Amazon Sellers: Getting Ready for Back-to-School/College Season

Supplies, schedules, furniture, and so much more are all on the minds of anyone who needs to prepare for the back-to-school/college season. This season typically runs mid-July, after Prime Day ends, and through the end of August. It acts as an extension of deals and can run into September to promote any remaining FBA inventory. The time to promote your brand and products related to back-to-school/college is now!

Here are key things you should know as an Amazon Seller to get ready for back-to-school/college:

Prior events:

• If you have any remaining inventory from Prime Day, review the products being advertised as back-to-school and keep them at FBA.
• Be sure to monitor trends and top sellers from your previous year’s back-to-school sales as well as trends from competitors in your niche area.
• Just as you did during Prime Day, make sure to have an advertising strategy in place and spend a few more dollars than normal for incremental reach.

Marketing:

• Keep your product listing and branding campaigns optimized and up to date, including current trends, relevant keywords, and high-quality images preferably related to back-to-school.
• Creating bundles to entice your clientele to purchase multiple units is a great example of extending your offerings and increasing your overall sales.
• Utilize A+ content comparison modules to expose your other product listings more. This is an excellent way to cross-promote your brand and drive more traffic.

Logistics:

• Prepare for a surge of orders, so you do not fall behind in supply and delivery expectations.
• Even if a 3PL or your own warehouse ships your stock, make sure cost of the product has built in freight costs, to ensure free shipping! In a survey conducted by Deloitte early this year, 79% of the people surveyed said free shipping should be a priority, so work with your prices to try to make this a reality.
• Consider establishing a Dropship Method. In times of uncertainty, Amazon will restrict inventor, extend delivery times, or even shut down altogether. To get around this and provide your clients with a reliable delivery service, you can establish your business on Amazon as FBM (Fulfillment by Merchant), where you can ship your good directly to your clients instead of relying on Amazon. To enroll as an FBM, you must have a warehouse and be able to ship from it.

Back-to-School spending is already a huge opportunity for trusted brands in the industry, and this year won’t be an exception despite the rising inflation. The National Retail Federation noted that one-third of consumers (38%) are cutting back on other spending areas to cover the cost of items for the upcoming school year. The NFR also noted that they expect the total back-to-school spending to match 2021’s record high of $37 billion.

To best position your brand to benefit from this consumer spending, work with your partners at Amazon to take full advantage of your tools on the platform.

Phelps UNITED is here to provide expert guidance on your Amazon selling strategy and brand advertising tips, visit our website to learn more