I glanced through the prior topics, but didn't see anything specific to Amazon FBA (Fullfillment By Amazon).  If there was and I missed it, I apologize.

 

I'm looking to sell some Lego sets using the Amazon FBA service and was wondering if anybody has had any experience good or bad selling through FBA.  My concerns are that I have to put an FBA label over the barcode on the box.  Not sure how a collector would feel about having to remove it and potentially damage the box. 

 

Also, a little concerned that the boxes that I send which are in mint condition, may not be received by the customer in mint condition, if you know what I mean.  Just checking to see what others have experienced.  

 

If anybody has any experience buying through an FBA seller, I would appreciate any comments on the buying side too.

 

Thanks!

Wow, that is great! I had no faith in them moving quickly enough to get that done.

I use the premium version of last pass, but the free will do the trick for the time being.

Sent from my XT1080 using Brickpicker mobile app

 

 

Awesome news! I'm glad AZ came through for you.

I second amtrak's suggestion. Get a PW generator/vault. I use 1Password and it is a fantastic program. Best $50 you can spend for piece of mind and convenience.

 

Thanks again, I checked both out and ended up with Lastpass Premium and multifactor authentication since I had already started the signup process with them. Both looked really solid though. I'll be a user for life now after what happened. Can't believe I didn't have something like this in place before, glad to have learned my lesson without too much pain.

Thanks again, I checked both out and ended up with Lastpass Premium and multifactor authentication since I had already started the signup process with them. Both looked really solid though. I'll be a user for life now after what happened. Can't believe I didn't have something like this in place before, glad to have learned my lesson without too much pain.

Good work. A password vault is necessary nowadays. Security, convenience and piece of mind for just a few bucks.

Yep - I did. I mean 40 bucks or so .. not the end of the world.

Really don't want to see another SGE though.

I've gotten a whole lot of problems reported when they are receiving my shipments over the last 2 weeks.

Same issue - they keep citing either no label on products or label can't be read.

I've submitted an investigation for each and most they've close saying their fault.

Last couple they closed and said the problem was correct. Not sure if they are getting more strict or it's just happenstance.

Think on some products - paw patrol cases for instance, the sticker goes on a non-flat surface and might make it tough to scan.

Not sure on the rest.

They do include overhead photos in the incident report but I can't see crap from the distance.

They are very streaky. Sometimes I wonder how they manage to hold it together at all. What a beast of an operation.

Interesting blog post about selling the Lego City Advent Calendar via FBA. http://thesellingfamily.com/amazon-fba-product-case-study-how-fast-does-an-item-ranked-50-sell-on-amazon-com/

 

This blog/family has a pretty big audience. I wouldn't be surprised to see more and more competition when it comes to Advent Calendars.

Interesting blog post about selling the Lego City Advent Calendar via FBA. http://thesellingfamily.com/amazon-fba-product-case-study-how-fast-does-an-item-ranked-50-sell-on-amazon-com/

 

This blog/family has a pretty big audience. I wouldn't be surprised to see more and more competition when it comes to Advent Calendars.

That lady is a joke.  Here is her storefront: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aag/main?ie=UTF8&asin=B0017WIKBG&isAmazonFulfilled=1&isCBA=&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&orderID=&seller=A2B2GW7018271J

That lady is a joke.  Here is her storefront: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aag/main?ie=UTF8&asin=B0017WIKBG&isAmazonFulfilled=1&isCBA=&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&orderID=&seller=A2B2GW7018271J

 

That's a whole lotta lotion.  Do you think it's just leftovers?

That lady is a joke.  Here is her storefront: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aag/main?ie=UTF8&asin=B0017WIKBG&isAmazonFulfilled=1&isCBA=&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&orderID=&seller=A2B2GW7018271J

 

Those kinds of blog posts always baffle me.  I'm not quite sure why she would want to trumpet that kind of success and basically ensure that it will never repeat because of the increased competition that it will generate.  

Wondering if anyone in the States is doing FBA @ Amazon.ca and if so, what is your experience?

thanks for info

 

Anyone else having issues with their Amazon seller account? My account is showing Amazon.ca domain with a zero balance ( in Canadian dollars)

Just got the following:

 

Seller Central is Temporarily Unavailable We apologize for the inconvenience. Our technical staff is working on a solution. For urgent issues, contact Seller Support (toll-free): US (877) 251-2571; Canada (877) 251-5499.

 

just an FYI, talked to SS and they are in the process of having all accounts changed to a unified north America account, so you can sell both in the USA and Canada for the same fee

Anyone else having issues with their Amazon seller account? My account is showing Amazon.ca domain with a zero balance ( in Canadian dollars)

​

just an FYI, talked to SS and they are in the process of having all accounts changed to a unified north America account, so you can sell both in the USA and Canada for the same fee

​Interesting. That's sweet. I'm in SC and seems to be fine for me (using beta mode on amazon.ca).

I just read this whole thread. Thanks everyone for all the helpful advice and information. I think FBA is not for me since have a low volume.

I just read this whole thread. Thanks everyone for all the helpful advice and information. I think FBA is not for me since have a low volume.

I originally came to that conclusion too, but then I failed to sell anything anywhere else. If you don't have an established web commerce presence in good standing then Amazon FBA seems to be the only way to get good prices for items.

Maybe a silly question... what if you send some stuff to AMZN FBA, and then conditions change, competition increases, prices drop, or whatever... do you just sell it at a loss? Can you get your stuff back?  Or is selling at a loss usually cheaper than getting it back?

Getting them back is cheap. 50 cents for reg, 60 cents for oversize. They might come back all mangled up though and it is a pain getting any kind of compensation back. 

I usually take the item's sturdiness into account before innitiating a recall. 

Next dumb question: So I got my shipment ready, labeled all the boxes, everything's going via UPS ground... do I have to call to set up the pick-up? Or was that done automatically when I printed the labels?  I thought the instructions said something about the shipper picking up... but reading through all the instructions and  "help" articles I can find, it's not specifically stated.

And if pick-up is automatic, are they coming tomorrow? (Saturday?) ... or Monday?

Edited August 8, 201510 yr by Kenxxx

Next dumb question: So I got my shipment ready, labeled all the boxes, everything's going via UPS ground... do I have to call to set up the pick-up? Or was that done automatically when I printed the labels?  I thought the instructions said something about the shipper picking up... but reading through all the instructions and  "help" articles I can find, it's not specifically stated.

And if pick-up is automatic, are they coming tomorrow? (Saturday?) ... or Monday?

you will have to go on ups.com and schedule a pickup. It is about $6. You can schedule the day for pickup and time window .

or u can drop off for free. 

Next dumb question: So I got my shipment ready, labeled all the boxes, everything's going via UPS ground... do I have to call to set up the pick-up? Or was that done automatically when I printed the labels?  I thought the instructions said something about the shipper picking up... but reading through all the instructions and  "help" articles I can find, it's not specifically stated.

And if pick-up is automatic, are they coming tomorrow? (Saturday?) ... or Monday?

I drop them off at a UPS Store or Office Depot, etc.  We're never home during the day and I don't like leaving the packages outside.  It's not required that you have them picked up.

I have a question regarding selling on Amazon.

Within the last 2 weeks I have started listing things for sale on Amazon (fulfilled by merchant instead of FBA since I like to have control of my inventory, quality control, and oversight of the packing/shipping process).  I have already had 5 orders and shipped them all.  2 orders were around $40 but 3 of them were around $200.  I read that Amazon's policy is to ship with signature confirmation but I only opted for Priority Mail with delivery confirmation.  

Do you guys and gals really ship everything that you sell on Amazon with a signature or do you only do it for high $ items?  Have you had any issues with buyers claiming non-receipt if you do not ship every package with a signature?

I want to follow Amazon's rules for protection as a seller but it seems ridiculous to inconvenience a buyer to be home to sign for a package that is under $200 or somewhere in that ballpark.  I order high $ items from Amazon (direct not third party merchant sellers) all the time and they never require UPS to obtain a signature.  Sometimes they even leave packages outside my door if I am not at home, but it is never an issue since my neighbors do not bother the packages and they are protected from the weather.

Looking for thoughts from the experienced Amazon sellers.  I am a Top-Rated Seller on eBay but just getting my feet wet as a new seller on Amazon.

 

I have a question regarding selling on Amazon.

Within the last 2 weeks I have started listing things for sale on Amazon (fulfilled by merchant instead of FBA since I like to have control of my inventory, quality control, and oversight of the packing/shipping process).  I have already had 5 orders and shipped them all.  2 orders were around $40 but 3 of them were around $200.  I read that Amazon's policy is to ship with signature confirmation but I only opted for Priority Mail with delivery confirmation.  

Do you guys and gals really ship everything that you sell on Amazon with a signature or do you only do it for high $ items?  Have you had any issues with buyers claiming non-receipt if you do not ship every package with a signature?

I want to follow Amazon's rules for protection as a seller but it seems ridiculous to inconvenience a buyer to be home to sign for a package that is under $200 or somewhere in that ballpark.  I order high $ items from Amazon (direct not third party merchant sellers) all the time and they never require UPS to obtain a signature.  Sometimes they even leave packages outside my door if I am not at home, but it is never an issue since my neighbors do not bother the packages and they are protected from the weather.

Looking for thoughts from the experienced Amazon sellers.  I am a Top-Rated Seller on eBay but just getting my feet wet as a new seller on Amazon.

 

Amazon only recognizes signature confirmation as proof of delivery. U will have to decide what level of risk is right for u and your business . 

You only hear about the horror stories on the seller forums, most buyers and sellers are honest folks who go about their life without trying to scam anyone  

Edited August 8, 201510 yr by Bold-Arrow

Thanks BA! I will start out with only shipping with signature confirmation for orders $100 or more and see how that turns out. It just seems ridiculous to get a signature for anything less, especially since the majority of buyers are not out to scam anyone and most packages are usually delivered with no hiccups. If I start to get buyers claiming they did not receive their packages, every package I send will then need to have a signature. I will then adjust my prices $3 higher to account for the added expense to each package.

Thanks BA! I will start out with only shipping with signature confirmation for orders $100 or more and see how that turns out. It just seems ridiculous to get a signature for anything less, especially since the majority of buyers are not out to scam anyone and most packages are usually delivered with no hiccups. If I start to get buyers claiming they did not receive their packages, every package I send will then need to have a signature. I will then adjust my prices $3 higher to account for the added expense to each package.

in Amazon's defense , I have had many packages left at my porch that were addressed to my neighbors. As much as us sellers hate it, amazon is all about the buyer and that is why they get plenty of traffic and u are able to sell at higher prices. To me getting as many eyeballs as possible is key to my store's success. 

Getting ready for my second shipment to Amazon FBA.  My first shipment went with Amazon provided labeling, co-mingling inventory, shipped to various fulfillment centers.  That last part is my only issue.  I had about 28 sets to send, and they were broken up into 5 different cartons, shipping to 3 different fulfillment centers.  In one case there was a single item in one carton... thus shipping cost was a little high on that item.  So this time I'm thinking about the option where you ship to only one location, and have them do the distribution (for extra fee).  First tho, if I stayed with the multiple shipments to multiple locations... is there any way to tell how they're going to break it up beforehand?  It seemed like last time, once I selected my inventory, Amazon created the ship lists, I was kind of "committed" at that point (couldn't back out and go to single destination shipment).  If they're going to break my shipment into 2 or 3 boxes, OK... that shouldn't be so bad... but 5 or 6... no thanks.  Is there any way to tell before I'm "locked in"?

Also, does shipping to one fulfillment center significantly delay your goods being "fillable" on Amazon?  This first one I sent in... seems like it was about a week before all my inventory was received and accounted for.

And finally, I'm also thinking about self-labeling.  Again, I won't have hundreds of items to send in... maybe 2 or 3 dozen?  Worth it... or just leave it to them?  Does this help getting your inventory received?