Consider this: As the overwhelming market leader in the category (by a long shot), the e-commerce giant claimed nearly 38% of U.S. retail e-commerce sales in 2023. (To put that dominant number in perspective, the second-place contender in the category, Walmart, trailed by over 30 percentage points.)
Further:
– The platform was credited with helping U.S.-based sellers move more than 4.5 billion items in 2023 (amounting to more than 8,500 sales per minute).
– In a 2022 survey, American consumers of all ages have named Amazon as their No. 1 most trusted brand in the nation.
And the list goes on …
The Amazon opportunity
Providing access to millions of shoppers who are passionate about adventure, exploration and the great outdoors, Amazon’s far-reaching online marketplace offers vast potential for outdoor enthusiast brands. Its massive global audience and powerful search engine, not to mention a range of other advantages, provide a clear pathway to brand growth for any brand.
However, with so many competitors vying for visibility on the platform, standing out in the dense Amazon jungle can be a formidable challenge. As a result, the key to thriving on Amazon is not just showing up, but doing so strategically. And to help your adventure brand conquer this marketplace, we’ve put together the following guide, which outlines some of the top tools and tactics needed to achieve Amazon success.
Laying the foundation
Before venturing into the vast Amazon marketplace, it’s important to lay a solid foundation for success. This starts with creating an account at Amazon Seller Central, the online hub for managing your brand’s listings, inventory and customer interactions. Equally important is understanding Amazon’s policies to ensure compliance and avoid potential pitfalls. Finally, thorough product research and selection will help your adventure brand pinpoint the outdoor gear that resonates with your target audience and gives you a competitive edge in this bustling marketplace.
1. Creating an Amazon Seller Central account
For outdoor enthusiast brands serious about scaling on Amazon, opting for a Professional seller account is essential. This account type provides numerous benefits, including access to advanced selling tools, powerful advertising features and the ability to list unlimited products.
The registration process is straightforward. Start by visiting the Seller Central registration page, where you’ll be asked for input such as your business details, tax information and banking details. Once registered, you’ll gain access to your dashboard, which serves as the command center for your product listings, order management and insightful reports. Take time to explore and familiarize yourself with the platform’s features — it will be critical to your success.
2. Understanding Amazon’s policies
Compliance with Amazon’s policies is non-negotiable for maintaining a successful Seller Central account. Violating these guidelines can lead to penalties, suppressed listings or even account suspension. To avoid these consequences, it’s crucial to stay updated on and to fully understand Amazon’s rules, particularly those related to product listing accuracy, customer communications and intellectual property.
Familiarize yourself with key policy documents, such as Amazon’s Selling Policies and Seller Code of Conduct and its Intellectual Property Policy. Staying compliant helps protect your brand and ensures smooth operations on the platform.
3. Product research and selection
As in the physical retail marketplace, identifying profitable niches is a critical step for outdoor brands looking to succeed on Amazon. Start by using Amazon product research tools like Jungle Scout, Helium 10 or AMZScout to uncover high-demand, low-competition products. These tools can help your brand analyze key factors such as sales volume, search trends and customer reviews. Focus on products that have consistent demand but aren’t oversaturated with competitors. Don’t overlook seasonality either — outdoor gear often sees spikes during certain seasons, so be sure to plan your inventory and listings around these cycles to maximize your sales potential.
Optimizing your listings
Once you’ve laid the groundwork, the next step to thriving on Amazon is optimizing your product listings. A well-optimized listing helps your performance outdoor brand’s offerings stand out and rank higher in Amazon’s search results. This section will cover essential strategies for giving your brand an edge in the competitive marketplace.
1. Keyword research
Relevant keywords are the foundation of discoverability on Amazon. By strategically incorporating the right keywords into your brand’s listings, you increase the chances of your products being found by customers searching for your outdoor gear. Tools like the above-mentioned Jungle Scout, Helium 10 and AMZScout can assist you in identifying high-traffic keywords that align with your products. Focus on terms that reflect what customers are searching for while also considering long-tail keywords that capture niche, specific queries. The better your keyword strategy, the more visibility your listings will have on Amazon.
2. Compelling product titles
Crafting compelling product titles is crucial for both click-through rates and SEO. An effective product-title formula for outdoor brands is:
[Brand Name] + [Primary Keyword] + [Specific Product Features] + [Material/Size/Color] + [Secondary Keyword].
For example, “OutdoorPro Hiking Backpack – 40L Waterproof – Lightweight Camping Gear for Men & Women.” This formula helps ensure your titles are informative, keyword-rich and enticing to potential customers, helping you rank higher in search results while clearly conveying your product’s benefits.
3. Persuasive product descriptions
A persuasive product description does more than just list features — it tells a story that resonates with your audience. Focus on how your outdoor product will solve a problem or enhance the customer’s experience. Start by highlighting key benefits, such as durability, comfort or performance in harsh conditions. Use engaging language that speaks directly to the customer’s needs, and try to break text up with bullet points to make it easy to scan. Emphasize why your product is a must-have for outdoor enthusiasts and how it stands out from the competition.
4. High-quality product images
High-quality product images are crucial for making a strong first impression and driving sales on Amazon. Professional, well-lit images that showcase your outdoor gear from multiple angles will help customers visualize your product and understand its features. Ensure that images are high-resolution and include close-ups of key details, such as stitching or material texture. Clear, attractive visuals not only enhance your listing’s appeal but also help you build trust with potential buyers by presenting your product in the best possible light.
5. Backend keywords
Backend keywords can help you improve your product’s search ranking without cluttering your visible listings. These hidden keywords, which you input into Amazon’s “generic keyword” search terms field within the listings in your Amazon Seller Central account, will help you capture additional search traffic. Use them to include synonyms, alternative terms and relevant phrases that potential customers might use but aren’t already featured in your product title or description. By strategically leveraging these backend keywords, you can enhance your product’s discoverability and rank higher in search results, helping you reach a broader audience.
Driving traffic and sales
To help you maximize your success on Amazon, this section explores key strategies for increasing visibility and boosting conversions on the platform. Implementing the following tactics will help elevate your presence and performance in the competitive Amazon marketplace.
1. Amazon Ads
Amazon Ads offers several paid advertising options to boost your product’s visibility, including:
- Sponsored Products: These are ads that appear in search results and on product detail pages, promoting individual listings to shoppers actively searching for relevant keywords.
- Sponsored Brands: These ads featuring your brand logo, a custom headline and multiple products appear in search results, helping you increase brand awareness and drive traffic to your storefront.
- Sponsored Display ads: These ads target shoppers both on and off Amazon, displaying your products to users based on their browsing behavior and interests.
- Video ads: Video ads allow you to engage customers with dynamic, visual content that showcases your products in action. These ads appear on Amazon’s platform and across various websites, capturing attention and driving interest through compelling storytelling.
Whatever ad type you choose to run, bidding strategies on Amazon Ads include manual bidding, where you set your own bids, and automatic bidding, where Amazon adjusts your bids based on performance. Targeting options allow you to reach prospective customers through keyword targeting, product targeting and audience targeting, helping you tailor your ads to the right audience and maximize your ROI.
2. Amazon promotions and deals
Utilizing Amazon’s promotional tools can significantly enhance your product’s visibility and drive sales. Key options here include:
- Lightning Deals: These are time-sensitive promotions featured on Amazon’s Deals page, offering significant discounts for a limited period. They attract high traffic and create urgency, helping boost sales and visibility.
- Coupons: Customers can clip digital coupons on Amazon for immediate savings on your products. These are visible on your product detail page and in search results, drawing attention and encouraging purchases.
- Best Deals: These long-term promotions offer deeper discounts and are prominently displayed on Amazon’s Deals pages. These deals can attract more shoppers looking for bargains and increase your product’s exposure.
These promotional tools can not only enhance your product’s visibility but also incentivize purchases by offering compelling discounts, helping you stand out in Amazon’s competitive marketplace.
3. External traffic sources
Driving traffic to your Amazon listings from external sources can complement your on-platform efforts and help you boost sales. Consider these strategies:
- Social media: Leverage platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to promote your outdoor brand’s products. Create engaging content that highlights your products’ benefits, share customer testimonials and run targeted ad campaigns to direct traffic to your Amazon listings.
- Email marketing: Use email campaigns to reach out to your existing customer base with promotions, new product launches and special offers. Include direct links to your Amazon listings to drive traffic and encourage repeat purchases.
- Influencer partnerships: Collaborate with influencers in the outdoor space to tap into their followers and gain credibility. Influencers can create content featuring your products and share it with their audience, driving targeted traffic to your Amazon listings and increasing brand awareness.
By integrating these external traffic sources, you can enhance your reach, attract more potential buyers, and ultimately increase sales on Amazon.
4. Amazon reviews and ratings
Positive reviews and high ratings are crucial for building trust and credibility on Amazon. They influence potential buyers’ purchasing decisions and can significantly impact your sales.
To leverage reviews effectively:
- Know the importance of positive reviews: High ratings and glowing reviews serve as social proof, reassuring customers about the quality and reliability of your products. They can also improve your product’s ranking in search results, making it more likely to be discovered by new customers.
- Strategies for encouraging customer feedback: Actively encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews by following up with personalized email requests after purchase. Offer exceptional customer service to ensure positive experiences, and consider providing review incentives like discounts or future purchase credits. Make the review process easy and convenient, and always respond professionally to feedback, whether positive or negative, to show that you value customer input and are committed to continuous improvement.
Fulfillment and Customer Service
Ensuring efficient fulfillment and top-notch customer service are also essential to long-term success on Amazon. Consider these leading fulfillment options, along with some of the keys to ensuring high levels of customer service for your customers on Amazon:
1. FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon)
Utilizing Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) offers significant advantages for outdoor brands looking to streamline their operations and enhance customer satisfaction. These include:
- Faster shipping: With FBA, your products are stored in Amazon’s fulfillment centers, allowing you to benefit from Amazon’s efficient logistics network. This means faster shipping times and reliable delivery, which can lead to higher customer satisfaction and increased sales.
- Prime eligibility: FBA products are eligible for Amazon Prime, giving them added visibility and appeal to millions of Prime members who prioritize fast, free shipping. This can significantly boost your product’s attractiveness and drive higher conversion rates.
By leveraging FBA, you not only improve shipping speed but also gain enhanced access to Amazon’s extensive customer base, enhancing your product’s potential for success.
2. Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP)
Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP) is a valuable alternative for outdoor brands that prefer to handle their own fulfillment but still want to offer the benefits of Amazon Prime. Some of SFP’s advantages include:
- Fulfillment capabilities control: With SFP, you retain control over your inventory and shipping processes while still offering Prime benefits to customers. This option is ideal if you have robust fulfillment capabilities and wish to manage the logistics in-house.
- Prime benefits: SFP allows you to provide Prime members with the same fast, free shipping that Amazon promises, increasing your product’s appeal and potentially driving more sales. You benefit from the Prime badge on your listings without having to use Amazon’s fulfillment centers.
SFP provides flexibility for brands with strong fulfillment infrastructures, enabling them to leverage the Prime program while maintaining more control over their supply chain.
3. Exceptional customer service
Delivering exceptional customer service is crucial for maintaining a positive reputation and driving repeat business on Amazon. Consider these keys to a good customer experience with your brand on Amazon:
- Timely responses: Responding quickly to customer inquiries and messages demonstrates your commitment to customer satisfaction and helps build trust. Aim to address queries and concerns within 24 hours to keep customers engaged and satisfied.
- Proactive issue resolution: Address potential issues before they escalate by actively monitoring feedback and resolving problems efficiently. Implementing proactive solutions, such as addressing common concerns in your product listings or offering easy returns, enhances the overall customer experience and reduces negative reviews.
By prioritizing timely responses and proactive issue resolution, you can create a positive shopping experience that fosters customer loyalty and encourages positive feedback.
Thriving in the Amazon marketplace requires a strategic approach and attention to detail. Whenever your outdoor enthusiast brand is ready to start its Amazon journey, with these strategies in hand, you’ll be well-equipped to navigate the Amazon jungle and achieve success. For further guidance, consider exploring additional resources such as the Amazon Seller Central help pages, industry forums and professional marketing agencies geared toward helping adventure lifestyle brands. Your adventure in the Amazon marketplace awaits — embrace it with confidence and determination!
Planning an Amazon expedition? Trust TBA Outdoors to guide you to success
Ready to launch your outdoor brand on Amazon and put all of these powerful tactics to work to rev up your online sales? At TBA Outdoors, our team of outdoors-obsessed marketing experts has navigated the Amazon-sales process for a long list of outdoor enthusiast brands — and we have the know-how and experience needed to spur the kind of e-commerce success that boosts the bottom line.
Further, we’re a fully integrated marketing firm, which means that we’ve got all of your brand’s marketing needs covered — all in one place. From e-commerce and analytics to branding strategy, research, creative, social media, video production, media planning and buying, public relations and more, you can count on us.
To explore how we can help your outdoor reach its e-commerce potential and amplify the effectiveness of all of its marketing campaigns, reach out to our team of marketing professionals today.
