Rebaid sees a resurgence in FBM product launches
About the author: Brendon Fields is the founder of Rebaid.com, a rebate based launch platform for Amazon sellers. He has sold on Amazon since 2013 and has generated over $14 Million in sales since starting his private label sporting goods business.
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While many subjects are hotly debated amongst sellers, one that hasn’t been is the effectiveness of FBA.
In fact, FBA has become so synonymous with Amazon that new sellers wouldn’t be faulted for not even
being aware of FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant).
But with tightening inventory storage limits, some sellers are taking a second look at the FBM model.
And this recent revival of FBM has not just been limited to fulfilment of established listings. FBM has
become a strategic tool amongst experienced sellers during the product launch process.
Are you really suggesting I launch my product as FBM?! Yes, just a few months ago that would be a
foolish idea. Getting your product shipped to an Amazon fulfillment center and having the Prime badge on
your listing was a prerequisite to launching, but at least for now that has changed.
Beginning in early summer, we began noticing an uptick in FBM products being launched on Rebaid. At that
time, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, FBA products were taking weeks to be delivered, rather
than the standard 1-2 days. So it didn’t come as much of a surprise that some sellers were turning to
FBM for product launches. But what we began to see next was very much of a surprise.
Further evidence of an algorithm change was seen in the buy box. On listings with multiple offers, FBM offers became the default buy box display with FBA offers relegated to the “Other Offers” list.
As of the date of writing this post, Amazon has mostly restored it’s fulfillment system with delivery times in the 2-5 day range, rather than 30+ days during the peak of the pandemic. But the algorithmic benefit to FBM listings seems to remain, at least for now.
Meanwhile FBM has become a critical stepping stone to achieving higher inventory storage limits for new products. As recently announced by Amazon, new ASIN’s are limited to no more than 200 units being stored at their fulfillment centers. This has made it exceedingly difficult to launch products under the FBA model. However by initially launching your product as FBM, you generate sales history that enables higher storage limits for your ASIN when you do transition it to FBA.
To conclude, while the resurgence of FBM product launches is an exciting opportunity, it is admittedly just temporary. Amazon will soon revert back to heavily favoring FBA listings and the window for successful FBM launches will close. But during this very unusual time, the most successful sellers are taking advantage of the chaotic landscape. As with all disrupting events, winners and losers are quickly defined. By assessing this new environment all sellers now find themselves in, adapting and moving forward will put your business on the winning track.
This listing reached page 1 for "jump rope" with no reviews and as an FBM listing.
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About Rebaid
Rebaid is a rebate based launch platform that allows sellers to generate full price sales for their
product listings. These full price sales are a critical component of a successful product launch.
While we are not the only rebate based launch site, Rebaid is the only platform to allow sellers to
create SFB campaigns (Search, Find, Buy) where shoppers find your product using your target keywords
before purchasing it. In addition, Rebaid is the only launch platform that offers a SMS Text Message
based shopper messaging tool. With our messaging module, sellers can follow up with shoppers who redeem
their offer by sending a text message. These messages have a 98% open rate, compared to 28% open rates
for email based messengers used by other platforms!
