How to Sell on Amazon Without Inventory: A Comprehensive Guide

Add Comment

Amazon is the world’s largest online marketplace, with over 300 million active customers and over 12 million products for sale. If you want to start an online business and sell on Amazon, you might think that you need to have a lot of inventory, storage space, and shipping supplies. However, that’s not necessarily the case. You can sell on Amazon without inventory, using different methods that allow you to avoid the hassle and cost of managing physical products.

In this article, we will explain how to sell on Amazon without inventory, using four popular methods: print-on-demand, dropshipping, Amazon FBA, and selling digital products. We will also discuss the benefits and challenges of selling on Amazon without inventory.

How to Get Started Selling Without Inventory

What does it mean to sell on Amazon without inventory? It means that you don’t have to buy, store, or ship the products that you sell. Instead, you work with other companies that do these things for you. You just have to find the products, list them on Amazon, and promote them to customers.

There are different ways to sell on Amazon without inventory, such as:

Dropshipping

Dropshipping is a method of selling on Amazon without inventory, where you act as a middleman between the customer and the supplier. When a customer orders a product from your Amazon store, you forward the order to the supplier, who will then ship the product directly to the customer. You don’t have to handle any inventory, storage, or shipping yourself. You only pay the supplier for the product after you receive the payment from the customer, and you keep the amount you add on it as your profit.

Dropshipping is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to start selling on Amazon without inventory, as you don’t need to invest in any products upfront, or deal with any fulfillment issues. However, when it comes to doing dropshipping on Amazon, there are a few drawbacks you should be aware of.

Here is it:

  • You have to pay Amazon a fee for every thing you sell. This can make your profit smaller, especially if the thing is cheap.
  • You don’t have much control over the quality of the things you sell or how fast they get to your customers. Sometimes the things can be broken, wrong, or late. This can make your customers unhappy and give you bad reviews.
  • You have to pay for ads to get people to see your things and buy them. Ads can be expensive and not always work. If you don’t know how to do marketing well, you can lose money and waste time.
Here are some steps to start dropshipping on Amazon:

1.Create an Amazon seller account and choose the Individual or Professional plan, depending on your sales volume and budget.

2. Find a reliable and reputable dropshipping company that offers products that you want to sell. You can use platforms such as AliExpress, Spocket or SaleHoo to find and contact dropshipping suppliers or manufacturers.

3. Choose the products you want to sell and set your prices and profit margins. The dropshipping company will show you the wholesale price of each product, which includes the product cost and the shipping fee. You can add your desired profit margin on top of that to calculate your selling price.

4. Create and upload your product listings to your Amazon store. You can use the product information and images provided by the dropshipping company, or create your own. You have to make sure that your product listings comply with Amazon’s policies and guidelines, such as the product quality, the shipping time, and the customer service.

5. Promote your product to attract customers. What I mean by promoting your product is by running an ad, but it is not a must that you run an ad before you can get customers to your store. We all know that running an ad is a quick way to drive customers to your store, so if you are interested in running an ad, you can use social media or other methods to get people to see your products and buy them. You can use [Amazon Advertising] or [Facebook Ads] to help you promote your product.

6. When a customer orders your product, you have to place the same order with the dropshipping company and pay the wholesale price. The dropshipping company will then ship the product directly to the customer. You don’t need to handle or ship the product yourself, except monitor your sales and profits.

These are some steps to start dropshipping on Amazon. You can learn more by reading this article or [this guide]. Dropshipping on Amazon can be a good way to make money online, but it is not easy or risk-free. You have to work hard and be smart to succeed with dropshipping on Amazon.

Print-on-demand

Print-on-demand is another method of selling on Amazon without inventory, where you can sell customized products, such as t-shirts, mugs, posters, or books, that are printed and shipped by a third-party company only after a customer orders them. You don’t have to buy, store, or ship any products yourself. You only pay the printing company for the cost of production and shipping, and you keep the difference as your profit.

Print-on-demand is a creative and flexible way to sell on Amazon without inventory, as you can offer unique and personalized products that cater to different niches and audiences. However, there are some challenges and drawbacks you also need to know about print-on-demand.

Here is it:

  • You have to pay a monthly fee to sell on Amazon, as well as a referral fee for each sale. These fees can reduce your profit margin and affect your pricing strategy. And you also have to pay the company that is printing the product for you.
  • You have to comply with Amazon’s policies and guidelines, such as the product quality, the shipping time, and the customer service. If you fail to meet Amazon’s standards, you may face penalties or suspension.
  • You have limited control over the production and fulfillment process, as you rely on the print-on-demand service’s quality, speed, and reliability. If the print-on-demand service makes a mistake or delays the order, you may lose customers or receive negative feedback.

To start print-on-demand on Amazon, you need to follow these steps:

1. Choose a print-on-demand service.You need a service that can print your designs on the products you want to sell and that can work with Amazon. Some of the popular print-on-demand services are Printful, Printify, and Gooten. You can compare their features, prices, and reviews to find the best one for you.
2. Create an Amazon seller account. You need an account to sell on Amazon. You can choose between an individual or a professional account, depending on how many products you plan to sell. You also need to pay a monthly fee and some other fees for selling on Amazon.
3. Create your designs. You need to create your own designs for the products you want to sell. You can use tools like Canva, Photoshop, or Illustrator to make your designs, and if you can’t design by yourself, you go to Fiverr.com, or Upwork.com and hire a professional that will make a good design for you. You also need to follow the design guidelines and requirements of your print-on-demand service and Amazon.
4. Upload your products to Amazon. You need to upload the products that you design to Amazon. You also need to create product listings with titles, descriptions, keywords, and images.
5. Promote your products. You need to promote your products to get more customers and sales. You can still use platform like Amazon Advertising, Facebook Ads, or Instagram Ads to run ads for your products. You can also use email marketing or SEO to increase your visibility and traffic.
6. When a customer orders your product, you will now send the order details to the print-on-demand company. When they receive the details, they will start printing the product, and after printing it, they will package it and then ship the product to the customer. You don’t need to do anything except monitor your sales and profits.
These are some steps to start print-on-demand on Amazon. Print-on-demand on Amazon can be a good way to make money online, but it is not easy. You have to work hard and be smart to succeed with print-on-demand on Amazon.

Amazon FBA

Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) is a method of selling on Amazon without inventory, where you send your products to Amazon’s fulfillment centers, and Amazon takes care of storing, packing, and shipping them to your customers. You don’t have to handle any inventory, storage, or shipping yourself. You only pay Amazon for the fulfillment fees, and you keep the difference as your profit.

Amazon FBA is one of the most popular and profitable ways to sell on Amazon without inventory, as you can leverage Amazon’s brand, reputation, and customer base, as well as benefit from Amazon’s Prime program, which offers free and fast shipping to millions of customers. However, Amazon FBA also has some drawbacks, such as high fees, strict rules, and competition.

To start Amazon FBA, you need to follow these steps:

  • Create an Amazon seller account and choose the FBA plan, which requires a monthly subscription fee of $39.99, plus additional fees for storage, fulfillment, and referral.
  • Find a reliable and reputable supplier, who can offer you high-quality products, at a low cost, and with a fast delivery time. You can also use platform like [Alibaba] or SaleHoo to find and contact suppliers.
  • Choose the products you want to sell on Amazon, and make sure they are not restricted, prohibited, or trademarked by Amazon or other brands. You can also do research and analyze the demand, competition, and profitability of your products.
  • Prepare and send your products to Amazon’s fulfillment centers, following Amazon’s instructions and labeling requirements. You have to pay for the shipping cost and the storage fee, depending on the product size and weight and the storage duration.
  • Amazon will receive, sort, and store your products in their fulfillment centers, and integrate them into their inventory tracking system. Your products will be eligible for Prime shipping and other benefits, such as free shipping and returns.
  • When a customer orders your product, Amazon will pick, pack, and ship the product to the customer. You don’t need to do anything, except monitor your sales and profits.

Selling digital products

Selling digital products on Amazon is another great way of making money online by selling things that are not physical, such as ebooks, audiobooks, music, videos, software, or courses. You don’t have to worry about storing, packing, or shipping anything, because your customers can download or purchase your products instantly through Amazon.
To start selling digital products on Amazon without inventory, you need to follow these steps:
Choose a type of digital product to sell. You can sell different types of digital products on Amazon, depending on the category and platform you choose. For example, you can sell ebooks on Kindle Direct Publishing, audiobooks on Audible, music on Amazon Music, videos on Prime Video, software on Amazon Web Services, or courses on Amazon Ignite.
Create your digital product. You need to create your own digital product that suit your needs and skills. You also need to follow the quality and formatting guidelines of Amazon for your chosen type of product.
Upload your digital product to Amazon. You need to create an account on the platform that matches your type of product, and upload your product to Amazon’s servers. You also need to create a product listing with a title, description, keywords, and images.

So whenever customers interact with your product, you will receive royalties or payments from Amazon for each sale or usage of your product.

Conclusion

Selling on Amazon without inventory is possible, using different methods that allow you to avoid the hassle and cost of managing physical products. You can use print-on-demand, dropshipping, Amazon FBA, or selling digital products, depending on your products, your budget, and your preferences. Each method has its own benefits and challenges, so you have to weigh them carefully and choose the best option for your business. You also have to follow Amazon’s policies and guidelines, and provide excellent customer service, to succeed in selling on Amazon without inventory.