Many Nigerian entrepreneurs are thinking about how to sell on Amazon from Nigeria. Do you wonder if it is possible or not?
Well! You are going to find the answers you need within this article. I will give you tips on how to sell on Amazon from Nigeria.
What is Amazon?
Amazon is the most prominent internet enterprise used by individuals and businesses, and the platform is available in several nations and different languages. Amazon sells e-books, baby dolls or gadgets, movies, electronics, music albums, and other goods.
They sell directly or act as the mediator between other retailers and their clients. Amazon.com is a well-known technology company around the globe whose business is to simplify online transactions for customers.
Why Amazon? | Benefits of selling on Amazon
E-commerce is gaining traction every day by day. The importance of selling your products online cannot be over-emphasized. There are many perks and benefits of going digital (online) with your products (physical or digital).
Amazon is the biggest and most trusted online retail marketplace in the world. The size of Amazon’s customers is the number one benefit; nine out of ten persons have heard about the Amazon marketplace.
There are high chances of your products or services having unlimited access to a large pool of customers on Amazon. Packaging and shipping are pretty easy on Amazon. Sellers who fear packaging and shipping fee are released from such worries.
Amazon’s website allows customers to view recommended products and services online, and your services could attract a customer’s attention when they’re searching for other services.
Amazon offers an affiliate program where any individual can pick your product to sell for you. In return, they earn a percentage of the product cost (usually below 8%). Affiliates would be willing to advertise your product for you. It allows you to reach more potential customers and make more profit.
Nigeria falls among countries that cannot register as a seller on the Amazon marketplace. This is due to the high fraudulent activities associated with the country.
Listed below are the approved countries to sell on Amazon;
Albania, Egypt, Madagascar Sweden
Angola, El Salvador, Malaysia Switzerland
Argentina, Equatorial Guinea, Mali Taiwan
Armenia, Estonia, Mauritius Thailand
Australia, Finland, Mexico Togo
Austria, France, Morocco, Trinidad & Tobago
Azerbaijan, Gabon, Mozambique Turkey
Bangladesh, Georgia, Namibia Uganda
Belarus, Germany, Nepal Ukraine
Belgium, Greece, Netherlands, United Kingdom
Benin Republic Guinea New Zealand the United States
Bolivia, Haiti, Niger Vietnam
Botswana Honduras Norway
Brazil, Hong Kong Oman
Brunei Hungary Panama
Bulgaria Iceland Paraguay
Burkina Faso, India Peru
Cambodia Indonesia Philippines
Cameroon Ireland Poland
Canada Israel Portugal
Chad Italy Romania
Chile, Ivory Coast, Russia
China Japan Senegal
Colombia Jordan Serbia
Costa Rica Kenya Singapore
Croatia Latvia Slovakia
Cyprus Lichtenstein Slovenia
The Czech Republic, Lithuania, South Korea
Denmark Luxembourg Spain
The Dominican Republic, Macedonia, Sri Lanka
Table of Countries Accepted for Seller Registration on Amazon
Source: SellerCentral
I will reveal this to sellers interested in gaining an international audience and generating cash on Amazon.
Guide on How You Can Sell on Amazon from Nigeria
image describing steps on how to sell on amazon from Nigeria
No specific regulations limit individuals outside the United States of America on how to sell their products on Amazon. This reveals clearly how to sell on Amazon. So, every Nigerian with considerable ambition can join this global online market, irrespective of their state in Nigeria.
Various vital steps must be completed before you can start selling on the largest e-commerce site. I highlighted why Amazon is not open to Nigerian sellers and some other countries.
Amazon expects registered and eligible sellers to provide credible and factual information about themselves and their products, backed up by a strong desire to work.
Here are the essential items you’ll need to open a seller’s account on Amazon:
1. Account Registration
On Amazon, selling any products or services anonymously is impossible. Sellers need to open or register an account on Amazon.
Nigerians are not eligible to register officially on the platform, and it is not easy to travel to the USA to open an account.
Worry not! The good news is that you don’t have to worry because; there is another way to open an amazon account.
First, you need people (family or friends) from other countries who are officially eligible to register on Amazon, e.g., Togo, Niger, and Chad.
They can officially register you on Amazon with their address. Par adventure, you cannot find anybody from the listed African country.
You can locate anybody or a relative in the U.S. to partner with so that you can access virtual physical presence.
During the registration process, a VPN is needed to hide your I.P. address to avoid further complications.
Further documents required for the registration;
Actual name
Genuine physical address for the approved countries
Accurate financial details such as Mastercard/Visa International banking card details.
Most Nigeria prefers to use their Payoneer account to receive.
A US EIN (Employer Identification Number) is simply an Identification Tax Number assigned to you.
Like eBay, Alibaba, Etsy, Google, and other online marketplaces, Amazon requires that you submit your EIN or Social Security Number at the end of the year for tax purposes. You will be taxed if you make above $600 online for the year.
You Can obtain yours from the website; IRS.GOV. Click on the link to fill out an application form called 10-BEN.
Fill in the necessary space box and print out the document. You will need the EIN code to activate your account further.
2. Account approval
Immediately you complete your registration process, you must be patient enough for Amazon to activate and approve your seller’s account. Before approval, consider that some monthly charges will be required, costing you $39.99 for account maintenance. If it’s an individual account that only supports the sales of 40 items per month, it will cost you $0.99 for each item sold.
3. Choosing a shipping partner or method
After successful account registration and activation, you need to read all the guidelines of Amazon for its network of sellers around the world. There are two ways you can choose your shipping method:
Move your products to your partner or friend who lives in an area that supports Amazon registration. This option is not the best because of the high international shipping cost, which may help likely many potential buyers.
Move your products to the Amazon warehouse through its FBA program (Fulfillment by Amazon). This is probably the most desirable to customers in the USA because your products are present at Amazon warehouse, and they are usually sold as ship-for-free programs offered by Amazon.
The second option can earn you more money. Sellers part of the FBA program need not ship each order separately because Amazon will do it for you.
It also takes a shorter period for your products to be shipped from African countries directly to your customers without any product missing.
4. Download the Amazon seller app
It will be nice to start using the app for convenience. The mobile app helps sellers to control and manage their new online store. Calculate your product’s worth correctly and add more products to your Amazon store. You can decide to publicize your product to get more audience on Amazon.