{"id":14949,"date":"2023-10-23T01:20:16","date_gmt":"2023-10-23T01:20:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sellersnap.io\/?p=14949"},"modified":"2023-11-09T08:33:56","modified_gmt":"2023-11-09T08:33:56","slug":"amazon-sellers-challenges-2020-holiday-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sellersnap.io\/amazon-sellers-challenges-2020-holiday-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Challenges Amazon Sellers Should Anticipate this 2023 Holiday Season"},"content":{"rendered":"
Businesses are recovering following the pandemic’s impact on the global economy and the consumer industry. The retail sector, in general, is showing significant activity, particularly in light of the World Health Organization’s declaration last May 2023 that the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer considered a global health emergency.<\/span><\/p>\n Now that the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us,<\/span> online sellers<\/span>, especially <\/span>newbie Amazon sellers<\/span>, should see to it that important preparation checklists are taken care of during this quarter\u2019s holiday season.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Some of the highly anticipated holidays of most eCommerce platforms include but are not limited to Halloween (October 31); Thanksgiving (November <\/span>23<\/span>); Black Friday (November <\/span>24<\/span>); Cyber Monday (November <\/span>27<\/span>); Hanukkah (December <\/span>7\u201315<\/span>); Christmas Eve and Day (December 24\u201325); Boxing Day (December 26); New Year\u2019s Eve (December 31).<\/span><\/p>\n Despite the global economy’s fragility and the looming threat of a recession, the retail and <\/span>eCommerce industry<\/span> has been recovering from logistical challenges and inventory issues. As the holiday season approaches, <\/span>online sellers<\/span> should anticipate a surge in eCommerce activity along with the challenges it entails.<\/span><\/p>\n To address challenges that may arise, those <\/span>selling on Amazon<\/span> should pay attention to typical <\/span>Amazon seller problems<\/span>. In particular, <\/span>newbie sellers<\/span> should get their <\/span>Amazon listings<\/span> ready and maximize <\/span>available Amazon seller tools<\/span> to enhance <\/span>customer satisfaction<\/span> and <\/span>Amazon business<\/span> performance during peak consumer spending period.<\/span><\/p>\n As per eMarketer, global retail spending for this year is projected to reach approximately<\/span> 1.3 trillion dollars<\/span><\/a>. Moreover, the 2023 Holiday Shopping Trends Report by Celigo also highlighted that<\/span> 75% of consumers<\/span><\/a> intend to do most of their holiday gift shopping online.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It is also worth noting that nearly 50% of holiday shoppers have indicated that they plan to start their holiday shopping no later than October, and the shopping activity will continue through Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the Christmas season.<\/span><\/p>\n Since most consumers intend to spend more and shop early this holiday season, online shopping is expected to spike before the year ends.<\/span> For that matter,<\/span> Amazon sellers <\/span>should take precautionary measures to immediately resolve or even avoid some of the potential challenges in retail this Q4 of <\/span>2023.<\/span><\/p>\n To give <\/span>sellers <\/span>a preview on potential shopping issues and other unprecedented concerns during the holiday shopping spree of online consumers, here are some of the challenges to anticipate this Q4 of <\/span>2023<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Many sellers<\/span> encounter communication overload during the holiday season. Communication overload often leads to poor customer service and decreased overall business performance.<\/span><\/p>\n Too much information can overwhelm <\/span>new sellers<\/span> and their teams, potentially causing them to overlook or neglect critical messages or urgent tasks. One contributing factor to this communication overload is ineffective information filtering or organization.<\/span><\/p>\n What To Do:<\/b><\/p>\n You can employ several strategies to prevent communication overload within your eCommerce business during the holiday season. Simply organizing and filtering your messages will enable you to readily access and address the most pertinent and urgent communications.<\/span><\/p>\n Furthermore, you can mitigate or even eliminate communication overload by effectively assigning and collaborating on tasks with your team. This approach enables the distribution of workloads and leverages team members’ expertise and skills.<\/span><\/p>\n Lastly, you can also consider using software tools to help you manage communications and delegate tasks. It helps ease communication overload and enhances the overall efficiency of your business operations.<\/span><\/p>\n During the holiday shopping rush, the supply chain can be a nightmare for <\/span>online sellers<\/span>, especially in the latter part of the logistic process involving inventory management, warehousing, order fulfillment, and last-mile delivery.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Amazon sellers<\/span> have to keep track of many things, and the influx of customer engagements and orders makes it more challenging to manage the business, leading to supply chain disruption.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What To Do:<\/b><\/p>\n It is essential to establish suitable contingency plans to safeguard your business operations from the impact of <\/span>supply chain disruptions<\/span>. Prior to the fourth quarter of 2023, you should assess your supply chain and implement any required adjustments.<\/span><\/p>\n If you rely solely on one shipping method, such as <\/span>Amazon FBA<\/span>, it would be best to create a backup plan in case the <\/span>Amazon warehouse<\/span> or <\/span>fulfillment centers<\/span> get overwhelmed with customer orders.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It would also help you secure an additional labor force to enhance your operational efficiency during the peak holiday shopping season. By doing so, you can avoid <\/span>negative reviews<\/span> or complaints from <\/span>Amazon shoppers<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n Moreover, choose the logistic method that makes more sense regarding effort, time, and financial resources. Evaluate whether an item and its destination are worth sending via <\/span>Amazon FBA<\/span> or FBM.<\/span><\/p>\n In the holiday shopping season, it is anticipated that competition will increase, making it more challenging for <\/span>sellers <\/span>to rank on <\/span>Amazon’s organic search<\/span> result page. Numerous <\/span>sellers <\/span>will likely venture into eCommerce to leverage the holiday season’s increased consumer demand.<\/span><\/p>\n What To Do:<\/b><\/p>\n Your primary objective this holiday season is to stand out within the competitive <\/span>Amazon marketplace<\/span>. Numerous methods exist to achieve this, including the use of <\/span>product research tools<\/span> to help you discover unique and potentially successful products.<\/span><\/p>\n You can also enhance your listing’s images and product descriptions to captivate shoppers’ interest. Simultaneously, this optimization can boost the visibility of your listings in organic search results.<\/span><\/p>\n Additionally, you can also improve your marketing campaigns. If possible, increase your budget for advertising and promotions to reach more audiences during the holiday season.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Lastly, you can also optimize your listing price to make it more appealing to customers. Nevertheless, when making price adjustments, it is essential to do so cautiously without compromising your <\/span>profit margin<\/span>. Typically, <\/span>Amazon sellers<\/span> use an AI repricer to automate price changes while ensuring a sustainable <\/span>profit margin<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Q4 of <\/span>2023 <\/span>could be extra-challenging for <\/span>Amazon sellers<\/span> and the rest of the retail industry. With the ever-fluctuating consumer demand and the disrupted supply chain, inventory management can become an issue during this peak season.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What To Do:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n The best possible holiday preparation and proper inventory management could make a huge difference. Investing in a dependable inventory management software will help improve inventory management and avoid stock-out situations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What makes these latest inventory management tools a must are their capabilities to provide online retailers real-time stock levels and shipment locations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Former managing partner at Retail Systems Research, Nikki Baird,<\/span> stated<\/span><\/a> that such tools give retailers \u201cmore flexibility and take the pressure off because they don\u2019t have to do as well at making the right guesses about how to allocate stock.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n During a peak season, <\/span>Amazon reviews<\/span> or complaints are a normal occurrence, as there are so many avenues for something to go wrong. You should anticipate that holiday shopping may bring the worst out of an individual, which is why it is good to prepare for potential issues and customer complaints ahead of time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What To Do:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n Many sellers<\/span> may not fully realize that the way they handle a customer complaint can significantly impact their business. If a single complaint is handled poorly, the customer may withdraw, give negative feedback, and even encourage others to withdraw from your business.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n By understanding customer rights and responsibilities, <\/span>sellers <\/span>can avoid customer complaints or even gain <\/span>positive reviews<\/span>. Each platform has its own unique set of guidelines and responsibilities for customers to observe, and these include warranties, refunds, and guarantees.<\/span><\/p>\n Moreover, developing your own customer complaint handling policy in consonance with Amazon\u2019s guarantees and guidelines will also help decrease negative feedback and turn potential agitators into loyal customers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To know more about Amazon A-Z Guarantee, you may<\/span> CLICK HERE<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It is inevitable during the peak season for <\/span>Amazon sellers<\/span> to enter into <\/span>price wars<\/span>. As <\/span>sellers <\/span>try to outbid <\/span>other sellers<\/span> for a spot in the <\/span>Amazon Buy Box<\/span>, it is normal for <\/span>sellers <\/span>to change their item prices in a frequent interval.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What To Do:<\/b><\/p>\nThe Catalyst for Increased Online Holiday Season Shopping<\/span><\/h2>\n
Top Challenges Amazon Sellers Might Encounter This Peak Season<\/span><\/h2>\n
Communication Overload\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Supply Chain Disruptions<\/b><\/h3>\n
Increased Competition\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Inventory Issues <\/b>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Customer Complaints\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Price Wars<\/b><\/h3>\n