00:00one of the main benefits of amazon
00:01handmade for handmade sellers just like
00:03you is that there are no fees unless you
00:05make a sale so you don't really have
00:07anything to lose just by signing up and
00:09in this video we're going to go step by
00:11step through the application process for
00:13amazon handmade and at the end i have a
00:14little cheat sheet for you so that you
00:16can get signed up in minutes and not
00:17hours so let's jump in
00:21hey team my name is teddy and in these
00:23videos i talk about how you can build a
00:24handmade business without relying on
00:26etsy and some of the techniques that i
00:28use to grow my business into a full-time
00:29business so i could quit my job and have
00:31more fun working for myself
00:33and if you think that sounds like
00:35something that would help you out then
00:36please click subscribe as i post videos
00:38about handmade business amazon handmade
00:40etsy stuff like that every single week
00:42now one of the things i often find holds
00:44people back from taking the plunge into
00:46selling on amazon handmade is the
00:48application process for getting an
00:50account you know i think it's a bit of a
00:52blocker for a lot of people and i think
00:53a lot of you guys are way too scared of
00:55this process you know 90 of the people
00:57the students that i work with have their
00:59account verified first time and the
01:01others are only asked for a bit more
01:02information so that amazon can verify
01:05and amazon handmade can be a great
01:07opportunity for loads of you you know
01:08amazon is seriously seriously massive
01:11it's quite hard to comprehend exactly
01:12how big it is sometimes there's
01:14something like 300 million prime members
01:16in the world and that's like the entire
01:18population of america and you know there
01:20are sellers like these guys on the
01:21screen right now making some quite
01:23serious money on amazon handmade and you
01:25know this is enough money for you to
01:26really take your business full time but
01:28it's the application process that for
01:30some reason is the blocker for a lot of
01:32but really amazon are only really strict
01:34about one thing and if you take nothing
01:36else away from this video it should be
01:38you can only have one seller account
01:41amazon really strict about this and it's
01:42essentially because there are millions
01:43and millions of sellers and amazon wants
01:45to make sure that everyone who's on the
01:47platform is who they say they are you
01:49know they're really hot hot on kicking
01:51fraudulent or bad actors off the
01:53platform and now this is really great
01:55news for you because as long as you're
01:57not a dodgy seller which i hope you're
01:58not this means that you're not going to
02:00be competing with as many dodgy people
02:02so as long as you're not trying to
02:03hoodwink amazon into telling them that
02:05you aren't who you say you are then you
02:07should be absolutely fine and if you are
02:09trying to drink amazon then well this
02:12video might not be for you i'm afraid
02:13there are two main parts to getting
02:15signed up and running and two
02:16application processes which we're going
02:19first one is the professional sellers
02:21account and the second one is account
02:23amazon handmade verification
02:25now the professional sellers account is
02:27the main part and this is where you'll
02:28need to gather information about you and
02:31now don't freak out who here application
02:33you know this isn't like a job
02:34application or anything like that and
02:35don't freak out when you hear the words
02:37company you know you could just be
02:38someone just working for yourself like
02:40as a self-employed person or just doing
02:42it as a hobby but with the right
02:43preparation this doesn't need to be as
02:45daunting as it sounds on top of this as
02:47i said at the beginning i've made some
02:49step-by-step cheat sheets for you to
02:50prepare everything you need in advance
02:52so that you can get signed up in minutes
02:54and hang around till the end when i show
02:55you that now this preparation in close
02:57attention to detail will help you get
02:58set up much faster and save you much
03:00unnecessary back and forth with amazon
03:03you do need to get some documents
03:04together so amazon can verify you and
03:06these are the things that you'll
03:08number one is your passport or your
03:10driving license you know this is so that
03:11amazon can see that you are who you say
03:13you are make sure they're in date
03:14obviously second one is your bank
03:16account now this one's quite important
03:18because if you want to get paid by
03:20amazon they're going to need your bank
03:22amazon will also use this information to
03:24verify you the third thing you'll need
03:26is email i mean this goes without saying
03:28you may also need a utility bill to
03:30prove your address but amazon don't
03:32always ask this so don't be surprised if
03:33you don't get asked this
03:35so check out our cheat sheet guide where
03:37there's a link to this in the notes and
03:38this will have all this information in
03:41and you need to make sure that all the
03:42documents that amazon asked for in the
03:44correct format for example they should
03:46be colour documents and easy to read you
03:48know these are obvious ones like
03:49obviously it needs to be easy to read in
03:50color but the documents should also be
03:52in the correct file type
03:54amazon do tell you what file type it
03:55needs to be in but usually it's a pdf
03:57the bank statement is just so that you
03:59can show amazon that you are who you say
04:01you are amazon uses as the bank to pay
04:04you so it's pretty important as i said
04:05to get it right but also what amazon
04:07really wants to see is a bank statements
04:09to prove that the bank account is real
04:11so when amazon asks for a bank statement
04:13just make sure that it's a valid bank
04:14account and that you include all the
04:16pages of the statement the statement
04:18should be within the last 90 days
04:20because amazon wants to see this is real
04:22this is kind of for verification
04:24just make sure you include all your
04:26pages of your statements here even if
04:27you don't think that they're important
04:29pages the statements should be within
04:31the last 90 days again so that amazon
04:33can verify them you know even if you
04:34don't think one of the pages is
04:36important for example it's the last page
04:38just include all of them because the
04:40statements usually say page one of nine
04:42or something like that for example
04:43you can hide how much money is in your
04:45account if you want to but personally i
04:47don't really care if jeff bezos sees
04:49that i only have 20 quid in my account
04:52but when you scan the bank statement
04:54just make sure that the copy is clear
04:55and easy to read you know the bank needs
04:57to have all your transactions in it so
04:59if you're using a new bank account just
05:00make sure you're putting some
05:01transactions through it again so that
05:03amazon can see that it's a real account
05:05you should also make sure that you only
05:06have one seller account now this is
05:08super super important and i did go
05:09through this a little bit at the
05:10beginning because amazon's really hot on
05:12kicking baddies off the platform you
05:14know there's loads of dodgy sellers who
05:15open multiple accounts to get around
05:16amazon's rules so if they get banned
05:18from one you they can just use another
05:20one but amazon will find you and they
05:22will ban you from the platform you know
05:24seriously even if you only have sold a
05:25few books on amazon before just shut
05:27that account and you all use those
05:29details in order to sign up for the
05:30professional account
05:32you are of course allowed to buyers
05:33accounts like amazon's never going to
05:35stop you buying stuff obviously and i'm
05:37assuming most of you have buyer's
05:38accounts and that's how you kind of know
05:39about the amazon opportunity just make
05:41sure that you aren't logged into that
05:42when you start the signup process let's
05:44have a look at the signup process here
05:47so when you're setting up your
05:48professional sellers account one of the
05:50main things you need to do is sort of
05:51choose what sort of accounts you want
05:53set up with so it's either an individual
05:55or a professional plan so this screen
05:58here shows you a little bit about the
06:00different types of plans so for example
06:02an individual plan has no monthly fee
06:05and you pay 99 cents per sale and
06:07professional plan is 39.99 per month in
06:10the usa it's a bit cheaper in the rest
06:13but basically as you're a handmade
06:14seller this doesn't really matter too
06:16much because this fee is waived for you
06:18and then it shows you blue that the
06:21different types of accounts so like if
06:22you're an individual or a company
06:23account you can choose which one you
06:26now these slides are actually from my
06:28course so if you are interested in
06:30having a bit more information about some
06:32of this stuff then there's a link to get
06:34some more information about this in the
06:36show notes but this is the first page
06:38that you come to where you sign up and
06:40as i said you have to sign up for your
06:41professional sellers account first
06:43and the first thing you'll need to do is
06:46choose an email or a
06:48an email and a password for you to get
06:50signed up with now you shouldn't use
06:52your personal account here you should
06:53make have your own accounts for this
06:55purpose so that you can keep your
06:56business and your normal life separate
06:59and then you have to just go through the
07:01pages and this is kind of just a quick
07:02example of what they look like so you
07:04have to choose like where where your
07:05business is like show some
07:08to show your business address and then
07:10you have to upload some documents so
07:12things like your passport or your
07:15driving license those are two things you
07:16could use to identify yourself you also
07:19need to include things like your credit
07:20card or your debit card details so that
07:21you can pay amazon and also so they can
07:26then you also need to make sure that
07:29uh address is correct because amazon
07:31sometimes sends you a postcode through
07:32the post to make sure that your dress is
07:36and then you need to answer a few
07:38questions from amazon and as i said this
07:39is just a quick run through from some of
07:41the slides if you want some more
07:42information about this just get in touch
07:44and i can show you some more information
07:46about it there's also a link in the show
07:49then once you have entered all your
07:51information you'll be sent the postcard
07:53sometimes sometimes you're not the
07:54amazon change how they do it sometimes
07:57in classic amazon mode and then you'll
07:59actually be verified and so once your
08:02verifications happens you'll be you'll
08:04have your professional sellers account
08:06and you then need to do your amazon
08:08handmade application which we'll come
08:10into in the next example
08:12so the second part of the process is
08:15getting your amazon handmade
08:16verification now there's two parts and
08:18that amazon handmade verification is
08:20kind of like a secondary verification
08:22the professional sellers account all
08:24sellers and items need it regard whether
08:26you're handmade or not handmade or if
08:27you're doing something some other kind
08:29of thing on amazon you need a
08:30professional seller's account but the
08:32amazon handmade application is just for
08:33people who want to sell in the handmade
08:35category and there's loads of benefits
08:36selling in the handmade category which i
08:38go into in loads of detail in all my
08:40videos but what amazon's trying to do
08:42with the handmade application is really
08:43to make sure that only people who are
08:46actually selling handmade products are
08:49handmade platform and they're not just
08:52crappy alibaba knockoffs like pretending
08:54to be handmade i think you all know the
08:56sort of products i'm talking about we've
08:57probably seen them on etsy but we can
08:58have a look at the application process
09:00here to show you that it's not too scary
09:02so the handmade application process is a
09:03little bit different to the professional
09:05sales application process in that you
09:07have to do the professional sales
09:08application first you can't just go
09:10straight into an amazon handmade
09:12application but it's much shorter than
09:14professional sales application the
09:15verification doesn't take quite as long
09:17but basically the first thing they want
09:19to find out is is your product actually
09:21handmade and also are you a maker with
09:24less than employ less than 20 employees
09:27you can see the definitions down the
09:28right of the different types of handmade
09:30person there is so are you working alone
09:33or are you working with less than 20
09:35employees or are you a collaborative
09:36group of makers that you could be
09:38another but amazon actually have some
09:40trick questions in here to try and catch
09:42you out so just make sure that you are
09:43one of these things they're asking so
09:45obviously the first thing you need to do
09:46is type your name and your address the
09:48email address and then you also need to
09:49say what type of worker you are
09:51and then as i said before you've got to
09:53upload some pictures of your work
09:55so this would be really good to include
09:57some pictures of your the way you work
10:00like your workstation you know if you're
10:02a sewer for example include some
10:03pictures of your sewing machine or if
10:06you embroider jackets show some pictures
10:08of your badges and you're working all
10:11out on the table so just make sure that
10:14it's really clear what you're doing the
10:15photos don't have to be like really
10:16professional photos they just have to
10:18really clear and they have to really
10:20explain what you do and also show some
10:21pictures here of your actual finished
10:23pieces too and then you need to talk
10:25about your products and your processes
10:27so give them a give amazon a
10:29step-by-step description of what your
10:31process is to make it and what your
10:33final products are so you've got to talk
10:35about things like what materials you'd
10:36use what tools or techniques to use how
10:38long does it take to make your product
10:41is it completely handcrafted do you buy
10:43stuff from vintage shops and then
10:45customize them you know tell them
10:47exactly how your products are made
10:49and the last bit is you need to say a
10:50little bit about your work so these are
10:52the options i talked about where you
10:54have to say that your products like
10:55handcrafted or hand-altered don't
10:58click i purchase handmade products from
11:00other artisans and sell them because you
11:03and the next section is what best
11:05describes your production post process
11:07you know i design and make my own
11:08products or i design and make my
11:09products but a small portion of work is
11:11done by an outside company
11:13you know that's fine
11:15but don't put i don't design my own
11:17products because again you just won't be
11:18accepted and just make sure that at
11:20least 75 of the process is done by you
11:23and if you do all this you should be
11:25fine and if you are interested i've
11:27actually written a book with more
11:28information about exactly how to get
11:30signed up which is available on amazon
11:32for sale obviously but there's a link to
11:34it in the bio and if you want more
11:35information about amazon handmade yeah
11:37just get in touch because there's a link
11:39in the bio to my course as well in order
11:42to sell on amazon handmade your products
11:44need to be either handmade hand altered
11:46hand or hand customized
11:48hand product handmade products are
11:50basically products that are made by hand
11:51sounds quite obvious but that's what
11:54hand altered products are products that
11:55you've changed for example a leather
11:57biker jacket that you've sewn some
12:00and hand customized is very similar to
12:02this but it's when each customer gets
12:04exactly the same product but it's been
12:06customized for a different person an
12:07example here could be like a locket with
12:09your wife's initial stamps on it
12:12but basically it's how your products are
12:14made and one thing that is very
12:16different between amazon and etsy is
12:17that amazon also asks to see a picture
12:19of your products and your production
12:22now these pictures do not need to be pro
12:24pictures at all in fact you know the
12:26more homemade or handmade if you will
12:28the better just take some pictures on
12:30your phone because amazon really just
12:32wants to see your process and they as i
12:34said they just want to see that your
12:35products are actually handmade i was
12:38working with a student quite recently
12:39and we just used a photo of their dining
12:41room table with a sewing machine on it
12:42and some of the products and you can see
12:44from this photo like it's not a very
12:45good photo it's not a very professional
12:47photo amazon just wants to see the
12:49products are truly handmade and she got
12:51signed up first time they also ask you a
12:53few questions about you and your
12:54products and your business for example
12:57they want to know what category your
12:58products are in now this is the bit i
13:00talked about earlier whether it's either
13:01handmade and customers or hand altered
13:04they also want to know what kind of
13:05seller you are so are you an individual
13:07or you could be a cooperative or do you
13:09have less than 20 employees now amazon
13:12have a few trick answers in here so
13:13watch out for these but basically you
13:15need to be an individual or have less
13:17than 20 employees or fellow makers
13:19working with you or for you the third
13:21bit is what product category are your
13:23products in so this is more the actual
13:25category of your products you know stuff
13:26like pet supplies homewares clothes
13:28jewelry all the stuff like that because
13:30amazon needs to know what your products
13:32are and as i said in the show notes i've
13:34included all this information so that
13:35you can download it and follow along to
13:37get you signed up in minutes and not
13:40and basically that should be everything
13:42that you need in order to get signed up
13:43selling as quick as possible
13:45if you follow everything from that video
13:47step by step you should get approved
13:49first time i'd love to hear from you
13:50when you get signed up so if you have
13:52any questions about the sign up process
13:54please just email me which my email is
13:56also in the show notes and i respond to
13:57every email so get in touch with any
13:59concerns you might have you know when
14:00you get improved to sell come back and
14:01leave a comment on this video and i'll
14:03give you a high five
14:04in the next video you can see on the
14:06screen right now we go into the pricing
14:07of amazon handmade so that you can see
14:09how much money you can make so i hope
14:11you find that video useful i hope you
14:13found this video useful and i and i hope
14:15you find the process i talked about
14:16today useful and i will see you in
