The world’s largest retailer offers many benefits to sellers, but like any well-designed, complex system, many pieces and parts must be in place for it to work. In other words, the details matter. One benefit offered to sellers is Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) services. A valuable advantage, this service makes it easy for sellers to get their products to customers fast.
However, Fulfillment by Amazon has a lengthy, detailed list of requirements that must be met for them to fulfill on behalf of a seller. For this reason, many sellers choose to select an FBA prep partner, who specializes in this type of product prep, to manage this piece of the process for them. With so many companies offering these types of services, selecting an FBA prep partner for your business can seem daunting.
When you consider Amazon now lists over 9 million individual sellers offering an estimated 3 billion products across the platform, it’s not surprising that FBA prep expertise is needed.
If you’re considering an FBA prep partner, here are 5 things to ask during the vendor selection process.
Why This Matters: The Real Business Impact
The misalignment between what consumers want and what many third-party shippers deliver has real business consequences:
1. FBA Prep Knowledge: How do you stay on top of Amazon’s requirements? How many years of experience do your employees have with ecommerce fulfillment services? To stay competitive, Amazon has to change policies, fees, and requirements and while these changes will always be communicated through Amazon Seller Central, it can be cumbersome for a business owner to stay on top of it. Find an FBA prep partner that is tuned in to this space and able to adapt quickly.
2. Quality Control: What processes do you use to control quality specific to Amazon’s requirements? From the condition of materials used to the placement of labels and stickers, be sure to ask how they are managing quality on an ongoing basis. Failure to do this could cause your shipments to be rejected for reasons like poor exterior packaging (i.e., weak boxes), boxes that exceed weight limits, or labels that were not applied correctly.
3. Questions Specific to Your Product’s Needs: If your product is fragile, ask how they plan to package it for protection. Get specifics on the materials they use and confirm they meet Amazon’s bubble wrap and polybag requirements. If your product is sold in bundles or multi-packs, confirm they will label appropriately so anyone handling your product knows exactly what is included.
4. Space flexibility: Do you have the ability to receive multiple truckloads at once to make labeling and packaging changes quickly? The ability to receive 5-6 truckloads at a time and then ship that same number of truckloads within a tight time frame is often necessary.
5. Flexible Capacity Model: How do you handle urgent requests for product prepping? Is your turnaround time different for planned versus urgent requests? What do you do differently during Amazon’s peak seasons such as Prime Day, Black Friday, and Christmas? Look for an FBA prep partner that offers a flexible capacity operating model. This means they can accommodate urgent requests with tight turnarounds because they have enough warehouse space to be flexible and prioritize client needs.
