Amazon has announced the launch of Buy with Prime, an initiative that extends the company’s key shopping membership program to online stores beyond its own website.
Amazon is making Buy with Prime available by invitation only to merchants using Fulfillment by Amazon. The initiative will roll out through 2022 as Amazon invites merchants to participate, including those not selling on Amazon or using FBA.
Prime members in the United States will be able to shop directly from participating outside merchants’ online stores and enjoy fast, free delivery and a simple checkout experience as well as free returns on eligible orders, Amazon indicated. The Prime logo and delivery promise on eligible products will appear in outside merchants’ online stores. Prime members can use the payment and shipping information stored in their Amazon account and receive timely shipping and delivery notifications after an order is placed.
Merchants already using FBA can add Buy with Prime 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 establish one pool of inventory for multiple channels, and link an Amazon Pay account to offer a seamless checkout experience for Prime members, Amazon noted. By installing a JavaScript widget in their online store, merchants can 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.
Buy with Prime merchants pay for what they use, Amazon asserted. Pricing is based on a service fee, a payment processing fee and fulfillment and storage fees that are calculated per unit. Amazon requires no fixed subscription fee or long-term contract so merchants can expand selection or cancel at any time. Amazon designed Buy with Prime to work with most online stores, including e-commerce service providers such as BigCommerce.
“We always aim to exceed Prime members’ expectations by offering more selection, exclusive deals, quality content, and convenient features,” said Jamil Ghani, vice president, 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.”
In the announcement about the initiative’s launch, Troy Cox, senior vice president of product at BigCommerce, said, “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. Prime set the bar for a shopping experience customers trust, including convenient and fast shipping. As one of the top e-commerce 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.”
