What’s up guys, my name is Trevin Peterson & I’m a full-time 7-figure Amazon FBA seller. Over the past few years, I’ve spoken with thousands of people looking to start Amazon FBA businesses. And from these conversations, I’ve learned that there are three common problems among those who fail on Amazon.
So to try and help prevent you from making a potentially life-destroying decision, I thought I’d put together some content to detail these for you. There are three reasons why you should not get started on Amazon.
And I know, I know. This sounds backward – I’m the guy encouraging everyone to get started with Private Label… but the thing is, it’s not for everyone. And if you fit into any of these three categories, you’re best off staying away and protecting yourself and your money.
So, before you start doing product research, or paying for a course, take 5 minutes and read through this article to figure out if it’s best for you to stay away.
The first reason to not sell on Amazon – If you don’t have enough starting capital
Realistically you’re going to need around $4,000 (at least) to get started building a Private Label brand. It might sound like a lot to many of you, but it’s a drop in the ocean compared to the potential of an Amazon business.
If you only have a couple of hundred dollars, maybe a thousand, then it’s going to be hard to get started. It’s not impossible – just more difficult. You can start with a cheaper product and lower inventory and build this up over time – but this might not be the best way to start on Amazon if you have a low budget.
A better way to get started on Amazon if you don’t have much capital is through something called Retail Arbitrage. My brother Kade started his journey on Amazon doing this (while he was at college). Over the course of 3 years, he made enough money to live on AND save to launch his private label brand.
The way it works is to take the money you have, buy discounted items at local stores, and then sell on Amazon at a higher price for a profit. You can turn $100 into $200, then into a couple of thousand, and then invest this into your Private Label brand.
I’ve done a couple of videos with my brother Kade about Retail Arbitrage – you can find one of them here.
Kade and I have also put together a mini-course on Retail Arbitrage (that we’ve priced incredibly cheap to help you get started). So if you want a complete step-by-step walk-through to get started and turn your $100 into thousands, you can sign up for the course below.
>> Get started with Retail Arbitrage on Amazon
But like I said, if you don’t have the capital to start, it will be difficult. And if you only have $4,000 to your name and you need this to live… you’re pretty risk-averse and worried about losing it all… maybe Amazon Private Label isn’t right for you (at least not right now.)
There are no guarantees with Amazon, and I wouldn’t recommend starting if this describes you. There are no guarantees to success in any business model – there is always risk involved. And while this sounds like I’m trying to put you off, I’m not. I’m just trying to set the expectation very clear. You need to HAVE money to MAKE money with Amazon.
Your Private Label Brand is a business – by starting on Amazon, you are starting a business, and you need a budget and starting capital to get it moving.
The second reason to not sell on Amazon – If you think it’s going to be easy
I talk about my business with pretty much everyone I come across. I love what I do and could talk about it all day. But I’ve noticed that too many people see or hear what I’m doing and assume that I’m making money by doing nothing.
As if I buy stock from China, send it to Amazon, and get paid every month…. There’s quite a bit more involved than that.
It takes hard work, discipline, patience, and sacrifice to make this work.
And if you’re not willing to put in the time and effort, then don’t even bother starting a business in the first place. Not just an Amazon business – any business. Regardless of the industry you look at; it will take effort and a lot of it!
There are lots of people who get involved with Amazon without realizing WHAT they need to do to make it work… I always hear
“I didn’t realize I had to do this..” or
“I didn’t think it would take up this much time…”
But if you want to be successful, escape your job, and create something, you need to think of this as a long-term business. This is a long game.
You need to be working for a potential exit in 3+ years when you can sell your brand for $1million+, but also have a second exit strategy where if you DON’T sell in 3 years, you can keep going and do well off the brand.
BUT – knowing this when you start will put you waaaaay further ahead than those who get going with a bit of ignorance.
Listen… you might hate your 9-5 job. I did. You might want to replace your income with Amazon tomorrow or in a few weeks… but it just doesn’t happen like that. Amazon isn’t a get rich quick scheme. It takes time and effort.
However, the reward and potential from this are limitless.
I’ve seen this in my own business. It took me six months to replace my $35,000 income from my 9-5 job. I worked every day from 6 pm-2 am, after working an 11 hour day… but what I’ve been able to do in the three years following this is nothing short of incredible.
I didn’t have a life for like 12 months when I started. So I dedicated everything to my business. And if you can hustle like this, you will see a massive payout in the future.
Plus – if you’re willing to get down and dirty, put in the energy, and work to sell on Amazon, then I want to work with you. I want you to become an AMZ Champion. To join my community of sellers and fast track your way to owning an Amazon business.
I want to work with students who are motivated, fired up, and willing to work hard for their success. I don’t want to work with people who will sit on the sidelines, waiting for the money to come to them, and complain when it’s too hard…
So if you are an action taker – I want to work with you as a student. I want you in my weekly live Q&A calls, I want you in my Facebook group, and I want to work with you throughout the entire process.
>> If this describes you – then come and work with me to build your first Amazon FBA Brand
If you have the mindset and mentality, and the motivation to work at this in the long term, Amazon will be a good fit.
The third reason to not sell on Amazon – If you’re a quitter
“Oh, this is a scam.”
“Oh, this doesn’t work.”
“Oh, this is too hard.”
“Oh, I failed. I can’t fail again.”
If you’re the kind of person who is going to make these statements over and over – please don’t start on Amazon. Don’t start any business.
Failure is part of the journey. Again, not just on Amazon, but in any business. I cannot think of a single fortune 500 company that hasn’t ever had some failure of another.
The same goes for Amazon sellers. I cannot think of a single successful Amazon seller that I know who hasn’t had some form of failure on their journey; who hasn’t made a massive mistake and taken a big L. But having the fortitude to pick yourself up, turn it around, learn from it and turn it into a positive can help you build something bigger and better
Even in my own business – my first eight products all failed. They flopped hard.
Most people can’t deal with that mindset – they get hit by failure too hard and quit. They can’t deal with losing some money or any form of failure. And if this describes you, then I highly recommend you stay away from selling on Amazon. It may be that working for someone else is the better direction for you. A safer direction.
Amazon FBA is for those willing to take a risk – risking their time and their money. Then alongside the risk, they will hustle and work all for the fantastic opportunity and results from this.
And again, as I mentioned above, if this describes you, I want to work with you!!
People who have a strong mentality, can get up and get back at it are already lightyears ahead of most people. This is the grounding of your success and will enable you to make this work.
Product research
Selling Hacks
Marketing tips
These are all great and can change your business. But they don’t do any good if you don’t get your mind right first.
If you fall into any or all of these three things, I hope you avoid private labeling. There are safer and more appropriate options for you out there. BUT if these three tips don’t define you, then PLEASE…
Take the bull by the horns and run with this. It’s the biggest financial opportunity of our generation and worth it for anyone who wants to make a life for themselves.
Still here?
If you’re still reading this, then I’m guessing your thoughts in the last 5 minutes have been
“I have some money to get started that I’m willing to invest.”
“I understand that this is a business I’m building, and it’ll take some time to get there.”
“We learn from falling down. If I fail, I’ll brush myself off and keep going.”
If you feel you’re ready to get started and have the right mentality to move on, you are already miles ahead of so many people.
The strength and fortitude you’re showing are incredible and something you need to hold onto.
Go and write a vision board – set yourself manageable, achievable, realistic, and time-based goals that you can strive towards in your Amazon business. Give yourself a reason and a purpose to do this (that goes beyond “I want to quit my job”).
Say, “In 12 months, I will buy my first home, and in 18 months, I will be debt-free from Amazon”.
When you start to get dragged down by the hard work, worry about your investment, or want to quit… look at this vision board and remember why you’re doing this.
Then… start taking action, find your product, find your supplier, get your marketing in place and launch your brand. Take action.
Want a head start?
If you’re ready to get moving and want to fast-track your brand’s launch, I recommend looking at my AMZ Champions mentorship. It contains an entire A-Z library of how to start your Amazon business, launching, and scaling. We also have weekly Q&A calls and live demos where I run through the entire product research process with you step by step.
Then the most valuable part of the mentorship is that I will personally validate your product for you! It can be a little complicated to find a viable product at the start of the process, and investing in $4,000 in lousy stock could be a big mistake. So if you work with me, I will personally analyze your product choice and approve/deny it. This is worth the entire price of admission and could save you thousands in the short term!
But now, whether you’re looking to become an awesome AMZ Champ, or you’d like to continue learning with my free content, go and take action!
That’s it, champ. Keep going. I’m rooting for you!
Want some more info on my AMZ Champions mentorship?
Everything you need to know and more is found here, and as always, you can reach me on Instagram @trevinpeterson for some more information.
Awesome read! Thank you for the honesty and candidness!!
Thanks for reading! Glad you enjoyed 😄