Four Areas to Focus Amazon Demand Planning Efforts

There is a lot to consider when it comes to demand planning, from fully understanding your products and their marketplaces, setting sales goals and building accurate projections, all the way to understanding seasonality. It can be intimidating, but with proper strategic guidance, it can also be manageable. 

Demand planning helps predict customer needs by analyzing data such as historical sales, seasonal trends, and product seasonality. With this information, Amazon sellers can forecast sales demands and ensure optimal inventory levels, making informed decisions to improve customer satisfaction. We have compiled this guide on the four critical areas of demand planning success in the vast Amazon Marketplace to simplify the challenge for Amazon sellers. 

#1 Embrace data analysis

Whether from Amazon or elsewhere, one of the advantages of e-commerce is the incredible amount of data sellers can access. There’s often an overwhelming number of reports available regarding inventory, shoppers, advertising, buyers and more. But remember, it’s not just about monitoring this enormous data cache. It must also be appropriately analyzed to reveal actionable insights that optimize and grow sales. 

That’s why the data behind forecasting methods are critical when developing a demand planning strategy. There are various forecasting approaches, including demand sensing, trend analysis, or using historical data. Of course, the importance of accurate forecasting cannot be overemphasized, as it is vital in determining the right product mix, inventory levels, and pricing strategies. 

And it all starts with effective data analytics that can help you uncover hidden trends, understand customer behavior, and optimize your operations to meet customer demands. Data analytics techniques, such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and predictive analysis, can be used to get insights into your customer’s buying behavior and forecast future demand. Effective use of data analytics will enable you to stay ahead of the competition and thrive in a crowded market.

You can also expect the data behind demand planning will be deeply intertwined with your pricing strategy. Since demand will influence your pricing opportunities and your pricing will affect demand, it’s crucial to understand the market and the competition. A well-designed pricing strategy can help you stand out in a crowded market, retain customers, and boost revenue, while different pricing strategies, such as dynamic pricing, cost-plus pricing, and value-based pricing, can be used depending on your business goals and customer preferences. 

#2 Leverage the power of Amazon’s tools

As an Amazon seller, managing several aspects of your business can be time-consuming and daunting. From tracking inventory, analyzing sales trends, and managing listings to dealing with customer reviews, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and lose focus of your business objectives. However, with the right tools, managing your Amazon sales can be done efficiently and help you streamline your operations.

Amazon FBA is a lifesaver for many sellers as it takes care of most of the logistics involved in fulfilling orders to your customers. With FBA, you simply send your inventory to one of Amazon’s many fulfillment centers, and Amazon will handle the rest – picking, packing, shipping, and even customer support inquiries. It also allows for Prime eligibility which can increase the visibility and sales of your products. As a result, Amazon FBA has become an industry standard for many sellers and can help you compete with larger e-commerce operations.

Amazon Sponsored Products is an advertising program available on Amazon that allows you to promote your products to customers who are searching for similar items on the platform. This tool will enable you to create targeted ad campaigns, select keywords to bid on, and you’re only charged when someone clicks on your ad. You can even configure automatic targeting for Amazon to choose keywords based on your product listing and various other factors. Using Sponsored Products can increase the visibility and visibility for specific aspects of your business, making demand more consistent. 

Amazon Brand Analytics is a research tool that provides valuable insights related to product search traffic, consumer behavior, sales, and market trends for your ASINs. These analytics are in-depth and customizable to your business’s needs and can inform you of your best-performing products and how you can optimize your listings or advertising campaigns for better results. Evaluating market share data and finding gaps in the market to fill is an invaluable aspect of the tool and can be incredibly helpful to your demand planning efforts. 

Amazon’s Inventory Management Tools can help you efficiently manage your inventory, optimizing your stock to meet customer demands without overstocking and dealing with Amazon’s long-term storage fee fines. The inventory management system is customizable and can be tailored to your specific business needs and sales goals. Tools like the Amazon Selling Coach can even provide recommendations on stock replenishment based on historical data.

Negative reviews and feedback can damage your brand’s reputation and impact your sales. Amazon provides an automated tool called the Feedback Manager to help manage product reviews and feedback through customizable prompts that remind customers to leave feedback and reviews and can even automate vendor feedback management. With this tool at your disposal, you can keep track of all customer feedback and, in some cases, engage with customers to foster healthy relationships and mitigate any adverse effects that could result in an unexpected drop in demand. 

#3 Know the Best Practices

Demand planning is a complex process, and market trends can change quickly. As a result, it’s essential to review your demand planning strategy regularly and adjust it accordingly. Track your inventory levels, sales volume, supplier performance, and customer feedback to make informed decisions. You can adapt your demand planning strategies by monitoring these critical metrics for better results.

Many products have a seasonal demand pattern, which can significantly impact your inventory levels and fulfillment times. Anticipating seasonal demand patterns and planning your inventory accordingly can reduce the risk of overstocking or stockouts. Seasonal trends on Amazon can be found in the Amazon Movers & Shakers report, and tracking these trends can help you plan for seasonal dips in demand, adjust accordingly, and implement the best pricing and promotional strategies.

Manual demand planning processes are time-consuming, less efficient, and error-prone. Automated demand planning software can help Amazon sellers streamline their demand planning workflow and make informed decisions about inventory management. In addition, by leveraging predictive analytics and machine learning, demand planning software can forecast future demand patterns, optimize reorder points, and enhance supply chain management.

In the world of e-commerce, new technologies, trends, and market shifts are continuously emerging. As a result, what worked yesterday might not work tomorrow, which can lead to lost profits and missed opportunities. That’s why monitoring your progress and re-calibrating your strategy as needed is essential. By staying up-to-date with the latest trends, you can adjust your business strategy to ensure it remains relevant and profitable.

One way to stay up-to-date with the latest trends is by attending industry events, such as trade shows, conferences, and webinars. These events allow you to learn from industry experts, network with other business owners, and gather information about new products and technologies. You can also stay informed by reading industry publications, blogs, and forums.

Monitoring your progress also enables you to identify areas of improvement. You can identify areas where your business strategy is lacking by analyzing your sales data, customer feedback, and other metrics. For example, you might discover that your website’s load time is too slow or your product descriptions aren’t detailed enough. By recognizing these areas of improvement, you can re-calibrate your strategy to address these issues and improve your overall performance.

#4 Avoid common mistakes

Unfortunately, all Amazon sellers make mistakes occasionally, and demand planning is no exception. One of the most common mistakes e-commerce business owners make is relying too heavily on historical data when forecasting future sales and demand. The problem with relying entirely on historical data is that it does not factor in changes or trends in the current market. Today’s market changes rapidly, and it’s critical to adapt to the current trends. Avoiding this pitfall means keeping an eye on current trends and incorporating these trends into demand planning.

Inventory discrepancies are another mistake that can make or break a business, meaning accurate inventory forecasting and tracking are essential. Sellers should have a clear understanding of different inventory levels and align these levels with demand forecasting. Customers expect to purchase items when they need them, and out-of-stock products can force them to look elsewhere. Repeated unavailability can highly decrease customer loyalty, resulting in a lost customer base. Similarly, overstocking and understocking inventories will cost you time and money, and you risk losing customers’ trust in either case.

Yet another common demand planning pitfall that Amazon business owners face is a lack of communication between different departments. Marketing, sales, manufacturing, and distribution departments all play critical roles in demand planning. Poor communication between departments can negatively impact forecasting accuracy, inventory levels, and customer satisfaction. To mitigate this pitfall, establish clear communication channels between different departments and ensure information flows smoothly and timely.

Finally, shipping lead times are critical factors to consider when forecasting demand. Taking shipping lead times into account when planning production, inventory, and sales is essential in meeting customer expectations. Transportation delays can negatively impact business revenue, profitability, and customer loyalty.

Drive growth with Amify

As the competitive nature of Amazon grows and the demands on sellers increases, Amify offers the perfect partnership to help your business meet the moment. Schedule a free consultation to get a closer look at our capabilities today. 

You’ll find a team of more than 60 experts specializing in areas ranging from warehousing and logistics to optimization and content creation. And you’ll discover that we’ve supported more than $400 million in sales for our clients to date. Now we’re ready to help you.