Amazon is the biggest online marketplace in the world and with it comes the ability to offer amazing things to their shoppers, including Prime delivery.
Amazon Prime delivery offers consumers the chance to receive their products the next day, or in some cases, on the same day. But only on products that display the Prime Badge. This is why obtaining this badge should be at the top of every Amazon seller’s to-do list.
Having this badge on product listings shows consumers that this product can be shipped and delivered at lightning speed, for free (well, for a monthly or annual subscription). Not only this, but having this badge also makes you eligible for the buy-box, improving the ranking of your listing and conversions too.
How can brands achieve the coveted Prime badge?
Become a Vendor
Vendors sell their products wholesale straight to Amazon, which means that all their products will, normally, be Prime badge eligible as they are technically being sold BY Amazon, giving access to Amazon’s huge, always-on warehouses and impressive fast delivery.
But, those with a seller account can also achieve this one of the following ways:
Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA)
The most common way to get the Prime badge as a seller is to choose FBA as your shipping method. Sellers send their products to one of Amazon’s fulfilment centres where Amazon will then store and deliver the order directly to the consumer.
As Amazon is doing the shipping for you they, of course, are able to meet the standards expected by Prime customers.
Seller-Fulfilled Prime (SFP)
The other way to achieve the Prime badge as a seller on Amazon is by choosing Seller-Fulfilled prime as your shipping option. This programme involves the seller shipping the orders directly to the purchasers. However, Amazon expects these sellers to have a cancellation rate that is less than 1% and achieve fast delivery in order to convince them you are able to uphold the expectations of a Prime order. Once you achieve your badge, you will then have to work hard to keep it.
Are there any downsides to having the Prime Badge?
A Prime Badge offers sellers mostly positives during their Amazon selling journey. Happy customers, higher conversions and buy-box eligibility. But there is a disadvantage, too when choosing the SFP option.
The pressure to meet Amazon’s standards as a smaller seller can be too much, let alone having to maintain these standards in an online shopping space where there is so much competition and so many aspects out of a seller’s control, such as supply chain issues, delivery problems or even wider problems that may affect a consumer receiving their order, the weather, strikes and so on, which may cause you to exceed the two-day limit stated in the Prime Badge guidelines.
There is also the added stress of having to absorb the total cost of shipping too, as Prime customers get their delivery for free. However, as mentioned, the benefits of a badge often outweigh the disadvantages for those wanting to make selling on Amazon a successful venture for their brand.