Amazon FBM: These advantages and disadvantages does Fulfillment by Merchant have!
Worldwide there are currently 9.7 million Amazon sellers, of which 1.9 million are active sellers. Every year, over a million new merchants register on Amazon. To be precise, in the first quarter of 2021 alone, over 283,000 sellers joined the online retailer.
As an Amazon seller, you must choose the right shipping method for your products, among other things. In addition to the probably best-known method Fulfillment by Amazon (short FBA), sellers can also use Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM) as well as “Prime by Seller.” In this article, we will focus on Amazon FBM – what it is, for which products this shipping method is suitable, where the advantages and disadvantages lie, and how FBM differs from the other shipping methods.
What is Amazon FBM?
Simply put, Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM) means that the responsibility for storing the goods, shipping, and customer support for the products listed on Amazon lies with the seller. Amazon thus acts solely as a marketplace where the goods are sold. Sometimes this is also referred to as “Merchant fulfilled Network” (Amazon MFN) in this context.
Instead of paying a service fee for fulfillment and sending your goods to Amazon fulfillment centers, you as a seller rely on your own resources to prepare the products and ship them directly to the buyers. As an FBM seller, you need not only storage space but also a functioning workflow. This includes, among other things, handheld scanners and label printers, software, and well-trained staff.
Fulfillment by Merchant is particularly suitable for items that have longer storage times because they are not sold quickly, for bulky, large items, for luxury goods, as well as for unique items. These items would primarily incur high storage and shipping costs on Amazon. Furthermore, FBM merchants have more opportunities, for example, to stay in direct contact with customers regarding product inquiries or returns. Additionally, FBM offers cross-selling opportunities by using packaging inserts during shipping.
Other shipping methods
Amazon FBA
Instead of FBM, sellers can also use the FBA program. The abbreviation FBA stands for “Fulfillment by Amazon” and means that the order is processed by Amazon. Amazon thus takes care of the entire logistics for you as a merchant. This includes the storage of goods in Amazon’s logistics centers, shipping, handling returns, as well as customer support. If you sell through Amazon as a retailer and use the FBA services, you have no physical contact with your products.
Fulfillment by Amazon is suitable for sellers who deal with smaller-sized products. This is because Amazon’s fees for oversized items do not leave you with enough profit margin.
Prime by Seller
“Prime by Seller” is a shipping program that allows sellers to deliver goods from their own inventory directly to national Prime customers.
Prime by Seller is best suited for seasonal products or products with unpredictable demand, products with many variations, hard-to-sell goods, as well as inventory that requires special handling or preparation.
Advantages and disadvantages of Amazon FBM at a glance
✅ Advantages of Amazon FBM
Full control
When you manage your orders yourself, you have an overview of your inventory as well as your stock management. As an FBM merchant, you need to keep your inventory management in check and monitor the number of your stocked products. Since you take control of your inventory, you can quickly correct shipping errors and conduct strict quality control before shipping the products.
You can customize your packaging
One advantage of FBM over FBA is that you can customize the packaging. You have the opportunity to create a unique design and incorporate unique elements and gimmicks for customers to differentiate yourself from the competition.
Custom packaging contributes to brand awareness. For example, if you want to run a sustainable business, you can signal this with your packaging. Sustainable packaging is made from a renewable or recyclable raw material.
For Amazon customers, different FBA sellers do not differ from each other, as the packaging suggests that one is shopping at Amazon. While this is good for brand recognition, it does not make your packaging truly unique. By choosing FBM to use your own packaging instead of Amazon’s standard option, you shape the customer experience regarding the packaging and unboxing process.
This brings us back to the first point: taking full control. It is therefore very important that you keep an eye on your packages so that you do not lose customers due to delayed shipments or damaged packaging.
Returns and customer service … are your responsibility
While some see this as a disadvantage, others see it as an advantage. Although this may seem paradoxical at first glance, it makes sense that you can directly address your customers’ issues and perhaps even prevent a return. Identifying and eliminating errors early is key to reducing the return rate and improving customer satisfaction.
It is important to note the Amazon return policies, in which the online giant states that FBM sellers must accept returns within Amazon’s 30-day return window. Additionally, all returns are sent back to the address specified in your seller account and not to Amazon. As a seller, you are required to refund the purchase price to the customer within two days of receiving the return.
Not affected by changes to Amazon policies
Another advantage of FBM is that sellers do not have to adapt to every one of Amazon’s policies as well as new restrictions. Amazon frequently changes its policies for FBA sellers without prior notice. This gives merchants little time to react. Additionally, FBM sellers are not penalized in the same way as FBA sellers for non-compliance.
? Disadvantages of Amazon FBM
FBM is more time-consuming
As we have already noted, with FBM you have to manage your own inventory and ship your products to customers independently.
This can become time-consuming, especially if you have many orders. You will need to prepare to invest many hours per week.
FBM is cost-intensive
Those who take care of their own fulfillment must also provide the necessary resources for it. This can mean quite an investment, especially at the beginning. FBM merchants not only need to reserve space to store their products but may also need to hire staff to manage the warehouse, package the items, handle labeling, and ship the orders. All of this costs money, while FBA sellers benefit from Amazon’s fulfillment and pay a service fee per order.
Not automatically qualified for Prime
While FBA sellers gain immediate access to Amazon Prime, this is not the case for FBM sellers. However, since customers are accustomed to fast delivery, it is crucial to find alternatives to express shipping.
But this does not mean that FBM sellers are completely left out. Amazon offers a program called “Prime by Seller” (Seller-Fulfilled Prime), where FBM sellers can deliver directly to domestic Prime users from their own inventory. To qualify for this program, you must meet certain criteria and complete a trial phase. Additionally, participation is only possible by invitation from Amazon – and to receive that, FBM merchants must already provide excellent service.
Once you have completed the trial phase, you will be automatically enrolled and can offer your products with the Prime label. With “Prime by Seller,” you increase your chances of winning the Buy Box and benefit from fast shipping while retaining full control over your packaging and shipping process.
Higher shipping costs
Not only shipping speed but also shipping costs play an extremely important role. A study shows that 59% of buyers abandon their purchase if the shipping costs are too high. Therefore, it would be sensible to find an alternative shipping method.
Advantages and disadvantages of Amazon FBA
✅ Advantages of Amazon FBA
Focus on core business
For every business, logistics is often the most difficult aspect to scale. Amazon FBA solves this problem. Amazon takes care of storage, packaging, and shipping. This saves you a lot of money in the long run and gives you time to focus on the other parts of your business.
More sales
With FBA, you can often generate more sales, as the Amazon algorithm favors products from FBA sellers. Items shipped by Amazon and those with the Prime branding also appear higher in search results. This is partly because Amazon customers are more likely to purchase these items. This not only improves the visibility of your products but also the conversion rate.
Amazon Prime
Amazon FBA products are eligible for Prime delivery. In Germany alone, this gives you access to a customer base of approximately 34.4 million people. These items are very popular among most Amazon customers as they promise easy shipping, customer service, and a hassle-free return process.
Professional customer service
Amazon takes care of customer service, returns, and refunds. You can hire professionals to ensure that your customers always have a positive shopping experience. They handle issues around the clock and save you the hassle and money of finding qualified professionals to handle customer problems on your own.
Higher chances of winning the Buy Box
If you pay closer attention to listings, you will notice that sellers with Prime delivery often control the Buy Box.
This is because Amazon favors sellers who can guarantee fast delivery, and with Amazon FBA, sellers are eligible for Prime delivery. It is important to know that more than 80% of all sales on Amazon are made directly by sellers who control the yellow button. This significantly boosts sales.
Internationalization is easier
Since many processes are covered by the FBA program, internationalization is easier here than with the FBM program, where a separate logistics setup would need to be established abroad. With Amazon’s Pan-EU program, it is quite easy to sell across Europe, for example.
? Disadvantages of Amazon FBA
Little control
This point can be inferred from the advantages of the FBM program. In contrast to the Amazon FBM program, where the entire order and shipping process is your responsibility, the FBA program is entirely the responsibility of Amazon. Therefore, you no longer have any influence over it.
Cost-intensive
The costs at Amazon FBA can represent a significant disadvantage for the seller when compared to profit margins. The risk lies in not properly estimating costs such as FBA fees, storage and shipping fees, as well as other expenses. Therefore, sufficient starting capital should be available to handle all arising issues. On the other hand, sellers save on storage costs or storage fees as well as personnel, since they do not have to build their own logistics.
Limited branding
The best way to make money on Amazon is to create an appealing brand. Amazon FBA somewhat limits your branding options. Since Amazon ships the product, the shipping boxes bear Amazon’s logo.
No own customers
To get straight to the point: The customers who order products on Amazon are primarily Amazon’s customers. Your company may not have particularly high brand awareness.
Amazon, however, solves this problem with the Brand Registry and the Amazon Storefront. Companies can now set up their own showcase on Amazon and use it to promote their business.
Amazon FBA vs. FBM: Cost Overview
What costs should you expect with Amazon FBM?
Although FBM requires its own resources, there are still some costs incurred directly with Amazon:
As an FBM seller with a professional seller account, you will incur a fee of 39 euros per month. If you use a free basic account, you do not pay any monthly subscription costs, but you must pay 0.99 euros to Amazon for each product sold.
That sounds cheap. But do not underestimate the high costs that come with having your own storage, picking, etc.
What costs should you expect with Amazon FBA?
Often, Amazon FBA costs are only related to shipping costs and storage fees. However, there are also additional costs that may not be obvious at first glance:
One-time costs:
Monthly costs:
Costs for the FBA service:
Amazon FBA or FBM? Combination of both methods
You can actually successfully use Amazon FBA and FBM simultaneously, for example, if you offer different products with different profit margins.
It can also be a good option to list the same product on FBA and FBM, as long as you can handle the fulfillment and have enough storage space. In this case, you can of course use the SELLERLOGIC Repricer, as it adapts to the needs of Amazon sellers and allows for a lot of flexibility in different decisions.
For example, you can offer your product at two different prices in the market to ensure that you have enough products available and that customers do not have to wait for delivery or that you have to change the inventory due to delays. In this way, you can offer the FBM variant at a slightly lower price than the FBA offer.
Advantages of the combination of FBM & FBA would be:
Conclusion
In summary, both FBM and FBA have advantages and disadvantages. Which fulfillment method you choose for your business primarily depends on the size and weight of the products you want to sell, as well as all logistical costs, such as picking. Ultimately, sellers can benefit the most by combining both methods.
But keep in mind that building your own logistics needs to be carefully calculated. Especially having your own warehouse and personnel cannot be easily scaled with increasing order intake. However, you need these resources for tasks such as picking, labeling, and shipping goods. You also have to find shipping partners yourself.
Frequently asked questions
With Amazon Fulfillment by Merchant, the seller takes full responsibility for storage, packaging, shipping, and returns. Shipping from their own warehouse is often the preferred choice for experienced first-time sellers on Amazon.
The abbreviation FBM stands for “Fulfillment by Merchant” and is sometimes also described as “Fulfilled by Merchant” or “Merchant fulfilled Network.” Essentially, this means that the logistics and order processing are carried out by the seller.
For FBM sellers, Amazon acts solely as a marketplace where goods are sold. Sellers rely on their own resources to ship their products to customers.
Yes, of course, and it is even a recommended option. By combining FBM and FBA, you can take advantage of both methods.
No, because with dropshipping the seller does not store their goods themselves. These are only shipped by the manufacturer when an order is received.
As long as you do not participate in Prime by Merchant, you will lack the Prime logo. Many customers prefer that. And the algorithm also tends to select FBA offers for the Buy Box.
Image credits in the order of the images: © Intpro – stock.adobe.com / © VectorMine – stock.adobe.com / © VectorMine – stock.adobe.com / © VectorMine – stock.adobe.com / © VectorMine – stock.adobe.com
