Day 5 – Lay the groundwork for your business
Reading Time: 8 Minutes
Goal: Get your brand logo designed, file paperwork for the formation of your company’s legal entity and create your Amazon professional seller central account
Notes: All resources and links mentioned will also be made available at the end.
So we’re over the hump of picking a product, getting quotes, choosing a supplier and requesting samples which are on it’s way! In this lesson we’ll dive into setting up the basic groundwork for your business ?
First thing we need to do is pick our brand name and get a good logo designed for the brand. We highly recommend 99 Designs as with their bronze package you can get up to 30 solid designs done for you by different designers around the world within 4 days, allowing you to choose the best of the best. What’s even better is their 100% money back guarantee should you not like any of the designs submitted. I’ve used them for my own logos and will definitely continue to in the future.
Once you have the logo selected, we need to think about barcodes to use for our FBA product. There are 2 main options for FBA sellers – UPC’s and FNSKU.
What is an FNSKU?
It’s Amazon’s own barcode which you can use on all your products. But to use it alone, you would need to get your brand name trademarked at USPTO ( United States Patent & Trademark Office) which costs $275 (no small fee but a necessary evil). Now, trademarking is useful as it allows sellers to get “brand registered” at Amazon which in addition to not needing a UPC code, allows sellers access to their exclusive Enhanced Brand Content program which features rich templates for sellers.
What is a UPC?
A UPC is a manufacturer barcode for your product. This is most often used by sellers of private label products. GS1 is the only place you can buy a UPC code legally for your product. You would need to contact them and tell them you are going to sell on Amazon. You can get started here.
Incorporate your business
Create Amazon Professional Seller Account
- Business Name & Address
- Agree to Seller Agreement
- Mobile Number
- Billing Method / Credit Card Info
- Tax Information
- Amazon does NOT collect taxes for you. They may not send the 1099 form. You still need to keep track of your sales. We recommend Tax Jar which painlessly takes care of everything when it comes to sales tax (collecting, filling, paying, etc). You wouldn’t have to stress over all the different sales tax rules and filing dates of all 50 states. Sign up for their 30 day free trial here.
- For Pro account sellers, Amazon collects sales taxes for the state(s) you are registered in.
- For sales less than $100K, a S-Corp or LLC should be sufficient. Make sure that you discuss your complete financial situation with your accountant and possibly with a lawyer to help determine the most appropriate organization for your business. There can be liability and tax considerations for each option that may influence your decision.
Related Resources
- 99 Designs
- Get UPC Code
- INC File to setup your business entity
- The Top Tools We Recommend For FBA Sellers
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