMZ. Then you want to make sure they are profitable products with relatively high demand. This is because you’ll compete with some of the world’s biggest retailers.
If you pay a bit extra, they will store and deliver your goods on your behalf. If you don’t, you will need to provide affordable shipping. With this, it is a remarkably attractive one-stop e-commerce shop.
Before starting, make sure to check Amazon’s fees to see what you’ll have to pay.
Once you have concluded on selling on AMZ, you should also decide how you want to do this. Do you want to sell private label products or be a drop shipper? Would you rather be a wholesaler or use retail arbitrage? You can use whichever method works for you.
2. Choose what products to sell
When sourcing products for your Amazon store, try not to pick random products that you think will be good. Instead, choose products that people want to buy. It is more about your audience than it is about you. You may have the slickest online store and the best customer service around. But if you don’t have good products, you will struggle.
Success on Amazon is dependent on your ability to find the best-selling products. If you are a beginner, you may struggle with product research. You can do away with blind guesses and not risk losing your money if you use AMZ software.
Related: Best AMZ software for product research
ZonBase Amazon Product Research tool
This product research tool will help you find the best-selling products on Amazon. It will also give you the latest product ratings and descriptions in seconds.
Isn’t it great if you could find out all the details about a product before you settle for it? To help you do this, you will need an Amazon Chrome extension. Zon Chrome extension will give you quick access to all the product information that you need.
Research the right keywords. Especially your competitors’ keywords. This will come in handy when trying to create the perfect product listing. The ZonBase Reverse ASIN tool lets you determine what keywords your competitors are using. And you can then use this insight to overtake them and increase your sales.
It is one of the few AMZ seller tools that use important sales trends and company reviews. It also sources other valuable information. It then creates a reliable, up-to-date, and solid database. The tool makes product research easy by handpicking your first, and then the next set of products for you.
Are you considering a product, but unsure of its demand? Confirm your product options with the ZonBase Product Validator.
It helps you keep your risk as low as possible when you are selling on AMZ.
3. Create and Optimize Your Product Listings
Your product listings are the easiest way to make sales, so they need to be optimized for conversions. To do this, you will need to write great product descriptions. Then use clear, high-quality product images.
ZonBase comes with an effective photo enhancer tool. The tool will help improve your product images and captivate the attention of buyers.
It also houses many listing optimization tools. So you can create and optimize your listings for conversions.
4. Create A Sales Strategy
You must now consider your business strategy. From firsthand experience, we are aware of the challenges of selling products online.
When you have found products for your store, it can seem like it takes a long time to find a buyer. Work out a business plan as a first step.
What is your sales goal? What will be your profit margin? Who are your competitors? How will your store gain visibility so you can make sales?
Another way to make sure you close more sales is to get more reviews. And offer excellent customer service. Make sure you include some form of contact information. This way, customers can reach you, and reply to emails and phone calls promptly.
Amazon FBA Fees
If you read to this point, you are a beginner. Hence you need to take note of the fees involved. After learning about selling on Amazon, you must be ready to bear the cost.
Amazon offers two fulfillment options:
- Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA)
- Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM)
FBA implies that Amazon takes care of business processes on your behalf. So you won’t have to bother about storing, packing, and shipping your orders. They will also provide excellent customer service for your business.
In contrast, with FBM, you will be fully responsible for these processes. As a beginner, managing these processes can be tough. So, FBA is the best option. But if you end up choosing Amazon, you need to factor in the costs.
Amazon fees are as follows:
- Selling plan fees: If you choose the individual selling plan, you pay $0.99 for every sale. On the professional plan, you pay a flat-rate fee of $39.99.
- Referral fees: This is a commission that Amazon deducts on every sale. It ranges from about 8-15%.
- Variable closing fee: Charged on items in the media category.
- Fulfillment fees: Under FBA, Amazon handles storage, packing, and shipping for you. This is the cost you will have to pay for fulfillment.
- Inventory storage fee: If you use FBA, your items will be stored in Amz fulfillment centers. Hence, you have to pay for storage. This fee varies based on how much space your inventory takes.
There are other seller fees, but they mostly apply to FBA sellers. If you use FBM, you’ll have to pay only the first three fees above.
Related: Amazon Outlet Store Program for Sellers
Conclusion
Selling on Amazon is not as tough as it sounds if you do it the right way. And learning how to sell products online is not the end of the journey. You must also learn how to manage your time. This is even more important if you’ll be juggling many priorities. One of the best ways to do this is to automate your business.
You can use Amz Automation and Amz seller tools for this. This way, you not only get a chance to make more money. But, you also have more time to have fun.
Now that you know how to sell products online, don’t waste any more time, you can go ahead and start selling on Amazon!
