Amazon can be seen as the hub of all online retail activity. With close to 200 million people shopping on the site each month, it’s no surprise that Amazon had a revenue of $75.5 billion in the first quarter of 2020. These numbers make Amazon a sought-after place for most businesses trying to sell their products online. With millions of active sellers already on Amazon though, it can be extremely difficult to stand out from the ever-growing crowd.
In a bid to get noticed on Amazon, many businesses turn to Amazon influencers. These are people who have been able to find impressive levels of success by selling on Amazon. They know what works, they know ways to quickly improve your results, and they know what mistakes need to be avoided at all costs.
Amazon influencers can be a great way of increasing brand awareness and drastically increasing your sales numbers. Following the right influencer can quickly lead to huge growth in your business if you take the advice they offer.
There are some highly successful Amazon influencers who are experienced, knowledgeable, and positive sources of inspiration and idea generation. If you’re trying to up your Amazon game, checking some of these people out could make a difference in your Amazon success.
Steve Chou
Steve Chou started a business called Bumblebee Linens in 2007 that sold linens designed for special occasions. The business is still going today which is a good indication that Steve knows what he is talking about. With many new businesses failing in the first 5 years, Bumblebee Linens is well over 10 years old and still going strong.
He now has a blog – My Wife Quit Her Job, as well as his social media accounts where he shares lots of useful information about running a successful online business including how to succeed on Amazon.
Steve Chou has even created an online course that can be purchased to teach business owners how to create and run a successful e-commerce business. Considering he is involved with a couple of million-dollar businesses, you can be pretty sure he knows what he is talking about.
Stephen Smotherman
Stephen Smotherman uses his social media and YouTube accounts to try and help others make a full-time income by taking advantage of FBA (Fulfillment By Amazon). He began using this strategy in 2011 and has built a very successful business from it.
Both he and his wife now, very publicly, promote the fact they work part-time hours but are still able to generate more than enough income to support themselves and their family. This type of lifestyle is something that many of us would love to have. If you think you’re not using Amazon FBA to its full potential, Stephen Smotherman may be able to help.
Larry Lubarsky
Larry Lubarsky is more commonly known as Watch Me Amazon online. He began selling on Amazon in 2012 when he bulk-bought brand-name products and then sold them individually on Amazon. Larry has been able to turn this business idea into a very profitable reality that clears $10 million in sales each year.
Larry runs a website that is effectively an online academy teaching people how to do a similar thing to him. He also shares advice and tips through his social media channels too. Larry Lubarsky has turned his life around in ways that so many people want to do. He has proven it’s possible, which can be a source of great inspiration for new business owners all over the world.
Kevin Blackburn
Kevin Blackburn is an Amazon influencer who has not only succeed in building a very profitable business on the platform, but has also developed a personal development and coaching plan that can help others achieve similar levels as him.
Kevin uses his website to share motivational videos to help you improve your mindset and skill base to be able to live the life you want to live and achieve your full Amazon seller potential.
Richard Lazazzera
Richard Lazazzera started his successful website – A Better Lemonade Stand as a way of documenting the process he went through when starting his own e-commerce business. He provides honest accounts of what happened along the way in the hope that other business owners can benefit from his experience.
With more than a quarter of a million people visiting his site each month, Richard is a popular Amazon influencer that seems to know exactly what he is talking about.
Austin Brawner
Austin Brawner has a website, social media accounts, and even a podcast dedicated to helping people achieve success in their business and their Amazon sales. The E-commerce Influence Podcast is all about succeeding in the world of business. With episodes about product launches, sales ideas, and Amazon-specific issues, it’s a fantastic resource for business owners everywhere.
Dan Vas
Dan Vas is something of a stereotypical dream achiever. After dropping out of university, he ended up becoming a millionaire before he was 22 years old. He now shares things he thinks will help others achieve big things through his social media channels.
He has also created a course based on Amazon selling and FBA that goes through his process for becoming a successful Amazon seller.
Andrew Youderian
Andrew Youderian is the creator of E-commerce Fuel which claims to be the world’s largest community of 7 and 8-figure store owners with more than 1000 members. This is the main place where Andrew shares his advice and guidance on how to be successful on Amazon. He also hosts Amazon meet-ups and various other events where like-minded business owners can meet and share ideas and experiences.
Rachel Greer
Rachel Greer used to work for Amazon so it makes sense that she would have some useful information that could help people succeed on the platform. After leaving Amazon, she set up Cascadia Seller Solutions which covers all aspects of Amazon selling including marketing, product launches, and ways to protect and grow your business.
Rachel and the team she has built have a huge wealth of experience and knowledge when it comes to being successful on Amazon. The blog on her business website alone has vast quantities of useful information that can help business owners increase their levels of success.
Liran Hirschkorn
Liran Hirschkorn sold an online life insurance agency in 2014 and decided to move into the world of e-commerce. He has since started several e-commerce businesses that have sold millions of dollars worth of products on Amazon. He started Incrementum Digital in 2020 which helps e-commerce businesses reach their goals, particularly those that want to do well on Amazon.
Anyone who can run multiple successful e-commerce businesses obviously has some strategies that work. Liran is one of these people so his advice can likely help your business in some way.
How to Find an Influencer on Amazon
Finding an influencer who can help you sell more of your products on Amazon can make a massive difference to your business. Whether you’re looking for an influencer who can help guide you in your business decisions and strategies, or an influencer who can share your brand and products with as many people as possible, finding the right influencer for you can be highly beneficial.
It’s not always as easy as you might think to find an influencer on Amazon though. However, there are things you can do to give yourself the best chance of success.
Know Your Audience
Influencers don’t normally just focus on one social channel. They tend to split their content over several channels such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and other social media platforms. That’s why it’s important to have a good understanding of who is following your business. Let’s say you’re running an e-commerce business that sells shoes. You have been putting a lot of time and effort into building your online presence and you have managed to earn a following of several thousand people. It could be beneficial to delve deeper into your audience to see who is interacting with your content the most, and also to see who else your followers are following.
If there is someone that a large portion of your followers are following, this could indicate that they are someone linked to your business niche. It could also be that they are an influencer who might be someone that could benefit your business. You might even be lucky enough to have an Amazon influencer who has found your business and is already following you. If this is the case, reaching out to them to suggest collaboration is a great idea. As they are already following you, they are very likely to like your products so working together could be something you both want to do.
Before looking further afield for an Amazon influencer, it’s always worth checking your current audience to see if you can earn yourself a quick win.
Look at Social Media Hashtags
There are a few ways that social media hashtags can help you in your search for an Amazon influencer. The first is that you can search for popular hashtags that relate to your business. For example, if you’re selling outdoor gear then hashtags such as #outdoors, #outdooradventure, and #outdoorlife could be a good starting point. When looking through posts with the appropriate hashtags, you might find people who are regularly sharing content that could be a good match for your business and products.
You could also think about creating your own campaign hashtag. This probably won’t be suitable for businesses with small followings, but it can be extremely useful for social media accounts with larger audiences. By creating your own hashtag, you can see who is talking about things related to your business or even your business itself. Maybe an Amazon influencer will post something using your hashtag – you can then reach out and see if you can formerly work together to help push your products.
Another way hashtags can be useful is by searching for Amazon influencer-related hashtags. Things like #amazonfinds #amazoninfluencer, #amazonambassador can highlight influencers in various niches. You can search through the posts to find one that best fits your business and brand.
Only Work With Relevant and Appropriate Influencers
A big mistake that some businesses seem to make is that they team up with the wrong influencers. An influencer could be wrong for your business in several ways and it doesn’t necessarily make them bad at what they do, it simply means that they aren’t the best match for you.
Let’s take a homewares e-commerce business as an example. The business owner wants to work with an Amazon influencer to help increase sales. They find an influencer who has hundreds of thousands of followers on social media and they have their own storefront on Amazon. They reach out and the influencer agrees to work with them.
This sounds great. Hundreds of thousands of people will see the business’s products and the influencer will direct them to Amazon where they can purchase them quickly and easily. The problem is that the influencer predominantly promotes clothing through their Amazon storefront and social media accounts. This means that their followers are mainly interested in clothing products and not homewares.
While the partnership with this influencer might generate a small increase in sales, the true potential of working with an Amazon influencer is unlikely to be achieved because the wrong influencer was chosen by the business owner. If they had found an Amazon influencer with similar follower numbers (or less) in the appropriate niche, sales could have dramatically increased.
You should also think about the types of influencers you work with. While hundreds of thousands of followers might look good at first glance, does it seem appropriate and realistic to promote a small e-commerce business to that many people? In some cases, the answer is yes, in others, the answer is no. You need to think about the perception you want customers to have of your brand. Could you keep up with thousands of orders? Does your business look like it’s one that serves high numbers of customers on a regular basis? Sometimes, it’s a much better idea to work with Amazon influencers with a smaller following but a following that will genuinely be interested in your business.
Amazon influencers can make a very positive impact on your business but, they could also cause some negative side effects if you pick the wrong one to work with. You need to do your research on any individual or agency you are considering working with through your business. It’s better to take some extra time in your search, than have to deal with negative consequences as a result of a bad decision.
