Refunds Manager Blog

Whether you’re a new Amazon FBA seller or an experienced seller, combing through numerous articles online isn’t enough to teach you how to run a business or learn best practices for selling on Amazon. Podcasts, however, are one of the most effective ways to learn.

Audio content is a great way to learn new skills and strategies during a long drive or even while doing the dishes.

Listening to podcasts is a great way to leverage the experience of Amazon seller who’ve made the mistakes, tested processes and achieved success.

And of course, as an FBA seller, you’re looking for skills and strategies that will help you grow your business.

Here is our top selection of podcasts for Amazon FBA sellers that were created by sellers. Because private labelling is a whole lot more complicated than retail arbitrage (yes, arbitrage is a skill, but building a brand is a skill on a different level) most podcasts are aimed at sellers with bigger, long term business needs like branding, advertising, and possibly multi-channel selling.

1. The Amazing Seller Podcast

Regardless of what content Scott Voelker has planned for his show, when big news happens, he pivots quickly so that his listeners can get the best insights. When Amazon announced that it was no longer ok within their TOS to give away products for free in exchange for reviews, The Amazing Seller Podcast didn’t buy into the panic. Instead, Scott had the CEO of the now reimagined ReviewKick on the show to share what he learned directly from a phone call with Amazon attorneys.

In addition to interviewing quality guests, Scott holds Q&A sessions multiple times per month. If you have a question, you can easily record it on the Amazing Seller site.

Find the podcast here.

2. The Ask Jordan Podcast

Unlike most podcasts, which are often upwards of 40 minutes long, the Ask Jordan Podcast is made up of 8 – 20 minute long responses to questions that host Jordan Malik has heard from sellers in person and online. You’ll find nitty gritty details and advice for both arbitrage and private labelling, alongside entrepreneurial motivation and the inspiration needed to help you succeed.

Jordan is just as likely to cover why sellers shouldn’t get discouraged or compare themselves to other sellers as he is to divulge tips for thriving during Q4.

Find the podcast here.

3. FBA All Stars

With ample cuss words but no BS, Matt Ward gives FBA advice to you straight. He’ll do everything from rant on why money-making e-courses are so lame to interview business coaches and consultants whose on-air advice is nearly as good as a private session.

Like many FBA sellers who create content for other sellers, he seems to be doing it for the sheer joy of sharing his experience. Matt covers primarily tips for large scale, private label sellers with 7 figure goals. He goes into details about his own business’s successes, always framing it into actionable advice for sellers.

Find the podcast here.

4. The Private Label Podcast

On The Private Label Podcast, Kevin Rizer puts out multiple, high quality episodes each week, and as you might have guessed, his content is the place to turn if you’re building a profitable private label business on Amazon. The whole point of his show is that you’re not just creating a business, you’re creating a brand. The beauty of private labeling is that the successes can last beyond individual products as you build up brand trust.

Kevin is known for the quality of his guests, and primarily interviews successful sellers, CEOs of companies that work within the great Amazon seller industry, and entrepreneurs who’ve had success with other types of ecommerce. There’s good, honest advice delivered humbly in just about every episode. You can also ask Kevin a recorded question directly on his site.

Find the podcast here.

5. AM / PM Podcast

Why do most people start building businesses out of their garage? Because they’re trying to break out of hourly or effort based income. The name of the AM / PM Podcast is inspired by helping people scale business that make money in every hour of the day (including while they sleep).

He covers brand building and marketing for private labeling on Amazon FBA. Interspersed with longer interviews, Manny Coats includes short episodes about his personal successes with FBA and real life stories. His inner network includes FBA sellers doing 7 or 8 figure sales EACH MONTH (whoa!). Sometimes he interviews successful sellers, and other times he shares things he’s learned during conversations with them at networking events. Plus, he goes into his own business stats in terms of orders and sales.

Find the podcast here.

6. AMZsecrets

Launched by David Aladdin, Amz Secrets features monthly guest podcasts from successful FBA sellers and entrepreneurs. The target audience are experienced sellers rather than beginners still learning the rope.  You can listen to the podcast here.

7. Seller Sessions by Danny McMillan

Danny McMillan, is a veteran FBA seller and host of the Seller Sessions Podcast. If you’re looking for no-BS advice and expert discussion about new trends in the industry, this podcast is for you.

Danny offers more advanced tips for FBA sellers looking to take their business to the next level. He also hosts the annual Seller Sessions Live for Amazon Sellers in the UK, alongside expert online marketers and some of the best speakers.

You can listen to his podcast here.

Check out the first post in our “5 Best” Series:

The 5 Best Blogs Created by (and for) Amazon FBA Sellers

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While it would be easy to leave customer service completely in the hands of Amazon, creating an outstanding experience for your customers and a memory of your brand does require a little more effort.

But sadly, you can’t scale if you spend all your time dealing with emails. So, who can you rely on to handle customer service as an Amazon seller?

Outsourcing support may sound scary, especially when you hear horror stories about terrible customer service from Amazon. However, you can reap the benefits of an affordable Amazon customer service when you set it up correctly.

1. Know what you don’t need to outsource

Knowing what you don’t need to outsource is key to saving money as an Amazon seller. When you enroll in the FBA program, you enjoy services like:

• Shipping and logistics for Amazon orders
• Management of returns
• Customer service management
• Storage space for your products
• Fulfillment of orders from other channels

2. Consider which customer service tasks you need help with

While Amazon FBA provides customer service management, there’s a ton of activities sellers have to manage. 

Here’s a list of tasks you’re responsible for when using Amazon FBA:

[Read more…]

If you’re going to start shipping products from China to the US by sea, you might have noticed just how complex it is: dealing with customs, coordinating schedules, handling shipments from the manufacturer to the Chinese port and then the Chinese port to the US port, and then to the Amazon warehouse.

A freight forwarder who’s experienced in getting products to Amazon FBA can help you organize all of this. 

What is a freight forwarder?

A freight forwarder is a person or company who handles the transportation of products from one location to another. They work as an intermediary between the company who owns the inventory and the shippers, so that the entrepreneur or business executive doesn’t have to handle the complex negotiations and documentation required, especially internationally. 

What does a freight forwarder do?

Ultimately, a freight forwarder makes it possible for companies to import or export products without as much hassle, and of course they charge a fee for their work.  Freight forwarders provide their clients with several services. 

• Customs clearance
• All documentation and paperwork required for exporting and importing
• Storing shipments while they wait to be picked up by the next shipper (for example, storing something after it arrives at port, before Fedex takes it to the Amazon warehouse)
• Packing inventory if needed
• Purchasing any needed insurance

They may also provide additional services that ecommerce companies need. 

When do you need a freight forwarder for Amazon FBA?

Not every Amazon FBA seller needs a freight forwarder. If you’re a new seller, you’re likely ordering a small amount of inventory each time, maybe 200 – 600 units. It is better for you to arrange shipping by air because it is simpler to organize, and usually doesn’t require the use of a freight forwarder. 

[Read more…]

Editor’s note: the following is a guest post from Ecomengine. 

If you’re not using the right tools, inventory management can be an exhausting and potentially costly process. Whether you’re just starting out or have become a high-volume seller, relying on a robust Amazon inventory management system can save you time and money. 

There are a lot of options out there, so it might be hard to know which one is right for you. Here’s one big hint, though — you need to ditch the spreadsheets! In this article, we’ll discuss some of the key features you should be looking for in an inventory management tool as an FBA seller. 

Monitor Product Costs

How much does it cost for you to stock or create a product? You need to be very familiar with your out-of-pocket expenses every single time you add an item to your inventory. As an Amazon seller, you need to expect fluctuations in your costs — but you also need to keep track of them. 
[Read more…]

Just like it sounds, Amazon FBA product sourcing means that you’re finding or creating products to sell on Amazon. There are a variety of ways to do this. While experienced entrepreneurs will work directly with a manufacturer to produce products, newer entrepreneurs might feel more comfortable starting out with retail arbitrage. 

Regardless of how you source products, you need to do market research and competitor research to understand the opportunities in any product category you’re interested in. 

Methods of sourcing Amazon FBA products

These are the top methods for sourcing products to sell on Amazon FBA:

Manufacturer

Working with a manufacturer means you’re creating your own private label brand, designing the product, and branding the product, the packaging, and the listing. To do this right, you’ll need to research manufacturers to work with online, possibly travel to meet manufacturers, attend trade shows and conferences to find manufacturers, etc. 

Pros: Scalable, chance for high profit margins

Cons: Minimum order quantities (MOQ) can be cost prohibitive, risky if your product doesn’t sell well
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You’ve probably bought an Amazon basics bath towel or a box of Mama Bear diapers, but did you know that Amazon has at least 76 of its own private label brands?

Many online and brick and mortar retailers create their own brands to sell on their platform. Even though it may frustrate some Amazon sellers, Amazon has said that they don’t use their data in order to launch new product lines, but only to learn how to better support Amazon sellers. 

Instead of griping about it, why don’t we see what we can learn from these brands, especially for our own listings. 

Here are some of the top Amazon private label brands. 

1. Amazon Basics

Amazon Basics is just like it sounds. This is the private label brand through which Amazon sells hundreds of basic household items, the sort of things that consumers would pick up from their local Target or K-mart. We’re talking extension cords, adapters, hangers, baby proofing gear, camping chairs, and office accessories. 

What you can learn:

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