Complete Guide to Amazon Product Bundling Techniques in 2024

Product bundling is a tried-and-tested sales strategy to increase average order value (AOV) and boost sales. It’s a cross-selling technique that encourages customers to purchase related items in one go, offering them convenience and potential savings. And it works: cross-selling and upselling increase revenue by as much as 30%.

Almost all Amazon sellers can tap into the benefits of selling bundled items, and FBA sellers get the added benefit of being able to create "virtual bundles." This guide discusses Amazon’s product bundling policies and how you can create effective bundles. 

What Are Amazon Product Bundles?

An Amazon product bundle contains two or more complementary items sold in one listing with its own unique ASIN. Each item in the bundle can be purchased separately, but for convenience purposes, they’ve been gathered into one bundle. 

There are millions of products listed on Amazon and a simple search of one item can generate thousands of results. By offering product bundles, Amazon makes it easy for shoppers to purchase everything they need with one click. 

Bundles are also often priced at a discount to encourage conversions. 

For example, Frito-Lay offers a 40-pack bundle featuring its best-selling classic snacks from chips to cookies and crackers. It’s a great way to sell items in bulk and ensure customers get something for everyone.

It also pushes customers to spend more as they believe they’re getting a huge discount buying in bulk versus purchasing each item separately. 

Bundles vs. Multipacks vs. Kits

At first glance, bundles, multipacks, and kits look alike. After all, they’re composed of several items purchased as a whole. But these three are different. 

Multipacks are multiple units of the same item in one package. Consumers buy them for the convenience and cost savings of purchasing in bulk. Meanwhile, bundles are different items in one package. 

For example, this listing for Funyuns Onion Flavored Rings is a multipack because you can buy 40 or 64 pieces of the same item. It’s different from the Frito-Lay bundle above, which contained several different snacks.

Kits are multiple complementary items packed as a single offer. The items in the kit can’t be purchased individually. With bundles, you can look for the product listing of each item in the bundle and purchase them separately. 

For example, this Boba Bubble Pearl Tea Kit is composed of different milk tea items that you can’t purchase individually. In contrast, each snack in the Frito-Lay bundle above has a unique ASIN and can be purchased separately. 

Benefits of Creating Amazon Bundles

Product bundling isn’t a fad. It’s a simple and smart sales strategy that has worked for centuries. Here’s why you should create Amazon product bundles:

1. Increased sales

By offering bundles, you’re encouraging customers to spend more on your store. This increases their average order value. In the Frito-Lay bundle example above, instead of selling $2 or $3 snacks, the company can immediately sell $20 to $30 bundles, which leads to higher sales. 

With bundling, you leverage the power of cross-selling and upselling. You encourage customers to spend more by exploring additional products that they wouldn’t discover if they bought individually. It’s a win-win situation because you get increased sales while customers enjoy convenience and value-added offers.

To encourage customers to try its various chocolate flavors, Hu Chocolates offers sampler sets that combine different flavors in one pack.

2. Better profits

Bundling can help you reduce costs like Amazon fees, leading to higher profits. 

Let's look at just one example. While referral fees are essentially unaffected by bundling, shipping and FBA fees can be dramatically affected. For example, FBA fulfillment costs for a 2 oz. small standard package are $3.06 in the summer of 2024. For a 16 oz. small standard package, they're $3.65.

That means you could feasibly sell eight 2 oz. items in a bundle instead selling them in one 2 oz. package at a time, paying only $0.46 per item shipped rather than $3.06. That adds an incredible $2.60 in margins per item, leaving plenty of room for you to increase your profits or compete on price.

Meanwhile, customers perceive a higher value for the bundled items, so they’re willing to pay a premium for them.

This is especially true if you create personalized packs like the brand Cravebox, an Amazon store that curates various snacks depending on the season and the occasion.

Just keep in mind that bundles are subject to Amazon's fair pricing policy and you'll be playing with fire if the bundle costs more than the individual items sold separately. However, packs like Cravebox's show that you don't have to offer significant savings to make the bundle appealing.

3. Less competition

Winning the Buy Box isn’t always a guarantee, especially if you’re selling a highly popular and competitive item. But when you create a product bundle with that item, then you have a unique product offering with few to zero competitors.

You also eliminate the pricing war where you’re constantly fighting for the cheapest price just to be seen by customers. Without a price war, you can command your own pricing strategy based on convenience and overall value.

If your bundles are hard to source and replicate, then fewer sellers will offer the same bundles, which strengthens your market position. 

‍Bodum sells coffee makers and accessories. By bundling a coffee grinder with a French press, they’ve created a convenient bundle that sets them apart from other similar stores. 

4. More offers

By bundling products, you’re creating more offers without actually adding new products. Every time you mix and match existing items, you’re giving customers more and better choices. Those who need certain combinations can choose from your existing bundles instead of looking for complementary products elsewhere.

‍nCamp offers a convenient five-piece camping bundle that combines its best-selling essentials in one listing. Campers who are looking for a camping stove can enjoy extras like a coffee maker and bamboo cutting board that they’d also need.

5. Listing control

When you create a product bundle, you create a new listing where you can control all aspects. You choose the most flattering photos, write the best titles and product descriptions, and optimize everything so customers see it. 

By controlling the listing, you can draw more people to it, which leads to more sales. 

6. Reduce inventory waste

Amazon’s quantity limits control how much inventory space your goods can occupy in the FBA warehouse. When products aren’t moving, you’re wasting precious storage space and risk incurring storage fees. 

By bundling slow-moving items with fast-moving ones, you can quickly free up inventory space and lower inventory costs. You can also prevent the risk of throwing away dead stock. However, be careful of bundling unappealing dead stock with best sellers because they can have an adverse effect of reducing the appeal of the good item.

Drawbacks of Product Bundling

While there are benefits, there are also drawbacks to creating product bundles. Knowing these disadvantages will help you create measures to overcome or avoid them. 

More work

When creating bundles, you have to think of custom packaging to bring everything together. You also have to buy a UPC for each bundle and find complementary items that make the bundle appealing. 

If you’re considering buying wholesale items and then reselling them as bundles, you’d have to create multiple wholesale accounts with different brands. You also need to secure licenses, as needed, and resale certificates. ‍

Build a listing from the ground up

Since a product bundle is a new listing, it doesn’t inherit the attributes of the individual products. That means your bundle listing needs to gather its own product reviews and ratings. You can’t leverage the reviews of a popular listing.

You also need to create your own product titles and descriptions and make sure they’re optimized for search engines. If you decide to change a bundle’s component, you must delete the entire bundle and start from scratch.

No guarantee

Just because you’ve created a great and value-laden bundle doesn’t mean your customers see it that way. There’s a huge risk that they won’t like the bundle and will prefer to order individual items instead.

If you’re storing pre-packaged bundles and they’re not moving as fast as individual items, you can get into a tricky inventory situation. Individual stocks may run out, but you can have aging bundled stocks. Thorough inventory monitoring and efficient inventory management are key to avoiding this situation.

Dos and Don’ts of Amazon Product Bundles

Product bundles are subject to Amazon’s policies and guidelines just like everything you do and sell on the platform. Knowing these guidelines and following them will ensure that your bundles don’t get delisted and penalized. 

Dos to follow:

• Create bundles that make sense to the customer and will benefit them. Don’t just make a bundle because it will bring in more money or move aging inventory.
• Be specific about what’s included in the bundle. Clearly state the quantity the customer will expect and list every item in the bundle. 
• Take pictures of the entire bundle together. You must show all items in the bundle (and nothing else) in your main image.
• Comply with Amazon’s Basic Guidelines on selling individual products.
• Create a unique ASIN/UPC for the product bundle. You can’t use any of the ASINs/UPCs of any items included in the bundle.
• Have a fulfillment plan in place that covers labor, packaging, and other logistical needs for bundling a product.
• Include the return cost in the bundle price and create a warranty or service plan for the entire bundle. When customers return a bundle, the return costs are higher compared to returning individual items in your inventory. 
• Consider unbundling a really popular item if it’ll be more profitable to sell individually.
• Products in the video games, books, music, video, or DVD categories can only be part of a bundle as a secondary or complementary item. You can’t bundle items in these categories by themselves.

Don’ts to avoid:

• Don't sell items without proper authorization from the manufacturers or brand owners. Amazon requires that you obtain proper consent for any labels or licenses you don’t own, especially if you’re combining competing brands in a bundle.
• Don't put your bundles in the wrong category. As a rule, the most expensive single ASIN determines the category of your bundle. However, if the highest-priced item is a BMVD product, then the second highest-priced item determines the bundle’s product category. 
• Don't confuse kits and multipacks with product bundles. As mentioned above, the three are different and you should properly list items as such.
• Don't add generic items. Each item in the bundle must be a branded item that has its own individual ASIN. If you have your private label brand, register it with Amazon’s Brand Registry before including any of its items in a bundle.

What Is the Amazon Virtual Product Bundle?

FBA sellers with their own brand can take advantage of Amazon’s Virtual Product Bundles (VPB) program. Under this program, you can access a tool that lets you quickly create bundles with multiple ASINs. 

You can bundle two to five complementary ASINs and sell them from a single product page. You don’t need to package these items together since Amazon FBA will ship these complementary items from your existing FBA inventory.

Eligibility and Requirements

To be eligible, each item in your virtual bundle must meet the following requirements:

• Product is sold under your brand and you are the identified brand owner
• Product ASIN is already registered in the Amazon Brand Registry
• ASIN has an active FBA inventory with a “new” condition
• ASIN must be buyable on its own. You can’t include multipacks and “multi-box” single items in the bundle.
• The bundle price must be equivalent to or lower than the total price of the individual items. If the bundle price is higher, it will lose the Featured Offer eligibility. 

How to Set Up an Amazon Virtual Product Bundle

To create the bundle, follow these steps:

1. Go to the virtual product bundles tool in Seller Central.
2. Choose two to five ASINs from your brand-registered products.
3. Upload a main image that contains all of the items in the bundle. For the rest of the images, you can select from the automatically populated photos from the individual ASINs.
4. Create the bundle’s title. It should clearly state the main item of the bundle and the other included items.
5. Determine the price of your bundle. It can be lower than or equal to the sum of the prices of the bundle’s components.
6. Enter the product description, including the bundle components in bullet points. 

You can always edit the title, description, price, and bullet points after publishing the listing. However, the main item and the products inside the bundle can’t be edited once saved. 

What Are Amazon Wholesale Bundles?

If you’re not a brand owner but you want to sell product bundles, you can always create wholesale bundles. First, you’d need to identify a best-selling Amazon product and open a wholesale account with a manufacturer. 

Once you have your account, you can start reselling their items on Amazon. Since there are many sellers already reselling individual wholesale items, you can get creative and create wholesale bundles. This way, you have a standalone listing that has zero competition for the buy box. 

You can also set your own price without worrying that another seller will undercut you. You’d be surprised what customers are willing to pay for the convenience of buying a bundled pack. (Again, just keep in mind that you can't sell bundled items for more than the price of the items sold individually.)

Best Practices for Creating Product Bundles

To further help you become successful at product bundling, here are several best practices you can follow:

Understand customer needs

Conduct thorough market research to understand your target audience's preferences, pain points, and buying behaviors. Read product reviews to discover how customers use a main product and ask what other items can complement it. 

Check the Q&A of a product listing and the "Frequently bought together" section. These areas are a gold mine for discovering potential product pairings. 

If you’re selling knives, a quick look at the “Frequently bought together” section shows that most people who buy knives also buy a knife sharpening set. That’s an obvious bundle you can create. 

Meanwhile, if you’re selling chopping boards, it’s a novel idea to bundle them with mixing bowls. But looking at the frequently bought together section shows that it’s a common combination shoppers purchase.

You should put yourself in the customer’s shoes and ask questions about the product’s purpose and how they’ll use it. Knowing your customer will help you come up with bundles that can’t be easily copied.

Choose the right complementary products

Select products that naturally complement each other and add value when bundled together. They must solve a real problem and not just earn you the Buy Box. Ensure that the bundle has a clear value proposition for customers. 

When you nail the right product combination, customers will naturally see its benefits and purchase the bundle. 

Use the right pricing strategy

Determine the pricing strategy for your bundle, considering factors like the cost of goods, perceived value, and competitive pricing. Offer a discount compared to purchasing the items separately to incentivize bundle purchases.

Consider the costs of additional packaging, returns, shipping, and inventory. All of your costs must be accounted for together with the discount you’d offer for the bundle. One useful strategy is to pair high-margin items with low-margin ones. This ensures that any extra costs don’t eat up your profits.

Test and iterate your bundles

Continuously monitor the performance of your product bundles and gather feedback from customers. Use this data to make adjustments and improvements to your bundling strategy over time. If a bundle stops performing, consider replacing it and making a new one.

Just like individual items, you should continuously optimize the product listing of your bundle. Refine the title and description and use keywords to ensure they’re picked up in search. Even if you have a unique bundle, you’re still competing with multiple other product bundles. 

Use the highest-priced item as the main bundle title

Lead your bundle title with the highest-priced item, since customers perceive this as the most valuable item. Amazon recommends following this title formula:

• Bundle with few items: Main Product Title + “Bundle with” + Bundle Component Product Titles 
• Bundle with many items: Main Product Title + “Bundle with” + Bundle Component Summary + # of Items

It’s recommended to include the word "bundle" in the product title so customers know what they’re getting. However, not all sellers use this practice. Instead, they clearly outline the contents of the bundle in the product title. 

‍Blink doesn’t include the word “bundle” in the title, but it’s clear that customers are getting 4 outdoor Blink cameras plus a wired floodlight camera and a video doorbell. 

Follow the right format in the product descriptions

Give customers the complete contents of your bundles by enumerating the items in the product description. You should include complete details like model number, color, and size. Ensure the main image contains all the items in the bundle and not any representative pictures. 

This Canon camera bundle clearly states what’s included in the bundle. It lists all the items as pictured, including accessories like the digital cleaning cloth, dust blower, and cleaning pen.

Use the right tools

Running an Amazon store is easier with the right tools in place. For instance, you don’t have to manually look for profitable products that you can buy wholesale or retail for a nice profit. Tactical Arbitrage, one of Threecolts’ leading Amazon tools, lets you find profitable wholesale deals and uses in-depth sales velocity analysis so you can easily source best-selling products.

You can also use a repricing tool like SmartRepricer to safely automate your Amazon pricing so you can always win the Buy Box on your products. Even if another seller attempts to copy your bundles, you can remain ahead by maintaining competitive pricing.

Wrapping Up

Product bundles are a great way to increase your sales and grow your Amazon business. Some sellers have even built their Amazon store by exclusively selling bundles. By following best practices and using the right tools, you can master the art of product bundling and have a profitable Amazon enterprise.

Browse through our blog and read our other posts and data-driven insights from our very own proprietary data. Learn more about Mother's Day trends and best practices, Easter sales, price elasticity of demand, Amazon FBA fee changes, Amazon product title optimization, winter seasonal products, Amazon end-of-year sales, Valentine’s Day trends and best Amazon fulfillment centers by location, and throughput.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do sellers effectively manage inventory when creating Amazon product bundles, especially with seasonal or limited-stock items?

Managing inventory for Amazon product bundles requires careful planning and forecasting, particularly when dealing with seasonal or limited-stock items. Sellers can use inventory management software to track stock levels, monitor demand trends, and optimize bundle offerings based on available inventory. Additionally, strategic partnerships with suppliers and manufacturers can help secure timely replenishments and mitigate stockouts, ensuring consistent availability of bundle components.

2. What strategies can sellers employ to optimize pricing for Amazon product bundles while maintaining profitability?

Optimizing pricing for Amazon product bundles involves balancing competitive pricing with profitability. Sellers can conduct competitor analysis to benchmark bundle prices and identify opportunities for discounts or promotions. Moreover, implementing dynamic pricing algorithms or repricing tools can help adjust bundle prices in real time based on market demand and competitor pricing strategies, maximizing sales while preserving profit margins.

3. How do Amazon product bundles contribute to brand differentiation and customer loyalty, and what strategies can sellers employ to enhance these outcomes?

Amazon product bundles offer sellers opportunities to differentiate their brands and foster customer loyalty through unique offerings and value-added experiences. Sellers can develop branded bundle collections tailored to specific customer segments or occasions, effectively positioning their brands as leaders in their respective niches. Additionally, offering subscription boxes can automate repeat purchases and cultivate long-term customer relationships.

4. How can sellers effectively market Amazon product bundles to maximize visibility, reach, and engagement with target audiences?

Effectively marketing Amazon product bundles involves leveraging various channels and tactics to maximize visibility, reach, and engagement with target audiences. Sellers can use targeted advertising campaigns, social media promotions, and influencer partnerships to showcase bundle offerings and highlight unique value propositions. Additionally, optimizing bundle listings with relevant keywords, compelling visuals, and detailed product descriptions can improve search visibility and attract potential buyers.

5. How can sellers adapt their Amazon product bundle strategies to capitalize on emerging market trends, technological advancements, and shifting consumer preferences?

Adapting Amazon product bundle strategies to capitalize on emerging market trends, technological advancements, and shifting consumer preferences requires agility and innovation. Sellers can leverage data analytics, predictive modeling, and trend forecasting tools to anticipate market shifts and identify new opportunities for bundle offerings. Moreover, optimizing for innovative technologies like voice commerce via Alexa can enhance customer experiences and differentiate bundle offerings in a competitive marketplace.