Amazon has introduced a new feature called “Make an Offer,” which allows buyers to negotiate with sellers over the initial price offered on specific products. With the feature, buyers can suggest lower prices, which the seller has the right to accept or reject.
More than 150,000 items listed on the marketplace are eligible for the feature, across categories such as Sports and Entertainment Collectibles, Collectible Coins and Fine Art. The feature is expected to expand to “hundreds of thousands” more items in 2015, according to a company statement.
Customers can browse eligible items at www.amazon.com/makeanoffer.
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Sellers enable the “Make an Offer” feature when they are willing to negotiate for a lower price than the price listed. Potential buyers can select “Make an Offer” on an item’s product detail page and then enter and submit a new price. The seller will receive the customer’s lower price offer through email, at which point they can accept, reject or counter the offer. Both partners can continue negotiating through email until a price is agreed upon. When a seller accepts a customer’s offer, the customer is notified and can place the item into their shopping cart at new price for checkout and purchase.
“In a recent survey of our sellers, nearly half of the respondents told us that the ability to negotiate prices with customers would be important to drive more sales on Amazon,” said Peter Faricy, VP for Amazon Marketplace. “‘Make an Offer’ delivers that functionality and makes customers feel confident they are getting an item they want at the lowest price possible.”
Amazon explained that the feature is not an auction format similar to eBay; consumers won’t be bidding for items against each other. Instead, all negotiations are one-to-one and private between individual customers and sellers. A seller is able to accept a customer’s offer at any time. The feature is intended to lower prices, and a customer negotiating with a seller will never pay more than the initial listed price.
“I think it will broaden my customer base,” said Spencer Eggers, owner of Coast to Coast Collectibles. “This new shopping experience could also increase customer loyalty, because it will give serious buyers the opportunity to have direct communication with the seller to determine a fair, agreed upon price. It will be like a Black Friday sale 365 days a year.”
