Amazon Alibaba E-Commerce Detail Guide
Whenever we talk about Amazon, it is very important for us to understand commerce. We cannot move forward without understanding commerce because this entire work, this entire business, is related to commerce. So, what is commerce? The act of buying and selling is called commerce. In a general way, whatever purchases you make in your life, or if you sell something to someone, this is commerce.
Understand it like this: if you go to a market, or to any mall, to buy clothes, to buy Festival clothes, or just generally, or if you go to a cobbler to get your shoes repaired, there too, when you do the work and give him money, this will be called commerce.
This exchange, this transaction you made of giving money and getting work done, all this process is called commerce. That is, you take anything in the market, give money, take the thing. Or if you have a shop anywhere in the market, you are sitting there, you give any thing to someone, take money, this act is called commerce.
What is E-commerce?
The word “E” is added; commerce is the same. Understand how the addition of the word “E” changes its definition. “E” is for electronics. So, this is an act of buying and selling that is carried out with the help of the internet. Remember that e-commerce is also called internet commerce. See, you can also call electronic commerce “internet commerce.” What is it saying in this? It is saying that it is the act of buying and selling; the activity of buying and selling is happening, but to carry out that activity, to bring it to completion, we take the help of the internet. For example, I will check now if I have internet.
Yes, I have internet. Now I buy, taking the help of the internet, I make a purchase, or I can do it. I can do it without going to the market. So, I came here, here I search for this USB. I really like this USB. I want to buy it. So I clicked. I say, “Buy Now,” buy it now. I bought it. It says it will be delivered to your home in one or two days. Right? Now, in one or two days, it will reach my home. What did I do? I made a purchase.
I gave money (or will give, or gave via card). I made a purchase. With whose help did I do it? Tell me, with the help of the internet. So, this process of buying and selling, in which the internet comes in, or any electronic device comes in, we call it e-commerce. {imaage}
Types of E-commerce
E-commerce actually has four types, but in the Virtual Assistant course I am conducting, it is very important for you to know two types. Now, which are the two? Business-to-Business, B2B. Now B2B means Business-to-Business, from business to business. If I focus on this one point, what is B2B? B2B is Business-to-Business, from business to business. I bought from it, but is it from Samsung? Can you tell me? See, this “Temu Online Market” is selling. So, this is not from Samsung; Samsung is not selling it. So where did Temu get this from? They got it from Samsung, right? What is Samsung? A business.
A business. So Person took these USBs from Samsung. If you look closely, these were cheaper for them, so they took them for doing business to business. Obviously, they didn’t take them for their personal use. They took them to sell further and make a profit. So, this commerce is called B2B, meaning Business-to-Business, from business to business.
Consumer (B2C) What is Business-to-Consumer? I think you understood this without me speaking. You would say, “This Alibaba from which you just bought this USB, brother, this that you bought, it was B2B from business to business, but you are a consumer, a customer.” So, this is B2C. That is, when a business sells things to customers, what is it? From business to customer. This is a type of e-commerce. You have understood both these things now. When you do B2B on the internet, you buy things from business for business, that is B2B. If you buy something from a business for your personal use on the internet, that is B2C. So you have understood these two things.
Alibaba: A B2B E-commerce Example
Its example is Amazon, its example is Alibaba. Now, see, what is Alibaba? Alibaba is a B2B website where various companies make many things and give you the facility that you can get products made of your choice from them. This is very beneficial to understand, that it allows us to get products made of our choice. Let’s see on Alibaba. So I came to Alibaba. With whose help did I come? With the help of the internet. So it was e-commerce, right? What is Alibaba? An e-commerce website. So here, when I want to, can I buy? Let’s see, there are many things here.
So I will pick something from here. Okay, I will block this here and write “USB.” Now, see, I want to buy this USB, but how do I buy it? For my business, to sell further. Now I am buying it because I have to sell it further. It said that you will have to order 50 of these. The minimum order is 50. Now, will I take 50 for my personal use? No, obviously, if I am taking 50, then I am a business, and this person is also a business. So this is a B2B website, which is Alibaba.
Now, it also gives many other facilities. How, I will tell you. See, I say I bought 50 of 2GB. Okay, it says that if you order more than 200 from me, I will put your logo on them. That is, what does this mean? It means that if I say I want to get EdenburgLine Academy USBs made here, then if I order 200, it will put this logo of Green Academy on these 200 USBs. When you get those USBs, you will say that Green Line Academy manufactured them.
But in reality, who made them? I got them made from China, from Alibaba, that is, from a business, for my business. And along with that, it says that I can also provide packaging with a logo on it, meaning I can get that done for you too, but how much should the order be? It should be more than 200 pieces.
So, if you look closely, it can get packaging done according to your wish. Along with that, it is saying that it will also put a logo. So, all these things are here. If I want to buy something for my business, I will say, “What’s the point of Samsung?” I will get it this way, instead of buying expensive from them, I will make my own company.
I have not brought machinery, not brought big machines, not set up a factory, but still I got the work done. I got the logo put on everything. So, this was possible from Alibaba. So, what was this? B2B. That is, whenever I have to order anything for my business, I will look for B2B websites. I only gave Alibaba as an example, but there are countless such websites like China Gate and many others. So, you explore them, meaning find them.
Amazon: The World’s Largest B2C E-commerce Platform
Okay, let’s move on. What is Amazon? Now, see, Amazon is the world’s largest e-commerce website. It is the world’s largest where, as an individual, you can sell things to people, not to businesses, but to people. People means consumers or customers. Note: Amazon is a B2C website where you can sell your items to customers. Think of it exactly like Alliexpress. If I show you, see, Amazon. So here, there is no limit like you must order at least 50 or at least 10 orders. There is nothing like that.
They say that even if you order one, they will send it to you. Who is here? Businesses. They are selling to customers. So, this is B2C. And that was B2B because there, see, there is also a limit; the minimum order must be this much. They sell to businesses there, but here they sell to customers. This is the difference between the two. So, Amazon is B2C; it sells to customers, just like AliExpress in USA. So, whatever you buy from here, you buy for your personal use.
Why Sell on Amazon?
Okay, why do people emphasize selling on Amazon? As a Virtual Assistant, you also have to understand this thing, because Amazon has developed very rapidly in the last five years, and it has gone very high. At this time, more than two billion people visit this website every month worldwide, and it is among the most opened websites in America. Okay, it is among the most opened websites in America, which makes it the biggest market in the internet world, where approximately more than three thousand sellers register daily.
Now, if you look closely here, this is the biggest market in the whole world on the internet, meaning in the world of e-commerce, who is the biggest market? Amazon. Why? Three thousand shops open daily. Three thousand people come daily in one day. And if you see, more than two billion people keep coming and going in a month, two billion. So, if I am opening it here, believe me, at this moment, I don’t know how many people would have opened this website.
So, if you estimate from here, it’s like getting a shop in a place where there is a crowd of countless people. So tell me, will you get sales or not? Yes, you will. Absolutely. In the same way, the biggest market in the world of e-commerce is Amazon. So, obviously, making a shop here and selling things is like getting sales. So, this is the thing; that is why people say to sell things on Amazon.
Amazon’s Global Reach
Now, let’s talk. Amazon allows you to sell your things in 16 countries. Now, see, its biggest market is in America, more than two billion people visit it in a month, but besides that, it also has markets in Japan, Canada, UK, Germany, and even Turkey. That is, you can sell your things in Turkey too, but in some limited categories. But see here, if you look at the big markets, the big locations, in the United States there is two million traffic.
Along with that, in the United Kingdom, okay, you can also sell your things in the UK. Just think, you are getting a shop in the UK too, in the United States too, you are getting shops in such markets that people all over the world know, where people keep coming and going.
It’s not like Amazon is hidden somewhere and no one will find it. It’s not like that. It’s the biggest market in the world of e-commerce. I have given you this, where it is from. I have also given its link so that you can go and see all this data yourself, why we really sell on Amazon, why we get advice to sell things on Amazon. So, you must have got the answer that it is a very big market, where there is a constant rush, it is much easier to sell things there. But competition can also be high. The reason for this is that, obviously, the bigger the market, the more the competition.
Amazon’s Global Ranking
Okay, here you will see that globally, Amazon is at number 12. At number 12, it is a website that is opened the most. Most people come to Amazon. In this list, Amazon’s number is 12. If you look at the list of countries, Amazon is the fourth largest website in America that most people visit. If you look in the world of e-commerce, what is e-commerce? Buying with the help of the internet. If you look in its world, it is at number one. Who is the first biggest market? Amazon. You must always remember this. So, all this data will help you understand why people prefer to sell things on Amazon.
Selling Methods on Amazon: Private Label vs. Wholesale
Okay, regarding selling on Amazon, there are two types of methods. You sell things: one is Private Label, one is Wholesale. Now understand Private Label and Wholesale. Okay, you will find examples right here.
Private Label Private Label means this: see, I said I bought this USB from it. I bought it, right? I said it says that if orders come more than 200, if you give me more than 200 orders, then you can also get your logo put on it, right? So, I will order more than 200 from it and get my logo put on it, right? I got the logo put on it. I will start selling it on Amazon. So, what happened? This is Private Label. Private Label means that you launch your product on Amazon. You bring your product to Amazon so that it sells.
When you bring your product to Amazon, obviously, it’s your product, your logo too, so you don’t face any problems. This thing is called Private Label. When you yourself shape your product in such a way that you came to Alibaba, you found the product you want to sell (how to do that, we will see in the next lecture). Okay, you found the product you want to sell, then you found the manufacturer who can manufacture and give it to you because you won’t have big factories. So, there you ordered it and got your logo put on it. So, the work you do will be called Private Label.
Wholesale Now, what is Wholesale? See, Temu Online Market. So, whose product is it selling? Samsung’s. So, the one who is selling this must have taken an authorization letter from Samsung, taken permission from them that “Can I sell your product?” So, Samsung must have said, “Okay, sell it, but you must not sell it below its price.” They put some conditions. Samsung people say this to it. Okay, now it took this same thing from Samsung and is selling it here.
Why are people buying this thing? Samsung has built a name for its brand. No one had to sell it. Whoever sells it, has to write Samsung. So, taking advantage of Samsung, it made an agreement with them that “I will sell your things; I will get a little profit.” They gave it permission, an authorization letter. So, it started selling. What is this? This is Wholesale. In Wholesale, you take permission from a big brand and sell its things.
Comparison Now, what is better in both? See, understand it like this: both have benefits and disadvantages. How? See, in Private Label, you yourself have to invest in your product, you also have to spend on advertisement, you have to run PPC campaigns, you have to make your product reach people because people don’t know about it. We will see that in the next lectures. So here, just understand that people don’t know about your product; you have to tell people about it. So, obviously, money will be spent there. But in Wholesale, the brand has built its reputation, so people themselves are searching for the brand.
Just like here, if I search for the brand name, it will appear. Obviously, I will buy from Aliexpress. So, in this way, the brand has built its reputation; that’s why people say that here, less money is spent, meaning less money is needed compared to Private Label, which will require double the money. So, for this reason, those with less money prefer Wholesale, and those who have money to invest prefer Private Label. So, you must have understood these two things here. But let me also tell you that in Wholesale, there is also this: okay, I have given a link below for the difference between these two, which one is better.
In Wholesale, there is also this: competition will be more. The reason for this is that if you have taken an authorization letter from Samsung and are selling their product, there will be many other people whom they would have given permission to. They give to everyone, no doubt. When they give to everyone, your sales will be affected. Your sales will decrease. Obviously, they will be divided; someone buys from one person, someone from another. So, there, it also happens that your profit becomes less compared to Private Label. So, for this reason, the significant difference between these two, I have given its link here. You have to see that difference with the help of that link.
Product Delivery Methods on Amazon: FBM vs. FBA
Okay, regarding delivering products to customers on Amazon, there are two methods. See, when you create an account on Amazon, there are two types of methods for delivering your product to the customer. This customer orders here. If I order something, suppose I am ordering this thing. So now, when I order, there are two methods. If the seller is doing FBM, then in that case, the person who is selling this thing has to pack this thing and deliver it to me. That person has to deliver it to me. If that person does not deliver it, then Amazon will, so to speak, remove it from its store.
You must understand this. In the next lecture, we will tell what happens. Okay, Amazon will do this: if he does this three or four times, five or six times, then Amazon will close his account. So, it is his entire responsibility that when I ordered, he delivers this thing to me, or he writes that this thing is not available with me right now. If it is written here, and I order, but I don’t get it, then in that case, what will Amazon do? It will remove his account. For this reason, FBM means exactly this: fulfillment by merchant, to deliver to the customer yourself. That the shopkeeper’s job is to deliver it there.
FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon)
Now, what is FBA? Fulfilled by Amazon, delivering to the customer with the help of Amazon. What happens in this? See, this is FBA. In FBA, it is like this: your product, you handed it over to Amazon. You said, “Amazon, take this product.” Now, if I order from here, it is the responsibility of Amazon’s team to deliver this thing to me. When I ordered from here, and Amazon’s team did not deliver it to me, then it is Amazon team’s negligence, not yours. Your account is not affected there.
What happens is, you just have to deliver your things to Amazon, then Amazon knows, and the customer knows. So, if anything happens I ordered this thing, I don’t want to take it, I cancel it from here), then Amazon will manage this itself. So, all these things came between Amazon and the customer. It was not like this in FBM; in FBM, you are responsible, the one who is selling the thing. But in FBA, what is it? Amazon. Now, where does Amazon keep those things? You can also see that. Amazon has built big warehouses. I will show you in a picture.
Amazon has warehouses like this. The various sellers who sell things on Amazon deliver their things to Amazon’s warehouse. Now, whenever an order comes, Amazon picks it up from there, packs it, and after packing, delivers it to the customer. So, this is called FBA, Fulfilled by Amazon, delivering to the customer through Amazon.
This is FBM. Understand that it also takes your time; you start packing yourself, or anything else. If someone is doing work on Amazon from USA, a Virtual Assistant always advises him to do FBA, because from USA, you cannot send products to the UK every day. So, obviously, the person should get this product within one or two or three days. So, it is not possible from United Kingdom like this.
So, for this reason, if anyone does business from USA, he will always do FBA, that he delivers his things to Amazon, then Amazon knows, and the customer knows. But its disadvantage is that Amazon takes some charges. When Amazon keeps it there, it will take charges. It depends on the size, that is, it depends on the size how much charges it will take for FBA. We will see that in the next lectures. But for now, you have understood the difference between these two: in FBM, any person who has a shop on Amazon is himself responsible for delivering the thing to the customer. In FBA, Amazon is responsible for delivering to the customer.
Amazon Account Types: Individual vs. Business
Now, see, whenever anyone wants to open a shop on Amazon, that “I will open a shop on Amazon,” then regarding account creation, there are two types. One is Individual, meaning an individual person. The second is a Business account. You must know that some people have only one shop, so they are the sole owner of one shop.
Some have big businesses, big malls, big shopping malls. So there, it’s a business. So, in such a case, it will ask you, so you have to look at those things: are you an individual or a business? If you are a business, then you will have to provide documents related to your business to Amazon. In Individual, it’s just your personal things.
Amazon Selling Plans: Individual vs. Professional
Along with that, there are also two plans for selling on Amazon accounts. When someone’s account is created on Amazon, they get a shop, then they also look at two things regarding selling. They say, “You have two plans, two schemes. Which of these two schemes would you like to take?” One is an Individual Selling Plan, and the other is a Professional Selling Plan. You can see both. See, for the Professional one, you will have to pay $40 every month. Every month. But in Individual, you won’t have to pay any fee. But if something of yours sells, you will have to pay a fee. So, the difference between these two, you can see.
You have to see that difference. What is it? So, in Individual, there is no fee. In Professional, there is a fee. There are benefits, and in this, the benefits are that there is a limit that you cannot send more products than this. For every product that sells, you will have to pay its fee. All those things. So, I am giving them here. So, you have also understood the difference that you will understand this thing here. But let me tell you one more thing: if you choose the Individual plan, it does not mean that you cannot choose the Professional Selling Plan later. Rather, you can do it later too.
You can go to settings and change your plan anytime. This is up to you whether you want to do it or not. So, those who are beginners keep it Individual so that in the initial days, they save $40. Or when they start selling, they make it Professional. So, this is that it’s up to you which one you want to keep. It’s not necessary that once you keep it, it won’t change after that. It’s not like that.
Amazon Account Access: Owner vs. Sub Account
Okay, now it comes to running an Amazon account. See, regarding running, there are also two accounts. See, there is an Owner Account, the owner’s account, whose shop it is. There is a Sub Account or Child Account. These are two names for one account: Sub and Child. Okay. The owner account is the main account. Main account means that he is the owner of any account. If I am taking this thing from here, the person who is selling this thing, then see, this person’s account will be with the owner.
But when the business is very big, I will tell you that if there is a very big business, then employees also have to be kept there. So, the accounts given to those employees are called Child Accounts or Sub Accounts. The owner gives them. The owner will go into his settings and give them. So, now on Amazon, if you are doing an Amazon Virtual Assistant course, you must always remember this: an Amazon Virtual Assistant does not create an account on Amazon, but rather takes access to a Child Account from the person whose work he wants to do, from the person who hires him.
Then he manages the work through that Child Account. What is an Owner Account? The owner’s account. What is a Child Account? That the Owner Account itself will give access to the Child Account for some things and not for others. So, it’s like this: if you have a grocery store, then understand it like this that a time came when the business grew significantly. You say, “I cannot handle all this alone, so I will hire some people.
