Marketplaces must solve 2 challenges at once – how to bring consumers to purchase good on the marketplace, as well as how to attract sellers to open stores on the marketplace, so there are more attractive goods and offerings for consumers.
In this post we provide you with the How To guide to find and attract sellers to your marketplace – at scale.
The ROI of Attracting Top Sellers
By targeting, finding and studying top sellers on competing marketplaces, you can move your marketplace forward in multiple ways:
- Growing your assortment – Increasing the chances that consumers find what they need and thus increasing conversion rate
- Delivering more competitive prices – With more sellers you are likely to increase the competition on consumers business, driving more competitive prices and increasing conversion rate
- Accommodating the latest product trends – with more sellers offering a wider range of products, the chances are higher that these sellers are onto more trends and trending products, servicing consumers latest needs
- Smoothing supply chain issues – With more sellers you are less likely to run out of stock of certain products, as more sellers are likely to carry similar products
- Building your brand – As you offer a wider assortment at competitive prices, you establish your reputation as a credible source of goods and one consumers should consider
Which is why many marketplaces today establish a repeatable process to identify and attract top sellers from competing marketplaces.
The 5 Steps to Attract Top Sellers on Competing Marketplaces
1. Decide who you go after
Start by identifying your top product gaps:
- Identify categories where you need more sellers, compared to your other categories
- Look at gaps you have in assortment –
- Compared to other retailers and marketplaces
- By looking at what consumers try to find on your marketplace but fail
For example, see how many sellers are available for different aspects of cat care on Amazon.fr – 
2. Identify relevant sellers in competing marketplaces
Use product gaps to identify potential sellers for you for these categories:
- If available, leverage their best-seller lists that highlight top-performing sellers. For example, see the Amazon Top Sellers page (https://www.marketplacepulse.com/top-amazon-usa-sellers) that ranks the most reviewed sellers in each country
- Use eCommerce analytics solution to help you track top sellers and analyze their performance. These tools allow you to gather data on sales volume, pricing, and competition, helping you make informed decisions
3. Validate the right sellers for you
Make sure these potential sellers are the right ones for you:
- See that their product assortment answers your needs. Even if they are selling in a category that you want more sellers in, it still doesn’t mean they have a wide enough selection or the right pricing tiers you want
- Check their rating and reviews – Top sellers often have a high number of positive reviews and ratings. By examining customer feedback, you can learn:
- What customers like about their products
- Common complaints or issues
- How they handle customer service and returns
4. Approach target sellers with a proposed onboarding offer
Establish a process where you have a team that reaches out to these target sellers that qualify, and engages in conversation with them on why they should also sell on your marketplace:
- Offering incentives to join your marketplace
- Consider helping the new sellers onboard with your help or with some automation
The sooner these sellers are on your marketplace, the sooner your revenues ramp up…you want to make it easier for them to join
5. Repeat…
This process should repeat itself for a while, as ramping up a sizeable business takes time…and while you do that, trends change, competition changes and you need different sellers to join your marketplace…as long as this process yields valuable sellers that add revenue to your marketplace, continue to run this
Final Thoughts
Identifying top sellers on competing marketplaces is a powerful way to grow revenue, while gaining insights into what works in your industry and for your competitors. By carefully adding the right sellers, with the right assortment to your community, you are building your business, so it caters to the needs of tomorrow. This is not a one-off. You need to establish a process. Start by exploring best-seller lists, using intelligence tools, and studying competitor listings. With the right data and process, you can make smarter decisions and stay ahead in the competitive ecommerce landscape.
