According to statistics, the Amazon Buy Box accounts for almost 90 percent of Amazon sales. This is why millions of sellers on Amazon are scrambling to win the coveted Buy Box. As an Amazon seller, you should know that winning the Buy Box can make a massive difference between success and failure. We can say that the Buy Box is prime real estate, especially given to an offering on an ASIN’s product page.
One of the best things about the Buy Box is that it helps solve the “too many options” issue by conveniently separating the featured product offer from many other offers.
As a result, buyers see what Amazon considers the best deal. There is no doubt that the Amazon Buy Box is a very effective solution. This is because it stands out, and hence the offers featured on the Buy Box, account for more than 90 percent of total purchases on the platform.
What is the Amazon Buy Box?
Note that for most products or items on Amazon, there is often a selection of vendors or merchants selling it. However, it is worth noting that just one gets the Amazon Buy Box. The Buy Box on Amazon is the white box that you will see on the top right-hand corner of the Amazon product page and includes the most crucial call-to-action (CTA) message: “Buy Now” or “Add to cart.” And this feature is important as it makes it simple for Amazon shoppers to add the product to their carts.
You will be happy to know that if you are the seller shown in the Amazon Buy Box, then your product will be sold. In other words, it means that you are the default seller of that item or product.
In contrast, other sellers will likely appear further down the product page. However, there’s nothing that differentiates them from each other. This is why most sales usually go to the Amazon Buy Box, as it is the simplest way to purchase any product on Amazon. you can hire companies like urtasker to get some help to win Buy Box
Did you know that the Amazon algorithm determines the Buy Box winner according to several factors? Some of these factors are pricing, product availability, and fulfillment.
Winning the Buy Box on Amazon
Use these tips and strategies to win the Amazon Buy Box.
Become Buy Box Eligible
If you would like to win the Buy Box on Amazon, you will have to become eligible to join this million-dollar scheme. First of all, you will have to create your professional seller account on this platform.
If you are a Professional Amazon seller, you will be able to determine if individual products or items are eligible for the Amazon Buy Box. You can do this by going to Manage Inventory in Amazon Seller Central and clicking Preferences. After that, select Buy Box Eligible to display eligibility shown in the Manage Inventory grid.
Keep in mind that there are two kinds of seller accounts on Amazon. The first is an individual account, while the other is a professional account. While the former account is free of any subscription costs, the latter will cost you $39.99 a month.
However, a professional account comes with many privileges that you will like. And one of those privileges is that you can access the Buy Box. If you have a professional seller account on Amazon, you will have to sell for at least ninety days in order to be eligible. In addition, the product you’re selling should be new as well as available in stock.
Choose the Right Fulfillment Method
You should know that the fulfillment method that third-party vendors or sellers use usually has the most impact when it comes to winning the Amazon Buy Box. Did you know that sellers who use FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon), where Amazon fulfills third-party sellers’ orders, are often at an advantage and more likely to win the Amazon Buy Box.
This is simply because Amazon has considerably more control over both the stock and fulfillment of the item. You will be happy to know that the platform gives FBA a perfect score for several variables, such as shipping method, inventory depth, and on-time delivery. And this can make it highly unlikely for most merchants on Amazon to beat FBA sellers.
Lower Your Order Defect Rate
If your ODR is over, or close to 1 percent, an excellent strategy is to boost your order volume as it will reduce your ODR. The best strategy is to choose a high demand, low value, small product that you can easily source in bulk. It is best to price to win the Amazon Buy Box.
Also, you have to get and maintain a high volume of orders, preferably in a short time period, which will help lower your ODR percentage.
Keep in mind that even if you lose about $1 per sale, it’s a solid investment, as losing Amazon Buy Box eligibility may prove quite costly.
Amazon measures three types of ODR. These are:
- Your negative feedback rate and this includes ratings and comments from your customers
- Your credit card chargeback rate, indicating the number of times that you refund customers’ orders; and
- A-to-z guarantee claim rate; this represents claims consumers make when their orders are not satisfactory
You have to maintain an ODR of less than 1% to sell on Amazon. Also, it is worth noting that third-party sellers on Amazon with an ODR higher than 1 percent might have their accounts deactivated.
Improve Your Feedback Score
Although fulfillment method and ODR are some of the most important factors in winning the coveted Buy Box, the Amazon algorithm also considers other factors, like your feedback rating.
You may know that the platform’s third-party seller rating system rates you from one to five stars, and five is the best score. Also, note that you can see your average rating next to your name on Amazon. You can easily visit the seller’s page in order to see a convenient breakdown of your positive as well as negative feedback.
Minimize Shipping Time
The period of time a seller usually takes to ship an ordered product is called the shipping time. If you ship the items faster, you will have a higher chance of winning the Buy Box. In most cases, the shipping time will depend on your product and order fulfillment method.
If the actual shipping time taken to deliver a product is longer than advertised, note that it will likely undermine your various performance metrics. It is no secret that Amazon Prime has managed to drastically alter customer expectations and preferences for e-commerce deliveries.
Also, keeping up with this significant trend, the platform ensures much greater visibility for Amazon sellers offering faster delivery. And this is the reason FBA sellers have a huge advantage when competing for the Amazon Buy Box.
Also, remember that shipping times have a significant impact, especially for most perishable products, like birthday cakes or flowers. So, it is vital to offer your customers a speedy and efficient shipping service to get your products to them fast and win the valuable Buy Box.
Use an Intelligent and Effective Pricing Strategy
Other things being equal, you cannot overlook price as it is still the critical deciding factor. To increase your sales on Amazon, you will have to devise an excellent and sound pricing strategy. If you would like to stay competitive on the Amazon market, you should list your items at a lower price than your competitors’ prices.
Sometimes, when you reduce your price in order to win the Amazon Buy Box, another seller may instantly undercut you. In many cases, these sellers use automated repricing software. When many Amazon sellers use repricing software, it often creates a vicious ‘race to the bottom,’ reducing margins. Note that an automatic Amazon repricing tool will help you determine suitable prices without joining this race to the bottom.
These tools or services plug easily into your seller account and then continuously monitor your competitor’s pricing. After that, they will change or adjust your pricing automatically based on a set of rules.
Ensure Stock Availability
This is very simple. You cannot sell products that you do not have. So, if you are out of stock, then you cannot win the Amazon Buy Box. Did you know that the Amazon Selling Coach can show you out-of-stock and low stock alerts?
You cannot win the Buy Box without having a clear and well-defined inventory management strategy. This is why it is essential to build and maintain strong relationships with all your suppliers. If you do it, you can fast track your orders if there is a sudden spike in your order volume, and you might even qualify for a few special discounts.
Final Thoughts
Winning the Amazon Buy Box is one of the best ways to increase your sales. You should consider using FBA in order to streamline your operations. If you would like to get the most out of Amazon, you should optimize for the Amazon Buy Box by using our tips and strategy to become the Buy Box winner.