Manufacturers are often approached by Amazon to purchase their in-house brands in an effort to grow its own private-label business. But, did you know, there's a program where you can essentially opt into being considered? Amazon’s Accelerator program is designed to offer participants unique exposure and the opportunity to gain more sales. However, it’s only for manufacturers that are open to selling a particular brand.
Amazon reserves the right to purchase a participating brand with only a 60-day notice. Although this can be an intimidating compromise, there are a number of compelling benefits to joining the program. Continue reading to learn more about Amazon’s Accelerator Program and whether it’s something your brand should consider for one of your brands.
A popular draw to Amazon’s Accelerator Program is the potential for preferred placement of products on Amazon’s website. It's essentially used as a gateway for brands to become one of the channel's private labels or a designated 'Our Brand'.
Amazon’s private-label products are a growing subset of its overall catalog. In fact, private-label products are expected to generate up to $25 billion in sales for the marketplace by 2022. The ‘Our Brands’ tag is assigned to either Amazon's private-label products or those sold only on the channel. The purpose of ‘Our Brands’ is to showcase Amazon’s private-label ASINs as well-priced and high-quality products.
Accelerator brands enjoy some of the benefits Amazon’s own products usually receive. The program has a variety of perks that could help fast-track the growth of one of your brands. For example, participants gain access to built-in social media and email marketing support. With that, they also receive additional tools and metrics to measure their performance within the program.
Amazon's Accelerator program also offers Amazon Vine Reviews and premium product page content at no cost. The program also qualifies brands to test new products as an Amazon private-label and consequently earn customer feedback faster.
Over the last few years, mentions of this program during our conversations with Amazon have been few and far between. While the program was originally developed as a way for brands to grow quickly by gaining exclusive exposure (and for Amazon to expand its private-label enterprise), obviously participation boils down to whether a company’s business model and whether it’s open to parting with ownership of a brand, should it trigger Amazon’s interests.
As with any of Amazon’s programs, it’s important to take a step back and consider how Amazon benefits from your participation. There are many programs that have been created by the marketplace and help make it easier for brands to sell on the channel. But, when it comes to Amazon’s Accelerator Program, the compromises may outweigh the benefits depending on your brand’s unique situation. If your brand could use the support of a strategic partner, schedule a free consultation. As always, we’re here to answer any questions.