Why Most New Brands Fail on Amazon – And Exactly How to Be the Exception

At Balkan eCommerce Summit 2026, Vincenzo Toscano shared practical strategies for succeeding on Amazon in an increasingly competitive and data-driven marketplace. Drawing from his experience managing more than 1,000 brands and overseeing over $500 million in annual Amazon sales, he explained why nearly 80% of Amazon sellers fail within their first year – and what brands must do differently to become long-term winners.

Amazon Is Still One of the Biggest eCommerce Opportunities

Vincenzo began by emphasizing the enormous scale and growth of Amazon globally.

Today:

• Amazon contributes more than $600 billion to eCommerce
• dominates major international markets
• and continues expanding rapidly across Europe, the US, Asia, and Latin America.

However, despite the opportunity:

most new sellers still fail.

According to Vincenzo, the main reason is not lack of demand – but lack of strategy, differentiation, and understanding of how Amazon’s ecosystem actually works.

The Biggest Mistakes New Amazon Sellers Make

The presentation outlined several core reasons why brands struggle on Amazon.

1. Launching in Markets They Don’t Understand

Many sellers underestimate localization.

A successful listing for:

• Amazon USA
• Amazon Italy
• Amazon Japan
• or Amazon Mexico
  requires completely different:
• messaging
• visuals
• positioning
• and customer communication styles.

Vincenzo recommended:

• working with local experts
• and using tools such as Helium 10
  to validate demand, competition, and market gaps before launching.

2. Competing Only on Price

One of the most dangerous mistakes is entering Amazon with:

commodity products.

If sellers simply source generic products and compete only through lower pricing:

• margins disappear
• brands become replaceable
• and long-term growth becomes impossible.

Instead, brands need:

• unique features
• distinctive positioning
• better design
• patents or IP protection
• or a compelling brand story.

According to Vincenzo:

price alone is never a sustainable advantage on Amazon.

3. Poor Listing Quality

Another major issue is weak listing optimization.

Vincenzo stressed that many sellers still neglect:

• product titles
• bullet points
• images
• backend keywords
• and product copy.

Amazon listings are not just informational pages:
they directly influence:

• visibility
• ranking
• conversion
• and ad performance.

High-quality listings are essential both for:

• converting customers
• and maximizing Amazon’s algorithmic exposure.

4. Weak PPC Strategy

The presentation highlighted that:

PPC is the engine behind Amazon growth.

Without understanding:

• keyword targeting
• bidding strategies
• profitability
• and customer acquisition costs,
  brands waste significant amounts of money.

Vincenzo explained that sellers must either:

• deeply learn Amazon advertising themselves
• or work with experienced specialists.

5. Ignoring Reviews

According to Vincenzo:

reviews are one of the strongest conversion drivers on Amazon.

He discussed:

• Amazon Vine
• packaging strategies
• branding experiences
• and review-generation systems
  that help brands increase trust and conversion rates.

Strong review systems improve:

• rankings
• customer confidence
• and long-term scaling potential.

6. Inventory Problems

Running out of stock is one of the most damaging mistakes for Amazon sellers.

When products go out of stock:

• Amazon reduces visibility
• rankings drop
• and regaining momentum becomes expensive and slow.

Vincenzo recommended:

maintaining at least three months of inventory whenever possible.

Amazon Is Moving Beyond Keywords

One of the most important topics in the session was Amazon’s evolution toward:

AI-driven semantic search.

Vincenzo explained that Amazon is increasingly using systems like:

Rufus,

which focus not only on keywords, but also on:

• context
• functionality
• user intent
• and problem-solving.

This means product listings must now explain:

• what problems products solve
• how they improve the customer’s life
• and why they are relevant.

The future of Amazon optimization is increasingly:

meaning-driven, not keyword-only.

How to Identify Winning Products

Vincenzo shared a framework for validating products before launching.

The four most important areas are:

Competitive Gap

The product must offer:

• something unique
• differentiated
• or protectable.

Unit Economics

Sellers must calculate:

• margins
• PPC costs
• customer lifetime value
• and profitability before launch.

Many sellers fail because they discover too late that:

• advertising costs make profitability impossible.

Demand Validation

Brands should verify:

• stable demand
• and avoid relying only on temporary viral trends.

Launch Potential

The market must contain:

• enough keyword demand
• enough search volume
• and room for new entrants.

Building a Brand Beyond Amazon

A major theme throughout the lecture was:

do not rely only on Amazon.

Vincenzo stressed that brands should build:

• email lists
• customer databases
• communities
• and external traffic sources.

Because if:

• an Amazon account is suspended
• or rankings suddenly change,
  brands without external assets become extremely vulnerable.

He strongly recommended investing in:

• TikTok
• Meta ads
• influencer collaborations
• and direct-to-consumer channels
  to strengthen long-term brand resilience.

The Importance of Brand Stores

Vincenzo also highlighted the growing importance of:

Amazon Brand Stores.

He described them as:

“your website inside Amazon.”

Brand Stores:

• improve customer experience
• reduce competitor comparisons
• and can significantly improve conversion rates when used with advertising campaigns.

Driving traffic directly to Brand Stores can help brands:

• maintain customer focus
• reduce distraction
• and increase profitability.

The 90-Day Launch Strategy

The session concluded with Vincenzo’s recommended:

90-day launch framework.

Phase 1 – Foundation

• listing optimization
• PPC setup
• keyword research
• and technical preparation.

Phase 2 – Exposure

• maximizing traffic
• external promotion
• and building organic rankings.

Phase 3 – Profitability

• scaling what works
• removing inefficiencies
• and building sustainable growth systems.

According to Vincenzo:

the first 90 days usually determine whether an Amazon launch will succeed or fail.

Key Takeaways

The presentation demonstrated that succeeding on Amazon today requires far more than simply listing products online.

Vincenzo explained that most brands fail because they:

• enter markets without localization
• compete only on price
• ignore profitability calculations
• underestimate PPC complexity
• or fail to build real brand differentiation.

The session highlighted that:

• listing quality
• reviews
• inventory management
• and structured launch strategies
  are essential for sustainable Amazon growth.

Another major insight was Amazon’s evolution toward:

AI-driven semantic commerce,

where understanding customer intent matters more than traditional keyword stuffing.

The lecture also emphasized the importance of:

• external traffic
• customer ownership
• and building a brand beyond Amazon itself.

Finally, Vincenzo reinforced that Amazon remains one of the biggest global eCommerce opportunities – but only for brands willing to combine:

• data
• strategy
• differentiation
• and long-term brand thinking.