Mastering Online Arbitrage

Retail Arbitrage - An Amazon Sellers Best Friend!

Regardless of where you are in your Amazon Selling Journey, understanding and utilizing retail arbitrage can be a huge resource.

We hope you enjoy this weeks issue of the Internet Mastery Global Newsletter.

Weekly Training Video

All Amazon sellers who source their products from Retailers run into the challenge of having retailers cancel their orders. If this happened to you yet, don’t worry it will.

Check out this quick 6 minute video to learn how to deal with retailers who cancel your orders:

Retail Arbitrage Strategies:

1. Product Research Using SpyRivals: Start by employing SpyRivals to identify products that are already selling on Amazon. Only purchase items that are already on Amazon to ensure they are already selling . Look for products with high demand but limited competition, and use SpyRivals to monitor price histories and velocity rankings on Amazon.

2. Sourcing Products for Amazon Arbitrage: Source items from retailers who offer them at a lower cost than their average selling price on Amazon. Focus on finding deals through clearance sales, wholesale discounts, or even retail stores. Ensure the products are new, as Amazon has strict policies on product conditions, especially in categories like health and beauty.

3. Calculating Profit Margins for Amazon Sales: Use SpyRivals to help calculate potential profits, factoring in Amazon’s fees (such as referral fees and FBA fees if you opt for Fulfillment by Amazon), shipping costs, and product costs. This calculation is crucial to ensure that each item you plan to sell will yield a worthwhile profit after all expenses.

Congratulations!

We are super proud of the Internet Mastery Community - now surpassing more than $170,982,000 in sales on Amazon.

Check it out for your self here: https://app.internetmasterycommunity.com

Joke of the Week:

Try not to laugh out loud…

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While it appears straightforward, becoming proficient in online arbitrage necessitates a nuanced understanding of market dynamics, adept product sourcing strategies, and meticulous execution. Let's delve into the essential steps for embarking on a successful online arbitrage venture.

Market Exploration and Product Curation:

The journey to triumphant online arbitrage commences with meticulous market exploration. Begin by identifying products with a robust demand and consistent sales performance on Amazon, and high profit. Utilize Spy Rivals to analyze market trends, gauge competition, and estimate sales volumes. Seek out products with a healthy sales per day average, high profit and an ability to sell the item.

Sourcing Channels and Methods:

To unearth profitable deals, diversify your sourcing channels and employ multiple methods for product acquisition. Explore a spectrum of online platforms, including retail websites, marketplaces, and clearance sections. Hunt for discounts, promotions, and clearance sales to secure products at favorable prices. Additionally, consider local thrift stores, clearance aisles, and liquidation sales as potential goldmines for sourcing inventory.

Price Evaluation and Margin Assessment:

Before committing to a purchase, conduct a comprehensive price evaluation to ascertain profitability. Factor in all associated costs, encompassing product price, taxes etc. Strive for a robust profit margin that justifies your investment of time, effort, and capital. Remain mindful of potential price fluctuations and seasonal demand variations that could impact profitability.

Amazon Restricted Categories That Require Approval

The restricted categories that may require you to get approval from Amazon include:

• Alcohol

• Animals & Animal-Related Products

• Art – Fine Art/ Home Decor

• Automotive and Powersports

• Composite Wood Products

• Cosmetics & Skin/Hair Care

• CPAP Cleaning and Disinfecting Devices

• Currency, Coins, Cash Equivalents, and Gift Cards

• Dietary Supplements

• Drugs & drug paraphernalia

• Electronics

• Explosives, weapons, and related items

• Export Controls

• Food & Beverage

• Gambling & Lottery

• Hazardous and prohibited items

• Human Parts & Burial Artifacts

• Jewelry & Precious Gems

• Laser products

• Lighting

• Lock Picking & Theft Devices

• Medical devices and accessories

• Offensive and Controversial Materials

• Other restricted products

• Pesticides and pesticide devices

• Plant and Seed Products

• Postage meters and stamps

• Recalled products

• Recycling electronics

• Refrigerants: Ozone-Depleting Substances and Substitutes

• Strike anywhere matches

• Subscriptions and Periodicals

• Surveillance Equipment

• Tobacco & Tobacco-Related Products

• Warranties, Service Plans, Contracts, and Guarantees

• Upholstered Furniture, Bedding, & Other Quilted Products

Amazon usually adds stricter rules to categories that contain potentially harmful products, or products that are more likely to be counterfeit or fake.

Categories, or brands, that need ungating can change over time and can also depend on how old your seller account is. The categories you are already approved for can also affect which are now gated – so keep checking regularly.

Requirements for Getting Amazon Category Approval In Restricted Categories

Before your start your ungating journey and get approved in Amazon Categories, you need to ensure your seller account meets some of Amazon’s minimum requirements.

✅ A Professional Amazon Seller Account

✅ Authorized Wholesalers

✅ Original Invoices
Invoices correctly addressed to your Seller Account name and registered address and dated within the last 90 days. Use recent invoices. The invoices must not be doctored in any way.

✅ Local Returns Address and Language Support
You must be able to provide a return delivery address in your local country.

✅ Good Seller Metrics
You need to make sure you have low defect rates, late shipment rates, and pre-fulfillment cancel rates.

For Amazon category approval, you should aim to beat these metrics:

• < 4% = Late Shipment Rate (LSR) ✅ 

• < 2.5% = Pre-Fulfillment Cancel Rate (PFCR) ✅ 

• < 1% = Order Defect Rate (ODR) ✅ 

APPLY TO SELL

Remember, per Amazon’s new restricted items policy, you might be required to click the “Apply to Sell” button for every item you list.

In some cases you will have to watch a short video and answer some basic questions to get approved to sell. In some cases you will be auto approved when you click the “Apply to Sell” button. And, in some cases you will not be able to sell items that Amazon requires you buy from an authorized wholesaler.

TOP Retailers

The top retailers included, but are not limited to (and in no particular order):

• Best Buy
• Toys ‘R Us
• Walmart
• Costco
• Target
• Macy’s
• Petco
• Gamestop

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That’s all we have time for today!

Stay tuned - each week we’ll uncover strategies and updates to help you grow and scale your ecommerce business!

Knowing No Boundaries,

Internet Mastery Newsletter Team!

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