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reputationiseverything · 3 years

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6 Alternatives to Amazon For E-commerce

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With a net worth of $1.7 trillion, Amazon has dominated the e-commerce sector for years, leaving many of its competitors in the shade. But are there alternatives to Amazon?

With an audience as vast as Amazon, small business start-ups and solo entrepreneurs flock to the site to sell the products, get established, and build their enterprises. Despite the audience Amazon offers, you may want to look for other online venues to list your items.

There are many good reasons to broaden your e-commerce horizons.

First, it makes little sense to put all your eggs in one basket. Second, selling on a wider range of marketplaces gets your products in front of a larger audience. And finally, looking at the other choices available could save you money on fees, or get you closer to your target buyers.

Below are some viable alternatives to Amazon. We’ll look at their advantages, their fee structures, and what makes them different.

Why You Should Use an Alternative to Amazon for Your E-commerce Business

We already touched on one of the main reasons to seek other venues: the perils of depending on one sales platform.

It’s not unheard of for sellers to have their accounts blocked. If you haven’t already established yourself on one of the alternatives to Amazon, your business could tank.

However, by setting up multiple accounts with different marketplaces, you’ve got greater flexibility if things go wrong. Plus, you can use other online platforms to test out which ones are the best for your products.

And there are other benefits in finding additional marketplaces, like:

Greater Flexibility

All e-commerce sales platforms have some measure of control over your business. They determine:

What products you can list

The terms and conditions of doing business

Your payment options

Shipping fees

These terms might not be suitable for your business. So, If you’re looking for greater flexibility, then seeking alternatives to Amazon is a good idea.

Better Customer and Vendor Support

Perhaps you feel the vendor or customer support is lacking. Amazon provides useful resources for sellers, like its university. But some sellers feel seller support is sometimes thin, especially when things go wrong.

More Shipping Options and Lower Fees With Some Amazon Alternatives

Amazon has changed its fee structure over the years, bringing frustration to some.

Amazon sets its professional selling plan at $39.99, with individual plans available free. And referral fees differ, depending on which category you’re selling in.

Shipping is a further reason to consider seeking alternatives as individual sellers on Amazon lack flexibility over their shipping costs.

If you’re looking to cut fees or branch out, then signing with some alternatives to Amazon may allow you to further scale your business while reducing costs.

Amazon Alternative Payment Choices

If you’re a seller on Amazon, you’ll know it makes payment via ACH or electronic funds transfer. Amazon distributes these payments to your bank account every two weeks, and they can take up to five days to clear.

But that doesn’t always work for everyone. If you’re a small business and cash is tight, signing up to e-commerce platforms with a broader range of payment options can improve your cash flow.

What to Look for in an Amazon Alternative

Before you search for alternatives to Amazon, you need to decide what you want from your business. You’ll need to consider the products you’re selling and your target customer, too.

For example, if you’re selling printable products, Etsy could be an excellent choice. Or, if you’re looking for consumers who understand tech, you may find Newegg works well for you.

Other areas you’ll want to think about include:

Ease of Use

Marketplaces that allow you to add items efficiently mean you can list more products in less time. But you’ll want to view any alternatives to Amazon from your customer’s perspective too.

How important is the ease of use? Well, if you note some recent research from Digital Commerce 360 and Bitrate, you’ll see this is a significant factor in the buying decision.

When researching new platforms, perhaps test them out for yourself and consider areas like:

Navigation

Ease of checkout

Payment options

Shipping choices

User Types

Think about your ideal consumer and the type of users the platform attracts. For example, eBay is huge, with 182 million active buyers. It’s great for snapping up limited-time deals, brand name products, and pre-loved items.

However, it’s not always the first place shoppers think of when looking for handmade goods or unique items. They’re more likely to head somewhere like Etsy.

Fees

Fees can take a considerable chunk of your profits if you’re not careful. Depending on the fee structure, some sites may not be suitable if you’re selling smaller, lower value items.

If you need some help in this area, fee calculators are helpful. Here’s a list of the well-known ones.

Best Alternatives to Amazon for E-commerce

What are some of the best Amazon alternatives when you’re looking to sell your products online? Let’s look at some of the top options, in no particular order.

Bonanza

Established in 2007, Bonanza has built itself a loyal following, with a vast range of categories. Sign up is free, and fees are straight forward. Final offer value fees are 3.5 percent for sales under $500. Sales over $500 attract an additional 1.5 percent fee.

Although it’s much smaller than Amazon, Bonanza has some advantages over its larger rival. They include a greater emphasis on building customer relationships and developing a sustainable business through repeat customers.

Equally appealing to sellers is the marketing tools Bonanza provides. These give you access to valuable data about product performance, allowing you to spot trends, optimize listings, and better market your items.

Other features include:

Automatic syncing with eBay, Amazon, and Shopify

Customized marketing tools

Image editing tools

Google integration

High level of customer support.

But what makes Bonanza stand out is its focus on unique items. It’s not trying to be another Amazon. As Bonanza puts it, it’s a site where you’ll find “everything but the ordinary”.

eBay

One of the most prominent alternatives to Amazon is eBay. Like Amazon, eBay has made considerable changes since its launch back in 1995. Over the years, eBay’s focus has moved away from the collectibles market it used to cater to, and it’s now more product-based.

Many famous brands like Rolex, Hasbro, and Microsoft make their goods available via ebay.com brand outlet site, enabling consumers to bag a bargain. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t still a place for more unusual or collectible items.

On eBay, listing fees and final value fees vary, but it sets many of its final value fees at 10 percent or less. If you need to calculate fees before listing, use an eBay fee calculator.

Some advantages of selling on eBay are:

A more comprehensive range of categories

More payment options for shoppers, like a credit/debit card, PayPal, and local collection. Sellers can also accept Apple Pay, Google Pay, and gift cards through managed payments.

Improved branding through eBay stores and marketing materials

What makes eBay stand out, though, is its auctions. Auctions may not be ideal for every business. However, sellers who specialize in collectible or rare items may find the bidding pushes their final sales price up higher than they could’ve imagined.

Etsy

If your business primarily sells printable products or art and craft items, then Etsy might be for you. Of the many alternatives to Amazon, Etsy has perhaps one of the most affordable and straightforward pricing approaches.

Each listing costs just 20 cents, and the listing is good for four months. Then there’s a five percent transaction fee for goods that sell. Payment processing fees are variable and depend on location. If you want to grow your business further, Etsy Plus is available at $10 a month.

Re-listing is simple, too. Just select the auto-renew option, and there shouldn’t be anything else to do on your part.

Advantages of selling on Etsy are:

Greater customization over how your store looks

Ideal for beginners

Lower fees

Sellers can list collectibles and vintage items on Etsy

That’s the advantages, but there are a couple of possible disadvantages worth mentioning. First, Etsy is much smaller than Amazon, which means there’s intense competition, so your products need to stand out.

Second, although fees are cheaper, you may make more sales on Amazon Handmade because of its larger audience share.

Walmart Marketplace

Amazon dominates e-commerce, but Walmart is gaining ground. Recent sales figures show Walmart’s e-commerce sales have soared by 74 percent. This stat means if you’re looking for alternatives to Amazon, Walmart could be promising.

Like Amazon, Walmart now offers a fulfillment service. Although storage and fulfillment fees apply, Walmart’s fee structure is less complicated than Fulfillment by Amazon, and referral fees are competitive.

In addition, with Walmart’s marketplace, there’s no start-up or ongoing monthly fees. However, you’ll want to factor in other costs, like unique product codes (UPCs).

Advantages of selling on the Walmart marketplace include:

Lower costs

Less competition due to buyer/seller ratio

Price control over inventory

What makes the platform different? Unlike Amazon, Walmart’s marketplace is only open to invited brands. You can’t just register and start selling. But you can sign up.

To register your interest in selling, Walmart asks businesses to fill out the interest form.

Newegg

Newegg has gained a reputation as the top global tech marketplace online. But it also sells apparel, home and lifestyle products, sports/health-related items, TVs, and plenty more.

As for fees, non-elite membership is free. Elite membership has two tiers ranging from $29.95-$99.95 a month. Commissions vary, with the highest being 12 percent.

Advantages of selling on Newegg include:

Can be cheaper for tech products

Attracts tech buyers who are knowledgeable about products

The Newegg search engine makes finding electronics and components quicker

Customized marketing for businesses

Various payment choices for sellers including weekly ACH payments, PayPal, Wire Transfer, PingPong, Payoneer, and World First

A wide range of payments for buyers, including PayPal and BitPay

But it’s the multi-channel fulfillment option that may interest sellers the most. If you’re selling from various platforms, Newegg provides a central point to manage all your orders.

Shopify

When you sell on a third-party platform, you have limited control. Many online sellers favor setting up their stores the Shopify platform.

The site offers new sellers a 14-day free trial to get them started. After that, a basic Shopify store will cost you $29 a month. Online credit card rates are 2.9 percent + 30 cents. And you should find it easy enough to start selling.

Once you’ve signed up for the free trial, the next steps are to:

Add products

Selecting images

Set shipping details

Customize pages for search engines using keywords

Create main pages

Customize store

The benefits of Shopify include:

Highly-rated customer support and selling features

Greater customization

Large range of e-commerce tools and apps

Access to the e-commerce university

You can accept a large range of currencies

Conclusion

There are a variety of reasons you might be looking for alternatives to Amazon. Maybe you want a platform that provides a wider range of payment options, a site that’s more niche, or you just want a more extensive selection of online marketplaces to sell your wares.

As you can see, there are many venues available, and they all have their advantages. Sites like Bonanza have established a loyal audience, and Walmart’s e-commerce presence is growing strong.

Niche sites such as Etsy and Newegg are ideal for specialist items, and eBay offers greater customization and various selling methods, including auctions.

If you want to go it alone, there’s always Shopify, where you can set up and market your own e-commerce business.

Are you an online seller? Tell us about your favorite platform and your experiences below.

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therealestatesparkblog · 6 years

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How Two 30-Something Twins Achieved FIRE in 5 Years on Rental Income

Spoiler alert: Drew and Scott Hoefler still work today. Except now its by choice. Now in their early 30s, the twins live and invest in the Twin Cities, and a decade ago never even considered a career in real estate. After five years of investing in real estate, they successfully reached financial independence. Heres their story, complete with the mistakes they made along the way. House Hunting, House Hacking In 2013, the twins were single 20-somethings working for agricultural giant Land-O-Lakes, looking to buy their first home. They planned to buy a home with a few bedrooms together, move in, and bring on a roommate or two if the house were big enough. Then, over dinner with their parents one night, their mom offered a better idea: Why dont you buy a two-flat? (Thats Midwest for duplex, FYI.) Teenagers may sneer at every idea their parents have, but in your 20s, you start paying attention once more to your parents advice. We quickly realized that we could live in one side, rent out the other side and cover our mortgage we were all-in. The hunt for the perfect duplex was on!

The (First) Duplex After touring some duds, the twins came across a gem in the Arts District in northeast Minneapolis. They described it as an up and coming neighborhood, which was not a euphemismthe neighborhood was gentrifying with a fun and funky craft beer scene. Then came the first stumbling block. At first look, Drew and I had trouble seeing the lower unit because of issues with the renters. We put our offer in based upon seeing the upstairs unit only. You know where this is going. The downstairs unit needed work, which they discovered after putting the duplex under contract. Luckily, the work was cosmetic, nothing structural or mechanical. Upon buying the property, they non-renewed the tenants, made updates such as removing the drop ceiling, and moved in. The purchase price was $208,000. Our financing was an American Dream program that was an owner-occupied conventional loan financed by U.S. Bank. Great program. We rented the upstairs unit out for $1,300 from day one. That proved enough to cover their mortgage payment. A successful house hack. Nowadays, with further gentrification in the neighborhood, they charge $1,700 for that upstairs unit. Related: Are Your Children Stopping You From Achieving Financial Freedom? Rinsing & Repeating the House Hack When you use owner-occupied financing, you have to live in the property for at least one year. So thats exactly what the Hoefler twins did. Seeing how easy it was to house hack and generate rental income, the twins knew they were onto something. They wanted to expand their portfolio. The first thing they did was look for other ways to lower their expenses, so they could put more of their income aside for their next property. If youve ever read a single sentence about FIRE (financial independence, retiring early), you know that the first rule of FIRE is maximizing your savings and investments. (FIRE Challenge: Start by brainstorming ways to live on half your income!) As they neared the end of their first year of house hacking, they set out to find another multifamily to house hack. They successfully rinsed and repeated this process for several years, living in the property for a year then buying a new multifamily and moving in, with owner-occupied financing. Which is a great way to start, but not a viable long-term strategy. First, its slow. It limits you to a maximum of one property per year. Another problem is that at a certain point, conventional lenders stop lending to you. Most conventional lenders allow a maximum of four mortgages on your credit report. Then theres the fact that you have to move every single year. That gets old, even when youre in your 20sespecially when you get married, and your wife isnt keen to live with your twin brother for the rest of your lives. Which, of course, is exactly what happened. It was around this point that Scott married Jennifer, and this whole hopscotch-investing plan started showing its limitations. Transitions Fortunately for the Hoefler twins, Jennifer instantly saw the appeal of the twins vision. She looked into the FIRE and liked what she saw. With her contributing a third income and the rapidly accruing income from their rentals, Team Hoefler set their sights on 20%-down rental property loans. They picked up two single-family rentals. The first was rented for $1,350, which they bought for $107,000a straightforward enough deal. The second was a small one-bedroom home they picked up for $65,000. Initially, we planned to rent it conventionally at around $900, but while we were doing the turnover updates, we listened to a BiggerPockets episode about Airbnb. Halfway through the hour-long episode I decided to make it into an Urban Cottage and make well over $900/month using the vacation rental platform.

Scaling & Strategy Most of the properties we buy need heavy cosmetic work: paint, cabinets, floors, bathrooms, light fixtures, and so on. We do most of the work ourselves. It helps to be handy! The Hoeflers have also tried their hand at full renovations, though those havent always been smooth (more on that shortly). But typically the Hoeflers follow the BRRRR strategy: buy, renovate, rent, refinance, repeat. They use hard money to finance the acquisition and renovations, then refinance to a 30-year fixed rental property mortgage. Our business model is to find properties that are undervalued from a rental perspective and do heavy cosmetic work to push market value. Or find complete remodels where we can capitalize on the potential ARV (after-repair value). The result? They average around $350-400 monthly net cash flow from each door. Related: Why Financial Freedom Can Be Highly OverratedAnd Not Necessarily Lead to Happiness Missteps Along the Way Our first full remodel was a bust. We had issues with contractors, blew our budget and eventually ended up with an overpriced home that wasnt even completed. We still own the home today, as a rental with minimal cash flow. The good news? Our saving grace is that we went into the project with plenty of backdoor options. The property is in a fantastic neighborhood, which has been seeing solid growth. We knew that the rental market would be strong enough to at least break even. I asked the Hoeflers about what they learned from the experience. The main lesson (among many others) is Do not make decisions based on need. At a certain point we realized we were in over our heads, and we failed to think through our options and the long-term consequences of our decisions. We were making emotional decisions based on our current sense of need. Reaching FIRE & The Ever-After The stability that real estate investing has brought to our lives meant we have been free to change careers, build businesses, travel, and ultimately give back in ways we never thought possible. The twins quit their day jobs, but they found they loved investing in real estate enough to keep going. Today, they sell small multifamily properties to other investors in the Twin Cities, through a company called The Duplex Doctors. Why retire when youre having so much fun making money? Altogether, along with my wife Jenny and my brother Drew, we own eight total properties with 14 doors. We are about to close on another four properties with seven doors. I asked Scott about his final words of advice for anyone looking to reach FIRE through rental properties. Sit down and think through your why for purchasing real estate. Everyone says money at first. But to be truly successful in this industry, you need a deeper reason than just the desire to make money. So? Whats your why, Scott? For me, my time is my most valuable resource. My hope is that real estate will allow me the capacity to give back to this world in ways a standard 9-5 job cant. Its hard to argue with that.

Interested in FIRE from real estate? Whats your why? How are you approaching the journey to FIRE, and what are your questions along the way? Weigh in with a comment! https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/fire-in-5-years-on-rental-income

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therealestatesparkblog · 6 years

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How Two 30-Something Twins Achieved FIRE in 5 Years on Rental Income

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