Doing good business involves some universal principles – good customer service, fast and reliable delivery and a great product. But not every business harnesses the opportunities available to drive those principles into action.
Negotiating shipping rates, managing order tracking with multiple carriers, and scaling up operations mean small business owners often face more complexity in the delivery of their products than they would like. And as economic conditions shift post-pandemic, finding certainty in business inputs is invaluable to growth and reliable service delivery.
Small business owners already have so many things to focus on as they grow, as Chris Newsome and Frank Simpson know, but they have both taken the opportunity to use the delivery expertise of Amazon Australia and their participating carriers to streamline their expanding operations and help exceed customer expectations.
Chris Newsome, owner of the Coffee Machine Specialist, says he has almost doubled his year-to-date revenue in 2022. Although he was initially nervous about the shut-down of cafes and the loss of a significant revenue stream during the pandemic, he realised individuals were just as keen to make their morning coffee at home. Home coffee machine sales took off.
But Chris didn’t rely solely on his customers’ love of a cuppa in the morning.
“I think in the modern world, businesses grow by being ethical and having a good degree of customer service. That’s what we try to do. We pride ourselves on providing clear communication. Nowadays, building and maintaining that reputation is what’s important to build and create a stable customer base,” he said.
After wholesale success, the development of the Coffee Machine Specialist’s retail offering occurred largely online, through Amazon.com.au.
“Now that I’ve got this online channel through Amazon, I can add other products. I’ve got the infrastructure set up, so I can easily add other products to my offering to increase turnover.”
Using Amazon Australia’s new shipping service, Amazon Easy Ship, has helped Chris streamline his deliveries to customers. It’s allowed him to print labels easily, access competitive shipping rates, and enabled him to have orders dispatched directly from his own premises.
The co-founder of Tasteful Delights, Frank Simpson, was no stranger to pivoting his business practices because of looming external forces. In 2014, then the owner of a bricks-and-mortar video store, Frank turned to his wife and said, “we had better find something else, quick smart!”
That same year, Frank and his wife had started a new business. By 2020, the solely digital store had grown into a fully stocked online supermarket, with many of its products available on Amazon.com.au, and was well-positioned to provide a valuable grocery service to people around the world and in Australia as lockdowns struck.
“Things went crazy for us,” Frank said, “the amount of business quadrupled overnight.”
While the opportunities were obvious, he was faced with disrupted supply chains and economic uncertainty.
Frank brought friends and family on board to manage the huge increase in orders. Using Amazon’s Easy Ship service during its pilot phase this year has meant that he no longer needs to spend time configuring shipping time manually or negotiating rates with multiple carriers.
Frank says he “didn’t have any hassles implementing it,” and in particular, “the national shipping price per weight band has been fantastic.”
Providing greater confidence to Australian small businesses is part of Amazon’s service to its sellers. Amazon Easy Ship is helping businesses, like Tasteful Delights, to buck the small business trend.
Amazon Easy Ship gives sellers access to fast and competitive delivery whether they use a warehouse or prefer to prepare their orders personally.
Amazon Easy Ship is a pay-per-consignment service that includes pick-up and trackable delivery through Amazon.com.au, optimised for cost and speed through Amazon Australia’s participating carriers. Sellers will not need to configure shipping manually, freeing up their time to focus on better sourcing, creating, and promoting their products and brands to grow their customer base.
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Amazon strives to be Earth’s Most Customer-Centric Company, Earth’s Best Employer, and Earth’s Safest Place to Work. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalised recommendations, Prime, Fulfilment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle, and The Climate Pledge are some of the things pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit Amazon.com.au
