It is no secret that you can make money on Amazon. Even Amazon is pointing out this fact now. But there is a variety of different ways you can get rich or supplement your income on Amazon – and quickly too.
You don’t need to build your own private brand. You don’t need to deal with overseas manufacturers. And you don’t need to deal with Customs to start earning cash today.
We are going to discuss the 4 fastest ways to start raking in the dough from the Amazon platform. You can make money from books, t-shirts and even other companies’ inventory. And the amount of time you want to invest is all up to you.
Let’s see how you can start making money on Amazon fast.
Kindle Direct Publishing
One of the simplest – and fastest ways to get selling on Amazon is to start self-publishing. Yes, the Amazon platform has made it possible for you to sell your content on the largest eCommerce marketplace in the United States. Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) makes it possible for you to publish eBooks – and even hard copy books – on the Amazon platform.
KDP is quick and easy to set up and has almost no obstacles. The only information you need to provide for Amazon is tax information. Apart from that you can get publishing.
How is this the fastest way to make money on Amazon when writing a book is such hard work? Because you can completely outsource the entire process to ghostwriters and book cover designers. There is a variety of ghostwriting websites out there and you can even find people willing to create books for you on platforms like Upwork and Fiverr.
The great part about KDP is that Amazon will pay you a royalty for your sales – you never need to actually publish a hard copy or hold any inventory. Royalties depend on the price of the book and can range for 35%-70%!
KDP was actually the first way I started making money as an entrepreneur and something I still do on the side. It can provide a great stream of recurring revenue and is truly a passive income business.
Merch by Amazon
The second fastest way to make money on Amazon, in my opinion, is Merch by Amazon. The Merch program is a t-shirt design program that, like KDP, pays you royalties for each t-shirt that Amazon sells with your design on it.
Merch is another extremely passive business. All you need to do is create graphic designs and upload them to the Amazon platform. The Amazon listing is indistinguishable from other product listings on Amazon. It looks exactly the same and consumers have no idea that it isn’t.
Royalties are also based on price like KDP. However, commissions can range from 13% and higher. Again, like KDP you never hold any physical inventory. The royalties might not seem that great, but the business is virtually risk-free. I personally have never tried this model, but I have friends that do over $5,000 a month in royalties – just through Merch.
Retail Arbitrage
My first venture into physical products – not just digital books – was through retail arbitrage on Amazon. Retail arbitrage is simple. You are just selling branded products that are cheap and then selling them for a higher price on Amazon. Myself and my two business partners built up a couple of thousand dollars in profit from doing this – which lead to us creating our own brands to sell on Amazon from that money.
Retail arbitrage is a quick way to make money on Amazon. It is much easier than going down the traditional private label route on Amazon that requires working with manufacturers, creating a brand, dealing with customs and more. You are using existing brand recognition and sales history on Amazon to make money.
You can easily go to any big-box retailer and find plenty of opportunities. Check out the clearance aisles to what the inventory is. You can even use the Amazon app to scan barcodes and see how well a product is selling on Amazon.
We did this hitting every Walmart and Target in the entire Tri-State area looking for the best deals. It was well worth it and a huge part of the reason I am where I am today.
Selling Liquidated Inventory
Finally, the 4th fastest way to make money is purchasing liquidated inventory. Retailers, eCommerce platforms and even Amazon sellers sometimes need to move aging inventory to free up cash, move aging inventory or maybe even throwing in the towel on a product.
This can be a hidden opportunity for you to make a little profit quickly. Similar to retail arbitrage, you are buying products that already have brand recognition and sales history on the Amazon platform. Your advantage is that you are purchasing liquidated inventory, and therefore may be able to compete for the Buy Box off the bat due to the money you are saving.
There are a variety of platforms like Direct Liquidation that allow you to buy liquidated inventory. You can even purchase returned goods from Walmart, Amazon and Target and know exactly what state they are in ahead of time. You can then turn around send the inventory into Amazon FBA (or fulfill the product directly) and keep the difference.
Purchasing liquidated inventory is slightly more complicated than retail arbitrage because you might not always know exactly what you are keeping if you purchase large pallets. However, it is definitely a faster way to make money on Amazon then building out a private label brand.
Earn Some Extra Cash
Amazon presents some great opportunities for the true hustler to get out and make some quick money. Entrepreneurs, especially those starting out, should look into all the opportunities that Amazon presents them – because the extra cash you earn can help you achieve your larger dreams.
Whether you are looking into a passive income business or to get a little more hand on, Amazon has the right fit for everyone. You can get started quickly making money fast on Amazon by choosing one of these business models. Take advantage of these little gifts that Bezos has to give to all of us entrepreneurs and get started on Amazon today.
