4 Strategies to Prepare for Amazon Q4 Success
Amazon’s fourth-quarter spans the months of October through December and is known as a crucial time for Amazon sellers to increase traffic and drive sales. With Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season, Q4 is a great opportunity for sellers to boost their annual sales and take advantage of the peak in demand.
Whether you’re a rookie or a veteran when it comes to Amazon sales, it’s always a good idea to prepare ahead of time and incorporate new strategies that can guarantee Q4 success. Here are a few ideas to keep in mind as we approach Amazon’s fourth quarter.
- Organize your inventory
When it comes to maximizing your Q4 revenue, it’s best to take a ‘Goldilocks’ approach with your inventory. Running out of stock during this quarter prevents you from reaping 100% of rewards. On the other hand, too much stock often leads sellers no choice but to lower prices to the point of profit-loss. To avoid these scenarios, plan your Q4 inventory to ensure items are available to ship into Amazon by October. Planning in advance also prevents late arrivals of inventory, which can lead to revenue losses. Tools like RestockPro can help you make smart inventory decisions for your company.
- Plan for longer lead times
Q4 is Amazon’s busiest time of the year. Be sure to plan for longer lead times at Fulfilment Centers, which are often at maximum capacity. In many cases, it can take Amazon twice as long to process issues and receive shipments. As you prepare your business for Q4 success, keep in mind time delays that may occur and plan accordingly.
- Find pricing that works
Come January, when the fourth-quarter ends, sales inevitably decline and sellers with overpriced inventory are left with overstocks and missed revenue opportunities. To avoid sitting on an excess of inventory post-Q4, develop a pricing strategy that works for your brand and your consumers. If enough inventory hasn’t been sold halfway through the quarter, have a lower price in mind that you can adopt before Q4 ends. It is always better to have a reduced margin at the end of the quarter than an abundance of sitting inventory come January.
- Optimize your listings
Q4 is the time to pull out all the stops when it comes to optimizing your listings. Take the months before the fourth-quarter to learn which optimization strategies work for you and familiarize yourself with Amazon’s style guide for your category. By doing your research, writing clear titles, and incorporating keywords, your products can be met with high engagement rates and plenty of sales.