The Webretailer News Digest for September 13, 2022
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We’re not an Amazon partner, but a deal is a deal with SMBs.
It’s ‘Small Business Month’ for Amazon Business customers. That means the retail giant is offering some excellent promos if you’re a small business owner. And today, Amazon kicks off its Small Business Deals Week running through next Sunday the 18th.
“Deals,” you say?
Small businesses using the Amazon Business platform can access promotions on key business items this week, including:
- Office products
- Furniture items (home too!)
- PCs and laptops
- Portable devices
- Breakroom supplies
- Janitorial & sanitation items
- Maintenance and repair items
What’s the catch?
There’s no catch. It’s all part of “Small Business Month” on the platform that kicked off last Thursday. As part of the event, Amazon is handing out over $250k in grants plus some additional benefits to fifteen lucky businesses. As long as you’re an existing Amazon Business customer with annual revenue of less than $1 million, then you can apply.
There’s Prime, and then there’s Business Prime
Remember, just because you have an Amazon Business account doesn’t mean your order qualifies for Prime shipping — that’s only on the consumer side. Instead, Amazon has Amazon Business Prime which offers multiple pricing tiers with different benefits. The duo is the tier they market to individual business owners at $69/year, and SMBs can go with the Small tier at $499/year for up to 10 users.
Our readers in the US, UK, India, France, Germany, Canada, Spain, and Japan are eligible for Amazon Business.
Top Retailer News
Etsy Up: Holiday Edition lays out insights about the direction of the company
Almost 80,000 registered sellers tuned into the largest Etsy seller event in company history last Thursday. It was a global holiday kickoff event called Etsy Up: Holiday Edition.
What went down?
They stated the obvious in that the holiday shopping season is the busiest of the year. But the interactive event also provided insider tips, trends, and tools along with actions sellers can take to get their shop noticed and increase sales. Some key insights covered:
- Using Etsy Marketplace trends and insights with products and photography.
- Social media marketing strategies like content marketing, live shopping, and product drops.
- Tips on how to manage a business during times of uncertainty
- Understanding SEO
Feed me more
Apparently, Etsy Up was just the tip of the iceberg to boosting the company and the morale of its seller base.
The company announced it’s investing nearly $600 million in marketing for 2022, including a holiday ad expected to roll out in November. They’re also enhancing their Sell on Etsy app which recently added features like video and photo uploads from mobile devices.
CEO Josh Silverman also stated that Etsy will redesign its Etsy Seller Handbook. He said in his blog post covering the event that the handbook “is a gateway to our community spaces, events, upcoming feature opportunities, and the Help Center.”
He also stated that the company will “launch the new homepage in the coming weeks and roll out even more updates in the months ahead.”
eBay to partner with clothing reseller Reskinned
Last Thursday, eBay announced a new partnership with sustainable clothing resale and repair specialist Reskinned. A release stated that the company intends “to expand the online marketplace’s offering of preloved items and reduce growing fashion waste.”
Who is Reskinned?
According to the release, UK-based Reskinned takes ‘preloved’ clothing items and “reconditions them for resale, repurpose or recycle.” One of the company’s key goals is to extend the life of existing clothes and keep them out of landfill.
They work with over thirty brands and price items around forty percent lower than retail value. It’s a task they say helps shoppers make good choices for both the planet and their wallet.
Speaking on the announcement, Reskinned co-founded Matt Hanrahan said, “Through this partnership with eBay, the original home of preloved, we hope to increase our reach and offering of our brand partners, ensuring preloved items find new owners, and realize a more sustainable fashion future.”
A push towards Recommerce and focus categories
The partnership makes sense as eBay continues its “focus category” strategy that includes a ton of niche markets. Recommerce is also a key part of that strategy.
According to eBay’s global 2022 Recommerce Report, financial reasons are the primary motivation to buy previously owned items. But “42% of eBay buyer respondents also cited environmental concerns and a hope to reduce waste.”
Also in the News:
- Amazon sellers report fears about the holiday season with customer spending pullbacks. Bloomberg.
- Amazon CEO states he has no intention of forcing workers back into the office. CNBC.
International eCommerce News
ByteDance shuts down support for eCommerce app in China
After only nine months in operation, ByteDance is ceasing support for Douyin Box according to the South China Morning Post. With the Chinese government tightening regulations in the nation and businesses struggling, the company is cutting elements of its business that are struggling to make ends meet.
What is Douyin Box?
According to reports, Douyin Box was an extension of Douyin — China’s version of TikTok — that allowed users to view live streams and videos specially picked to promote merchandise for younger viewers. But apparently, Douyin already has a shopping feature, so ByteDance is cutting the fat.
Why would they launch it then?
The SCMP stated ByteDance has been labeled as an “app factory” in China putting out new apps at an incredible pace and sweeping them under the rug when they don’t perform. Regardless, ByteDance is continuing its shopping push into Southeast Asia where it has been running a series of promotional campaigns for online shopping.
Alibaba extends its presales campaign for Singles Day
Let’s be honest. Black Friday and Prime Day are huge sales events. Yet, they pale in comparison to China’s Singles Day held annually on November 11th. But this year, analysts expect sales to take a dip for both eCommerce retailers amid a struggling Chinese economy.
What’s the plan?
To boost sales and keep an upward trend, Alibaba announced last week that it will kick off Singles Day with an extended presale campaign. On October 24th, customers can pay deposits to secure items as long as they complete their payments by Singles Day.
There’s a lot of competition in China, and everyone is scrambling to increase their share of the pie. But we’ll have to wait until November to see who comes out on top and if Alibaba’s presale extension has a positive effect on their revenue.
Also in the News
- Singapore eCommerce SaaS tech provider Anchanto launches four new products. Malaya Business Insight.
- The Indian government completed a framework to combat fake eCommerce reviews. Inc42.
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