Do You Really Need an Amazon FBA Coach?
Many Amazon sellers ask if they really need an Amazon FBA coach when they’re starting and scaling their Amazon business.
In general, it is advisable to complete an Amazon training or course and then find an Amazon FBA coach to help guide and mentor you as you navigate the jungle of Amazon FBA.
Read on further to learn the benefits of working with a coach, and how to select one that is best suited for you.
But first, let’s talk about selecting an Amazon course.
How to select an Amazon FBA course
Most Amazon sellers complete either paid or free training courses to get started selling on Amazon.
While there is a lot of information available for free on YouTube, it is advisable to take a proper course that is well-organised and covers all the key fundamentals of Amazon selling.
There are literally hundreds of courses promoted by self-proclaimed gurus. Some offering that you can be living the dream in 6 months – stay away from those. Very few of the courses offer real practical information from actual experienced successful sellers.
Most of these courses don’t always give you the support or the expertise that is needed as you start and grow an Amazon business.
An FBA course helps you understand the basics of selling on Amazon.
Tips for selecting an Amazon FBA course
Here are some considerations when deciding on a course:
- Ensure the course instructor has e-commerce experience, and is actively selling on Amazon.
- Ideally, a course should cost around US$800 – US$1,500. If the course is more expensive than this, you’re paying too much.
- How often the course is updated. As the rules of Amazon change frequently, it is important that the course instructor keeps the course up-to-date.
- What kind of support is provided to students. Ask if they provide Amazon FBA coaching on an ongoing basis. Some courses offer one-on-one sessions of FBA coaching.
- Talk to other sellers who have done the course and read reviews online.
Courses we recommend
These are courses we ourselves have taken, and personally know the course instructors. They are affordable, have high quality content, and are run by accomplished and reputable e-commerce experts.
How an Amazon FBA coach help you
An experienced coach can help guide you on your Amazon FBA journey.
Amazon is not a hobby but a serious business that takes time and a substantial monetary investment to scale and be successful.
There are so many moving parts and varied skills required in the Amazon business model making it difficult for new starters to understand and get a grip on all the requirements to be successful.
Engaging an FBA selling coach can complement your course and ensure you don’t make mistakes along the way.
Most successful business entrepreneurs have mentors or coaches so you are not alone when seeking Amazon FBA coaching to assist make you think outside the box and encourage you.
As you start moving through your journey you should engage in some Amazon FBA coaching to assist with integral steps as you move through all the processes required just to get your product live and selling.
Going it alone can cost you a lot of lost time figuring out how to do certain steps whereas an experienced FBA selling coach can teach you lots of tips and tricks, quite often not included in your course.
How to select an FBA coach
Selecting the right Amazon FBA coach is important as you want to be sure that the person you choose has hands-on experience with the Amazon platform and can offer you help and support when making decisions.
Here are some tips for selecting and working with a coach:
- Ensure the coach is an active and experienced private label seller on Amazon.
- Ask people who have engaged the same FBA selling coach.
- Many coaches / mentors offer a free 30 minute consultation – this gives you the opportunity to see if you feel that they are right for you.
- You can ask your Amazon coach to work through the areas that you find most confusing or are not your strengths.
- It always helps to work with coaches on difficult areas such as product selection, sourcing, profit calculation, etc.
- If you have live listings, you can also ask the coach to do a review of your listing.
- Coaches usually charge by the hour, so make sure you utilise the time effectively by preparing a list of questions to ask before the coaching call.
- Ask the coach to record the session so you can focus on asking questions during the call, and don’t need to take notes.
Margaret Jolly, Amazon FBA Coach
Margaret Jolly, Co-Founder of India Sourcing Network also offers Amazon FBA coaching.
She has been selling private label products on Amazon since 2017, and sources all her products from India.
“The main thing people miss when starting out is to look at viable products, as well as knowing and allowing enough margin to cover all the associated costs of doing business under the Amazon business model,” says Margaret.
“This is the key to your success as you cannot make a business decision without taking into account every cost.
At the end of the day you are doing this to make PROFIT, not just to turnover stock and make everyone else rich along the way.”
Margaret can also tailor more structured FBA coaching depending on your needs.
Summary
You cannot be an expert at everything but having an Amazon mentor or coach to guide you can make your journey less stressful and be more profitable in the long run.
It is important when selecting someone to assist you with your Amazon FBA coaching that you find someone who is a good fit and that you gel with.
The cost of a coach far outweighs the losses you can have by not knowing the crucial steps required.