The Real Cost of NOT Being on Amazon in 2025

Let me ask you something. If you are a brand doing $2 million, $5 million, $10 million on your website and you are not on Amazon, what is that costing you?

Insights from Andrew Morgans and the Marknology team in Kansas City.

Not in fees. Not in commissions. In revenue you are leaving on the table every single day. In customers who searched for your product on Amazon, did not find you, and bought from a competitor instead.

At Marknology, we have helped over 300 brands launch and scale on Amazon. And one of the most common conversations we have is with DTC founders who waited too long. Explore our e-commerce agency partner for expert support.

The Fear That Keeps Brands Off Amazon

I get it. For years, the digital marketing world told DTC brands that Amazon was the enemy. The big Facebook ads agencies, the Shopify gurus, they all said the same thing: "Amazon will cannibalize your sales. Keep everything on your website."

On the Startup Hustle podcast, my friend Mina Elias from Trivium and I broke this myth apart:

"A lot of the thought leadership around off-Amazon media buying cultivated this fear of Amazon. Consumer brands that were doing pretty well on their website were just afraid of Amazon instead of seeing it as an additional sales channel. They definitely saw it as competition. But we both know that is not really the case."

The fear comes from not understanding the platform. And fear-based decisions cost money.

Listen to the full episode: Amazon PPC Strategies That Work

What You Lose by Not Being There

Here is the brutal math:

• 63% of product searches start on Amazon. Not Google. Not your website. Amazon.
• If you are not there, your competitor is. They are capturing YOUR customer who searched for YOUR type of product.
• Your DTC marketing is driving Amazon searches anyway. Someone sees your Facebook ad, does not buy immediately, goes to Amazon later to look for it. If you are not there, someone else gets that sale.
• You cannot control the narrative. If you are not selling on Amazon, resellers or counterfeiters might be. On YOUR brand name. With terrible listings and no quality control.

The DTC-Only Myth

Mina shared a case study on our show that tells the whole story:

"We were working with Neurogum. They came from DTC. Recently their Amazon overtook their DTC and it is crazy. Both grew. But their Amazon is now one and a half times their DTC. That was a very proud moment."

Read that again. Both channels grew. Amazon did not cannibalize DTC. It amplified the entire business. We see this pattern over and over with the brands we manage at Marknology.

Here is the math that matters: "What if I told you, listen man, you are doing 2 million on DTC. If you put a big push in Amazon, you will be doing 6 million on Amazon and 2 million on DTC. Your valuation is your valuation. You are going to get a lot more money by having a bigger EBITDA than having all of the customer data."

What iOS 14 Taught Us

Remember when Apple's iOS 14 update destroyed Facebook ad tracking? Brands that were 100% dependent on DTC and Facebook ads got crushed. Some lost 50% of revenue overnight.

The pressure of managing Amazon advertising without the stress is real. Drew Morgans dives into it on Business Therapy -- honest conversations about the challenges sellers actually face.

See how Marknology helps brands grow on Amazon in our brand overview video.

Brands that had a strong Amazon channel? They dropped maybe 30%. Because Amazon was there catching the customers that Facebook could no longer target.

"Facebook is not aligned with your goals. Amazon is. Because every sale they make 15%. Amazon is very incentivized to make your brand succeed."

Diversification is not just smart. It is survival.

Is Amazon Right for Your Brand?

Not every product belongs on Amazon. Here is the three-part filter we use:

1. Is there demand? Use tools like Helium 10 to check search volume. If your main keywords have 50,000+ monthly searches, there is a market. If it is 3,000, proceed with caution.
2. Is your product differentiated? Put your product image next to the top five competitors. Would a shopper click on you? If not, you need better creative before you launch.
3. Is your price competitive? If the average competitor sells for $25 and you need to sell for $75, Amazon is going to be an uphill battle without a serious premium story.

If you check all three boxes, you should be on Amazon. If you check none, you might still belong on Amazon in a defensive capacity: brand name protection, a clean listing for people who search for you, and a funnel for your existing customers who prefer to reorder through Prime.

How to Get Started

If you are a DTC brand considering Amazon, here is the path:

1. Start with your best seller. One product. Not your full catalog.
2. Build the listing right. SEO, images, A+ Content. That is what we do best.
3. Launch aggressively. The first 30 to 45 days are your honeymoon period. Amazon gives new products a ranking boost. Do not waste it.
4. Get reviews fast. Use Amazon Vine, leverage your existing customer base, follow up post-purchase.
5. Scale from there. Once the first product is humming, expand your catalog.

Explore more strategies on our Media Hub.

Ready to stop leaving money on the table? Book a free strategy call with Marknology and we will show you exactly what your brand's Amazon opportunity looks like.