Master Your First Amazon FBA Shipment: A Step-by-Step Checklist

Phase 1: Account Setup & Product Selection

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Amazon Seller Central Account: Is your Amazon seller account created, verified, and configured for FBA?

Product Research & Selection: Have you thoroughly researched and selected a viable product for FBA based on demand, competition, and profitability?

Phase 2: Optimized Product Listing Creation

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Create Optimized Listing: Have you created a compelling and keyword-optimized product listing (title, bullet points, description, backend keywords, high-quality images) in Seller Central?

Phase 3: Supplier Order & Quality Inspection

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Order Stock from Supplier: Have you placed your order with the chosen supplier, confirming quantities, pricing, and lead times?

Quality Inspection Plan: Do you have a plan for inspecting the stock upon arrival (either yourself, a prep center, or a third-party inspection service) for defects and conformity?

Phase 4: FBA Inventory Preparation

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FNSKU Labeling: Are all individual units correctly labeled with FNSKU barcodes (if required, i.e., not commingled inventory)?

Product Packaging: Are products packaged according to Amazon's FBA requirements (e.g., poly bags with suffocation warnings, bubble wrap for fragile items, set requirements)?

Box Contents & Dunnage: Are shipping boxes appropriately sized, sturdy, filled with proper dunnage (void fill), and box content information prepared (if not using 2D barcodes)?

Phase 5: Create FBA Shipping Plan in Seller Central

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Shipping Plan Creation: Have you accurately created a new shipping plan in Seller Central (Send to Amazon workflow)?

Set Quantity & Pack Individual Units: Have you entered the correct SKUs, quantities per SKU, and confirmed packaging details within the shipping plan?

Print FBA Box Labels: Have you printed the FBA shipment ID labels (box labels) from the shipping plan and correctly applied them to each shipping box?

Phase 6: Arrange Carrier Pickup or Drop-off

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Select Shipping Service & Carrier: Have you selected your shipping service (SPD for small parcels, LTL for pallets) and carrier (Amazon Partnered Carrier or your own)?

Schedule Pickup/Drop-off: Have you scheduled the carrier pickup or arranged for drop-off at the carrier's facility, and obtained shipping labels (if not FBA box labels)?

Phase 7: Shipment Tracking & Amazon Reception

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Monitor Shipment Tracking: Are you monitoring the shipment's progress using the carrier tracking number(s) and within Seller Central?

Reconcile Shipment Upon Reception: Once Amazon marks the shipment as 'Receiving' or 'Closed', have you reconciled the received units against what was sent and addressed any discrepancies?

FBA Shipment Prepared!

Congratulations! You've navigated the complexities of preparing your first Amazon FBA shipment. This diligence will pay off. Remember to track your shipment until it's fully received and your inventory is available for sale.