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Welcome to part two of the Complete Guide to Online Arbitrage for Beginners. If you haven’t read part one on getting started then you can find it here.
What you’ll find in this article:
Part two will walk you through the essentials of starting your online arbitrage business on Amazon, from setting up your storefront to finding products that sell well and make a profit.
The first step to being a successful arbitrageur is setting up your shop correctly. And that starts with choosing a marketplace to sell through.
It’s best to focus on a single marketplace when starting out. The learning curve for online arbitrage is steep, and you don’t want to have to learn the rules or multiple marketplaces at the same time.
Amazon is an excellent jumping-off point because of its massive customer base and different fulfillment options. And you can always expand into other marketplaces once you’ve mastered the basics of online arbitrage.
There are lots of product categories on Amazon. But you need to find ones with the right balance of demand and competition. If a category is saturated with competitors, it’s difficult to gain visibility and win the Buy Box (The “Buy Now” button on Amazon).
That's why you need to invest time in product research when figuring out what to sell on Amazon.
The top categories on Amazon are a good place to start. These popular categories may seem oversaturated at first, but the trick is to explore subcategories to uncover better opportunities. Finding an untapped niche within these categories is the gold standard for online arbitrage:
Another starting point for your research is Amazon's Best Sellers page. This page shows which products are selling most at any given time and changes constantly. There’s likely already good competition for these products, but if you dive deeper into related items, you can sometimes find hidden opportunities.
Here's a sample of the Amazon Best Sellers page:
A few notes about finding inspiration on the Best Sellers page:
Once you’ve found some product ideas, you need to research them. The most powerful and fastest way to research products is through arbitrage software like Tactical Arbitrage.
An arbitrage tool can help you understand whether a product will generate the sales and profit margin you need. It does this by pulling together dozens of data points, such as the number of competitive sellers already selling the product on Amazon. This detail gives you a comprehensive view of which products are profit opportunities.
Tactical Arbitrage can also analyze emerging trends and opportunities in niche areas to help you stay ahead of the competition.
When you’re ready to buy the products you will sell, you need to find the cheapest source for them.
Wherever in the world you’re looking to source products, the big-name stores are a good starting point. But you should also look into smaller and more niche websites. At times, the more specific and less popular the site is, the better deals you can get.
That’s where Tactical Arbitrage can help again. It lets you search 1,400+ websites and highlights the cheapest deals. This means you have hundreds of thousands of product listings at your fingertips. And any one of them can be profitable.
Once you’ve decided what products you want to sell, you need to create your Amazon storefront. Take your time and read the prompts carefully.
*It's important to know that Tactical Arbitrage and other seller tools are designed to only work with a Professional account, which is the cheaper option if you make more than 40 sales per month.
Once you’ve set up an Amazon seller account and added your first products, set competitive prices. Start by checking how your competitors price their products to see their strategies.
Using automated tools like SmartRepricer can also be very helpful. These tools automatically adjust your prices based on market changes and competitor prices. This saves you time, ensures your prices align with everyone else’s, and lets you focus on growing your business.
The right tools can make your online arbitrage business run smoother and help you work more efficiently. Here's a list to get you started:
By using the tools and strategies above, you’ll be able to set up your online arbitrage business with confidence. As you take these initial steps, remember to stay informed about market trends and adjust your strategy along the way.
The next step to a thriving online arbitrage business is arguably the most important—product hunting.
Bookmark this guide. It's a complete, easy-to-follow resource for learning about online arbitrage. Even if you have zero knowledge about it, we'll walk you through everything.
> [Part 2] Setting up Shop
