What’s the most common issue that new Amazon Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) businesses face? They’re debating whether or not to establish an Amazon FBA business but lack the necessary funds. However, what if I tell you how to start an Amazon FBA business with little money or no money at all, will that not interest you?
Have you ever wondered why the affluent appear to be able to expand their wealth so much more quickly and easily than the ordinary person?
It’s because, rather than having more money (though having more undoubtedly helps), they have more room to fail due to having more money. If one project doesn’t work out, there’s enough money to invest in other projects. This way, the chances of success are even greater.
Starting an Amazon FBA business with little money means you don’t have that wide room for error. Hence, you’ll have to be considerably wiser, meticulous, and picky from the get-go.
How can you get started with Amazon FBA with a little budget? This post will tell you how to start selling on Amazon with little or no money.
Table of Contents
- What is Amazon FBA?
- How Much Does It Cost to Start an Amazon FBA Business?
- How to Start an Amazon FBA Business with little money or no money
What is Amazon FBA?
Before diving into the costs of beginning your own Amazon company, let’s explore what Amazon FBA is. FBA means for Fulfillment by Amazon, as previously stated, which means that Amazon leverages its pre-existing supply chain and logistical network to complete your purchase.
This implies that you don’t need to incur expensive expenditures to have a logistics system up and running. You have direct access to a company that has spent tens of billions of dollars developing and perfecting its own. If you want an unbeatable logistics and fulfillment system, look no further than Amazon.
What you’re doing is reselling a pre-existing product that has had some minor changes made to it on Amazon. Amazon charges you a small portion of each sale, covering almost everything.
Amazon chooses, packs, delivers, handles customer support, refunds, takes care of other order-related concerns, then pays you weekly. That’s it.
To get started, choose a product that you can market and then do so.
How Much Does It Cost to Start an Amazon FBA Business?
To understand the costs, you need to know how to start an Amazon FBA business from start to finish. Several steps must be taken into consideration. Each step has a cost.
Some tasks take a considerable amount of time. Others don’t. Where you can afford to, it’s better to contract some work to freelancers. Don’t attempt to accomplish it all on your own. You won’t have enough time to do it. Find those who can assist you along your road by utilizing sites like Freelancer, Upwork, and Fiverr.
Getting things done on time necessitates the use of outsourcing. And the price you pay in terms of time is significantly greater, particularly if you’re taking on challenges you’ve never faced before. These freelancers are often quite good at what they do and demand relatively little money for their services. So, even if you’re on a tight budget, don’t rule out seeking assistance.
Fees and product costs are important considerations when getting started. There are two costs you need to examine, these are:
Referral fees: These are essentially Amazon’s selling price cut, usually around 15%.
The Individual per-item fees: These costs are flat rates you pay if you are not a skilled seller. Because the pricing is set, each item will cost you $0.99.
The costs shown above are removed from each transaction, so you are not required to pay them in advance. However, those that sell more than 40 items each month will see an increase in their costs. If you have less than 40 items, you are exempt from these charges.
How to Start an Amazon FBA Business with little money or no money
1. Prepare a Product
This is a critical and necessary step. Products that can be sold on Amazon need a lot of thought. You’ll have to consider things like the product’s value, marketability, and quality, among other things. So, if you want to start selling with no money, you can look at things you no longer use but are still good.
When choosing a product to sell, keep the following criteria in mind:
- The product’s size: This must be taken into account. The item’s size and weight mostly determine your shipping charges. Products small enough to fit in a shoebox will have lower shipping costs than bulky and heavy ones since the latter are more difficult to transport.
- Season: Some items are only available at specific times of the year. In other words, they don’t sell all year. The seasonality of a product is an important factor to consider before sticking with a product.
- Usability: The more often or frequently a product is used, the more people will want to buy it. The bigger the demand, the more possibilities you have to make sales. So, before deciding on a product, consider its usability first.
- Risk: Products that are delicate or breakable must be handled with great care. The chances of them arriving in one piece is very low. Therefore, stick to items that move well and can tolerate rigorous treatment.
- Competitivity: Some product categories are more competitive than others, so choosing one of those products might not be a good idea after all.
All of the issues mentioned above must be addressed before you can select a product that will offer you strong sales and take into account all of the relevant criteria.
2. Open an Amazon Account for Free
After you find a product to sell, you can go ahead and set up a seller account for yourself. It’s free, all you have to do is supply basic information, and your account will be ready for use
3. List your Products
After signing up for a free account, the next step is to list your products. According to statistics, Amazon has over 166 million goods, so everything you want to sell is almost certainly already listed.
If this happens, the only thing you need to do is to put your name on the list of people who already sell the product.
The following steps will allow you to list your items on Amazon for free:
- The search box might help you locate a certain product. Take your time looking through the items to discover what matches yours and choose it.
- Select the “sell on Amazon” option in the bottom right-hand corner of the product page.
- You will be led to a new page. Here, you will be prompted to submit your product details. After that, it’s only a matter of filling in the blanks.
- Finally, click the “Save” button, and your product should show up on the list in two hours.
4. Ship Product
Once the goods have been sold, the last step is to send them. After you make a sale, you have to send the goods down to the end-user. When you use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), you don’t have to worry about shipping and handling. Amazon will store your goods and track them until a customer orders them.
