Everything you need to know to start selling on Amazon

More than 180 participants, including companies from a wide range of sectors such as food, pharma, industry, textiles, accessories, footwear and cosmetics, participated in the seminar How to sell on Amazon from Uruguay.

The activity was organised by the Export and Investment Promotion Institute, Uruguay XXI, with the support of the National Agency for Innovation and Development (ANII), the Chamber of Commerce and Services of Uruguay (CCSU), the Chamber of Design of Uruguay (CDU), the Chamber of Industry of Uruguay (CIU) and the Union of Exporters of Uruguay (UEU).

From May this year, Uruguayan companies can internationalise their business through Amazon, one of the most relevant US-based e-commerce platforms globally. The aim of the activity was to review the most important aspects that Uruguayan companies should take into account when starting to sell on this marketplace.

The meeting was opened by the executive director of Uruguay XXI, Jaime Miller, and included the participation of Mishel Velez and Juan Pablo Carrero, directors of the Oxígeno accelerator, who explained the advantages, opportunities and tools for selling on Amazon. In addition, Uruguayan entrepreneur Ariel Opoczynski, head of Modcycles USA, shared his experience in selling on Amazon and some main practical aspects to consider.

Miller pointed out the opportunity and the challenge for Uruguayan MSMEs to connect with new consumers. "It is not an easy or simple process, but it is surely a path that brings its rewards, and from Uruguay XXI we are committed to developing our export culture", he said.

For Mishel Velez, Amazon is a window that allows scaling to other markets, as she acknowledged that it represents 50% of the total market in the United States alone.

Oxígeno's representatives highlighted that some of the advantages are the immense amount of user traffic and the volume of supply and demand, the tools offered by the platform itself to understand the market and the competition, as well as the preferences and behaviour of consumers.

Velez highlighted the importance of implementing marketing and search optimisation strategies based on keywords that distinguish the brand and a creative and empathetic approach to users' needs.

Likewise, Juan Pablo Carrero stated that, before incorporating the platform into a marketing plan, it is essential to research the market within Amazon, analyse the competition and the differential itself to recognise the real opportunities of a brand or product, and make an economic projection based on data to be sure that the strategy is the right one.

Ariel Opoczynski, from Modcycles USA –a company that has been selling its products on Amazon since 2011– stressed how important it is to develop a local community of Amazon sellers and explained some key aspects of his business.

The entrepreneur detailed the importance of brand registration on the platform, the implementation of "pay per click" campaigns and the excellent results of Amazon's customer sample programme to reach users.

The businessman stressed that "no platform is as important as Amazon", as product quality is crucial and returns should be kept to a minimum. Similarly, Opoczynski noted that performance requirements are extremely high, and dedicated attention and quick responses to users are required because it is "a platform completely focused on the customer experience, which does not give second chances".

E-commerce has become a key element for the growth of many companies, but especially for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), which in Uruguay account for 78% of the core of exporting companies (938 in 2020) according to the working document "Characterisation of MSMEs Exporting Goods in Uruguay", published by Uruguay XXI in March 2021.

Despite these numbers, MSMEs represent only 6% of the exported value, however, they generate 20% of the jobs in the exporting nucleus, representing approximately 14,049 employed people according to 2020 data.

• Find out about the tools and programmes for exporting companies and potential exporters on the website I want to export by Uruguay XXI.