Marketing
What is Amazon Launchpad Program?
When it comes to eCommerce matters, Amazon is undoubtedly the best we have around and a king without a doubt. This sprawling digital market makes sales that go way beyond 200 million in just one year in America alone.
Other than that, Amazon is also consequently involved in other crucial sales platform programs like the amazon launchpad program for businesses of all sizes and shapes.
However, much is this the case, it might still be a bit difficult for the tiny startups to start and prosper on Amazon. Thus, the company last year decided to come up with a pioneering platform to help in the showcasing of ambitious startups and their innovative products.
Also known as Amazon launchpad, this is one service that offers a wide array of useful tools for those small businesses then pairs them with like-minded organizations with the view of fostering growth and collaboration.
Launchpad mainly relies on partners like Kickstarter, Amazon, Y Combinator, among others, to help identify potential. Even though this platform might not be suitable for everyone, it comes with some of the top benefits that are worth considering.
That is just a bit of amazon launchpad and how it works. In the discussions below, we will look at exactly what the amazon launchpad is and some of the top benefits that come with the program.
What Is Amazon Launchpad?
Amazon Launchpad represents a unique platform that majorly serves core purposes. On the one hand, amazon launchpad is a marketplace that enables customers to sift through a wide range of cutting edge and innovative items produced by those betted startups.
On the other hand, this is a handy service point for a small business that needs a helping hand in one way or the other. Even though Amazon offers a marketplace for many companies, Launchpad vendors are normally offered some special treatment.
In many cases, amazon launchpad product listings inherently are more user-friendly allowing which in many ways allows the startups to weave all-encompassing custom narratives that surround their products with the help of their images and more space to write.
Other than that, Launchpad vendors also enjoy extra opportunities that allow them to get realized through an in-house promotion and a special Amazon storefront landing page widget. On the other side, Launchpad offers fledgling startups as well plenty of logistics through its service hub.
This hub is an essential space for participating vendors to seek out help from their colleagues and more established service providers with the view of bolstering productivity.
The platform also helps categories ranging from prototyping as well manufacturing and funding of sales. It also ensures that all the participating service providers are guaranteed a response to startup queries within just seven days.
How You Can Get Involved
There are admissions about amazon launchpad cost being a bit selective in terms of who takes on it. As it is now, Amazon prioritizes startups funded by crowdfunding platforms, venture capital firms, and other startup accelerators that already form part of the company’s existing network.
That said, Amazon is also willing to consider those startups supported by companies outside the network on a case-by-case basis. If you are an existing seller, you can also apply for the program.
To apply for amazon launchpad, you need to first register as an Amazon vendor and then move to upload some basic product information to the site. Once you do this, you will then be asked to confirm your initial order and then ship the products’ initial load to the Amazon fulfillment centers.
This order serves one main purpose only, gauging the genuine demand we have for your products. If we have a genuine demand for your company’s products, you will be able to nail a deal with Amazon.
Once you are approved to join aws launchpad, you will not just get a free ride, and you will be expected to pay amazon an incremental referral fee, which comes in at five percent on top of what the site charges as a standard referral fee on each one of the items sold.
The additional fee that comes on top of this applies to your seller selections, which are charged on the total sum paid for the item by the buyer, including taxes.
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Is Launchpad Right for Your Business?
Amazon launchpad comes with a unique set of benefits for budding startups. This program comes with so many benefits, which is why you need to consider it for your business. First, the program drastically bolsters a company’s visibility on the world’s best-known e-commerce platform marketplace.
It also helps to connect startups with the resources and the service providers that are so essential and those that they need to establish themselves. By doing this, the program saves small business owners so much time as well as hassles.
However, this does not mean that this platform comes without its own share of drawbacks as well. First of all, as an amazon launchpad vendor, you will be expected to form part of the eCommerce giant fulfillment by the Amazon service. This means that you risk shipping all your inventory to amazon wholesale before a customer or even a client gets to buy anything.
This is standard practice for the larger as well as those well-established corporations. However, much as this is something that has to be done and it has the potential of cutting a slice of a startup’s initial profit margin.
Having said that, many startups will argue that this is a minimal price to be paid given all the encompassing support that launchpad, as well as amazon’s global fulfillment network, offers.
At the end of the day, there are no two businesses that are the same. Therefore, it is up to you to look at the pros and cons of amazon launchpad as you figure out if it is right for your startup.
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Benefits of Amazon Launchpad
Are there any benefits that come with the amazon launchpad? Well, that is not even the right to put this; let’s do it this way, when signing up for amazon launchpad, what are some of the benefits that you stand to get. This is the question you need to be asking yourself, and then look at the kind of answers we have around.
With the view of being a bit precise, we will look at some of these benefits that come with the amazon launchpad. For a startup business, we need to see what you stand to get in terms of benefits when you opt to go for amazon launchpad and look at how amazon launchpad cost.
1. Onboarding & Optimization Support
Amazon understands well all those unique challenges that are faced by emerging brands as well as startups. As part of the amazon launchpad, you will receive the benefits listed below for launching your products.
In house brand consultants: This is aimed at providing guidance and support with the view of helping you successfully launch your products on amazon.
A perfect launch checklist: This is aimed at ensuring that you have the best informative product listings that are also engaging and calibrated to maximize your conversion chances.
Access to a sponsored products advisor: This aims to help you craft and optimize whatever advertising strategy you have on amazon.
2. Launch Marketing Package
Once you optimize your listings and meet the perfect launch checklist criteria, your products will be eligible for the amazon launchpad marketing package to improve discoverability. This package comprises of the following:
Placement on Amazon launchpad home page: Here, you will have your products included in the New release placement on the amazon launchpad home page.
Placement on the Amazon launchpad category page: Here, you will have your products receiving placement on the featured category of the Amazon launchpad page like the gadgets, among many others.
Placement on new releases category page: You will have your products receiving placement on the amazon launchpad new release page.
Notifications and Email: With this feature, shoppers on Amazon will be forwarded emails and notifications of the amazon launchpad selection, which includes products, during the amazon launch marketing campaign.
Eligibility for the inclusion in the thematic campaigns that are ongoing: This one runs precisely for the Amazon launchpad companies to add to the available marketing support during amazon marketplace events.
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3. Business Insights
Amazon insights offer you business insights that will help you identify whitespaces and help you decide on the product benefits, and optimize your marketing mix. Being part of the amazon launchpad, you are eligible for the following.
Access to self-service business insight suite: This comprises reports which are based on amazon marketing intelligence.
High-value business advisory: This is here to help you with ways that you can use to optimize your business strategy using inputs on events, portfolio as well management, and much more.
i) Ongoing Opportunities
There are ongoing opportunities throughout the year for all those amazon launchpad brands, which include:
Placement of Corporate Amazon Events: Several events take place throughout the year, which includes Prime day, small business, and many more.
Amazon PR Support: The Amazon launchpad products are normally included or may even be featured in the amazon PR events that come at diverse times during the year.
Work With Various Teams On Amazon: The Amazon launchpad members can collaborate with several Amazon teams that aim to help them grow their brand.
Additional Perks and Benefits: All amazon launchpad members gain access to credits and many other benefits. However, the details of this are normally communicated after proper registration.
ii) Disadvantages
We have talked so much about the amazon launchpad and the kind of benefits this platform comes with. However, we shall not be doing the right thing if we concluded this discussion without mentioning some of the shortcomings that come with the amazon launchpad program.
Below are some of the disadvantages that come with the amazon launchpad program. Before making any decision in this regard, you must take time to look at some of these disadvantages first and ask to get some answers to this question, how much is a launch pad.
4. Amazon Sales Charge
This is the first disadvantage of amazon launchpad, where you have to pay a sales charge in terms of amazon launchpad cost that ranges between 7% to 20% depending on the product category. If you look at this sales charge, then you will agree that it is highly exorbitant.
5. Amazon as A Potential Competitor
Competition in business is one thing that many people have to deal with at various times. When you are on amazon launchpad, the case is still the same. When you are on amazon launchpad, you are going to face very stiff competition from Amazon itself.
6. Dependency on Amazon
If you are trading on amazon launchpad, then you and amazon are going to be inseparable. This means that while you will be on amazon launchpad, you will remain dependent so much on Amazon. This means that you might not have the freedom to do some things exactly that you might need to do them.
7. Potential Price Battles
The fact that we have several providers of the same products on Amazon means that there is a perfect chance that you are going to be locked up in price battles with other business people as well. This, as you know, is not a very good thing that you can wish for yourself and can end up costing you a lot.
Conclusion
The Amazon Launchpad program in 2021 comes with many benefits but also comes with its drawbacks as well. Before you decide in this regard, you need to consider all these factors, which will help you know exactly what you are subscribing to.
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