Learn How to Successfully Launch Products on Amazon

Launching a new product without a pre-launch plan is like going to war without weapons! We have observed that whenever a new product is launched, Amazon gives an initial push to the listing to evaluate the user experience (click-through rates, conversion, etc.). Not getting your pre-launch strategy right means that you not only lose out on the precious initial push, but also take longer to figure out what works for your product. Some of the most important aspects of your pre-launch strategy include:

• Inventory Plan: It goes without saying that having your product in-stock for the launch and also the near future is absolutely essential to make sales. We recommend creating a 6-month inventory plan based on your annual sales forecast, and ensuring that this stock is ready-to-go before the actual launch. You must also account for production time, in-transit time, and other elements of your supply chain in this step. Given the current global shipping and logistical challenges being faced, it is very important to have a clear visibility on inventory fulfillment.
• Shipping & Fulfillment: Another crucial aspect is deciding which mode of fulfillment works best as per your business needs and goals. There are primarily two options – FBA and Self-Fulfillment. You need to do a thorough study on your expected sales volume, size of the packaged product, shipping coverage area, extent of control you would want over your inventory, and the various cost elements associated with each of these methods, to finally arrive at a decision on which shipping mode to opt for. 
• Package sizing and FBA fees: Make sure that you verify and validate the size of your packaging. If Amazon’s assessment of the packaging is different, a seller may end up paying far more FBA fees than earlier planned, thus throwing your profit estimates to a toss.
• Brand Registry: If you are not already brand registered on Amazon, it is important that you start early. Though this is not a mandatory requirement, Amazon does push sellers to opt for it.  You would require a registered trademark to start off, and it could even take up to 6 months to be accepted by Amazon.
• Reviews & Rating Plan: You need reviews and ratings to build sales momentum, and you need more sales to get more of these reviews. This sales-reviews loop makes it quite challenging to successfully launch a new product. Therefore, you must have a plan to gradually build your reviews and ratings. You could initially enrol in Amazon Early Reviewer Program (ERP) or the Amazon Vine Program to gather reviews. You could also plan for automated emails to ask buyers for reviews. But all of this needs to be done in compliance with Amazon’s guidelines.
• Advertising Strategy: In order to get the initial traffic to your newly launched product and generate sales, it is crucial to give your listing an extra push through ads. You need to plan for an ads budget, estimate the revenue you could generate from your advertising efforts and accordingly develop your ad campaigns.
• External Traffic: While Amazon has a large customer base, it is also a highly competitive platform. Therefore, it makes sense to strategize on how you can drive external traffic to your listing through your social media accounts, curated email lists, blog posts, etc. to gain initial traction.