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What’s the first thing you will think of when I say the word eCommerce?
Amazon, right?
When we talk about eCommerce business or platform there is no way that we end the conversation without talking about Amazon. It doesn’t need an introduction – a company which started as a book seller turned into a giant company we talk about today.
eCommerce is just one of the segments of Amazon. It has a huge market spanning across the globe and helping people buy almost anything and everything from the comfort of their homes. Having said that, it doesn’t mean there is still no scope in the eCommerce market. Of course, one will have to work immensely to compete with the tech-giant, but in terms of market there is still a huge scope if you want to create app like Amazon.
Table of Content
- Benefits of Marketplace in Current Times
- How to Create an App Like Amazon
- Monetize your Application
- Why Choose to Build Marketplace over Online Store
- Marketing Tactics
- Conclusion
In this extensive guide, I will walk you through how to start a business like Amazon and serve your customers.
First let me walk you through some of the major advantages of having an eCommerce business in today’s time and then talk about how to start an ecommerce business like Amazon.
Benefits of Marketplace in Current Times
Inventory Easy to Manage
One of the major advantages of having a marketplace in current times is not having to worry about inventory management. The essence of the marketplace itself is that sellers and buyers can collaborate effectively where one can purchase things they want and one can sell things they want. This is a huge advantage compared to any business you will be having. You are just providing a platform for both the parties and earning on concession.
Scalable Marketplace
Start local and go global. Focus on building a marketplace which first caters to local audiences and then slowly you can go global. Follow the business model of Amazon. They started first delivering only in America and then went global with more business collaborations, having more delivery partners, and scaled their marketplace efficiently.
Satisfactory Level of Trade
An online store has to consider plenty of things like marketing, customer service, returns and refunds, etc., when it comes to satisfying users. But, in terms of marketplace these things boils down to only one thing i.e. providing a platform to buyers and sellers to efficiently use it. This allows marketplace business owners to focus on the business instead of worrying much about other things.
Wondering how to start a company like Amazon and create app like Amazon? You are at the right place. Connect with us and our team will help you to know how to start with Amazon clone app development.
Next up, let’s talk about step by step guide on how to develop an app like Amazon, have an amazon business model, and provide quality service to customers.
How to Create an App Like Amazon
Define your Niche Market
There are already plenty of marketplaces currently and to make your mark you will have to stay ahead of your competitors and provide quality products. But, don’t worry because there are plenty of ways to do so. Firstly, start with defining your market niche, either you can focus on building a marketplace for anyone particular market like accessories, clothing, etc., or similar or Amazon have it all.
This decision completely depends on your market research, what exactly you are planning to provide, and how well you can collaborate with different stakeholders of your business.
Market and Competitor Research
To define your market niche and understand what your users’ needs carry out through market research and study your competitors. Advantage of market research is that it helps you to understand the gap in the market and build your product accordingly. Carrying out your primary research also helps you to study your competitors and know how to play at your strengths along with your unique selling point.
Remember to study your competitors, know their strengths and weaknesses and define your own USP. This information in turn will help you to serve your customers with quality products and help you to cater to their needs.
Define your USP
Once you have done your market research and define your niche market your next step is to come up with your unique selling point. Your research will help you to answer how to create an app like amazon. Focus on some of the things like
- What does your users have
- How will it help them to have quality products
- How will you retain your users and gain new users
- Why should users choose you over Amazon or any other company
Answering these questions will help you to define your USP and properly define your business models and create app like Amazon.
Marketplace Features
1 For Sellers
Sellers should be able to register and authenticate themselves in order to sell on your platform. This will also help you to have some amount of quality control over the sellers and will help you to serve quality products to your users.
Sellers should be able to efficiently list the products with all the essential product details like name, quantity, size, available colors, etc. This information helps buyers to make informed decisions while they are purchasing products.
Sellers should be able to accept payment in multiple options in order to provide users with hassle-free service.
Sellers should be able to provide product description in multiple languages along with local currency. This feature will help you in the future when you are planning to scale your product at global level.
2 For Buyers
Users should be able to register and/or login in your application to have more personalized experience based on their location.
Buyers should be able to easily add their products in the cart or in the favorites too. Making it easier for them to come back to their product and make a purchase.
Your marketplace app should provide users with multiple language and currency support so they can easily purchase products when and where needed.
The search features in the application should be advanced and efficient enough for users to quickly search something and add to their cart.
Users should be able to track their order in terms like order received, shipped, delivered, etcThis information will help users to stay on track with the product details.
Users should be able to make easy returns and refunds.
Advance Features
Leverage the power of technology and inculcate AR/VR in your application. Allowing users how to see how a particular product might look in real life. In turn, this will also help you to boost your sales if users are likely to get convinced with it. Making it easier for them to purchase products and convincing them will be a win-win situation for you.
Hey Alexa, please add E.L.F Cosmetics mascara to my cart.
How many of you are guilty of doing this? We all are, isn't it?
In terms of technology we have evolved and reached the stage wherein we can use voice search to not only type things but to search something on marketplace apps like Amazon too. This feature has worked as a game changer for Amazon and is likely to do so for your marketplace application too. So, why not be ahead of the curve and allow users to use voice search and search things efficiently.
Let users see how the product will look in real life or how to use it. Again this feature is very helpful in convincing users to purchase things from your platform.
Design your Application
Once you have listed down all the important features that your application must have to build a minimum viable product, your next step is to design your application. This is truly your chance to stand out from Amazon. We all know how the user experience of Amazon is and over the years they have not even made an effort to change it because it works for them.
But, here’s your chance to stand out even if you create app like Amazon. To target your users and audience you need to focus on building an application which has excellent design and can help you stand out. Because in the current market good design will make you stand ahead of the crowd. If you already have an amazon app development company who is helping you build an application, you are safe. Their design team will also help you to build the best in class user experience design. If you don’t have anyone yet, you can reach out to us and our expert design will help you stay ahead of your competitors.
Develop your Application
Once you have completely designed your first sprint of the application you are ready to hand-it over to the developers. If you don’t know which tech-stack to use, don’t worry, this is when an amazon app development company like ours can come to your rescue. Having decades of experience we often tell our clients to start with developing iOS applications first as its close ecosystem provides an advantage of quick development and deployment to the market.
Testing your Application
Before making your application live, it is important to thoroughly test it and make it bug-free. Having a bug-free app is essential as it reflects your brand value and will help you to stay ahead of the curve. Additionally, make sure to use advanced testing measures in order to get rid-off any kind of bugs.
It is always better to have an Amazon app development company like ours which will help you to stay ahead of the curve and use the latest technology stack and testing methods for your Amazon clone app development
Monetize your Application
Once you have your answer on how to create app like amazon, let’s talk about money. There are multiple ways to monetize an app like Amazon. Below are some of the ways I have discussed to monetize your marketplace app:
Commission-based Model
This is the most common method which even Amazon uses. You can earn a certain amount of commission from your sellers. For example: you can charge X amount of fees in addition to shipping and handling and from this X amount of percentage will be your commission. Making it a win-win situation for buyers, sellers, and also you. Remember to be transparent with your sellers in terms of how much percentage you charge. Being transparent and loyal to users on your platform in turn helps you to gain loyal customers too.
In-App Ads
Again this is a common revenue model in the Amazon like app. You can provide in-add SEO services to sellers so they can pay you extra money to stay on the top in order to earn money. Moreover, sellers can also focus on providing more descriptive product details which helps them sell products efficiently and stay on the top of your marketplace.
Partner Collaboration
You can efficiently collaborate and be in partnership with shipping companies to help deliver products efficiently and safely. Additionally, you can also provide a certain amount of discount to sellers or buyers if they prefer this shipping company to deliver the product. Again this model will help you stabilize your business model, focus more on Amazon like app development, and help you to stay ahead of the competition.
Why Choose to Build Marketplace over Online Store
In an online store you will need to invest heavily on various things like website, inventory management, shipping & delivery charges, social media, extra human resources, and this list goes on. But, on the other hand, with a marketplace you don’t have to initially invest so much on everything at the same time. You can begin with investing in a website or an application to connect with buyers and sellers and then promote your business.
A marketplace focuses on its brand value, trying to earn money from views and sales commissions and does not oversee other things much. This helps the marketplace business owners to focus more on ways they can earn money and make important business decisions.
Next up, let’s talk about some of the ways you can market your application.
Marketing Tactics
I know you must already know this, but remember this is also where the majority of your audience stays. Social media platforms will provide you a leverage to reach a wider audience that too faster. Use these platforms to your advantage and understand how you can build a community on it effectively.
Social Media Platforms
I know you must already know this, but remember this is also where the majority of your audience stays. Social media platforms will provide you a leverage to reach a wider audience that too faster. Use these platforms to your advantage and understand how you can build a community on it effectively.
Affiliate Marketing
This is another common way to market your application which has also helped Amazon reach where it is today. You can reach out to influencers and collaborate with them so they can help you to produce your application efficiently.
Search Engine Optimization
Leverage the power of SEO and content marketing to reach a wider audience across the globe. Invest in Amazon like app development and carry out SEO tactics on it as it will help you to reach your target audience more quickly and in turn help you generate some revenue.
Conclusion
Starting a business like Amazon requires a strategic approach, unwavering commitment, and a blend of innovative thinking and adaptability. While emulating Amazon's success is challenging, with the right strategy, technological prowess, and a keen understanding of customer needs, it's possible to create a successful e-commerce platform and app that can thrive in the competitive market. Continuously learn, adapt, and innovate to carve your niche in the vast e-commerce landscape.
Moreover, with the right amazon app development company you can even do wonders. Rely on our secret sauce of expert teams of developers, designers, and marketers who can help you answer how to make app like Amazon from scratch and reach your audience.
