How to analyze and use Amazon Business Reports

Amazon Business Reports provide a wealth of data that can help sellers optimize their operations, improve sales, and understand customer behavior. These reports cover various aspects of your Amazon store, from inventory and sales performance to customer demographics and advertising metrics. Analyzing and effectively using these reports can be a game-changer for your business. Here’s how to analyze and use Amazon Business Reports to enhance your performance:

Table of Contents

1. Accessing Amazon Business Reports

To start using Amazon Business Reports, you need to log into your Amazon Seller Central account:

Go to the Reports section in Seller Central.
From the dropdown menu, select Business Reports. Here, you’ll find a range of reports that provide insights into different aspects of your business.

2. Types of Business Reports on Amazon

There are several types of business reports available, each with a unique focus. Key reports include:

a. Sales Reports:

Detail Page Sales and Traffic by ASIN: Provides data on sales, units ordered, page views, and the buy box percentage. Use this report to analyze the performance of individual ASINs (Amazon Standard Identification Numbers).
Amazon Customer Reviews: Gives insights into customer reviews, including ratings, feedback, and product returns. This helps you understand customer satisfaction.
Inventory and Fulfillment Reports: This includes data on inventory levels, shipments, and stockouts, helping you manage inventory effectively.

b. Traffic and Conversion Reports:

Sessions: Provides information on how many times your products were viewed, helping you understand overall interest.
Buy Box Percentage: Tracks how often your product appears in the Buy Box, a critical metric for increasing sales.
Conversion Rate: Shows the percentage of shoppers who make a purchase after visiting your product page. This is a key metric for evaluating your product listing effectiveness.

c. Advertising Reports:

Sponsored Products Campaigns: Offers insights into your advertising performance, including impressions, clicks, sales, and the return on ad spend (ROAS).
Search Term Report: Shows which search terms are driving traffic to your ads. Use this report to refine your keyword targeting and bidding strategies.

d. Financial Reports:

Payments Summary: This shows your total sales, refunds, and fees. It’s useful for understanding your overall financial health on Amazon.
Fee Preview: Helps you anticipate seller fees, including referral fees and fulfillment fees.
Tax Calculation Reports: Provides data on the tax collected on your sales, helping you with tax compliance.

3. How to Analyze Amazon Business Reports

Once you’ve accessed these reports, the next step is analysis. The goal is to identify patterns, trends, and areas for improvement. Here’s how you can analyze some of the most important reports:

a. Sales and Traffic Analysis

Sales Volume: Track sales over time to identify trends. Are sales increasing or declining? This can help you decide if your product listings need optimization or if promotional efforts are paying off.
Session to Sale Conversion: If you’re getting a high number of sessions (views) but few sales, it indicates that your conversion rate may need improvement. Check product images, descriptions, and prices to make sure they’re compelling enough for mobile and desktop shoppers.
Traffic Sources: Understand where your traffic is coming from (e.g., organic search, paid ads, or external traffic). This helps you focus your efforts on high-performing channels.

b. Advertising Performance

ROAS (Return on Ad Spend): This tells you how much revenue you generate for each dollar spent on advertising. If your ROAS is low, it may indicate that your ads aren’t targeting the right audience or that your listings need improvement.
Search Term Report: Analyze which search terms are bringing in traffic and which ones are converting into sales. This allows you to refine your keyword targeting and adjust your bids accordingly.
Impressions and Click-Through Rate (CTR): High impressions but low CTR can indicate that your ad copy, image, or product listing isn’t appealing enough. Conversely, a low number of impressions but a high CTR may suggest that you’re targeting a too narrow audience.

c. Inventory Management

Inventory Age Report: This shows how long your inventory has been in Amazon’s warehouses. Older inventory might be subject to storage fees, and slow-moving items could be discounted or removed to optimize your costs.
Sell-Through Rate: This shows how quickly your products are selling relative to how much inventory you have. If the sell-through rate is low, it could indicate that your product is overstocked or not selling as well as expected.
Restock Inventory Report: Use this report to track which products need restocking based on their sales velocity. It helps prevent stockouts and ensures you meet demand without overstocking.

d. Financial Reports

Payments Summary: By reviewing the Payments Summary report, you can quickly gauge your profits, fees, and overall sales performance. Look for patterns in refund rates and fee increases to better forecast future revenue.
Fee Preview: Understand Amazon’s fees to ensure they align with your pricing strategy. If fees are eroding your margins, it may be necessary to adjust your product pricing or switch to a different fulfillment method.

e. Customer Reviews and Feedback

Review Analysis: Monitor your product reviews to understand customer satisfaction and identify areas for improvement. A sudden increase in negative reviews could indicate a product defect or an issue with fulfillment.
Feedback Loop: Use the reviews to refine product features, improve customer service, or address recurring issues. Positive reviews can also be used in advertising or on product pages to enhance credibility.

4. How to Use Amazon Business Reports

After analyzing these reports, you can use the insights to improve your Amazon selling strategy in several ways:

a. Optimize Listings Based on Traffic and Conversion Data

Revise Product Listings: If you notice high traffic but low conversion, analyze your listings. Update product titles, descriptions, and images based on the search terms and customer interests identified in the reports.
Price Optimization: Use pricing data to assess whether you’re competitive in the marketplace. Consider adjusting prices based on competitor activity or customer demand.
Keyword Adjustments: Refine your keyword strategy by using search term reports to focus on high-converting, relevant keywords. Avoid wasting ad spend on irrelevant terms.

b. Adjust Inventory Levels Based on Demand

Prevent Stockouts: Use the inventory reports to monitor stock levels and sales velocity to anticipate demand. Restock high-demand items early to avoid losing sales.
Clear Slow-Moving Inventory: If an item isn’t selling well, consider running promotions or discounts to clear excess inventory before you incur long-term storage fees.

c. Improve Advertising Performance

Refine Ads: Use the Advertising Reports to identify underperforming ads and pause or modify them. Increase bids for high-performing keywords to boost visibility.
A/B Testing: Regularly test different ad creatives, product titles, and descriptions to see which ones perform better and refine your approach.

d. Enhance Customer Satisfaction

Address Negative Feedback: Use customer feedback to identify pain points and improve product quality or customer service. Address negative reviews with solutions, such as product updates or better support.
Leverage Positive Reviews: Highlight positive reviews in your marketing and listings to build social proof.

5. Creating a Data-Driven Strategy

Amazon Business Reports are only useful if you turn the data into actionable insights. Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) such as sales growth, conversion rates, inventory turnover, and ROAS. Regularly review these metrics to measure your success and adjust strategies based on findings. Setting goals and tracking progress using reports helps you stay on course and grow your Amazon business.

Conclusion

Amazon Business Reports are an invaluable tool for sellers aiming to optimize their performance on the platform. By regularly reviewing these reports, analyzing the data, and using insights to make informed decisions, you can improve sales, streamline operations, and better meet customer needs. Ultimately, the more effectively you use these reports, the better positioned you’ll be to succeed in the competitive Amazon marketplace.