When many new Amazon sellers mention FBA, the first question they ask is “I am a new seller, can I use FBA to ship?” “I follow other people’s products, can I use FBA to ship?” “I am just starting out now and can’t prepare a lot of goods. Is there a minimum quantity limit for FBA shipments?” “How is FBA shipping charged? Is the fee very expensive?” Taking advantage of these topics, the following introduces the relevant matters of FBA shipments.
First of all, Amazon FBA shipping service is open to all Amazon professional sellers. As long as you apply for a seller account on Amazon and publish products, whether it is self-built or follow-selling, even if it is a new account that has just been registered and approved, you can use FBA to ship, as long as you create a shipping plan according to the FBA shipping process.
Is there a quantity limit for FBA shipments? The answer is yes. According to the IPI (Inventory Performance Index) score of each seller, the available shipping quantity indicators are also different. The specific IPI score can be viewed in the backend of the seller center.
For new sellers who are just starting out, small batches and multiple batches can be used for delivery and replenishment. As operations progress, the quantity of each batch of shipments can be adjusted according to the sales volume. This can not only make efficient use of funds, but also maintain the IPI index from decreasing.
Is it necessary for new sellers to use FBA for delivery? Although Amazon does not force sellers to use FBA for delivery, from the perspective of account maintenance and long-term stable operation, it is very necessary to use FBA for delivery. Sellers who use FBA for delivery do not have to worry about fraudulent behavior by sellers because the goods are placed in Amazon warehouses, and the system will reduce the review of stores, so using FBA for delivery is very helpful for maintaining account security. At the same time, as a seller, it is natural to expect to get more orders. According to the statistics of the platform, when the indicators are similar, sellers who use FBA for delivery will have a sales increase of more than 40% compared to sellers who ship by themselves. Using FBA for delivery is also helpful for increasing sales. How does FBA charge? Is it expensive? The following is a brief explanation of FBA fees, which probably include storage fees, order processing fees, sorting and packaging fees, weighing and processing fees, and other miscellaneous fees.
Storage fees include normal storage fees and long-term unsalable storage fees. Normal storage fees are almost negligible, and long-term unsalable storage fees are charged according to the storage time. The longer the storage time in the warehouse, the higher the unit cost.
Order processing fees are charged by piece.
Sorting and packaging fees and weighing and handling fees are charged according to the size and actual weight of the goods.
Other miscellaneous fees are mainly the fees for some personalized services, such as transshipment, destruction, special packaging, etc.
Regarding the charging standards for various fees, sellers can enter FBA Fee Schedule (FBA rate) in the “Search” bar in the upper right corner of the Amazon Seller Center for inquiry, and then calculate according to the actual situation of their own products. Although FBA delivery is more expensive than self-delivery, the price of goods shipped by FBA is generally much higher than that of similar goods shipped by self-delivery. After deducting the various costs of FBA, the profit is often higher than that of goods shipped by self-delivery. For oversized goods, FBA’s rate is more advantageous.
Therefore, for sellers, using FBA for delivery has more advantages than disadvantages.