Why
Amazon.com? What is
the Advantage program? Why should I join? What are the requirements for joining Amazon.com
Advantage? How do
I apply? How will
I know if my application has been
approved?What kinds
of products do you accept into the Advantage program?
How much does Advantage cost,
and what are the terms? Do you have special terms for Professional titles or
Non-Profit organizations? How is payment made to Advantage vendors?
When will I
receive my first order? Who pays for
shipping?How many
units will you keep in stock? How will Amazon.com place new orders for my title?
How do you handle
customer returns? My title is already on Amazon.com; why should I join
Advantage? If I
joined Advantage, where would my product be listed on the Amazon.com
website? Would I
have the ability to change my title's detail page on Amazon.com?
If I control the
List Price of my title, who determines the Customer Price?
Can I enroll my
title if it hasn't been published/released yet?
How is Advantage
different from Marketplace?I don't have physical inventory. Can I still enroll in
Advantage? Can I get information about the customers who purchase
my books/CDs/films? Does Amazon.com offer any merchandising
opportunities?Do I
get an assigned buyer or account manager?
Why Amazon.com?
With tens
of millions of customers, Amazon.com is one of the world's leading
online destinations. We are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365
days a year. Amazon has the unique ability to match specialized, niche,
or "hard-to-find" products with the customers most likely to purchase
them. And Amazon.com has a world renowned reputation for service,
reliability and security.
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What
is the Advantage program?
Advantage is a program
that enables authors, musicians, filmmakers, publishers, studios, and
other content providers to list and sell their products on Amazon.com
right alongside products that have massive marketing and distribution.
The Advantage program provides a simple, efficient way to have a direct
relationship with Amazon.com. Vendors enroll in Advantage and ship us
inventory. The Detail Page shows the "In Stock" message to customers.
Similar to a consignment program, Advantage vendors are paid following
the sale. Restocking orders are automatically generated when we need
more. For more information, read
How
Advantage Works. Back to top
Why should I join?
Advantage
is the simple, direct, and profitable way for you to sell your products
on one of the world's leading online retail web sites. Advantage
provides the business, marketing, and vendor support you need to
maximize your sales on Amazon.com. Titles enrolled in Advantage are
eligible for automated merchandising and personalization, Search
Inside, Amazon.com's excellent Customer Service and order fulfillment
services, and much more. With a small annual fee for unlimited title
additions and as little as a two-unit per title inventory commitment,
your risk is minimal.
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What
are the requirements for joining Amazon.com Advantage?
To be eligible for Amazon.com
Advantage:
- You must have North American distribution
rights for each title.
- You must have an e-mail
address and internet access.
- You must have a
scannable ISBN/EAN/UPC barcode on every item.
- You
must comply with (Membership
Agreement and Rules and
Instructions.).
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How do I
apply?
You can apply for membership in the
Advantage program by going to the Advantage program home page and
clicking on the "Apply" button. There, you can read the Membership
Agreement and Rules & Instructions, and you can sign up for the
program. Because Amazon.com Advantage is an online program, we require
that you apply using our online application. We do not accept
applications submitted by other means, such as by fax or mail.
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How
will I know if my application has been
approved?
After you complete your Advantage
application and create your online account, you will receive an e-mail
message welcoming you to the program within 24 hours.
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What
kinds of products do you accept into the Advantage
program?
We currently accept books, calendars,
single copy magazines, CD's, DVD's, VHS, vinyl LP records, software and
video games. We do not accept digital content (e-books, MP3 downloads)
or subscription-based items like magazines or journals. We are always
looking at new opportunities, so please check back with us in the
future to see if we have expanded our product categories.
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How
much does Advantage cost, and what are the terms?
There is an annual fee of $29.95 to be a member of
Advantage. Your fee includes unlimited title enrollment, access to our
Vendor Services team, and access to the Vendor web site to manage your
account. The standard terms for Advantage vendors is 55% - you keep 45%
of the List Price. That means that Amazon.com is entitled to 55% of the
List Price for each unit that sells. You, the vendor, receive 45% of
the List Price. You set the List Price, also known as Suggested Retail
Price, of your products, and all payments made to you are calculated
based on the List Price. If Amazon.com decides to further reduce the
sales price to the customer below the List Price, the customer discount
comes out of Amazon.com's percentage. For example, if the List Price is
$39.95, you will make $17.98 from each copy sold, even if the Customer
Price or Our Price on Amazon.com is discounted from the List Price.
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Do you
have special terms for Professional titles or Non-Profit organizations?
Yes. If you have high-priced titles that are of a
medical, scholarly, or technical nature, you may apply for better terms
than our standard 55% rate through our Advantage Professional survey.
Non-Profit (501?3) organizations may also apply for the Advantage
Professional rate.
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How is
payment made to Advantage vendors?
Advantage is
invoice-free; we pay you automatically at the end of the month
following the month in which your product is sold. For example, for
items sold in the month of January, we will pay you at the end of
February. Payment can be made to you by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
to a U.S. bank account or by paper check. Please note that if you
receive payment via paper check, your payment will not be disbursed
until you reach a threshold of $100 and there is a $15 processing fee
per check.
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When
will I receive my first order?
You should receive
your first order within one to two weeks of your account being approved
and your titles being fully enrolled.
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Who pays for shipping?
As
a member of Amazon.com Advantage, you agree to pay for all shipping
charges incurred in sending your titles to our distribution centers.
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How
many units will you keep in stock?
Our ordering
process is automatic and conservative; it is based on historical
customer demand and projected demand. As your sales increase, our
orders with you will adjust to include more copies. If Amazon.com
already has inventory of your title, you may not receive your initial
order until our existing inventory is sold.
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How will Amazon.com place new orders for my
title?
When we need to replenish the inventory of
your title, we'll send you an e-mail notifying you that there is an
order waiting for you. At that time, you will be asked to log in to
your Advantage account, confirm the order, and get your shipping
instructions.
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How
do you handle customer returns?
We will retain
ownership of items that are returned to Amazon.com by our customers,
and we will store them, at our cost, as part of our company-owned
inventory. We reserve the right to fulfill customer orders from our
inventory of returned items before we purchase or order additional
product from you.
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My
title is already on Amazon.com; why should I join Advantage?
Your title may be listed on the Amazon.com web
site but be unavailable for customer purchase, or it may contain
incomplete or incorrect information. Because we stock your titles in
our warehouse with the Advantage program, your products are generally
available for immediate shipment to our customers. Advantage also
provides added benefits that help you increase your title's selling
power, including control of product detail page information, uploading
cover art, and more. Click here for a full list of Advantage benefits.
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If I joined Advantage, where would my product
be listed on the Amazon.com website?
Advantage
items are listed just like any other product on Amazon.com -- there is
no difference from a customer's perspective. Advantage products get the
same search and browse functionality, personalization tools, and
auto-merchandising features which proactively display your title to
customers.
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Would I have the ability to change my title's
detail page on Amazon.com?
As an Advantage member,
you control the content on each product detail page, including in-depth
descriptions, artist/author information, product reviews, etc. You can
also upload cover art, submit CDs for sound clips, participate in
Search Inside, and much more.
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If I control the List Price of my
title, who determines the Customer Price?
Amazon.com reserves the right to set the retail
price to customers at our sole discretion. Amazon.com's decision to
discount products is based on a number of considerations which can vary
over time. We offer discounts on hundreds of thousands of selected
titles on any given day. We cannot confirm when -- if ever -- a title
will be discounted to customers, or how long a title will remain at any
particular discount.
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Can I enroll my title if it hasn't been
published/released yet?
Yes. Adding a
not-yet-published/released item to your account is easy. We encourage
you to add your title as soon as you have a valid ISBN, UPC, or EAN for
it. Our systems will withhold ordering items with a future
publish/release date until two weeks before the publish/release date.
The "Add to Shopping Cart" button will appear on the detail page the
day your item is published/released. Until then, a "Pre-Order" button
will be displayed, even if we have received inventory of your title. We
will not send copies of your titles to customers until the release
date.
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How is Advantage different from Marketplace?
Advantage is for new, retail quality,
customer-ready merchandise. Titles enrolled in Advantage qualify as
"ships from and sold by Amazon.com". These titles also qualify for our
Super Saver Shipping and Prime Shipping options. Amazon Marketplace is
for selling new, used, refurbished and collectible items--you can list
your item right alongside the same item carried by Amazon.com.
Marketplace transactions occur between the seller and the customer
directly. The seller is responsible for listing the product, shipping
customer orders, and providing all customer service. Amazon.com simply
handles payment processing for Marketplace transactions.
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I don't have physical inventory. Can I still
enroll in Advantage?
Advantage is for
physical inventory only. However, you can still list and sell your
products via the Make-On-Demand services of Amazon.com affiliates
BookSurge (for books) or CreateSpace (for books, CDs, or DVDs).
BookSurge and CreateSpace are wholly-owned by Amazon.com and offer
inventory-free fulfillment to Amazon.com's customers. Visit
www.booksurge.com or www.createspace.com for more
information.
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Can I get information about the customers who
purchase my books/CDs/films?
Amazon.com does not
share customer information with any vendor. You can view the sales and
inventory of your titles through the Advantage vendor web
site.
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Does Amazon.com offer any merchandising
opportunities?
Advantage vendors have access to
our world-class marketing programs -- including "Buy X Get Y" product
pairings -- at a special price. For information on how we can help you
optimize your sales through paid merchandising, please visit our small
vendor coop pages at www.amazon.com/coop
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Do I get an assigned buyer or
account manager?
The Advantage program is designed
to work without the need for a buyer or account manager. We have spent
many years developing this program, and we have invested in technology
to create an interface that acts as a virtual account manager. The
Advantage vendor web site is easy to navigate and has all the
information you need to manage your business with Amazon.com. You can
confirm orders, control the content of your product detail page, add
new titles, and view sales, inventory, and payment information. Help
pages and more Frequently Asked Questions are also available to guide
you on the Advantage vendor web site. You also have access to our
Vendor Services Team. They are available to assist you via e-mail
(advantage@amazon.com) and usually respond to inquiries within 24
hours.
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