The thing that distinguishes Amazon from other selling platforms is the way how sellers compete for a sale. Multiple sellers can offer the same product but since there is only one listing everyone has to compete for the Buy Box to get sales. There is no way around it.
How important is the Buy Box? Studies have shown that over 80 percent of Amazon sales go to the Buy Box winner. If you are not in the Buy Box you are losing money. Period.
Winning the Buy Box isn’t easy, but the good news is, there are things you can do to win.
Make sure you are Buy Box eligible
Amazon defines Buy Box as “the box on a product detail page where customers can begin the purchasing process by adding items to their shopping carts.” As you can see that description is pretty accurate:
Before you try to win the Buy Box, you should check if your products are Buy Box eligible.
To do so, go to the Inventory Tab > Manage Inventory > Preferences (a box on the right). From there, select Buy Box Eligible from the Column display list and Save Changes.
You should see the list of your eligible products. If you don’t, it means none of your products are eligible at this point.
What does it mean? It depends. First, check if you have Professional Seller Account and then make sure your items are new (used items have their own Buy Used Box). Only Professional Sellers with new items are eligible.
If you still can’t see your items probably your products are not Buy Box Eligible. That’s a serious problem. This happens when your Order Defect Rate (ODR) is too high or your metrics are too low. You may also not have enough “Time and experience on the Amazon selling service” to compete for the Buy Box.
FBA – the best way to win the Buy Box
If your items are eligible, you can try a few ways to win the Boy Box. The easiest and the most effective way is FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon).
Amazon gives you some perks for using their service. Since FBA is run by Amazon, they can be sure everything is top notch. That’s why FBA items always have the perfect score for the shipping time, delivery and inventory depth.
This helps you win the Buy Box and makes it hard for FBM sellers to compete with you. If the price is similar, FBA will always win with other fulfillment methods.
Another benefit is simplified customer service. Amazon will take care of customer inquiries, refunds, and returns. You can be sure your metrics stay in perfect condition.
Lower your price
Another proven way to win the Buy Box is lowering your price. Keep in mind that, opposing to what many sellers think, the price is not as important as fulfillment method. Don’t race to the bottom if you are not using FBA or Seller Fulfilled Prime at least. Plus, don’t forget that by the “price” Amazon means the landed price (the product price + shipping).
Focus on the big picture. You have perfect metrics and you are using FBA? You can increase your price and still win the Buy Box. You are a new seller and your metrics are far from perfect? The lower price might be the only way you will get into the Buy Box.
Be prepared for the trial-and-error period. Try to find the price that will be low enough to win the Buy Box, but high enough to make you money.
Now, this is easier said than done and doing repricing manually can be more than tedious. It can be impossible. Imagine manually adjusting 1000 listings every day. This is where tools like our Bqool Repricer come in to help you win the Buy Box.
Don’t forget your metrics
Amazon is a Buyer oriented company. It wants to make Buyers happy. That’s why Order Defect Rate (ODR) is one of the most important metrics you have to keep an eye on.
If your ODR is above 1%, both low price and fulfillment method might be not enough to win the Buy Box. What is ODR? It’s a combination of 3 metrics: the Negative Feedback Rate, A-to-Z Guarantee Claim Rate, and Service Chargeback Rate.
It hurts, but remember it’s often better to refund a customer who is wrong than to deal with the AZ Claim or Negative Feedback.
Reply your customers promptly
Amazon’s definition of customer service is different from what you may think. Ignoring ODR will get you suspended, but there is one more thing Amazon cares about–your responsiveness.
Remember, if you want to win the Buy Box, reply your costumers promptly. Take the response time as your customer service priority and reply to all messages in less than 12 hours.
It’s true you have up to 24 hours to reply but studies have shown that response time over 12 hours lowers your chance of winning the Buy Box.
Key Takeaway
Winning the Buy Box can be simplified to a simple formula: FBA, Low Price, Outstanding Customer service. The hard part is to find a combination that will work for you.
BQool offers premiere software tools for Amazon sellers. In addition to intelligent repricing, we also offer review and feedback management to improve customer satisfaction and data-driven product research for finding new products. Visit our website www.bqool.com for more information.