Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. That was the major takeaway of Intentwise’s recent webinar with aiCommerce, a digital marketing company that specializes in creating e-commerce strategies on Walmart, Instacart, and more.
Though Amazon remains the most important e-commerce sales channel, savvy brands should consider diversifying outside of it, too.
The stats speak for themselves. As Jeff Campbell, president of aiCommerce, told us on the webinar, 62% of e-commerce sales happen off of Amazon. Platforms like Walmart and Instacart are growing quickly, and even B2B marketplaces like Faire and Tundra “are enjoying triple-digit percentage growth,” Campbell noted. “The fragmentation and complexity will continue. It’s just something we have to get used to.”
Watch the full webinar video below.
Launching on new marketplaces can drive significant growth. Campbell used the example of his client brand, Lumieworld, which saw 106% revenue growth after expanding to Faire and other non-Amazon marketplaces.
Walmart in particular is becoming a critical sales and advertising channel. Its ad revenue has jumped 42% YoY, and Jerry Gertes, director at aiCommerce, noted that it has some unique advantages in its access to data.
“By selling on Walmart’s marketplace, you can access first-party consumer data for behavioral targeting,” Gertes said. In other words, you can get direct data from the largest physical retailer in America. (If you’re curious to understand Walmart’s ad formats, we outlined it in a recent blog post.)
But wait—before you rush into launching on new marketplaces, you have to ask yourself some critical questions. You want to decide: Which products should you roll out on other marketplaces? Where is the opportunity on each new marketplace? It might not make sense to put your whole category on every new channel.
You also want to explore how your fulfillment strategy will look for each channel, what your break-even profitability will need to be, and the current exchange rates if you’re selling globally.
Also keep in mind the quirks of each channel. Walmart, for instance, is unlike Amazon in that it creates a new listing for duplicate products from different sellers. Even if the product is the same, each seller of the product will get its own Walmart listing.
That can represent a significant brand reputation risk. “If you’re not on the marketplace and you’re considering it, it’s much better for you to be on before everyone else,” Gertes said.
Of course, even as you expand, you shouldn’t forget Amazon. You don’t want to mess with your strategy on the e-commerce behemoth.
For example, remember that Amazon is always scraping for pricing on other sites. If it finds a lower price, you might lose your buy box on Amazon. According to Campbell, “That’s a problem with what could be your largest channel.”
