8 strategies to deal with competition from product copycats when selling on Amazon
Are you also feeling the heat from Chinese competitors driving down prices on Amazon? Many sellers have been facing this challenge for the last 8-10 years, but there are still brands that have managed to build Amazon-only profitable businesses generating more than $50M in revenue in the last 5-6 years. Feeling the squeeze from copycat competitors, especially those from overseas? You’re not alone. For nearly a decade, sellers on Amazon have faced increasing pressure from low-cost competitors, particularly from China. However, some brands have successfully built Amazon-exclusive businesses generating over $50M in revenue in recent years. Here’s how they’ve managed to stay ahead of the game.
1. Keep Innovating
Many sellers have shared that their main strategy to stay ahead was continually introducing new, hard-to-find items that addressed unmet needs. Patents were deemed too costly and easy to circumvent, so they focused on innovation instead.
2. Manufacturing Strategy
Consider having your product assembled locally while sourcing components overseas. This way, no single manufacturer has complete knowledge of your product, making it harder for them to replicate it.
3. Complete Overhaul of Listing
Sometimes a complete change of the images and copy could differentiate the original product from its imitations.
4. Emphasize Your U.S./Europe Roots
American sellers have found success by emphasizing their U.S. roots and ensuring their products are high quality and visually appealing. Products with an “American design” aesthetic, clean and readable titles, and high-quality photos tend to attract more buyers.
5. Off-Amazon Marketing
Successful sellers are leveraging social media not just for influencer marketing but as content creators. They use affiliates and blogs within their niche to get their products seen. For them, it’s been more about quality over quantity. Platforms like TikTok have also proven valuable for building brand loyalty and engaging with customers directly. Short, engaging videos showcasing your products can create a buzz and drive sales. Have you explored these avenues?
6. Build Brand Loyalty to Create a Moat Against Copycats
Some sellers noted the benefits of building a brand associated with quality and safety. Although branding can be expensive, targeted campaigns can make it more manageable and effective.
7. Use Smart Pricing Strategies to Compete Without Sacrificing Profit
If you don’t have too many copycats and the product is hard to source as it is, you could temporarily lower prices to remain competitive or even engage in a price war if feasible. However, this is not a great long-term strategy from a profitability point of view.
8. Protect Your Products by Leveraging Patents and Legal Actions
While patents are costly, some sellers have found success by patenting popular designs and then enforcing their rights to remove copycats. However, patenting existing designs can be complex and legally challenging.
As with building any business, this is one of the hard parts of the Amazon selling business, but it is solvable. I hope you are able to creatively crack this.
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Ben Mathew, Amazon Expert
Ben Mathew is a co-founder at Superfuel, a sales assistant for Amazon sellers. In the past, Ben and his team of e-commerce specialists and software engineers have launched 40+ new brands on Amazon, taking them from zero to bestsellers. In his free time, he is either learning from other top sellers or encouraging his 3 daughters in their love for reading. He is reachable at ben [at] superfuel.io.