Amazon, with its high traffic volume, is one of the best places to sell handcrafted products. 

Another reason is Amazon Handmade—a niche corner of the online marketplace where you can find a vibrant community of artisans and craftspeople. Selling on Handmade also offers some perks sometimes not available to “regular” Amazon sellers:

• Monthly profession fee waived
• Listing ownership (prevents listing “hijacking”)

In this guide, you’ll learn how the Amazon Handmade Seller program works and how you can use it as a profitable place to sell your creations.

Understanding the Amazon Handmade Marketplace

Before we go through the details of setting up your shop, let’s understand what Amazon Handmade is and how it differs from the market at large. Amazon Handmade is a curated selection of handmade and hand-assembled items within the Amazon marketplace (or at least it should be, more on that later).

The following Amazon product categories are eligible for Handmade items:

• Accessories
• Artwork
• Baby
• Beauty & personal care
• Clothing, Shoes & Handbags
• Home, Outdoor & Home care
• Jewelry & Watches
• Kitchen & Dining
• Pet Supplies
• Sporting Goods
• Stationery & Party Supplies
• Toys & Games

Handmade items appear on Amazon in the same way non-handmade items do. They can appear in searches or category listings for any of the above niches. Shoppers can also search for Handmade items directly through the Handmade option in the main category menu in the Amazon search bar.

To sell Handmade items, sellers must complete a unique signup process and gain approval from Amazon. This exclusivity ensures a refined product offering and higher quality of goods.

Applying to Amazon Handmade

While the core Amazon marketplace has a basic signup, the Handmade program has a more nuanced process. It’s intended to maintain the quality of the products and those allowed to sell them. Therefore, it requires specific and detailed information beyond simple business details.

Now, don’t get too alarmed. The application process isn’t some overly restrictive test that you won’t be able to pass. It aims to prove the personable and handcrafted nature of your business. So, if you can do that, you should have no worries about being accepted into the program.

Amazon Seller Signup

Before you can apply to the Handmade program, you need a normal Amazon Seller Account. The signup process is simple. You only need to provide personal and business information and verify your identity, phone number, and address. Get started here: https://sell.amazon.com.

When signing up, you’ll choose between an Individual or a Professional account. The latter incurs a $39.99 monthly fee but offers more features like access to Amazon Ads. A Professional plan also removes a $0.99 per-item sold fee that applies to Individual accounts. Ultimately you won’t need to worry about this, as the monthly fee is waived for Handmade sellers once you’re accepted.

Once you create a seller account, you can head to the Handmade signup page and begin the application. Remember, the application is subject to approval. Before you start, be ready to fully showcase your craft. Specifically, have pictures of your workspace and creations ready to include in the questionnaire.

Amazon Handmade Application Questionnaire

The application contains a series of required questions about your business. The details are as follows:

1. Tell us about you

The application starts with a request for basic personal information (name and email). It then asks what type of “Maker” you are, meaning, do you work alone or with a team?

2. Tell us about your work

Next, Amazon asks for a quick overview of your goods and production process. Select the options that best describe your approach to handcrafted goods.

3. Tell us about your products and processes

The following section asks for more substantive details about your work. Here, you’ll provide a detailed explanation of the types of materials you use, what tools are involved, and how long a typical production takes.

4. Show us your process

After that, Amazon requests firsthand images of your process. Here, you’ll add visuals that show you actively making your products. Make sure to add visuals that reflect and support the information in the previous section.

5. Select your product category

Next, you’ll select the category that best matches your handmade items. If your product assortment contains items in multiple categories, choose the one that best supports your application.

6. Additional Information

The final section of the application asks if your business has an existing online store and social media presence. It also asks if you plan to use Amazon’s FBA shipping service for order delivery. 

Make sure to be as clear and detailed as possible in the answers to the application questions. Remember, Amazon uses this process to weed out sellers with low-quality items and those whose items aren’t handmade. Also, take the time to read through the Amazon Handmade Terms and Conditions to ensure all your answers adhere to the program’s regulations.

Once complete, you’ll need to wait for Amazon’s response. The decision time can vary but plan on up to two weeks before you hear back from Amazon.

Setting Up Your Handmade Shop

Once you’re accepted into Amazon Handmade, you can set up your new shop. The first area to complete is your Maker profile. This profile serves as a storefront window to your digital curation. A polished profile can attract interest, build trust, and entice browsers to become buyers.

Use the about line to craft a captivating brand story. Be clear on what it is you create and the inspiration behind your craft. For the banner, use an engaging, high-quality image that provides a good visual representation of your work or brand.

Listing Your Handmade Products

After filling out your profile, you can begin adding your handmade items. Product listings are the make-or-break of your Handmade shop. It is where potential buyers get the full details about your goods and decide whether or not to complete a purchase.

While Handmade items are unique—and often draw a unique audience—it’s best to follow typical best practices for Amazon listings. Doing so will maximize on-page conversions and help your items compete in the market as a whole.

You can create a new listing by going to the Inventory section in Seller Central and selecting Add a Product. From there, you’ll follow the prompts to categorize your product and enter details like product description, title price, quantity, and shipping options.

The description is your canvas to paint a vivid picture of your handmade item. Try to tell a story that evokes emotions, and helps the customer envision the item in their life. Emphasize the quality and origin of your materials and describe the making process if possible.

Make sure to leverage bullet points for features and benefits. They’re easy to process and generally, the first place customers scan as opposed to the main description further down the page.

Optimize Your Product Photos

Images are vital to sales. Amazon has fairly strict photo requirements as it is so you won’t get by with low-quality images. That said, it’s important to put real effort into optimizing your photos as it will help convert more of your visitors into buyers.

Start with proper lighting. Soft, natural light brings textures alive and captures the true colors and aspects of your materials. Avoid shadows and harsh reflections as they make it hard for viewers to assess your products.

Properly staging your photos is another important factor. Doing so helps ensure your creation stays center stage. Opt for neutral tones that compliment your goods without competing with them. You can also use props to infuse context and lifestyle into your imagery,

Above, we can see an example of a simple photo that is optimized for Amazon success. The image adheres to the standard main image guidelines helping it to fit with the market’s regular products. This can help build trust and tap into the market’s wider customer base that may not necessarily be looking for handcrafted items.

Below, we can see a more nuanced image that uses staging effectively to create a more appealing photo. Potential buyers can easily visualize how the handcrafted tray may fit in their kitchen.

Offer a Great Delivery Experience

When listing your items, you must also decide how you will approach fulfilling customer orders. Like a regular Amazon store, Handmade sellers can use the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) service or ship the items independently using the Fulfilled by Merchant (FBM) method.

Fulfillment by Amazon

Amazon FBA is the better choice when it comes to traffic volume. FBA makes your products eligible for Amazon Prime. This ensures your product is still visible when a customer filters their search by “Amazon Prime” products only. With the products in its warehouses, the commerce giant will use their vast logistics network to offer free, two-day shipping to in-range customers.

Fulfillment by Merchant

In some cases, it’s better to opt for FBM. For example, you may not want to craft and send items to Amazon in advance. Or you customize your products for buyers. If you use FBM, be sure to give accurate shipping estimates on your product listings. It can be tempting to undersell the delivery time, but customers may not react well if their orders are delayed. The same goes for Amazon as they have strict merchant performance standards. Continually delivering orders late can put your account at risk.

Keep in mind, your products will have to deal with competing items that have Prime shipping. This can make them hard to beat as many customers use Prime as a key purchase driver. You can try to mitigate this effect by offering free shipping.

Marketing Your Amazon Handmade Store

Now, let’s talk visibility. Getting visitors to your page is essential to seeing sales. With Amazon, marketing can’t be an afterthought otherwise your goods will end up lost in a sea of countless products. Let’s take a look at some of the most practical ways to market your Handmade goods.

SEO for Amazon Handmade

Search engine optimization (SEO) is how you get your products to rise in Amazon search results. There’s a lot of competition on Amazon. But with the right approach, you can rank and get organic visitors to your listings. It all starts with planning and identifying the best keyword targets for your products.

Start by using the Amazon search bar. The autocomplete feature will help you identify the most relevant keywords that your buyers are using. Note them down as the main terms to include in your product listings and double-check how competitors are using them.

After that, you can use Amazon-specific keyword research tools like Helium 10 or AMZScout. These will help you discover more long-tail keywords. The tools also provide valuable data, such as monthly searches and ranking difficulty.

After you build a detailed keyword list, you can start infusing them into your product descriptions and titles. Keep your listings clear and concise and don’t overstuff the keywords or it can have a negative effect. Finally, remember to monitor your SEO performance and adjust your keyword strategy if you don’t see results.

Amazon Ads

Established sales history is one of the biggest challenges to getting momentum with Amazon SEO. The marketplace favors successful products, so new items can have a slow time reaching the top of search results.

Fortunately, Amazon offers one of the most robust advertising platforms of any online market. An effective Amazon Ads campaign can bring initial sales while also elevating your listings for better future performance.

The platform offers a variety of ad formats. Each type serves a different purpose and is aimed at capturing buyers at different moments in the purchasing journey.

• Sponsored Products: Show your single product listings among search results and category pages.
• Sponsored Brands: Showcase a collection of products with a branded banner at the top of Amazon pages.
• Sponsored Display: Retarget shoppers who viewed your products but didn’t purchase with ads in multiple formats.

Setting up a Sponsored Products campaign is straightforward as you don’t need to provide the ad creative. Instead, Amazon simply shows your listing in the same format as the organic results.

Like SEO, keywords are an important focus area when running an ad campaign. You want to limit your targeting to only include highly relevant terms. Doing so helps optimize your ad spend and ensure you’re not wasting money on irrelevant traffic.

Start with a budget that is comfortable but sizable enough to gather meaningful data. Regularly monitor performance and track your Advertising Cost of Sales (ACoS). Look for high-cost, low-conversion keywords and consider removing them from campaigns. From there, you can fine-tune your ads, and experiment with new keywords.

How Much Does It Cost to Sell on Amazon Handmade?

There is no setup cost to launch an Amazon Handmade store. Enrollment even waives the normal monthly charge accompanying a Professional Amazon seller account.

That said, there are costs associated with selling products—something to expect with any online marketplace. With Handmade, these are in the form of Referral fees. These Referral fees are calculated as a percentage of your order value. Most Handmade categories have a 15% fee with a $1 per item minimum.

Note, that if you choose to use FBA for order fulfillment, this will incur additional fees. Fees are deducted from your Seller account at the time of sale. FBA storage fees are also charged depending on how much stock you keep in the Amazon warehouses.

How to Find Products to Sell on Amazon Handmade

So how do you decide what exactly to sell with Amazon Handmade? It starts with evaluating the viability of your interests. Ask yourself what you’re passionate about and if any of these interests fit into the Handmade categories. You can then research the offerings of other Amazon sellers to see what types of handcrafted items have a strong customer demand and perform well in the marketplace.

For example, the Home Decor niche is a great niche not just for Handmade, but the whole Amazon market. The broader Home & Kitchen category is consistently one of the most popular on Amazon. With Amazon’s traffic, there is massive sales potential for sellers to harvest.

As a Handmade seller, there are plenty of unique items in the niche that you can make for people looking to enhance their living environment.

Amazon Handmade vs Etsy

Amazon Handmade and Etsy both have a lot to offer those looking to sell handcrafted goods. That said, there are some distinct differences between the two. As an artisan seller, you may be wondering which is better for doing business. Below, we’ll examine the key considerations when comparing the two platforms.

Etsy

Etsy’s audience may not match the colossal reach of Amazon. However, all of its visitors are there seeking something special and handcrafted. This targeted demographic can be a boon for niche items as they don’t have to compete directly against mass-produced products.

Furthermore, Etsy fosters a strong sense of community and kinship. It allows deep connections between buyers and sellers through highly personalized stores. For sellers, this is reflected in greater control over branding and presentation.

When it comes to cost, Etsy has a lower transaction fee of just 6.5%. However, there are fees not present with Amazon Handmade. The most notable are the listing fees. With Etsy, you must pay $0.20 in advance to list a product. What’s more, this fee applies to each item, meaning a product with multiple quantities must pay $0.20 after each sale to keep the listing active. 

Amazon Handmade

When compared to Etsy, Amazon is better at reaching a large audience. However, it comes with the upfront requirement of passing the application process. Once in the program, sellers can benefit from the downstream benefits of Amazon’s ecosystem. Buyers have an inherently higher trust level and services like FBA and Prime help streamline your business operations. The downside of this however, is sometimes buyers expect the same level of leniency on returns as they get with other Amazon products. Fortunately, sellers of customized products are allowed to refuse returns. But that doesn’t stop some buyers from trying to manipulate the system.

In summary, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. The best platform will depend on a variety of factors including your product niche, target audience, and cost considerations. Many savvy artisans diversify their presence across both platforms to maximize visibility and revenue.

Don’t get put off by the depth of the application. The traffic you can get by being on Amazon is worth it for many.