I Will Survive the Amazon Buy Box

At first, I was afraid, I was petrified,

Kept thinking, I could never live without you by my side,

You know the tune. You sing it at karaoke bars. Somewhere deep inside, each Amazon seller is singing this song dedicated to the Amazon Buy Box. So just how do sellers survive if they’ve been kicked to the curb, run out of town, and crushed into a million pieces… I mean, how do they survive being rejected by the Buy Box?

Let’s continue with this metaphor. You’re dating the Buy Box, and you can’t win her heart.

A few things you just have to accept:

1. No books. You can’t change who you are. If you’re 5 feet tall, you’re 5 feet tall. And if you sell books, you sell books. Oh did I mention, Amazon will automatically reject you for trying to sell books. Books are her territory. It’s a no-no.
2. Must be new. You can’t change how old you are. If she is looking for someone younger, then accept my condolences. Amazon is the same. She doesn’t accept any old or used items for the Buy Box.
3. Must have status. Your background does you no favors. She requires that you graduated from grad school with a 4.0 GPA. Well, Amazon requires that you are a Featured Merchant, definitely something that takes time.
4. Afford to compete. You can’t afford to take her to an expensive dinner. The Buy Box is not for the faint of heart. If you can’t take the lower profit margins dictated by the competitive lower prices (even with the increase in sales) because the loss is too high a cost for your business, then you have no choice but to bow out.

But then I spent so many nights thinking how you did me wrong,

And I grew strong, and I learned how to get along,

Don’t get down. Even with the rejection, there’s still hope to meet that right person. Yes, hope to make a good profit even if your love-story didn’t turn out the way you wanted. There are other options on Amazon, other ways for you to drive business and to be marketed.

Case in point: consider someone else:

And you see me, somebody new,

I’m not that chained up little person still in love with you,

And so you felt like dropping in and just expect me to be free,

Well now I’m saving all my loving for someone who’s loving me,

Need More Options?

The Inner Circle. I bet somewhere in your inner circle of friends there is at least one female friend who is suitable. Amazon also has an extended inner circle. It’s called the More Buying Choices box where the next three competing sellers are listed. It’s still attractive like the Buy Box, and many buyers find that the MBC box listings also match their specifications. You might not discover its true value until you explore what it has to offer.

Get Introduced. If you have friends who know you and you can trust, you know they’ll pick some well-to-do stranger for you to meet, to date, to marry, to argue with, to make up with, to have children with, to grow old together with, etc., etc. Well, Amazon does the same. Buyers trust Amazon, and for very competitive products, Amazon adds a link to the bottom of the MBC Box that sends buyers to a greater offerings list page that recommends the top 10 offers/competing sellers (essentially 6 offers in addition to the 1 Buy Box and 3 MBC). For the buyer who wants more options, he will consider the MBC offers and then click on the “10 new/used” link to peruse more options before making his decision, and he’ll be glad he did. Quite frankly, if you’re not listed on the top 10 more offerings page, most likely you will get overlooked; buyers won’t even come across your product listing. You’ll be the only one who knows where it’s listed and, sadly, the only one observing it.

Don’t miss out altogether. Be aware that Amazon’s recommendation tools are effective and not limited to the Buy Box. Be a Buy Box survivor who sings:

Oh, no, not I, I will survive,

Oh, as long as I know how to love, I know I’ll stay alive!

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J Leon

November 15, 2013

Pauline's passions lie in eCommerce and supporting individuals in their online selling endeavors. Currently, as a frequent contributor to the BQool Blog, she channels her passions into creating informative contents that break down the complex challenges Amazon sellers face on a daily basis.