Let’s face it– Amazon is a beast! With constantly shifting algorithms and growing competition, it is easy to get overwhelmed.
What if you could get an expert to sort this out for you?
Yes, we are talking about an Amazon agency that not only improves your ad spend efficiency and boosts your ranking but also elevates your brand and protects your margins.
But choosing the right agency is a Herculean task itself. Isn’t it?
You cannot just tick a few boxes to select one. You must ensure the agency's services and performance align with your goals. Otherwise, you’ll set yourself up for disappointment.
We’ll help you cut through the noise and find an Amazon agency with a no-fluff approach. By the end, you will know what you’re looking for and how to evaluate agencies.
What can you expect from an Amazon agency?
Think of Amazon marketing agencies as your strategic sidekick - helping you boost visibility, drive sales, and find favor with the ever-changing Amazon algorithm.
Here’s what they bring to the table:
Advertising: This includes PPC campaigns, creating and optimizing sponsored product and brand ads, and sponsored display ads.
SEO: This involves optimizing product listings for better visibility in search results, using techniques such as keyword research, content optimization, and technical SEO.
Listing optimization: This involves crafting compelling product titles and descriptions, using bullet points and images to increase conversion rates.
Amazon account management: This includes handling various aspects of account management, such as inventory management, customer support, and order fulfillment.
Brand building: This involves establishing a brand presence on Amazon, and creating a distinct brand identity, designing brand storefronts, and developing A+ content.
Content creation: This involves content creation services like photography, videography, and copywriting for Amazon listings.
Logistic support: This involves streamlining supply chain processes, including FBA management and inventory forecasting.
Strategic consultancy: This involves analyzing the market trends, assessing competition, and providing strategic guidance for overall business growth on Amazon.
While these are the services, a good Amazon agency is expected to understand the distinct dynamics of both Amazon Vendor Central and Seller Central, ensuring they serve brands across various business models and goals.
Note:
- Vendor Central is for manufacturers and distributors selling directly to Amazon.
- Seller Central is for third-party sellers who list products and sell directly to customers on Amazon.
What differentiates Amazon-specific agencies from generalist marketing agencies is their deep understanding of Amazon’s algorithms. They excel at optimizing product listings, managing PPC and Buy Box optimization to help your business succeed in the unique Amazon marketplace. These agencies bring insider knowledge of Amazon algorithms, and hands-on experience that ensures compliance with Amazon policies that a generalist agency lacks.
Who Needs an Amazon Agency?
Whether you’re scaling your eCommerce brand or struggling with your in-house team's limitations, an Amazon agency is needed to unlock growth opportunities.
Here’s who can benefit from an Amazon agency:
- A founder-led company seeking D2C business solutions, personalized eCommerce solutions, and the expertise of ex-Amazon account managers
- Brands with in-house teams seeking to overcome internal limitations and scale their growth with help from former Amazon account specialists
- Established companies facing complex eCommerce challenges, such as managing Amazon Marketing Services (AMS) and intricate operations
- E-commerce brands looking to scale efficiently, optimize product listings through SEO, enhance their brand content, and Amazon advertising
- Businesses transitioning from Vendor to Seller Central and in need of tailored strategies to make a smooth transition without disrupting their business
- Brands lacking the in-house expertise or tools for Amazon growth
Why Partnering with an Amazon Agency is a Smart Move?
Here's why it's a smart move to work with experts who know the platform inside and out.
Extensive experience with Amazon’s requirements
Partnering with an Amazon agency gives you access to a team of specialists who are familiar with the platform's intricacies, policies, and best practices.
For instance, SalesDuo comes with expertise from a team of 85% ex-Amazon employees, including its founder, who headed the Vendor Management program at Amazon.
Now, this kind of expertise allows us to:
- Streamline processes, maximize efficiency, and ensure compliance with Amazon’s ever-changing policies
- Transforming product descriptions into conversation magnets with data-driven insights and persuasive copywriting targeting the right audience
- Creating compelling ads and leveraging strategic campaigns to increase traffic to your pages and increase sales
- Create a unique brand identity that resonates with your customers and increases loyalty
Let us further explain this with our experience with FUJI Sports.
Increased efficiency and scalability
Partnering with an Amazon agency allows you to delegate time-consuming operational tasks, enabling you to focus on refining your product and making strategic decisions. They help you:
- Leverage advanced analytics to derive actionable insights for identifying trends like which products drive the most revenue and which ad campaigns to scale up
- Implement best practices with the help of professionals to maximize efficiency in product listing optimization, PPC, and ad spend management
- Adapt to platform changes and expand into new markets, reducing the risk of disruptions
- Solidify your brand presence on Amazon, reaching more target audience and successful conversions
For instance, SalesDuo provides access to a proprietary AI dashboard that automates decision-making for higher sales, performs 24/7 competition monitoring, and optimizes organic and inorganic levers for growth.
Improved performance and outcomes
Amazon agencies are result-driven, and they help improve your performance significantly, just as SalesDuo efficiently manages to increase 80% YOY growth for its clients.
These agencies bring such exponential growth by:
- Offering end-to-end Amazon management from advertising, SEO, listing makeovers, and brand identity development
- Using tailored approaches like multi-phased SEO, comprehensive audits
- Providing access to advanced tools like proprietary BI dashboard
Reduced risk and improved decision-making
An agency, besides helping you grow, also enables you to mitigate risks and improve your decision-making ability by:
- Adopting a data-driven approach for decision-making, leveraging in-depth analytics, and providing guidance
- Helping you navigate the policy changes and industry shifts using data
- Assigning a dedicated account manager who keeps you informed and aligned with your goals
Key considerations when choosing an Amazon Agency
Choosing the right Amazon agency can make or break your success. Here’s a framework for evaluating agencies and making an informed decision.
Assess expertise and experience
Not all agencies are equal. Some specialize in Amazon SEO or advertising, while others offer a full range of services. Consider your goals first. Do you require assistance with every aspect of your Amazon business, or are you struggling with a particular challenge like lagging sales or low conversion rates?
Based on your requirements, assess their experience in your specific industry or niche and whether they understand your target market. To ascertain their knowledge and expertise, check their track record, case studies, testimonials, and measurable customer sales improvements.
Regardless, an in-depth understanding of Vendor Central and Seller Central is crucial for tailored strategies, especially if your business operates across multiple Amazon platforms or is transitioning between them.
For example, in addition to helping companies scale their sales, improve conversion rates, and reduce the cost of acquisition, SalesDuo can also help with enhancing catalog quality, variate products, and address availability and buyability issues - as we did for The Blissful Dog has, a pet supplies brand.
Data-driven approach and transparency
Amazon management requires data-driven decision-making to ensure you identify trends well ahead, optimize your campaigns, and allocate resources effectively; all directed towards driving higher sales.
So, choose an agency that:
- Leverages data and analytics to inform their strategies and measure results
- Provides regular reports and performance updates, ensuring alignment with your overarching goals
- Uses the latest technology, proprietary AI tools, dashboard, and tools for analytics, reporting, and campaign management
- Communicates transparently about their methodologies and practices
- Makes honest commitments about costs and results
Scalability and adaptability
Choose an agency that helps you:
- Adapt to platform changes and evolving marketplace needs
- Scale your operations
- Handle increased complexity as you expand new product lines or markets
For instance, The Pencil Grip, a stationary and merchandising company, took a big hit during the pandemic which left them with a huge uncertainty. They partnered with SalesDuo, which helped them increase their sales growth by 54.15% in 2021.
SaleDuo audited its catalog, resolving suppressed ASINs with compliant certificates, optimizing listings with keyword-rich content and visuals, and addressing issues affecting sales. They also used strategic seasonal promotions with well-structured advertising campaigns across sponsored products and displays while maintaining low Advertising Cost of Sales (ACOS).
Cultural fit
A successful partnership is based on transparent and effective communication and cultural fit. Choose an agency that:
- Shares work ethics and values, as you
- Actively listens to your goals and aligns strategy
- Provides clear information on strategy and processes
- Proactively responds to queries and requests
Compliance and ethical practices
Ensure the agency adheres to Amazon’s policies and guidelines and avoids unethical practices like black hat tactics, that can severely damage your brand reputation.
Your agency should be able to handle such issues promptly. For instance, when TNG Worldwide faced compliance setbacks due to pesticide-related restrictions, SaleDuo promptly addressed the compliance issues by reinstating blocked ASINs and ensuring all necessary documentation was submitted and approved by Amazon.
Cost structure
Consider the agency's pricing model and offerings carefully before signing any contract. Evaluate cost against potential ROI to ensure the fee is justified by the value they bring.
Questions to ask an Amazon Agency
Ask potential agencies about:
- Their experience working with sellers or brands similar to yours
- Examples of successful campaigns and tangible results they've achieved for past clients
- Their knowledge of Amazon's tools and services, such as Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and Stores
- Whether they have official partnerships or certifications from Amazon, indicating a high level of expertise
- Ask about their communication process and how frequently they provide updates on campaign performance
- Examples of reports and analytics they provide to clients
- How they track and measure return on investment (ROI)
- Will they have the capacity and resources to support your expansion into new markets or product categories?
- Ask about their compliance procedures and how they ensure they are following Amazon's rules
- Ask them for references from current or past clients to validate the agency's claims and assess their performance
Next Steps
A partnership with an Amazon agency is crucial for scaling your e-commerce business. Start by assessing what you need and shortlisting agencies that align with your goals. Evaluate their performance and expertise, check their track records, and talk to some of their clients to get a clear picture of their functioning.
To understand how to scale your brand on the Amazon marketplace, schedule a call with an Amazon expert at SalesDuo.
Frequently Asked Questions
About the Author
Meet Arjun Narayan, a Business Dynamo with two decades of conquering boardrooms and founding two companies that didn't just survive but thrived. When he's not navigating business strategies and delivery teams, you'll find him immersed in his love for cars and exploring new models, geeking out over tech trends, globe-trotting for new adventures, and occasionally pondering the mysteries of the universe over a good cup of coffee.
