Amazon Valentine’s Day: Prepare Now and Love Those Profits!

By Erik Mathes

If you’re not feeling the Q1 love yet, don’t get too down: Amazon Valentines Day sales are on the way. Hitting smack in the middle of Q1, Valentines Day brings in a bonanza of high-conversion, high-spending shoppers to Amazon.There are so many reasons for online merchants to get excited for Amazon Valentines Day sales. Just look at these stats from a survey conducted by the National Retail Federation (NRF):

• 54.8% of Americans celebrated Valentines Day in 2016

• 27.9% of Valentines Day 2016 revelers planned to shop online

• $146.84 was the average amount spent on Valentines Day gifts per consumer in 2015

• Men spend approximately $191 and women $97 on gifts for their partners on average

These numbers tell you that Amazon Valentines Day sales are there for the making—if you prepare early and strategically.

Sure, there are plenty of obvious items that sellers can source for this love-themed holiday, as seen below:

But, there are just as many products you can stock up on for Amazon Valentines Day that aren’t as intuitive.

To help you prepare, we put together this crash course on Amazon Valentines Day products to source that’ll maximize sales.

And, we also discuss Valentines Day best practices for Amazon sellers to follow for V-Day, including optimizing:

• product descriptions

• gift options

Keep reading to see if you’re ready for the Valentines Day shopping frenzy.

Stock the most popular Amazon Valentines Day items

Let’s start by getting the obvious stuff out of the way: the products that are typical Valentines Day top sellers on Amazon.

For women, these include:

• jewelry

• perfume

• flowers

• chocolates

• beauty products

• romantic books and movies

• lingerie and intimate apparel

For men, you’ve got:

• cologne

• watches

• grooming supplies

• clothing

• sporting goods

• techy gadgets

If you opt to source chocolate, make sure to read up on Amazon’s Date- and Temperature-Sensitive Products guidelines:

You should also stock stylish his-and-her products, such as lockets, clothing, and bracelets, as these will be in-demand.

But it doesn’t end there. Smart sellers know that there’s more to Amazon Valentines Day sales than gifts for significant others.

More demographics to target for Amazon Valentines Day sales

In addition to targeting people buying gifts for significant others, you should also target people purchasing gifts for:

• family

• friends

• co-workers

• neighbors

• classmates

• teachers

Valentines Day items for these demographics need not be intimate or expensive. Really, anything red, cute, and with hearts on it will do.

Consider stocking up on platonic gifts like:

• decorations (for the home, classroom, and/or parties)

• stickers

• cards (especially sets that little kids can use for classmates)

• gift wrap

• plush toys

Platonic gifts can also include chocolates and flowers, as well as some of the other ideas mentioned for significant others. But, they can (and probably should) be smaller, less intimate versions.

Round out your inventory with some of these products and you can seriously cash in on Amazon Valentines Day sales.

Don’t forget to source gifts for pets

People love their pets. I mean, they really LOVE them.

According to the NRF, Americans spent a whopping $681 million on Valentines Day gifts for their pets in 2016. That’s actually a decrease from the $701 million spent on pets in 2015, but it’s still a massive market segment.

Products to consider sourcing as Valentines Day gifts for pets include:

• leashes

• collars

• hair clips (for all the dog bedazzlers out there)

• bandanas

• pet t-shirts/sweaters

• themed food and water bowls

• toys

• pet treats

Of course, make sure your V-Day pet products are red, pink, or dotted with hearts.

And, if you don’t sell out, remember that these products will always be in demand every year around Valentines Day.

Source products that help people catch a cheating lover

It sure sounds crazy, but it’s true.

Sales of spy and surveillance gear that helps people catch significant others cheating routinely skyrocket in the weeks before Valentines Day.

Perhaps it’s because cheaters anxiously give away clues of their misdeeds as the day of love approaches. Or, maybe people just become suspicious of their lackluster lovers after seeing other doting couples acting affectionately in public.

Whatever the case, your Amazon Valentines Day sales can get a boost from products like:

• GPS trackers

• spy cameras

• audio surveillance tools

The listing below is the perfect example (although the product itself could use some help with its rating…):

Which brings us to our next Amazon Valentines Day sales tip:

Boost Amazon Valentines Day sales by optimizing your product descriptions

We can’t stress enough how vital Amazon product descriptions are when it comes to attracting customers for seasonal/holiday sales. Valentines Day on Amazon is no exception.

By strategically writing “Valentines Day” into descriptions, your listings will appear higher in Valentines Day-related searches. Just look at the gold foil number balloons pictured below:

There’s nothing about these balloons that screams “Valentines Day.”

But look below at how the seller chose to list this product:

Clearly, this seller understands the power of having listings optimized for search, and you should mirror that technique. This seller was even savvy enough to also include “Birthday,” “Wedding,” and “Party Decoration” in the description to attract other demographics.

Write your listings assuming that many Amazon shoppers will use “Valentines Day” in search queries. And, if you have any products (like the balloons) that make sense for other holidays, make sure to update those listings to be optimized for the nextholiday.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to optimize the copy in your product detail pages down to the bullets in the description. Even adding a line of text saying “Your wife/husband will love this” could be the difference-maker in getting that next sale.

So, go all-out in tailoring your product listing pages—from title to details—in order to maximize who you attract via search.

Offer gift wrap and other special gift options

A great way to make your Amazon store stand out is to offer gift wrapping and gift messaging to your buyers. And, when you allow customers to select an item as a “gift,” Amazon will omit the price on their receipt.

Here’s what Amazon writes about managing your Gift Options in Seller Central:

To learn how to set up gift wrapping and gift messaging on your account, visit Amazon’s Gift Options page.

Amazon Valentines Day sales: The bottom line

Don’t be fooled into thinking Q1 will be a bust; Amazon Valentines Day sales can seriously boost your bottom line.

Think outside the heart-shaped chocolate box and source products for platonic relationships, pets, and paranoid lovers seeking a cheating partner. And don’t forget about his-and-her products for those types of couples.

Also, consider offering gift wrapping and gift messaging options for buyers. You can even charge extra for these added services to further pad your profits.

And, don’t forget to optimize your product descriptions for search by including “Valentines Day” in the title. Even inferior products can become top sellers when they’re set up to appear high in Amazon’s search results.

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Amazon FBA Wholesale - Add profits to your Amazon FBA sourcing

In this Amazon FBA training video, Stephen discusses the benefits of adding wholesale sourcing methods to your Amazon FBA business. 

Amazon FBA Profits in Q1 - Tips for Starting the Year

In this Amazon FBA training video, Stephen gives tips for starting the new year off right and making big profits in Q1. 

What Top Amazon Sellers All Have in Common

- Find out if you have things in common with Top Amazon Sellers!

How I made $1,567 in a month with Gift Cards, Amazon and Ebay

- Increase your purchasing power with gift cards in your reselling business, Amazon FBA (fulfillment by Amazon) and your ebay business or any other reselling business. Work from home and make great money with resold gift cards!

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- Get inspired to sell books with this great video!

You’re NOT Just An Amazon Seller

I’ll be honest. When someone asks me what I do for a living I often times respond with “I sell on Amazon”. Since selling on Amazon is not understood by the masses, it usually gets either 1000 questions or a shrug-off as another come-and-go nickel-dime “hobby”. Most people don’t get it or don’t take it seriously. Saying I sell on Amazon is a quick and easy answer.The truth is, I am selling myself extremely short by saying this and so are you.

ENTREPRENEURDefinition: a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.

If you are an Amazon seller you are an entrepreneur, a business owner. You are an online store owner. You are 100% responsible for its success or failure. When we reduce our business to something as simple as “I sell on Amazon”, we are not giving ourselves proper credit for what we do and we are not affording the opportunity for others to learn about and respect our business.

As third-party sellers on Amazon, we are small business owners. We are required to file and pay taxes, acquire and ship inventory, process returned goods and put time and money at risk to earn a profit. This is no small thing. This is not a 9-5 punch in, punch out job. It is not a get rich quick scheme. It is a hustle and grind, up all night catalog cruising, wholesale ordering, thrift shopping, sticker peeling, poly-bagging, box cutting, fun and exhausting BUSINESS.

If you are an Amazon seller, you are:

• a decision maker
• a financial planner
• a merchant
• in the shipping business
• the purchasing officer
• the deal maker
• the ROI hunter

Have you ever met a person who owned a store and when you ask them what they do they say I sell stuff in a store down the road. NO WAY. They said I own “XZY Gift shop on Main Street”

Many times Amazon sellers are not taken seriously because they don’t view themselves as business/store owners. Even if you are a small time seller or just getting started you are still a business. Amazon requires it. It will take time, money and energy to build it.

Act Like a Business

In order to feel like you are a legitimate business, act like one!

• Be professional.
• Keep up on your bookkeeping.
• Research new ways to profit.
• Diversify by selling on multiple platforms.
• File taxes.
• Track mileage.
• Set goals.
• Work hard.
• Set up a Facebook business page.
• Get business cards.

I encourage you to be proud of what you do and give your business the respect it deserves.

The next time someone asks you what you do try this:

“I am a business owner. I am the CEO of purchasing, finance, and shipping for a large e-tailer. I am an entrepreneur.”

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The hidden iceberg of FBA textbook profits: Unmasking “textbooks in disguise”

BY PETER VALLEY

Most FBA textbook sales aren’t textbooks at all: Cashing in on textbooks that don’t look like textbooks.

In this article:

1. The new definition of “textbooks”
2. What textbook buyers are really buying right now (it’s not what you think)
3. The 3-part checklist to spotting “textbooks in disguise”
4. UK sellers: Big announcement coming. Find out more.

As textbook season just cleared its peak (note: that does not mean its over), this is a great time to cover a subject I’ve never talked about before.

Fact: The majority of textbooks are NOT textbooks. Most textbooks don’t look like textbooks. And the majority of your FBA textbooks sales will not be textbooks.

What do I mean by this paradoxical statement? Let’s get into it…

The hidden iceberg of Fulfillment by Amazon profit under the surface

How do you define “textbook”? If the answer is: “Those huge 7″ x 10″ books that are usually over 800 pages and are published by Thompson or Cengage,” you’re leaving a ton of money on the table.

Fact is, that’s only a small part of the textbook pie. And I mean that literally – there is an iceberg of opportunity (i.e. profit) you’re missing if you’re only sourcing and/or pricing your 7″ x 10″ doorstoppers as textbooks.

Yet the market forces that drive up sales – and prices – for FBA books in that format also affect so much more…

How amateurs define “textbooks”

For inexperienced Fulfillment by Amazon sellers and the general population, “textbook” is defined as two things: a format and/or a function. A giant book (format), and/or one whose only purpose is to be used in college curriculum (function).

To our detriment, this is how most Amazon FBA sellers view textbooks as well. Costly mistake.

Redefining textbooks for the pro Amazon FBA seller

For the purposes of the Amazon bookseller, we don’t care about format or function. Our definition of “textbook” should be solely as follows:

“Books whose Amazon sales and prices spike in August and January, and for which we can command outrageous FBA prices and still get sales.”

That’s all that matters. I don’t care if the book is a pictorial history of Nerf balls (there’s a liberal arts school somewhere teaching a class on this, after all), if these factors apply, I want to price that book on Amazon accordingly (read: high).

Remember, it doesn’t matter if we used a particular book when we went to school. It doesn’t matter if it looks like a book used in school. It doesn’t matter if it “makes sense” that students would purchase this book for school. None of that matters.

What does matter:

1. Do Amazon sales spike at the beginning of the semester.
2. Can we command higher FBA prices.

That’s it.

Why most textbooks aren’t really textbooks

As I type this, we are in the middle (virtually the dead center) of the Amazon textbook sales spike. If you go through your FBA book sales from the last 7 to 10 days, you will likely notice two things:

1. Book sales have gone up.
2. Most of your FBA book sales aren’t what you’d think of as “textbooks.”

Strangely, a lot of Amazon booksellers don’t notice this.

Textbooks aren’t about a type of book at all. They’re about market forces. These things are related, but still very different.

Fact is that most student FBA book purchases aren’t 7″ x 10″ “textbooks” right now.

What are “textbook buyers” really buying on Amazon right now?

Two things:

1. Annotated / critical analysis fiction.
2. Academic, scholarly non-fiction.

You could fit textbooks into #2, but they remain a small part of the “textbook market.”

Why is this so important for Amazon sellers?

Before we get into how to spot “textbooks in disguise,” why is it so vital Amazon sellers understand this concept?

It’s pretty simple: So we can know what in our FBA inventory to price outrageously high right now (i.e. the textbook rush).  If you’re only raising FBA prices on the 7″ x 10″ doorstoppers, that’s money being lost.

Remember our new FBA seller definition of textbook (demand spikes beginning of semester + ability to price really high). That means any books students are buying on Amazon right now that you’re not pricing aggressively as an FBA seller is money you’re throwing away.

Quick “textbook in disguise” example

As a general example: the Penguin Classics series has a huge demand among students on Amazon. These find their way into countless college syllabus’s, and FBA demand goes way up this time of year. Yet you would never think of these as “textbooks.”

Let’s say you scanned a Penguin Classics title last month when you were doing an FBA shipment, and saw this:

Amazon “best seller rank”: 450,000

Lowest FBA price: $7.50

You might just go ahead and price-match that $7.50 FBA offer and move on.

But when you consider that you’re listing this book on Amazon in July and textbook season is coming up, and are aware this is a classic “textbook in disguise,” you would be wise to get more aggressive.

Maybe the 2nd lowest FBA offer was %9.99. And the 3rd was $10.50. And the 4th was $10.99.

As an FBA seller, I wouldn’t hesitate to price above all of those, and trust I’ll get a sale in a few weeks. (In fact, I personally don’t care if its July or March, I’ll price these like that anytime, knowing I’ll get a sale – and more money – in due time).

How do we spot textbooks in disguise?

This is the part you’ve been waiting for. You just want to know the secret X-ray formula for spotting which books are affected by student-driven market forces.

You can also guess what I’m going to say next: There isn’t one.

But we can get close. Here’s the three part checklist:

1. Niche nonfiction that doesn’t really have any real world application.

If you’re looking at a book and thinking, “Why the heck would somebody want a book about this” and it feels very academic, you might have a textbook in disguise.

Now this description applies to a lot of books that don’t have college demand, this is just a clue, not a steady rule.

Here’s the rule of thumb: “A book on a subject that nobody won’t care about if they weren’t forced to care by a professor.”

      2. Books that have those giant white square stickers on the back.

You know the ones. These indicate a book was sold in a college bookstore. Which is a great sign.

Other cosmetic clues included “Used” stickers or other college bookstore stickers or stamps. Don’t get mad when you find these on a book – these are huge clues, and positive ones.

3. Fiction titles that have supplemental material like annotations.

That’s a clue that this is going to be a book that’s going to be purchased by students in a literature department, for example. The average Jane Austen reader is not going to want an annotated edition.

Generally speaking: Any nonfiction book that generally appears scholarly and academic.

You’ll develop an eye for this.

This is extremely important because…

…the majority of “textbooks” fit into these categories.

Most textbooks don’t look like textbooks.

Think it might be a textbook in disguise? How to confirm your suspicions

So you have a book, and your trained eye is telling you this could be a textbook in disguise. How do you know for sure?

The answer is extremely simple: Head over to Keepa or CamelCamelCamel and see what happened to its sales rank in August or January. Did sales spike to an unusual degree?

There’s your answer.

Repeat: Most textbooks don’t look like textbooks

The more you understand this, the more you’ll make.

Because the question of “is this or is this not a textbook?” is an inexact science, my advice: Err on the side of “yes.”

The big reason is that there’s another big driver of book sales people don’t think about:

Students are forced onto Amazon this time every year by the tens of millions (literally). Once there, they are much more likely to throw other books in their shopping cart, simply because they’re on Amazon already. They’re buying 20 books already, what’s another 2 or 5?

For this reason, sales of all books go up this time of year – not just textbooks, and not just “textbooks in disguise.” So when pricing right now, err on the side of “high.” A lot of it is going to sell, no matter if its used in schools or not.

I’ll repeat some useful wisdom:

“You can always go back and lower your prices later. But if you price too low, you can never go back and retrieve the money you could have sold it for.”

-Peter Valley

PS: Are you a UK seller? I have a big announcement for you. Go here and all will be revealed.

PPS: If you somehow missed it, I published my complete guide to textbook season last week.

PPPS: Have you tried to list a book and gotten an alert from Amazon, requesting you provide receipts as proof it’s legitimate? Send me the ISBN or post in comments below. Trying to separate fact from fiction as rumors swirl…

PPS: Tired of hearing about my new book, Online Book Arbitrage yet? It’s free.Claim your copy.

(SOURCE)