For most online sellers, sales and profitability on Amazon depend on consistently winning the Amazon Buy Box. Amazon sellers view the Buy Box as a factor for success because it contributes to sales conversion.
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Considering the importance of the Buy Box, it is estimated that over 80% of Amazon sales go through it. Hence, this makes it vital for Amazon sellers, especially the newbies, to understand what an Amazon Buy Box is.
In this article, you will learn more about the Amazon Buy Box, how an Amazon repricer helps you win the Buy Box, and other vital insights to help you improve your overall Amazon business success.
What is an Amazon Buy Box?
Since the Buy Box is of great significance, it is best to refresh your knowledge of it. The Amazon Buy Box is the widget found on the right-hand side of an Amazon product detail page.
It is easy to spot, for it showcases the “Add to Cart” and “Buy Now” buttons that Amazon shoppers click if they wish to purchase the listed item. Amazon sellers aim to win the Buy Box because shoppers rarely check the product seller.
Without hesitation, if the shoppers like the product and its price offer, they will quickly click the “Add to Cart” or “Buy Now” button. Thus, contributing to your sales and revenue goals.
Important Factors for Winning the Buy Box
According to Amazon, there are two main steps on how they choose the Featured Offer or the listing that will appear on the Buy Box.
The first step involves determining which products are considered “eligible offers” to be featured on the Buy Box based on criteria intended to provide Amazon shoppers with a great shopping experience. Secondly, Amazon selects compelling offers from those previously selected eligible offers.
To be more specific, here are the following factors that the Amazon algorithm examines before awarding the Buy Box.
Buy Box Eligibility
To become Buy Box eligible, you must have a Professional selling account. Aside from that, Amazon will also base eligibility on account performance, order volume, and other risk factors. Some of the evaluated performance metrics include the following:
- Order Defect Rate
- Cancellation Rate
- Late Shipment Rate
The better you perform as an Amazon seller, the higher the chances of becoming Buy Box eligible. You can continually monitor specific performance metrics and check how you are doing by looking into the Account Health page on your Amazon Dashboard.
Shipping
Amazon also considers shipping offers when selecting a Buy Box winner. According to Amazon, sellers who offer faster shipping options are more likely to win the Buy Box.
If you wish to change your fulfillment settings, check the General Fulfillment Settings under Order Fulfillment Settings on your Amazon Dashboard. Some of the shipping options available include One Day, Two Day, Three Day, Four Day, Standard, Expedited, and Arranged Delivery.
Customer Service
Amazon is a customer-centric company that constantly encourages its employees and sellers to aim for customer satisfaction. Hence, it is unsurprising for Amazon to include customer service as one of the factors evaluated for awarding the Buy Box.
To increase the Buy Box win rate, you should be on top of all aspects of your account health. Apart from promptly responding to customer reviews and dealing with the previously mentioned metrics, you should also adhere to other performance targets and policies, including Policy Compliance and Shipping Performance.
Stock Availability
Another factor evaluated by the Buy Box algorithm for selecting a featured offer is stock availability. Amazon emphasized that sellers will not win the Buy Box if “a product is out of stock and none is on order.”
It would help if you always kept your inventory updated to avoid disappointing shoppers. Plan things ahead of time, especially during peak holiday events like Amazon Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day.
Ensure that you are constantly monitoring low and out-of-stock inventory alerts so that you can restock items that sell quickly.
Competitive Pricing
Price is one of the factors evaluated by consumers before buying an item online. For that matter, Amazon likewise evaluates product pricing when choosing a Buy Box winner.
It is best to offer customers a competitive price so that you can increase the likelihood of being chosen for the Buy Box. If you are a high-volume seller, the best way to obtain a competitive price for your listings is to use anadvanced Amazon repricer.
What is an Amazon Repricer?
A repricer is an Amazon seller tool that helps Amazon sellers with their pricing strategy. It is a software developed mainly for facilitating price adjustments to keep listing prices competitive.
Amazon sellers have three options for repricing software: manual repricer, rule-based repricer, and the AI repricer. In a separate article, we discussed in length repricing software and its benefits.
Different Repricing Methods You Should Know
Manual Repricing
Manual repricing involves manually adjusting listing prices. Although it is a straightforward method, it is less likely to be effective if you are selling multiple items that are highly competitive.
This repricing strategy is not viable for business owners who want to make a profit and increase their profit margins quickly. Such a process will require too much time, effort, and human resources to monitor your competitors’ listing prices.
This method is ideal only for sellers with few inventory items.
Rule-Based Repricing
Compared to manual repricing, rule-based repricing is a less demanding approach to repricing. With the help of a rule-based repricer, you can react to competitive price changes without constantly monitoring your competitors' listings.
Price adjustments are based on the predefined rules you have selected. The ultimate goal of a rule-based repricer is to have the lowest price. Since it only considers competitors' prices, other seller metrics are ignored.
Consequently, too much focus on price disregards the Buy Box share and profit margin in the process. Furthermore, since rules can sometimes be conflicting, you will need to constantly manage the repricing software to ensure that it delivers the best possible result.
Automated Repricing
The automated repricing method utilizes an algorithmic or AI repricer to facilitate price adjustments. It is an ideal repricing method for high-volume Amazon sellers who wish to obtain a competitive edge in the marketplace.
An algorithmic repricing software can automate the repricing process on your behalf. It will adjust listing prices to a competitive level while preserving your profit margin. It can help you avoid unreasonable price slashing that could lead to Amazon price wars and ultimately, allow you to win more Buy Box shares.
You can expect significant returns with the least effort when using an AI repricer. An AI repricer will not solely focus on reducing the price of your listings just to outprice competitors. Instead, it will consider competitors' behavior, price notifications, profit margin, and overall marketplace conditions before adjusting the listing price.
Increase Your Amazon Success Rate
The best way to increase your Amazon success rate is to win more Amazon Buy Box. To do it, you will need to consider the factors Amazon evaluates when awarding the Buy Box.
A sophisticated repricing software can help you obtain a competitive price level for your listings to increase the Buy Box win rate. You can use an Amazon repricer, like Seller Snap, to enhance your pricing strategy.
Additionally, utilizing other Amazon seller tools that can help elevate your customer service, advance your inventory process, and develop other critical aspects of the business can also contribute to your success on Amazon.