Let’s say you’ve carried out relevant product research, discovered a product that will sell, and have also selected a supplier for your private label product.

As a Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) seller, you must now decide whether or not to ship directly to Amazon’s many warehouses from the supplier, or whether you want to ship elsewhere before they end up with Amazon.

Though direct shipping of inventory to Amazon can make your life a bit easier, navigating how to do this can be a bit tricky at first – especially if you’re just setting up your first-ever FBA shipment.

We’ve broken the process down on your behalf to help you resolve any Amazon orders pending and the necessary shipping quickly and hassle-free!

A Step-By-Step Guide

Step 1: Create A Shipping Plan

You must use your Amazon Seller Central account to create a shipping plan. It should include the following information:

• The items that are being delivered to Amazon
• Seller shipping method and carrier you’ve chosen
• The quantity of product
• Who is in charge of prepping and labeling the product

Navigate to the ‘Manage Inventory’ page and choose the products you want to ship. Next, click the ‘Send/Replenish Inventory’ option in the drop-down menu. Here, you’ll have the option to use Amazon FBA.

At this stage, make sure to check your ship-from address, confirm your packing type, and which product type you are shipping. Press ‘Continue’ to proceed.

Step 2:  Set The Quantity

Once you’ve started this process, you will be taken to the next page where you may specify the quantity of the products in your shipment. This provides an accurate record of your inventory for Amazon to take a look at.

You must type in the number of units and then click ‘Continue’ once you are done. You will likely receive any of the following notifications:

• Removal Required: your product is not eligible and must be removed.
• Excess Inventory: there is more inventory available than what is permitted.
• Information Required: Amazon requires more information about your product before it is stored in any warehouse.
• Action Recommended: there is an issue with the product and Amazon advises that it is removed immediately.

Step 3: Prepare The Products

Once you have set the quantity, you will be taken to the prepare products page where you will be able to confirm any product details and any prep instructions. At this stage, you must specify who is in charge of the product preparation process, you or Amazon.

If you allow Amazon to handle this on your behalf, there are specific products that require additional precautions such as those with specific weight or height restrictions. The same applies if you opt to do this yourself.

Or, if you are truly concerned about making an error, you might want to use professional Amazon FBA Prep Services instead.

Step 4: Label Your Products

If Amazon is sending labels they will be automatically generated and sent to you electronically to be printed out and applied to your products. You can do this yourself or Amazon will do this when your products arrive at the warehouse.

If you do it yourself, follow all FBA barcode requirements such as positioning the label in the right place and using the correct printer. All of the items that require labels are listed in the Labeling Required tab.

Step 5: Review And Prepare Your Shipment

The final step is to review your shipment. This will show every item you are sending to Amazon and the overall number of units. You can edit your shipment by revisiting the steps above and can then submit it once you’re happy all of the information is correct.

The ‘View Shipments’ page should appear once you have approved shipments. This means your shipping plan is in place and your package will be delivered to a specific Amazon location.

On the ‘Prepare Shipment’ page, you can now choose a shipping carrier and method, work out the number of required shipping boxes, and schedule and pay for a shipment.

In the FBA shipment process, the final step is the ‘Summary’ page which offers an overview of your entire shipment.

Summary

This entire process may seem a little complicated but shipping directly to Amazon FBA isn’t as difficult as you may think! Once you have followed all of these steps, you should be able to ship your items directly to Amazon within two to six business days.