3 Keys to Successful Products on Amazon

Jake Zaratsian is a content creator at Jungle Scout, the Amazon seller platform. He’s also a part-time brand owner on that marketplace, selling disposable dinnerware plates made from palm leaves. Curious, I asked him, “Why palm plates?”

He cited three reasons: a product with at least 300 monthly sales, a selling price of $20 each, and consumable for repeat buyers. Disposable palm-leaf plates fit the need.

He and I recently spoke. We addressed Jungle Scout’s tools, dos and don’ts for Amazon sellers, and much more. The entire audio of our conversation is embedded below. The transcript is edited for clarity and length.

Eric Bandholz: Give us a quick rundown of who you are and what you do.

Jake Zaratsian: I am a content creator at Jungle Scout, an Amazon seller platform. I also run my own Amazon brand called Natural Events. We sell disposable dinnerware plates made from palm leaves. I consult on the side for a few brands that sell on Amazon.

Bandholz: What’s an excellent product to sell on Amazon?

Zaratsian: That’s a good question because it changes so often. The challenge is finding a product that can improve what’s currently available. Advertising is costly. Jungle Scout has an extension that shows what everybody’s selling and the average monthly volume. It’s a starting point for finding product ideas. Start with 10 ideas, and then research the market.

A key factor is standing out on the search results page to win more conversions with less ad spend. Find a product with at least 300 monthly sales and high profit margins — 20% minimum. Then make your product better.

Cobalt, Jungle Scout’s tool for enterprise sellers, offers much more data and some automation tools. It’s easily customized.

Bandholz: Why palm-leaf plates?

Zaratsian: Jungle Scout’s algorithm can project revenue. I wanted to find products on Amazon that had 300 monthly sales. That gave me hundreds of items in the U.S. alone. The next filter was products selling for at least $20.

I also wanted a consumable item that customers would buy repeatedly. I used a Jungle Scout keyword filter for “disposable” in the product title.

The result was a list of products with 300 monthly sales at $20 or more apiece and were disposable.

Bandholz: What’s your advice for merchants considering Amazon?

Zaratsian: Think about how much inventory you send to Amazon and the potential sales volume. Amazon has hefty long-term storage fees that seem to increase continually. They also penalize you for not having enough inventory. Focus on avoiding these long-term storage fees and having inventory sitting in Amazon, especially during Q4.

Content is so powerful. Many Amazon sellers are starting to utilize Inspire. It’s Amazon’s version of TikTok, except for folks looking for products to buy. Every photo and video has a product link. That, to me, is an untapped opportunity. Inspire is a low-friction way of getting your product in front of customers.

Building a presence on Amazon is like real estate without buying the property. Granted, it takes a lot of work — product listings and brand building. But you’re creating an asset with value.

Bandholz: Where can people follow you?

Zaratsian: Go to JungleScout.com. I’m on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Simple Modern CEO on Competitive Markets

Mike Beckham sees the benefits of competitive markets. Simple Modern, a company he co-founded in 2015, sells insulated drinkware, competing against Yeti and other large providers. He says markets are competitive because many consumers value those products.

He told me, “Capturing a small percentage of a competitive market can make you insanely successful.”

Beckham and I recently spoke. We addressed his ecommerce journey, Amazon, physical-store selling, and more.

The audio of our entire conversation is embedded below. The transcript is edited for length and clarity.

Eric Bandholz: Tell us about your journey.

Mike Beckham: I grew up in Oklahoma and received a finance degree. I went into a nonprofit ministry job after college. I thought I’d work it for one year, but one year turned into 10. When I turned 30, around 2009, my brother approached me with a business idea. That business [QuiBids, a retail auction site] got big and quickly hit a million dollars in revenue. The company had many highs and lows, but I gained experience and learned much about ecommerce.

Around 2014, we realized competing against Amazon was an uphill battle. We began looking at companies to buy on that marketplace. The more we looked, the more we thought, “We can do this. We have the skillset.” I helped my brother build the company — the Beckham Hotel Collection, selling mostly pillows — on Amazon. We have close to 300,000 reviews. It’s been the bestselling pillow for years.

In mid-2015, a group of guys I’d worked with approached me about starting a side project. We had no idea what we wanted to do or sell. We just knew we wanted to sell on Amazon as our first channel and to have a culture and commitment to generosity. We decided to sell insulated drinkware. We bootstrapped the company and called it Simple Modern. I put my life savings in, and we have grown rapidly. We now sell in many places, including our own ecommerce site, major retailers, and Amazon.

Bandholz: Why Amazon?

Beckham: We had several years competing against Amazon [with QuiBids], spending a lot of money driving people to our website. I don’t know of any consumer retail brand that spent more between 2010 and 2014 on direct response advertising than we did. We learned the trials and challenges of driving traffic daily and gaining awareness, especially when competing against Amazon.

With Simple Modern, our posture was letting Amazon do the heavy lifting. We would optimize for their system because we’ve built websites and understand algorithms.

Bandholz: Insulated drinkware is hyper competitive.

Beckham: Yes. When we launched, Yeti was crushing it. Hydro Flask, Corkcicle, and S’well were there as well. But they all focused on brick-and-mortar retail and higher prices. We focused on a premium insulated water bottle at an affordable price, available online. Many of those competitors had built their business models around physical distribution. We built ours around digital.

We sold multiple sizes, SKUs, and colors. Those became a competitive advantage with more selection, better pricing, and the same quality as the leading brands. Competition is a two-sided coin. Most entrepreneurs see only the downsides. But highly competitive markets exist because many folks want to buy that product or service. Capturing a small percentage of a competitive market can make you insanely successful.

I teach entrepreneurship at the University of Oklahoma. Students almost always aim for something with little competition. I always tell them that no competition occurs because their idea is unique, which is unlikely, or something about that market makes it toxic.

To be sure, you have a higher chance of succeeding in a small market. Simple Modern wasn’t my first rodeo. I’ve learned the benefits of starting and focusing in a niche. As you build operational skills, challenge yourself to larger, more competitive markets.

When we launched Simple Modern, a full-frontal assault against Yeti would’ve been disastrous. There’s no way we would’ve won. But we’ve carved out market share in many ways. Yeti has not focused on colors. The average guy has a black Tumbler. When your market’s big, there’s room for many winners.

We have competitors that are better at some things than us. But there are things we’re better at. You need a sense of humility and accuracy and to take stock of what you can do at an exceptional level. Do you have something that the market’s going to reward you for? We’ve been successful at parlaying digital success into physical retail placement. We’ve built Simple Modern around that.

Bandholz: Where can people follow you and support you?

Beckham: The website is SimpleModern.com. Check out my podcast. Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

A Community for Amazon Sellers

Athena Severi co-founded Titan Network, an Amazon-seller community, in 2019 with Dan Ashburn, a U.K.-based merchant. Before that, the pair launched China Magic for product sourcing.

Titan Network hosts in-person events and offers workshops, mentoring, and collaboration.

Severi and I recently discussed Titan, selling on Amazon, and more. The entire audio of our conversation is embedded below. The transcript is edited for length and clarity.

Eric Bandholz: What do you do?

Athena Severi: I have the largest mastermind in the world for Amazon sellers called Titan Network. I started my journey on Amazon nine years ago with my own brand.

I’m into building community. When I got into Amazon, I started putting on dinners, events, and seminars, and then it turned into a cruise, and then it turned into a trip to China. It’s been a really fun, adventurous, crazy journey.

Bandholz: Tell us about your mastermind.

Severi: We’ve brought together some powerful industry leaders. These guys are in the trenches, eight to nine-figure sellers. We have experts in sourcing, branding, outside traffic, and more. We call it Titan because they are the titans of the industry.

Where you’re at in the ecommerce journey determines your focus. Someone trying to find their first product has different needs than someone doing a million a month in sales. Each has unique pain points, strengths, and focus.

How it works. We onboard you and start with a one-on-one strategy call. You get assigned to a Titan mentor, someone who’s a few steps ahead of you in the game. Everyone’s different. Your ambition level will be different than the next guy. Are you looking to exit? Are you looking for cash flow? What are you trying to achieve? Based on those goals, you’ll be assigned to a small group of like-minded folks at a similar place in their journey.

Bandholz: What do your in-person events look like?

Severi: My background is in events. When I put things on, it’s like a whole other universe. We pick a beautiful location, and we do the networking in the pool and at the beach. Many entrepreneurs hold everything close to their chest, so we’ve built a world where individuals can build trust with each other, have a few drinks, and enjoy the environment as they form that relationship. I love watching people’s eyes light up and seeing how they connect. Events are my calling, what I was meant to do.

We have workshops at our events, three or four hours. They’re very hands-on — conversion, pay-per-click, product, strategy.

All told we have about four or five events a year.

Bandholz: Do you have competitors in the same space?

Severi: The first time this happened was in China. Two of our guys were selling similar products. I took them to a room and said, “You have two options. You can either have friction, or you can collaborate. I suggest you collaborate.”

They went to their suppliers, leveraged the size of their orders together, combined containers, and became friends. I’m not saying that’s going to happen all the time. Healthy competition is a good thing.

There’s plenty of room for everyone on Amazon.

Bandholz: What is the ideal member of Titan Network?

Severi: We’re looking for intellectual property and unique brands that speak to their audience. We do not seek cookie cutters. We’re interested in brand owners and their stories. The products are doing well because they’re different.

For example, we have a member brand for special needs children. The woman who started it has a beautiful story. We believe in that brand. We look for something that we can grow. Successful sellers understand who they are serving.

We’ve been leveraging AI for research. What we can do in five minutes with AI is insane. It used to cost thousands and take months.

ChatGPT can create a brand from scratch — start to finish — the products, suppliers, everything. Midjourney can design a product. It’s crazy.

With AI, we’re in a new era. Everyone’s like, “The gold rush of Amazon’s over.” I’m like, “No, we are just getting started.”

Bandholz: Where can people join the community or find you?

Severi: TitanNetwork.com. I’m on Instagram and Facebook. If you’re starting, go to GenesisBootcamp.com.

Amazon Consultant on Competition, Black-hat Sellers

I asked Ken Freeman, a former Amazon seller turned consultant, if a brand could still make millions on that marketplace. “It’s hard but not impossible,” he told me. “Eight years ago you could get rich selling yoga mats.”

Having launched as a bootstrapped business, Freeman now seeks established companies as clients, preferably $10 million or more in revenue per year.

He and I recently spoke, addressing heightened Amazon competition, black-hat sellers, and more. The entire audio of our conversation is embedded below. The transcript is edited for clarity and length.

Eric Bandholz: Give us your elevator pitch.

Ken Freeman: I’ve been in the ecommerce space for nearly a decade. I started with bootstrapped drop-shipping businesses, which evolved into a bootstrapped FBA business, which evolved into a seven-figure company I sold in 2019 to Thrasio, an aggregator.

Since then, I’ve started many more Amazon businesses. That’s my specialty. I love exploring the Amazon marketplace. I created multiple businesses, and for the last year and a half, I have been vice president of Amazon at The Ridge, the wallet brand. I’ve recently started an Amazon agency called Full Circle, which focuses on direct-to-consumer sellers.

I love strategy. I’ve played nearly 10,000 games of chess, I’ve done jujitsu for about 15 years, and I’m very competitive. I’m not the best product or branding person, but I love teaming up with folks with incredible products and brands. The idea behind Full Circle is to merge those with cutting-edge strategies on Amazon.

Bandholz: Many sellers like me are wary of black hat competitors.

Freeman: Black hat tactics can be many things, such as competitors clicking on your sponsored ad listings or taking down your listings — via humans or robots. The worst is where there’s a clear battle going on, and black hat sellers will artificially inflate their rankings. It’s easy to get tons of Amazon accounts in China, for example. It’s a matter of one account going down and switching to another. It’s not a long-term strategy. But they’ve got some crazy tricks. It’s both impressive and terrible at the same time.

One of my brands was number one in a competitive space. It was wild how often we experienced takedowns, where competitors would falsely allege a violation from us, and Amazon would then remove our listings until we proved otherwise. Competition is intense when you’re in the top 10 spots. But until then you won’t get aggressive action against you. There are telltale signs to watch for, such as ad spend going off the charts or budget running out. Amazon has some automation to detect click fraud, and it returns that money. But it can’t detect everything.

Bandholz: How do you succeed on Amazon legitimately?

Freeman: Obsess over learning and surrounding yourself with others doing the same thing. I’ve been in a seven-figure mastermind group for five years now. Stay on the cutting edge of what is going on. You have to master every aspect of the pay-per-click game. The amount of sponsored ad spots on Amazon is insane. It must be 4-times what it was when I sold my brand. Amazon makes so much money from ads. It’s a pay-to-play system. You have to master it.

Scrutinize data for every product. Look closely at the keywords and see how your pay-per-click spend performs on a keyword level. What’s your return on ad spend? Use that to boost the most important keywords — your “golden keywords.” Get crazy granular with data. Amazon has provided some amazing tools in the last six months to do that.

Bandholz: So it’s all about pay-per-click ads?

Freeman: You have to do everything to win, more than PPC alone. A good review rate and sales velocity on a keyword level will help that keyword rank higher. Your listing has to convert well. “A+ Content” is an Amazon program that is now free. It used to be crazy expensive. It helps your listing convert better. I’m data-oriented. I see ones and zeros when I think about Amazon.

It’s all about optimizing your click-through rate via pricing and images. Titles are important, too. We research every keyword. What is the conversion rate for that keyword in terms of the market average and the top three?

We track performance over time. Say we change the main image to improve the click-through. Once we’re comfortable with the conversion rate — in the top 10 of the category — we can push the ads.

A proper review funnel is critical. Amazon’s terms of service address soliciting reviews. Essentially you cannot pay for them or offer incentives. Some things can be tastefully done, even if they violate Amazon’s rules.

If you have loyal community members that love your brand, you can entice them through email lists and group forums. You can say, “Hey, love you guys, and thanks for being a part of the community. We want to offer you a product for free. We’re getting started on Amazon. We’d love your support.”

You can buy reviews through Amazon, too. The service is called Vine. I recommend it depending on your product. There’s the “honeymoon period,” which lasts for roughly 45 days from the launch of a listing. When you’re getting started, you want to hit the ground running in terms of PPC. You can get 30 reviews from Vine for about $250. It’s extremely cost-effective on a per-review basis.

Bandholz: Can a seller still make millions on Amazon?

Freeman: It’s hard but not impossible. Eight years ago, you could get rich selling a yoga mat on Amazon. Thankfully, I got into Amazon before the biggest wave. Many DTC owners have a very negative sentiment around Amazon, which I understand.

But many consumers will only buy on Amazon. They could see your Facebook ads and go right to Amazon and click or type your brand name or keyword. If you’re not there, likely a cheaper, crappier alternative will be. Without a presence on Amazon, you’re not catching that spillover, which can be material.

Bandholz: Where can people reach out to you?

Freeman: Go to FullCircleAgency.com. You can find me on LinkedIn.