In Pakistan, e-commerce has grown rapidly in recent years, and the boost that the COVID-19 epidemic has provided to e-commerce and online marketplaces has made them essential for companies and brands. Amazon has added Pakistan to its seller’s list, which effectively implies that local Pakistani retailers can now list and sell internationally on Amazon’s platform. Getting included among Amazon sellers couldn’t have come at a better moment, as it might give the country’s e-commerce scene a huge boost. This possibility is solely for vendors; purchasers will have to wait until the e-commerce behemoth sees a viable market in the nation before the company opens formal offices.
Nonetheless, there are several advantages to being able to sell on Amazon. Apart from boosting the general e-commerce segment, the move is anticipated to offer new opportunities for local brand names, local producers, SMEs, startups, entrepreneurs, and export markets, including increasing market size, expanding markets, boosting revenue potential, and strengthening local brands, small producers, SMEs, startups, entrepreneurs, and foreign investment. Not only that, but as the floodgates of competition open, local networks are projected to improve as well. Furthermore, selling on Amazon is far easier than building up your own website and selling online; it provides the advantages of an online platform with access to a worldwide consumer base, as well as the tools and infrastructure required to do so.
Then there are the associated benefits: local banks, fintechs, transportation, shipping, and distribution, to name a few, will all gain from the increased global exposure.
This worldwide potential, however, is accompanied with difficulties that few are aware of – or are pointing out. Despite its simplicity, selling on Amazon is not as straightforward as the majority portrays – at least not in a nation like Pakistan, where e-commerce is still in its infancy and sellers are inexperienced.
Fears generally associated with selling online include both the logistics and tech capabilities of the sellers as highlighted by MR Daraz in a recent interview. Logistics and distribution will have to be figured out, while marketing and communication by sellers on the platform will at least require a basic knowledge of SEO and listing. These could be tedious tasks for first time sellers and aggressive training and facilitation will be required is all aspects like Amazon’s pricing and costing structure, relationship and logistics models such as 1P 2P and 3P, product and buyers’ description and information dissemination, or unfair practices that largely go unnoticed in local marketplaces.
According to MR Daraz in a recent interview, one of the most common concerns with selling online is the vendors’ logistical and technological skills. Logistics and distribution will need to be thought out, and merchants on the platform will at the very least need a rudimentary understanding of SEO and listing. For first-time sellers, these could be time-consuming tasks, and aggressive training and facilitation will be required in all aspects of Amazon’s pricing and costing framework, relationship and logistics models such as 1P, 2P, and 3P, product and buyer specification and information exchange, or unfair practices that go relatively unnoticed in local markets