Brands on Amazon: Why More Isn’t Always Better

For all but the past decade, more people selling more products have been good for a brand. Not anymore.

Brick and Mortar – More is More:

A brand having its products at more brick and mortar stores is better. It increases the footprint, awareness, and the availability of products for purchase. Having a product in more stores leads to increased revenue and market share.

eBay – More is More:

eBay is cataloged in a way that lists items individually per each seller. For example, 100 sellers selling the same item on eBay will show 100 listings. One hundred listings will get you 100 times the virtual shelf space than a single seller with one listing.

Amazon – Less is More:

Amazon is cataloged differently from eBay. On Amazon, the same item being sold by 100 sellers adds no additional listings. The 100 sellers show as 100 offers underneath a single item. This is dilutive to the item as it increases competition which leads to more price pressure. One hundred sellers are 100 opportunities for bad behavior from resellers, which among other things, can include counterfeit and stolen items. Reviews, which are tied to an item regardless of which seller may be selling, can have a deep impact on a brand on and off of Amazon.

Number of Items Sold Under a Brand

Brick and Mortar – More is More:

A variety of items on more shelf space is better. It gives increased visual presence and takes space away from competitions.

eBay – More is More:

eBay customers have the expectation (and possible enjoyment) of searching for and finding a deal. More listings increase brand presence and market share.

Amazon – Less is More:

A customer on Amazon wants speed and convenience (think Amazon Prime and Buy it Now). They want to find a product quickly and check out conveniently.

Branding teams limit the catalog to a select number of items for a purpose. Limiting listings on Amazon to the catalog that the brand intended is a best practice. This helps to focus the consumer on search relevance and sales. It also makes them top sellers which helps fuel even more sales. Seventy to eighty percent of customers on Amazon never go to page two of the search results. So it’s better to have a single item on page one versus two separate items on page two.

Bundles and Multipacks on Amazon:

Resellers create bundled and multipack listings so they can capture traffic from the main listing, sell items non-competitively, and have increased margin. Some bundles add value by grouping items in a way that is attractive to customers. However, in POTOO’s experience with over 500 brands, most bundles and multipacks are dilutive to a brand. There is learning to be gained from studying bundled and multipack listings created by resellers. Viewing reseller-created listings as research can help a brand to discover new opportunities, but the catalog of a brand should always be decided by the brand, not resellers.

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