New Amazon ‘Buy With Prime’ Program Brings Prime Shopping Benefits to Independently Operated Online Stores

Amazon announced a new benefit for Prime Members called Buy with Prime which extends the convenience of Prime shopping to online stores beyond Amazon.com.

Don’t Miss

• Do you need a business bank account for your online business? Have a look at our review of the five best bank accounts for sellers, some of which are free with no minimum balance or deposits.
• AI can change your entire social media game today. Learn how you can save time writing engaging content faster. ^[sponsored]
• How to lower your taxable income and pay less in taxes. ^[sponsored]
• ‘My Community Made’ is a new marketplace to compete with Etsy and Amazon Handmade.
• EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Chris Prill, VP eBay Motors, discussing the new Guaranteed Fit program.

Buy with Prime will initially be available by invitation only for merchants using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) and will roll out through 2022 as merchants are invited to participate, including those not selling on Amazon or using FBA.

Expanded Shopping Benefits for Prime Members When Shopping at Independent Merchants

Buy with Prime will allow millions of US-based Prime members to shop directly from merchants’ online stores with the trusted experience they expect from Amazon—including fast, free delivery, a seamless checkout experience, and free returns on eligible orders.

Prime members will see the Prime logo and delivery promise on eligible products in merchants’ online stores, which signals the item is available for free delivery, as fast as next day, with free returns.

When shopping with Buy with Prime, checkout is simple and convenient. Prime members will use the payment and shipping information stored in their Amazon account and receive timely shipping and delivery notifications after an order is placed.

“We always aim to exceed Prime members’ expectations by offering more selection, exclusive deals, quality content, and convenient features,” said Jamil Ghani, vice president of Amazon Prime.

“With the introduction of Buy with Prime, we’re expanding where members can enjoy trusted and convenient Prime shopping benefits beyond Amazon, adding even more value to their membership.”

“Members will have the flexibility to shop from merchants directly, all while enjoying the fast, free delivery, seamless checkout, and easy returns they’ve come to know and love from Amazon.” added Ghani.

Buy With Prime Opportunity for Merchants to Grow Sales

“For over 20 years, we’ve been empowering small and medium-sized businesses with opportunities to grow on Amazon.com,” explained Peter Larsen, Amazon’s vice president of Buy with Prime.

“Allowing merchants to offer Prime shopping benefits on their own direct-to-consumer online stores is an exciting next step in our mission to help merchants of all sizes grow their business—whether on Amazon or beyond.”

“With shoppers purchasing directly from merchants’ online stores, Buy with Prime will allow merchants to build customer relationships and brand loyalty while offering conversion-driving benefits like fast, free shipping,” added Larsen.

For merchants already using FBA, Buy with Prime can be added to their online store within minutes because their inventory is already stored in Amazon fulfillment centers.

To get started, merchants sign up for Buy with Prime, link an Amazon Seller Central account, use Multi-Channel Fulfillment to offer one pool of inventory for multiple channels, and link an Amazon Pay account to offer a seamless checkout experience for Prime members.

Then, by installing a JavaScript widget in their online store, merchants can easily add Buy with Prime to one or more products.

With Buy with Prime, merchants will receive shopper order information, including email addresses for customer orders, which they can use to provide customer service and build direct relationships with shoppers.

Using Buy with Prime, merchants simply pay for what they use. Pricing is based on a service fee, a payment processing fee, and fulfillment and storage fees that are calculated per unit.

With no fixed subscription fee or long-term contract required, merchants can expand selection or cancel at any time.

Buy with Prime is designed to work with most online stores, including eCommerce service providers such as BigCommerce.

“Buy with Prime represents a compelling value-add for BigCommerce merchants who wish to increase their sales and optimize the omnichannel experience they provide their customers,” said Troy Cox, senior vice president of product at BigCommerce

“Prime set the bar for a shopping experience customers trust, including convenient and fast shipping. As one of the top ecommerce platforms collaborating with Amazon to add Buy with Prime, extending these benefits to our merchants will help elevate their online shopper experiences, build brand loyalty, and power them to grow and scale,” added Cox.

The Amazon Buy With Prime program is currently by invitation only, but the company has an interest list merchants can join here to get notified when it opens the program further.

Connect with us: Head over to our Facebook Group for Small Business Sellers and interact with other small business owners.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn to stay up to date with relevant news and business insights for your online business.