Today marks the fifth anniversary of my #Amazon consulting career. It's a good t
By Martin Heubel ยท May 15, 2026 ยท Curated by George's Blog
Today marks the fifth anniversary of my #Amazon consulting career. It's a good time to reflect on the key observations that really haven't changed since the beginning:
๐ญ - ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ข๐๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ
To win with Amazon, you must actively manage it as a dedicated sales channel. Amazon won't grow your sales or profit margins. You, as the brand, have to grow them.
๐๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐: If you sell on Amazon, ensure your teams are held accountable for sell-in and sell-out!
๐ฎ - ๐๐ ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป > ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ
Amazon operates differently from brick-and-mortar retailers. Brands with a traditional sales background tend to pride themselves on their past successes... and get overtaken by newcomers because they fail to execute the right promo and price-pack architecture strategies.
๐๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐: Your offline success doesn't matter as much online. It's a hard pill to swallow, but expanding your digital competencies is key.
๐ฏ - ๐๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฏ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐น
Selling products with low/no distribution control will quickly lead to unsustainable margins on your vendor account. Creating a distribution strategy that meets the realities of the online channel is mandatory to managing your Amazon margins in 2026/27.
๐๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐: Improving your Amazon margins starts inside your organisation and outside annual vendor negotiations.
๐ฐ - ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐ผ ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
Amazon's price-follower strategy is ruthless. If you cannot control your distribution, you must differentiate your portfolio. Larger pack sizes and online exclusives are effective ways to do this.
๐๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐: Make sure to always prioritise the unique selling proposition for the end customer. Otherwise, your exclusive products will simply be matched against their non-exclusive counterpart.
๐ฑ - ๐ก๐ฒ๐ด๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐
Few retailers require as many negotiating skills as Amazon. Once you invest a certain $ amount, it remains in your Amazon P&L for several years.
๐๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐: Make sure every $ is invested in trading terms with a clear ROI and growth impact. If you want to benchmark your investment setup, my vendor diagnostic service might be a good fit (PM me for details).
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What else would you add?
Let me know in the comments!
#amazonvendor #amazonstrategy