The answer is yes. According to Amazon's terms of service, having multiple accounts as a buyer or a seller is allowed. This has been the case for years, and as of 2020, the guidelines on who can have multiple accounts are more lax than ever.
However, there are still guidelines. While there are cases where you may want multiple accounts, there are also risks associated with having them. Here's everything you need to know about having and operating multiple Amazon accounts today. Starting with the most important question.
Who is allowed to have multiple accounts?
Anyone is allowed to have multiple Amazon accounts. However, there are two rules that everyone must follow to comply with Amazon's terms of service.
1 - You're not allowed to create multiple accounts to abuse promotions. Having several accounts to abuse free trials or get more out of limited sales is a no-no.
2 - You're not allowed to create multiple accounts to abuse the platform. If you're trying to dodge a suspension or get a fresh seller account to escape bad reviews, Amazon may ban both of your accounts.
Once, sellers had to obtain explicit permission from Amazon's team before being allowed to create multiple seller accounts. As of 2020, that is no longer the case, but there are still rules to follow. If you want to create multiple seller accounts, then:
1 - You must have a "legitimate business need". Amazon is pretty broad with what they consider a legitimate need, so this requirement essentially boils down to "don't abuse the platform" again.
2 - You must have separate info for each account. Each seller account will need its own email, bank account number, contact info, and more.
In essence, while you do not have to hide that you're accessing both accounts from the same location, you do need to register both accounts as separate entities. And they need to effectively be separate entities. You can't just create 10 copies of the storefront to see which one performs better.
If you meet all of the requirements above, you can create your new account just like any other account. Just go to sellercentral.amazon.com, click on "sign up", and follow the steps from there.
Is it a good idea to create multiple Amazon accounts?
For buyers, the answer is typically no. All of the advantages that buyers could gain from having multiple accounts are explicitly against Amazon's terms of service.
The only legitimate reason to have multiple buyer accounts in your name is if you lost access to your old account. If that is your case, as long as the old account remains inactive, you should have no problem creating a new one. But it is safer to contact customer support to either recover your old account or disable it before creating a new one.
For sellers, however, it's a whole different story. There are many legitimate advantages you can gain by having multiple seller accounts, which is why Amazon has taken steps to make it easier for sellers to do it. Let's take a look at those advantages.
1 - Diversification
Having multiple Amazon seller accounts allows you to diversify your business portfolio. You can manage multiple brands, cater to different market segments, and even adopt varying business models, such as shifting from a B2C to a B2B model. Diversification also opens avenues to explore new markets and customer bases that may have been difficult to reach with your original brand and product lineup.
2 - Risk reduction
Having all your income flowing through one Amazon seller account is a precarious situation. Should you lose access to your account or have it suspended for any reason, you could go weeks or months with no revenue. Having multiple accounts can mitigate the issue, as any problem affecting one account will likely not hurt the other.
3 - Global Expansion
Expanding into different countries becomes much easier with multiple seller accounts. You can set up each brand and the account can be tailored to meet the specific demands and regulations of different geographical locations.
4 - Catering to Distinct Product Categories
If want to sell products that fall under diverse categories, having separate accounts for each can be beneficial. Setting up dedicated accounts allows you to fine-tune your business strategy for each category, and it also makes it easier to comply with Amazon guidelines and government regulations for certain types of products.
What are the risks of running multiple accounts?
While there are clear benefits to running multiple Amazon accounts, sellers must also be wary of the potential downsides. Being aware of the risks can help in managing your accounts more effectively and steering clear of pitfalls. Here's what to keep in mind:
1 - Time Consumption
Managing multiple Amazon seller accounts isn't a walk in the park. You need to be ready to invest a substantial amount of time and effort to maintain each account properly. From handling separate inventories, and managing distinct marketing strategies, to providing customer service for different product lines - it all adds up quickly.
There are tools that can help with this. Sales management tools like Multiorders and Putler can help you track Amazon orders from multiple accounts on a single dashboard. And when you need to log in to the accounts while keeping them separate, Apex Browser makes multi-accounting across different tabs a breeze.
Still, even with all of those tools, it's still twice the work. Especially if the new store turns out to be a breakout hit.
2 - Increased Risk of Account Suspension
As we outlined earlier, Amazon's terms of service do allow selling partners to have multiple accounts. However, having multiple seller accounts is a somewhat unusual situation. And if you make any mistakes when setting up the accounts - or if you accidentally violate Amazon's terms of service - you may get all of your accounts suspended.
In short, more accounts give you more potential points of failure. And you need to make sure the potential gains are worth the additional risk.
3 - No Guarantee of Higher Profits
While having multiple seller accounts can potentially expand your business and increase sales, that's not guaranteed. The biggest risk is that you may put a ton of time and effort into your second account, only to get very little in return for your efforts.
Conclusion
So, is running multiple Amazon accounts worth it? For buyers, not really. For sellers, yes, it is. As long as you plan properly and you know what you're getting into.
You'll need proper planning and transparency. But it's been years since Amazon changed its policies to make multi-accounting easier, and plenty of sellers did it successfully even before these changes. So, if you have determined that having multiple accounts is the best way to expand your business, go ahead and give it a try.
