50 Ways to Sell Way More on Amazon and Increase Your Sales

Want better sales on Amazon? Some sellers find their sales dropping and aren’t sure what’s happening. There are a lot of factors that go into selling on Amazon, and fortunately, there are a lot of things you can do to help your business earn more selling on Amazon.

Check to see which of these tips below you might not be doing or could give another shot to increase your sales on Amazon.

#1 Use Amazon Promotions

In Amazon’s Seller Central, merchants can create promotions. These promotions can automatically apply to customer purchases or you can require a coupon code to be used. The trick here is that you can display on your listing page what your promotion is. For example, “Buy $100 worth of xyz products and get 15% off your order.”

You can also create coupon codes that are not displayed on the page that you can share with others to help drive sales. Any jump in sales is going to help your product rank better in Amazon’s search results. More below on using these promotions. You can also create promotions that are just for Amazon Prime members.

#2 Create Amazon Lightning Deals

Amazon Lightning Deals let you create a promotion for your products that Amazon will promote for you. You can see a significant lift using this tool in the right way. There is a fee for using Amazon Lightning Deals, so you may want to explore some other options if your budget is tight, but the key here is that your product will see a lift in sales, and a lift in sales will have a halo effect, lifting your sales (and sales rank) for your item for days, weeks, and maybe even months to come.

#3 Start an Email List

You can use an email list to promote your products. If you have a website, use an email list signup page where visitors can get something free for signing up. It may be a course, a free PDF, or something related to your industry and products.

Now with people joining your list and receiving value from you, you can email exclusive promotions just for your email list. Remember the promotions tool mentioned above? Here’s another use for it. Just remember not to use the Amazon Merchant-to-Customer Message system for anything other than order-related emails. Here, we’re talking about your own list outside of Amazon.

#4 Submit to Coupon Sites

If you’ve created coupon codes for discounts for your products, share them on coupon code sites like RetailMeNot.com. You’ll end up driving more traffic and more sales.

#5 Run Great Sales

This is different from a promotion or coupon code. A sale is a limited-time discount on your products and is created within Seller Central on your inventory item’s page.

The benefit of a sale is that it’s marked at the top of the listing page that the product has been discounted. You can boost your sales by running a sale and see the benefit of increased sales rank on your items.

#6 Use FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon)

This one almost goes without saying. Using Amazon’s Fulfillment Service (one of Amazon’s best-kept secrets) can benefit your business in so many ways. Amazon handles returns and most customer service inquiries. Customers can get their orders in a fast and reliable manner, capitalizing on trust that’s already there for the ordering process. For more, see our Fulfillment by Amazon guide.

#7 Become a Featured Merchant on Amazon

We’re starting with the basics here: if you want to sell more on Amazon, you need to become a professional seller, which gives you the chance to become a featured merchant and win the Buy Box (more on that in a bit). Hint: if you’ve got a few products and a good sales history, you’ll become featured fast. Amazon’s Professional selling plan is $39.99 a month, and you can register for an Amazon professional selling account here. It opens up a whole host of tools that we’ll be discussing.

#8 Get the Buy Box

Getting the “Buy Box” is absolutely key on Amazon.

When a customer clicks “Add to Cart,” the merchant that has the “Buy Box” is the one that will get that default sale. If other merchants are selling that same item, the only way they get the sale is if the customer clicks on other buying options.

That’s why you want to make sure you are winning the Buy Box. It’s a complex algorithm that Amazon uses, but the main components are whether you’re a featured merchant, the price of your item, whether it’s fulfilled by Amazon, how much stock you have, and your seller history/feedback.

Competing against other merchants for the Buy Box can often be a race to the bottom (who’s willing to sell it for the lowest amount). That’s why there are some other things you can do (see #15 below) to help with this problem.

#9 Get Free Publicity for Your Products

Never underestimate the power of free publicity. Your local news website might be looking for a story. Check out who writes about local or business issues. They may just want to do a story about your business and your products. If there’s something unique about your products, or the way you do business, they may be interested in doing a story on you.

Another way to get free publicity is to jump off the high dive during the middle of the Olympics wearing a banner with your business name, but I’d recommend against that one.

#10 Raise Money for a Good Cause

Perhaps there’s a local cause you want to champion, and you’re willing to donate a portion of your profits for a time to the cause. Contact the cause and see if they’re interested. That free publicity we talked about earlier, that’s where this can come in. You’ll be doing something good for others, and it can help your business too.

#11 Bundle Your Products

Here’s something you can do without too much trouble. If you sell everything as a single pack, try creating a 2-, 3-, or 4-pack as well. This can increase the number of SKUs you have and thus increase your exposure on Amazon. It can also help because a bundle is going to bring in more money than just selling one at a time.

#12 Add Variations to Your Amazon Products

If you’ve got one product, why not offer the same product but in a different color or size? It’s called adding a variation to your product. Variations of the same product are great because they share the same listing page and benefit from the reviews already posted.

#13 Add More SKUs

Simply adding more products (SKUs) to sell can help you sell more. I know this one is self-evident, but increasing the number of products you sell can also increase the exposure of your company. Browsing customers could be interested in what else you have to sell and buy more. With the long tail, if you have more products, there’s a greater chance of those products selling over time. SKU = Stock Keeping Unit.

Instead of just adding random products to your lineup, consider adding complementary products. “Customers who bought X also bought Y.” You’ve seen the suggestions on Amazon, and those suggestions should pair your products together. If you sell shampoo, sell conditioner too. You get the idea. Add products to your lineup that complement one another, and you’ll see your sales increase.

#15 Brand Your Products (Using Private Label)

Okay, remember how we talked about how important the Buy Box was? If you’re competing against other sellers of the exact same product, it’s a race to the bottom of the pricing scale. If you have your own branded products, you’ll be building a business that lasts.

Creating private label products doesn’t have to be hard. Many manufacturers are willing to put your logo or brand name on a product that they make. That product then becomes your own and you can control the listing for that page.

#16 Use A+ Content (Formerly Enhanced Brand Content)

Amazon’s A+ Content (formerly Enhanced Brand Content) lets third-party sellers who have registered their own brand add large photos and richer formatting to the description section of their listing pages. This is huge because it lets you tell the story of your product and business much better than the default single-paragraph description. Better story = better sales.

#17 Focus on the 20% That Generates 80% of the Sales

Look at your products and see which ones are the best performers. Chances are, 20% of them drive 80% of your business. Focus on those products, make sure that you’re always in stock, and that you have good stock (inventory levels) of these products.

You never want to be out of those products. Check your Amazon bullet points and make sure they sparkle for those products.

#18 Give Product Samples to Bloggers

Amazon doesn’t allow you to give products to reviewers who are going to review on Amazon. It’s against the Amazon seller policy. It’s something that used to be allowed, but that’s changed. So, what can you do? You can send your product to bloggers who like to review products.

A more advanced approach is to find bloggers in your industry who don’t necessarily review products all the time but might be interested in taking a look at yours. Send them a free sample to review on their blog and share with their audience. Choose from a variety of bloggers. The A-listers might be too busy, but the B- and C-listers might be hungry for new content to write about.

#19 Amazon Coupons

Amazon has Promotions where you can create coupon codes. They have Lightning Deals, where you can put items on sale and maybe have them featured. Then there are Amazon Coupons.

Amazon Coupons are awesome because, as of this update, the discount shows in the product snippet when customers are searching. It’s a great way to catch a potential customer’s interest when they see a list of products in search and yours is marked with a note telling them they can save on this item.

#20 Ask for Customer Reviews

Amazon does not allow you to send marketing emails through its messaging system, and it looks down on automated systems that send out review requests. However, Seller Central has a Request a Review button that has Amazon send the customer an invitation to review their order.

Great Amazon customer reviews sell products. Amazon has provided an official way to ask for those reviews. Use it, but don’t abuse it.

Another option for brand owners is Amazon Vine, which invites trusted reviewers to post reviews of new products. (Vine effectively replaced the Early Reviewer Program, which Amazon retired in 2021.)

#21 Blog About Your Products and Business Story

You can send your products to other bloggers, but how about having a blog of your own? Be upfront that you are the manufacturer (if you are), and build a following. Tell your company’s and products’ story to engage readers. Link to your products to help drive sales.

#22 Get YouTube Reviews

There are a number of YouTubers who will review a product sent to them, and many of them have lots of followers. A good YouTube review can do wonders for your product. Potential customers searching the web for a product like yours could come across the video review and buy your product as a result. It’s another way to get your product into the search results online.

YouTube opportunities aren’t limited to reviewers. Contact people with YouTube channels related to your market and see if they would be open to a product placement or a sponsored episode.

These websites change often, but do a search for social shopping, and submit your products to these sites to gain more links and exposure to your products.

#25 Build a Website

Building your own website can pay big dividends. You’re essentially building an asset in and of itself. Even if you don’t want to sell on your website with a shopping cart, you can link to your Amazon products.

Lots of sellers use WordPress to showcase their Amazon products. Once it’s set up, you link to your products on Amazon. The benefit is that your website can start appearing in search results, and customers interested in your products will be able to learn more about your products and your company’s story. If you decide to sell from your own website in the future, you’ll have it ready to go.

#26 Increase Your Prices

Okay, this one may seem a little crazy. However, raising your prices can do something interesting. Yes, it could slow down your sales, but what do shoppers normally associate with higher prices? Greater quality. Some people are motivated to buy the cheapest option they can find. Others know that the cheapest is nowhere near the best.

They want to buy something that will last and has value, and that means paying a little more. It’s entirely possible that when you raise your price, your customers will also see an increase in value.

#27 Lower Your Prices

We can’t mention the first without mentioning this one. Perhaps what your products do need is a lower price to be more competitive. It’s all about finding that sweet spot, and it’s definitely worth a try.

#28 Try a Loss Leader

Sometimes companies will sell a product at a loss, or barely break even, just to get you in the door so that you’ll discover their other products. It’s a little different online, but not that different.

Consider the price range of all your products. Perhaps you need a lower-priced product that gets more attention and sells more often. That attention can lead potential buyers to your other products and drive sales.

#29 Give Something Away with Each Purchase

The Amazon promotions tool allows you to give away something free when a customer buys your product. Most often, this takes the form of a digital guide or download that goes along with your product.

This can also be a promotional tool if you have a low-cost item you want to give away as a bundle or as a promotion for customers who buy your product. You can set this up in the Promotions section of Seller Central.

#30 Create a Promotional Discount for Buying 2 or More

We’ve already talked about promotions, but this one deserves special attention. In the Promotions section, you can create a promotion where a customer who buys two or more of a particular item receives a discount.

This is a fantastic and easy way to drive sales. The customer is already interested in your product, and then they see on the listing page that if they simply buy a second one, they’ll get a discount. It’s almost too easy, and it’s one you should be sure to use.

#31 Promote Your Discounts

As crazy as it sounds, don’t forget to promote your promotions. Too often sellers will just create a promotion and hope that it works.

Make it prominent on your website that you’re running a holiday sale or special promotion. One of the best ways to make a promotion effective is to let customers know when it ends: give the date and time. That tells customers they need to act by a certain time or the deal will be gone.

#32 Create a Launch Day for New Products

Lots of sellers simply create their listings on Amazon when they have a new product and hope the sales will come. Why not build momentum and anticipation for your new products? On your website, let potential buyers know that a new product is coming and that it will be released on a certain day. Create a special promotion just for that product on that day. Blog about it. Let other bloggers know about it. Send out some samples in advance. Let your email list know about it in advance. Getting your product started with sales right out of the gate can tremendously benefit its future.

#33 Post on X (Twitter) to Sell More on Amazon

Now let’s get into social media. If you create your own website, you want that website to rank well, and one of the ways to help it rank is to have links pointing to it. You can legitimately create those links through social media. Create an X (formerly Twitter) account and link back to your website. But don’t stop there: engage with your customers and your marketplace. Build a presence and a following, and it will pay dividends.

#34 Use Promoted Posts on X

But how do you get noticed on X if you’re just starting out? You can use promoted posts. It’s basically running a post as an ad to drive traffic to your site, where you showcase your products. Make sure you provide something of value so that potential customers have a reason to click the link and visit your website, such as an interesting article about something they didn’t know about your product’s industry.

#35 Post on Instagram

As with X, post pictures of your product on Instagram, and include a link back to your website in your profile. Share coupon codes with your followers. Follow people in your industry and comment on their posts. Interact with others; that’s why it’s called social media.

#36 Use Instagram Ads

You can create and promote posts on Instagram to help drive traffic to your own website, where you showcase your products. This can be especially helpful if you’re just starting out on Instagram.

#37 Post on Pinterest

Pinterest is a great place to showcase your products and drive traffic to your own website. Make sure to post images of your products with a link back to your site. Search engines like Google can see those links from Pinterest to your site, which can help your site rank better in search results.

#38 Use Pinterest Ads

Just like on the other social networks, you can promote your posts (Pins) on Pinterest. Focus on Pins that would be valuable to potential customers. Again, the idea is to help potential customers visit your website, see your products, and follow through to your Amazon listings.

#39 Create a Business Page on Facebook

Create a page for your business on Facebook. Post about your industry and your products. Share your blog posts, along with anything else people in your market would find valuable. Many of these social media efforts take time, but they can pay big dividends in the long run.

#40 Post Videos of Your Products on YouTube

YouTube is the second-largest search engine. People search there all the time for reviews, insights, and cat videos. YouTube can be a great place to showcase your products and your company. You don’t have to be formal and corporate; let your personality show, and that will naturally draw people who could be interested in your products. Have fun with it, and link back to your website in the description of each video.

#41 Take Advantage of YouTube Ads

Compared to the other social networks, YouTube is unique because viewers can keep coming back to your content, whereas a social post can quickly get buried under everything posted after it. Another great thing about YouTube ads is that they can add to the view count of your videos. Use ads to draw attention to videos of your products.

#42 Put an Insert into Your Product Packaging with a Coupon Code

Have an insert made and put it in your product’s packaging, thanking the buyer for their purchase and offering a coupon code for their next purchase from your store.

#43 Create a Product Insert Asking for a Review

Along the same lines, include a physical insert asking the buyer to share their thoughts in a review on the product page. Reviews sell products. Amazon doesn’t allow you to incentivize reviews, but you can include a note in your product or its packaging inviting customers to share their thoughts. Don’t try to influence them one way or another; just ask for their honest opinion.

#44 Partner with Someone Big

Sometimes it’s time to go big. Reach out to the superstars and big players in your industry. You might be amazed at how many would be willing to showcase your product. You could also offer them a number of your products to give out to their customers as a promotion.

#45 Review the Keywords in Your Title, Description, and Keyword Fields

Make sure the text in your title, bullet points, description, and keyword fields includes the actual keywords customers would use when searching for your product. Don’t overstuff your listing (especially your title) with keywords, but make sure you’ve covered the wide range of words and terms shoppers might use when searching for a product like yours.

#46 Promote a Big Sales Day

A rising tide lifts all boats. Try a special discount day when all of your products are on sale. Again, a bump in sales on Amazon will increase your sales rank, and the effect can last much longer than the sale itself. Sometimes it takes just a little push to make your product more visible in the search results, and once it’s there, the success can build on itself.

#47 Expand Internationally

Amazon has made it easier than ever to sell internationally (especially to Canada and Mexico). You can enable selling in Canada and Mexico through your Seller Central account.

One way to sell more is to get your product in front of more people, and going internationally is a great way to do this. The help guides in Seller Central have instructions on how to do this.

#48 Put Video in Your Product Listings

Amazon and eBay let you place video in your product listings. There are a few caveats: you need to be the brand owner on Amazon, but you can still place videos on eBay, and many eBay shoppers will find a product on eBay and then check whether it has better shipping options on Amazon. There’s debate on whether Amazon is better than eBay, but eBay can help drive your Amazon sales, and it makes it easy to put video in your eBay listings.

A shopper on eBay could watch your video, and many shoppers look around the internet for the best deal and the fastest shipping, which is often on Amazon. That means an eBay listing with video can help drive sales to your Amazon listing.

#49 Find the Right Keywords That Sell

We talked earlier about updating your listing to include keywords in your bullet points, product description, and in the keywords field of the product setup, but how do you know you’re using the right keywords?

Seller Labs has a tool called Scope, and it’s one of the best keyword tools for Amazon sellers. Use it to discover not only which keywords will make the biggest difference in your products’ success, but also which products might be promising for your business.

#50 Make Some Noise. Be Remarkable.

Sometimes you’ve got to make a little noise to get a little attention.

Don’t be afraid to do something unique, whether it’s creating a promotional video that highlights something different about your product or telling the story of your business.

Same old, same old is boring. Find what’s unique about your products and a unique way to share that benefit.