2024 Guide: Top Tips for New Amazon Sellers in Singapore
Singapore is one of the easiest countries to start a business in. It has consistently ranked high in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business reports for several years. Plus, e-commerce revenue in Singapore is increasing at a rate of 10.6% per year and is expected to reach $8.40 billion by 2029.
Lucky for you, Amazon launched its first Southeast Asian market in Singapore in 2019 for local consumers who previously faced limited products and high shipping costs on the .com site. This has created new business opportunities for online sellers in Singapore.
In this article, let's look at some important tips to set up a successful business on Amazon Singapore.
Ready to Succeed as an Amazon Singapore Seller? Let Us Help You Begin
Entering the Amazon marketplace is a thrilling opportunity, but achieving success requires the right strategy and foundation. Piloto Asia specializes in business setup and advisory services tailored for entrepreneurs looking to thrive on Amazon Singapore.
From company registration and compliance to strategic planning, we’ll guide you through every step to ensure your business is positioned for growth and success in the competitive ecommerce landscape.
Getting Started by Creating an Amazon Seller Account
To start selling on Amazon Singapore, you first need to create a seller account on the platform. Signing up on Amazon as a seller is both free and simple.
All you have to do is head over to Amazon Seller Central, click on ‘Sign Up,’ and follow the step-by-step instructions that follow.
Once your account is set up, you’ll be asked to verify your identity. You can choose between an in-person verification or a video call.
Amazon offers a free online resource hub—Amazon's Seller University—that has guides and tips to help you get started with listing, pricing, advertising, and selling. Use it well to learn how you can reach hundreds of millions of customers in Singapore and worldwide.
You should also be aware of the minimal selling fee Amazon charges from sellers. The selling fees are divided into two main types: selling plan fees and referral fees:
Selling plan fees—You can choose between an individual seller plan ($0.99 per item sold) or a professional seller plan ($39.99 per month). The professional plan is suitable if you plan to sell in larger quantities.
Referral fees—These fees vary by product category. They are charged as a percentage of the total sales price or as a minimum flat fee, whichever is higher. The referral fee can range from 5% to 15%, depending on the category and item price.
Apart from these basic fees, you might incur additional subscription fees if you use Amazon’s optional tools like Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) or Amazon Ads.
Understanding Amazon FBA
Shipping with FBA is 70% cheaper per unit compared to similar premium options from other fulfillment providers.
Amazon FBA is a service where Amazon handles the packing, shipping, and customer service for your products. Here’s how it works:
You send your products to Amazon’s fulfillment centers, where they're stored securely until a customer places an order.
When someone buys your product, Amazon picks, packs, and ships it directly to the customer. You, the seller, don't have to worry about dealing with packaging and postage.
The Amazon team handles customer service, including inquiries and returns.
Using Amazon FBA is a big help if you want to save time and focus more on growing your business. Amazon’s vast network of fulfillment centers means your products can reach customers quickly and efficiently. New sellers using Amazon FBA also get special incentives.
Setting up Your Business—Opening a Bank Account
To receive payments from Amazon, you'll need a bank account that handles international transactions. Amazon disburses payments in different currencies based on where your sales come from.
Having an account that supports multiple currencies makes transactions easy and prevents costly conversion fees.
One recommended option is opening a Wise Business account. It allows you to receive payments in major currencies like the USD, GBP, EUR, AUD, and SGD without needing a separate bank account for each.
Wise Business accounts are known for offering better exchange rates and lower transaction costs compared to traditional banks.
Wise also offers a quick and easy online setup. Its flexibility is useful if you plan for global expansion beyond Singapore.
Choosing Your Products
You want to select the right products to sell on Amazon. Make sure the products you’re interested in aren’t banned in Southeast Asia and can be easily sourced from suppliers from your region.
Here are two resources for researching popular products:
Amazon Best Sellers—This tool shows you the most popular products in various categories. It's a great way to see what types of products are in high demand and what Amazon customers are buying.
Amazon Product Opportunity Explorer—This tool helps you identify emerging trends and seasonal opportunities. It enables you to spot products that are gaining popularity over time and may be worth selling.
In addition to using Amazon’s built-in tools, consider trying third-party research tools where you can filter products by factors like sales volume, competition level, and profit margins.
Optimizing Your Listings
Amazon uses keywords to match customer queries with relevant products. This means you must optimize your product titles, descriptions, and tags using the right keywords to improve your visibility.
Use keyword research tools like the Amazon Keyword Research Tool, Ahrefs, Helium 10, and Google Keyword Planner. These help you discover popular search terms and phrases related to your products. Focus on finding keywords that your target audience is likely to search for when looking for products you sell.
Once you have your keywords, include them naturally in your product titles, descriptions, and tags. For example, if you’re selling noise-canceling headphones, your title could include a keyphrase like “Noise-canceling headphones with Bluetooth.” In your description, highlight key features and benefits while sprinkling in relevant keywords.
Focusing on Sales and Logistics
The core of every Amazon business is Amazon logistics. There are hundreds of millions of Amazon stores vying for consumer attention, and you can only stand out if you manage your sales and logistics strategically.
Pricing and Promotions
Take some time to research the prices of similar products on Amazon to find a competitive range. Your goal is to offer a fair price that appeals to buyers while still allowing you to make a profit.
In addition, consider running promotions and discounts to increase sales and build customer loyalty. You can use Amazon’s built-in tools to set up promotions like limited-time offers, discounts, or free shipping deals. These strategies draw more attention to your listings and encourage customers to make a purchase.
Amazon also offers automated pricing tools that help you manage your prices and automate adjustments based on market conditions without having to constantly monitor the market.
Shipping and Fulfillment
When managing your shipping and fulfillment, you have two main choices—Amazon FBA or self-fulfillment.
With Amazon FBA, Amazon takes care of storing your products, packing them, and shipping them to customers. The fulfillment services also handle returns and customer service for you. Choosing FBA boosts your chances of winning the Buy Box since Amazon prioritizes products with fast and reliable delivery.
If you prefer a self-fulfillment business model, you’ll need to store, pack, and ship products yourself. It gives you more control over your inventory and shipping processes, but it requires a solid logistics plan. Make sure you have reliable shipping partners and a way to manage orders efficiently.
No matter which fulfillment option you choose, make use of Amazon’s inventory management tools to keep a close eye on your stock levels. Here are some tips to help you stay organized:
Use Amazon’s tools to monitor your stock levels and receive alerts when an item is running low.
Establish thresholds for when to restock products to avoid running out of popular items.
Prepare for peak sales seasons or promotions by maintaining adequate stock to meet demand.
Managing Your Business
If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. As an Amazon seller, you should use business performance management (BPM) to evaluate your operations. Keeping an eye on your sales, profits, and customer feedback is crucial to understanding how your business is doing.
It's a good idea to use Amazon’s sales reports to check how well your products are selling and review your profit margins.
Customer feedback gives you valuable insights into what your buyers like or dislike about your products. Pay attention to reviews and ratings to see where you can improve.
The Seller Central also shows a range of performance metrics, such as order defect rate, late shipment rate, and feedback score. Keep tabs on these metrics and once you have a clear picture of your performance, adjust your strategies based on what the data tells you.
Expanding Your Reach
Expanding your business by selling on Amazon US or UK helps you reach international customers and newer revenue heights. If you're already selling on Amazon Singapore, visit the Amazon Global Selling Page to expand your reach.
Amazon's global selling tools and resources help you list your products on international marketplaces like Amazon US or UK. Use them to manage listings, pricing, and translations so you can focus on growing your sales.
Shipping products overseas might sound complicated, but Amazon’s international logistics services handle a lot of the work for you. With Amazon FBA, your products are stored, packed, and shipped to customers directly in other countries. The multi-language customer support ensures international customers the same high level of service they’d expect if buying from a local seller.
Become a Succesful Amazon Seller in Singapore Today
Start selling on Amazon Singapore today to tap into a growing market. Amazon's Seller Central has ample resources to help you set up and scale your business quickly. All you need is consistency and the right strategies to see success on Amazon.
To establish a full-fledged e-commerce business in Singapore, consider partnering with Piloto Asia, the country’s top corporate service provider. Piloto Asia offers a complete range of Singapore corporate services that help entrepreneurs like you grow their businesses in the Singaporean market.
For example, we offer payroll and HR support that gives you access to our local network of professionals to run your Amazon business. We also help you hire local staff easily so you can focus on what you do best—impressing your customers.
That's not all—you can think of Piloto Asia as your Singaporean business partner that offers everything from company incorporation to tax and accounting to work visa and immigration support.
Book a free consultation today and set your Amazon business up for long-term success in Singapore.