The Buy Box on Amazon can be found in the top right section of the product details page. This is the area where customers can begin the purchasing process by adding items to their cart. One of the key features on Amazon is that multiple sellers can offer the same product to customers. If there is more than one eligible seller offering a product, then they are in competition for the Buy Box for that product. Sellers must meet performance-based requirements to be eligible to compete for Buy Box placement. The Buy Box winner is then selected from the group of eligible sellers based on a few things including price, fulfillment method and product availability. 

According to Amazon, about 80% of all sales on the site come through the Buy Box. This is a huge number! This means that when a customer lands on a product page and is deciding whether or not to buy the item, roughly 80% of the time they are going to buy from the seller that currently holds the Buy Box. It's very likely that a customer buys from the seller holding the Buy Box at the time of purchase for a number of reasons including the product is new and is sold by a prime member. And who doesn't want that free 2 day shipping, right?

If there is only one eligible seller on a product listing then they will hold the Buy Box 100% of the time. But if there is more than one eligible seller, then Amazon will rotate these sellers in and out of the Buy Box. This rotation is influenced by, among other things, Amazon's algorithm, competitive pricing and fulfillment. Winning the Buy Box is not limited to being the lowest price, but can also mean being the best seller geographically for the buyer. I know you are probably asking yourself what this means right? 

Depending on the location of a seller's inventory, an Amazon buyer will see a certain seller in the Buy Box relative to where the buyer is located. For example, if a prime member customer is on the east coast, Amazon will show them an offer in the Buy Box that is located in an east coast warehouse. This makes it easier to ship to them within that 2 day window rather than shipping from a warehouse located on the west coast that cost 1$ less. This means that a person located on the west coast could be looking at the exact same product listing as our aforementioned customer on the east coast and see two different sellers in the Buy Box. 

As a seller, it is of utmost importance to have an optimal strategy on being able to have their share of the Buy Box. This strategy includes competitive pricing, seller feedback score, availability, selling FBA (Fulfilled By Amazon), and being a professional seller on Amazon. This is one of the many reasons why it is important for brands to work with third party sellers who are Amazon specialists. Without these things in place, it's almost certain you will not achieve desired success while selling on Amazon. 

The quality of a listing is one of the most important things to consider for a brand and its product. This is where a brand represents itself in the Amazon Marketplace. Obviously, it would be in the brand’s best interest to have a high quality listing as opposed to a low quality one.

Amazon allows up to 9 pictures to be shown on a listing. We believe it is optimal to maximize the potential of the product by using all 9 slots allotted. It is also important to use high quality photos to give customers a clear understanding of what they are buying. Include showing what the product looks like when being used, the product packaging, sizing, and different angle of the product.

Amazon allows up to 5 bullet points to list features about your product. It is best to include strong features and benefits so the customer can see what value your product can bring to them. 

Different categories have different guidelines to adhere to so make sure to check for what specifics apply to your product. It is important to include the brand name of the product, a brief description, classification, and maybe something unique about the product.

The description should describe the products major features such as style, size, and what the product can be used for. Just like the bullet points, you can give details about how the product can be useful to you.

Depending on the product, running some seasonal campaign ads for some relevant keywords such as Christmas, Mother’s Day, Valentines, etc. When customer interest is peaking due to the seasonality, it is an optimal strategy to run these ad campaigns to boost sales. It can also be beneficial to help get rid of leftover inventory at the end of a season. 

Products that sell well are placed at the beginning of Amazon’s search results making it very difficult for new products to be visible to customers. When you run a PPC ad for a new product, you can give it a good boost by generating clicks and sales, so that they can gradually rank better organically. 

Even if your product ranks high on Amazon’s search result, it can be a great strategy to still run ad campaigns for that product. The goal would be to retain your top position and not lose sales to competitors who are also running ads.

So what happens when a seller on Amazon advertises a pair of shoes for $25 when a MAP policy states that it must be listed at $45 or higher? The seller needs to be contacted and warned that they are in violation of the policy. If they choose to violate the policy again then legal action can be taken and that seller can be kicked off the listing. It is important to monitor resellers pricings to make sure that its aligned with the MAP policy in effect.

Implementing a MAP policy helps level out the playing field for resellers when selling a brands products online. More importantly, it is vital that this policy is consistently enforced upon because it benefits both the brand and the sellers. Bigger resellers benefit from higher margins without having the annoyance of having to continuously drop their prices to remain competitive. A brand benefits heavily with an effective MAP policy because it helps maintain brand equity, and also strengthens relationships with resellers.

When your customer leaves a review for your product, you must respond as soon as possible regardless if the review is good or bad. If the review is negative, it is imperative that you apologize and try to understand what their issues with your product were. You can then offer to refund or replace their purchase. If they are upset about an incorrect product description, tell them you have corrected the mistake or politely direct them to where the accurate information is displayed. Make sure to be specific to the customer’s comments.

If you receive a negative review that is not qualified to be removed by Amazon, then the next step is to contact the customer once you receive their contact information. Although this can take a lot of time and can be fairly difficult, if you get a good review then it’s worth it. Amazon does not allow you to say things like “ Can you remove the review if we give you a refund?” It is against Amazon’s rules and will lead to your account being suspended. The best route to take is to apologize, offer a solution and if the customer agrees with your solution, you can politely ask them to remove the review.

Amazon prides themselves on being customer obsessed and as a seller, it can go a long way having this same mentality. Understanding and empathizing with a customer can help with connection in a world where we aren’t having that face to face experience. Providing great customer service can gain future business with that same buyer or new customers who were referred to you solely due to the service you provided them.