Building a strong brand presence on major online marketplaces is a smart move for any auto parts business aiming to connect with a wider customer base. Listing your products on platforms like Amazon, eBay Motors, and Walmart Marketplace opens doors to increased visibility and new growth opportunities. However, choosing the Best Place To Sell Car Parts Online can be challenging. It requires careful consideration of costs, competition, and the specific needs of your business.
Selecting the most profitable platform is a critical decision. Establishing an online presence on any marketplace demands investment – in terms of time, money, and effort. This is especially true in the competitive landscape of online auto parts sales.
This article delves into selling car parts on three major platforms: Amazon, eBay Motors, and Walmart Marketplace. We will analyze the advantages and disadvantages of each, highlighting potential challenges like intense competition, complex listing procedures, and varying fee structures. More importantly, we will provide practical insights to overcome these hurdles, guiding you towards the most profitable sales channels for business growth and helping you determine the best place to sell car parts online for your specific needs.
How to Sell Auto Parts on Amazon
Amazon stands out as a leading online marketplace, attracting a massive customer base of both buyers and sellers. For auto parts retailers, Amazon’s vast reach is particularly appealing. The automotive aftermarket sector on Amazon is booming, with auto parts sales experiencing an impressive 15% annual growth, making it the largest online marketplace for car parts and accessories.
However, this immense potential for growth comes hand-in-hand with fierce competition. Outperforming rivals on Amazon requires a strategic approach and a deep understanding of the platform.
Furthermore, navigating Amazon’s intricate fee structure is crucial for profitability. Careful budget planning and a thorough evaluation of potential benefits and risks are essential before venturing into selling on this platform. Understanding these elements is key to determining if Amazon is the best place to sell car parts online for your business.
Pros and Cons of Selling Parts and Accessories on Amazon
| Amazon Pros | Amazon Cons |
|---|---|
| 👍 Expanded Customer Base: Access to Amazon’s enormous customer base significantly increases your sales potential. | 👎 High Fees: Amazon’s fee structure, including referral fees, storage fees, and advertising costs, can strain profit margins, especially for smaller businesses. |
| 👍 Broad Geographic Reach: Sell and ship auto parts across the United States and internationally, expanding your market beyond local limitations. | 👎 Intense Competition: The highly saturated Amazon marketplace demands sophisticated SEO and PPC advertising strategies to make your listings visible and competitive. Expert knowledge is often required. |
| 👍 Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA): Delegate inventory storage, packing, and shipping to Amazon, simplifying logistics and operations. | 👎 Complex Fitment Data: Submitting and maintaining accurate auto parts fitment data in Amazon’s specific format (ACES/PIES) can be time-consuming and technically challenging, particularly when done manually. |
| 👍 Amazon’s Brand Credibility: Leverage Amazon’s established reputation and customer trust to enhance your brand loyalty and build customer confidence. | 👎 Strict Return Policy: Sellers must adhere to Amazon’s customer-centric return policy and efficiently process refunds, which can impact cash flow and inventory management. |
Main Things to Know to Sell Car Parts on Amazon
Entering any new sales channel requires a well-defined plan that anticipates potential challenges and outlines effective solutions. Before you begin to sell on Amazon, consider these crucial steps:
-
Amazon Regulations and Requirements:
- Seller Central Registration: Start by registering on Amazon Seller Central and opting for the Professional selling plan.
- eCommerce Website Requirement: Amazon typically requires sellers to have a credible, independent auto parts eCommerce website for review, demonstrating business legitimacy and professionalism.
- Category Approval: Obtain specific approval from Amazon to sell within the Automotive & Powersports product category. This ensures you meet their standards and are authorized to list auto parts. You can initiate this process and get approval from Amazon.
-
Product Listings Optimization:
- Complete Product Data: Ensure your product listings are comprehensive and accurate. This includes detailed fitment information (crucial for auto parts), compelling product descriptions highlighting key features and benefits, and high-resolution, professional-quality images showcasing your parts from multiple angles.
- Data Import: Streamline the listing process by importing product details directly from your existing eCommerce website to Amazon. This saves time and maintains consistency across platforms.
-
Auto Parts Fitment Data Management:
- ACES/PIES Standards: Provide precise and consistent auto parts compatibility data adhering to the Automotive Content Exchange Standard (ACES) and Product Information Exchange Standard (PIES). This standardized data is essential for Amazon’s systems and customer part lookup tools.
- Amazon’s Part Finder: Accurate fitment data enables customers to effectively use Amazon’s Part Finder to verify part compatibility with their specific vehicles. This improves customer satisfaction and reduces returns.
- Third-Party Catalogs: Consider leveraging fitment information from reputable third-party catalog providers. These services can help you generate and submit ACES data on your behalf, simplifying the process and ensuring accuracy.
How Much Does It Cost to Sell on Amazon?
Amazon’s fee structure for the automotive category includes a 12% referral fee on each product sold. Tires and wheels have a slightly lower referral fee of 10%. In addition to referral fees, sellers may incur monthly storage fees for inventory held in Amazon warehouses and advertising costs if they choose to utilize Amazon’s advertising platform to boost product visibility. These costs need to be factored into your pricing strategy to ensure profitability when considering Amazon as the best place to sell car parts online.
Selling Car Parts on eBay Motors
eBay Motors presents another powerful platform for online auto parts sales. Remarkably, eBay Motors facilitates the sale of approximately three car parts or accessories every second. This translates to roughly 180 parts sold per minute, 10,800 per hour, and an astounding 260,000 transactions daily. These statistics highlight the immense sales potential of eBay Motors for auto parts businesses.
Similar to Amazon, success on eBay Motors hinges on establishing a competitive edge. Selling aftermarket vehicle parts and accessories on eBay presents comparable challenges concerning fee structures and parts compatibility, while offering similar benefits like access to a broad customer base and global shipping capabilities. For businesses seeking a platform with a strong automotive focus, eBay Motors is a significant contender for the best place to sell car parts online.
Pros and Cons of Selling Car Parts on eBay Motors
| eBay Pros | eBay Cons |
|---|---|
| 👍 Ideal for Small Businesses: Sellers with 250 or fewer listings on eBay Motors benefit from no insertion fees, reducing upfront costs. | 👎 High Competition: While perhaps less saturated than Amazon, eBay Motors still presents a competitive marketplace requiring strategic listing optimization. |
| 👍 Extensive Customer Reach: Reach a vast audience of buyers across the US and internationally, expanding your market beyond geographical boundaries. | 👎 eBay Fees and Service Costs: While insertion fees can be mitigated for smaller sellers, eBay still charges final value fees, and additional costs may arise from optional services and advertising to increase visibility. |
| 👍 Established Reputation and Trust: Leverage eBay’s long-standing reputation and buyer trust to enhance your credibility and encourage sales. | 👎 Pricing Challenges: Balancing competitive pricing to attract buyers with maintaining healthy profit margins can be tricky on eBay’s auction and fixed-price formats. Careful pricing strategies are essential. |
| 👍 Opportunity for Obsolete Parts: eBay Motors provides a valuable channel for selling slower-moving or obsolete parts to a niche market actively searching for these specific items. | 👎 Listing Optimization Effort: Significant time and effort are required to optimize eBay listings to ensure high visibility in search results and attract potential customers. Keywords, descriptions, and images must be carefully crafted. |
What You Need to Start Selling Auto Parts on eBay Motors
While the initial steps to start selling on eBay Motors share similarities with Amazon, some key differences exist:
-
eBay Seller Account Setup:
- Business Account: For high-volume automotive parts sellers, opening an eBay business account is the recommended approach. This unlocks features and tools designed for commercial sellers.
- Registration and Verification: Complete the registration process and verify your account details with eBay.
- “Sell” Button: Once your account is active, initiate the listing process by clicking the “Sell” button located at the top of the eBay page. This will guide you to the listing creation interface.
-
Efficient eBay Listings:
- Bulk Fitment Data Upload: eBay streamlines the listing process by allowing sellers to upload fitment information in bulk. This is a significant time-saver for retailers managing extensive inventories and listing large quantities of car parts.
-
Parts Compatibility and eBay Motors Master Vehicle Lists (MVLs):
- Importance of Fitment Data: Accurate fitment data is crucial for both eBay sellers and buyers. Customers rely on fitment information to find the correct parts for their vehicles, and sellers depend on it for their listings to appear in relevant search results.
- eBay Parts Compatibility Feature: Utilize eBay’s Parts Compatibility feature to ensure accurate part matching.
- Master Vehicle Lists (MVLs): eBay Motors uses its proprietary Master Vehicle Lists (MVLs) format for fitment data. While MVLs share similarities with Amazon’s ACES format, they are not interchangeable and are specific to each platform. Understanding and utilizing MVLs correctly is essential for effective selling on eBay Motors and determining if it’s the best place to sell car parts online for your inventory.
How Much Does It Cost to Sell on eBay?
eBay’s fee structure involves both listing fees (insertion fees) and final value fees. For each item listed, sellers typically pay an insertion fee of $0.35 per listing. Additionally, a final value fee, calculated as a percentage of the item’s final sale price, is charged. On average, eBay charges 6%-10% for final value fees, although this percentage can vary depending on the seller’s account type and product category. Sellers should also be aware of potential additional costs for optional tools, enhanced listing features, or advertising services. These fees should be carefully considered when evaluating eBay Motors as the best place to sell car parts online.
Selling Automotive Parts and Accessories with Walmart Marketplace
Walmart Marketplace offers another compelling avenue for auto parts businesses to expand their online presence and reach new customers. While Walmart’s customer base is currently smaller than Amazon’s or eBay’s, it still represents a substantial market opportunity and can be a valuable sales channel, often with lower costs and less competition. For certain businesses, Walmart Marketplace might be the best place to sell car parts online, particularly those focused on value and reaching a different demographic.
Pros and Cons of Selling Car Parts on Walmart Marketplace
| Walmart Pros | Walmart Cons |
|---|---|
| 👍 Strong Brand Recognition: Leverage Walmart’s powerful and trusted brand name to instill customer confidence and attract buyers. | 👎 Smaller Customer Base: Compared to Amazon and eBay, Walmart Marketplace currently has a smaller online customer base, potentially limiting overall sales volume. |
| 👍 Lower Fees and Commissions: Walmart Marketplace generally boasts lower referral fees and commission rates compared to Amazon and eBay, improving profit margins for sellers. | 👎 Experienced Seller Requirement: Walmart Marketplace has a stricter seller approval process and prefers established retailers with proven experience in the auto parts industry. New sellers may find it challenging to gain approval. |
| 👍 Less Competition: Benefit from a less saturated marketplace environment with potentially less intense competition compared to Amazon or eBay, making it easier to gain visibility. | 👎 Listing Management Complexity: Like with Amazon and eBay, managing and synchronizing listings across multiple platforms, including Walmart Marketplace, can become complex and require robust inventory management systems. |
| 👍 Customizable Return Policy: Walmart Marketplace allows sellers to create their own return policies, offering more flexibility compared to the standardized policies of Amazon and eBay. | 👎 (Redundant – already listed as a con) |
Main Things to Know about Walmart to Sell Auto Parts
Walmart Marketplace can be a particularly attractive option for brick-and-mortar auto parts stores seeking to expand their reach to local online buyers and integrate their physical and digital sales channels.
-
Walmart Seller Registration:
- Selective Approval Process: Walmart Marketplace employs a selective seller approval process, prioritizing partnerships with established retailers who have a proven track record of success.
- Business License Requirement: Merchants are typically required to possess a valid business license to be eligible to sell on Walmart Marketplace, demonstrating business legitimacy.
- Experience Preference: Walmart favors sellers with existing experience in the auto parts industry. New or inexperienced sellers may face challenges in gaining approval.
-
Product Listing and Fitment Data on Walmart:
- Extensive Fitment Database is Key: Success on Walmart Marketplace, particularly for auto parts, heavily relies on having access to an extensive and accurate fitment database. Providing precise fitment information is critical for customer satisfaction and accurate part matching.
- Aftermarket Catalog Exchange Standard (ACES): Walmart Marketplace supports the Aftermarket Catalog Exchange Standard (ACES) for fitment data. Utilizing ACES-compliant data ensures compatibility with Walmart’s systems.
- Inventory Management Tools: While Walmart has integrated inventory management features, sellers may also benefit from using their own listing and inventory management tools to streamline operations and ensure data accuracy across platforms. Effectively managing fitment data and listings is key to determining if Walmart is the best place to sell car parts online for your business model.
How Much Does It Cost to Sell on Walmart?
A significant advantage of selling on Walmart Marketplace is the absence of listing fees. Walmart does not charge sellers for listing their automotive aftermarket parts on their platform. Furthermore, there are no monthly fees or commissions for product display in search results. Walmart primarily charges referral fees on sales, which are generally competitive and can make Walmart Marketplace a cost-effective option when considering the best place to sell car parts online from a fee perspective.
Top-Selling Auto Parts on Online Marketplaces
While pinpointing the absolute “best-selling” car parts across all online marketplaces is difficult to definitively answer, focusing on replacement parts that are consistently in high demand is a sound strategy.
According to Statista, bumper covers were the top-selling auto part online in the US between 2022 and 2023, generating over $4.1 million in sales revenue. Front brake pads followed closely, with $3.9 million in sales. Lightweight plastic bumpers are also consistently popular in the online auto parts market in the United States.
Online Best-Selling Vehicle Parts in the US in 2023
Source: Statista
Best-Selling Auto Parts on Amazon: (Categories with high demand)
- Maintenance & Repair Parts: filters, brakes, suspensions, and tires.
- Electrical Components: bulbs, starter motors, fuel pumps, and injectors.
- Mechanical Items: bushes and engine mounts.
- Exterior & Interior Parts: door handles and wiper blades.
Important note: Amazon has restrictions on certain car parts categories. Seat belts, airbags, used auto parts, and used tires are generally prohibited. For allowed parts, Amazon typically requires them to be OE (Original Equipment) or OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) parts and mandates warranties from the original manufacturer or remanufacturer. Sellers must also comply with all relevant state and federal laws regarding the sale of car parts and accessories.
The Most Profitable Car Parts to Sell on eBay Motors: (Categories with strong performance)
- Exterior Parts: steel bumpers, replacement grilles, and side mirrors.
- Suspension Parts: struts and leveling kits.
- Wheels and Tires.
- Lighting Products: headlights, light bulbs, tail lights, and fog lights.
Combinations of Sales Channels
Channel Bloom estimates that online auto parts and accessories sales in the U.S. through marketplaces will reach almost $22 billion in 2024. This statistic underscores the significant market potential within the automotive aftermarket industry on platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Walmart Marketplace.
Adopting a multichannel selling strategy, combining different sales channels, can significantly expand your auto parts business’s customer reach beyond local markets and maximize revenue streams. The optimal combination of channels depends on your specific business goals, available resources, and budget.
| Options for Multichannel Selling | Benefits for Auto Parts Businesses |
|---|---|
| Your own auto parts online store + Amazon | + Increased domestic and worldwide sales reach + Fast shipping carriers and delivery times + Broad marketing opportunities |
| Your own auto parts online store + eBay Motors | + Sell nationwide and internationally + Sell obsolete parts + Maximize DIY customer market |
| Your own auto parts online store + Walmart | + Sell offline and online (integrate brick-and-mortar with online) + Have your own return policy for online shoppers |
| Your own online store + Amazon + eBay Motors + Walmart | + Maximize revenue across all channels + Capitalize on local, national and international sales + Gain a competitive edge + Sell to both newer and older parts (catering to diverse customer needs) + Diversify customer base |
3 Main Challenges When Selling Car Parts on Multiple Sales Channels
Successfully managing multiple sales channels presents unique challenges for auto parts businesses:
1. Keeping Fitment Information Updated Across Platforms
Maintaining accurate and consistent fitment data across all sales channels is paramount. Inaccurate fitment data leads to returns, negative reviews, and customer dissatisfaction. Each marketplace (Amazon, eBay, Walmart) has specific requirements and formats for fitment data. Amazon’s ACES format differs from eBay’s MVLs and Walmart’s requirements.
Solution: Implement a Product Information Management (PIM) system. A PIM system centralizes product data, including fitment information, and facilitates seamless integration with various sales channels. This streamlines the process of managing, updating, and distributing product information consistently across platforms, ensuring data accuracy and reducing errors.
2. Streamlining Order Management Across Channels
Efficiently coordinating orders and inventory across multiple sales channels is critical to prevent stockouts (running out of popular items) and overstocks (holding excess inventory). Inaccurate order fulfillment leads to negative customer experiences and can negatively impact product rankings on online marketplaces. Manual order tracking and spreadsheet-based management become inefficient and error-prone with multichannel selling.
Solution: Utilize automated order management tools. Implement built-in order management features within your eCommerce platform or integrate third-party order management software. Automated order imports consolidate order data from all channels into one central location, providing a unified view of sales and inventory levels. This enables better stock control, faster order processing, and reduced errors.
3. Maintaining Competitive Pricing Across Marketplaces
Maintaining competitive and consistent pricing across multiple marketplaces, while adhering to each platform’s pricing policies, is a significant challenge. The automotive aftermarket is a price-sensitive and volatile market, requiring agile pricing strategies.
Solution: Employ automated pricing tools. Leverage pricing management features within your eCommerce platform or utilize dedicated repricing software. These tools allow for automated price updates across sales channels based on pre-defined rules, competitor pricing, and market fluctuations. This ensures price competitiveness while maintaining profit margins and minimizing manual price adjustments.
Going Multichannel with X-Cart
Selling on Amazon, eBay Motors, and Walmart Marketplace becomes significantly easier with an eCommerce platform specifically designed for multichannel selling in the automotive aftermarket. A robust platform provides essential functionality to seamlessly integrate your web store with these marketplaces, including:
- Fitment and Product Data Handling: Efficiently manage and synchronize complex fitment data across channels.
- Inventory and Pricing Synchronization: Automate inventory updates and price adjustments across all connected marketplaces.
- Centralized Order Management: Consolidate orders from all channels into a single, unified system.
In essence, you need an automotive-focused shopping cart solution that empowers you to build a robust online store and automate these critical processes, streamlining your multichannel selling strategy and effectively addressing the challenges outlined above. X-Cart is designed to be such a solution.
X-Cart Features for Automotive Aftermarket Retail Businesses:
- Integrations with Industry Data Providers: Seamless integrations with SEMA Data, ASAP Network, and AutoSync catalog providers ensure access to accurate, standardized, and regularly updated fitment and compatibility data.
- Powerful Product Information Management (PIM): X-Cart’s PIM system is designed to handle complex fitment data, enabling scheduled data imports and automated updates, simplifying data management.
- Integrated Order Management System: X-Cart’s order management system synchronizes orders and inventory data across your sales channels, consolidating all information within your online store’s admin area for centralized control.
- Native API-Driven Marketplace Integrations: X-Cart offers native, API-driven integrations with Amazon and eBay Motors (with Walmart integration on the horizon). These integrations ensure robust and reliable connectivity for seamless data exchange.
Amazon Integration: X-Cart’s Amazon integration module provides a comprehensive inventory and order management solution for automotive aftermarket retailers. Export product details from your X-Cart store to Amazon, import Amazon orders back into X-Cart, and manage your Amazon presence effectively. Sell nationally or internationally and connect multiple Amazon accounts.
X-Cart eBay Integration: Connect your X-Cart store to eBay in minutes and efficiently manage your eBay listings. Send and update product information (products, variants, images, descriptions, prices) individually or in bulk, manually or automatically. Import eBay orders into X-Cart for centralized order management.
While multichannel selling can seem complex, integrating your X-Cart store with leading online marketplaces simplifies the process. With accurate inventory synchronization and a unified source of truth for your orders, you can streamline your sales operations and focus on business growth and expansion.
Sell Car Parts on Multiple Channels with the X-Cart eCommerce Platform
Request a free demo
Key Things to Consider When Choosing the Best Place to Sell Car Parts Online
As an online auto parts business owner, you understand the limitations of relying on a single sales channel. Expanding your customer base and maximizing sales potential requires exploring multiple avenues to reach your target audience. Whether you sell wheels and tires, electrical components, suspension parts, or interior accessories, being present where your customers are searching is crucial.
When determining the best place to sell car parts online and aiming for profitable growth, carefully consider these key factors:
- Marketplace Referral Fees and Costs: Analyze the fee structures of each platform (Amazon, eBay, Walmart) and factor them into your pricing strategy.
- Target Buyer Behaviors: Understand the typical customer profiles and buying habits on each marketplace to align your product offerings and marketing efforts.
- Marketplace Policies and Requirements: Familiarize yourself with each platform’s seller policies, listing guidelines, and customer service expectations.
- eCommerce Platform Capabilities: Ensure your eCommerce platform provides the necessary features and integrations to effectively manage multichannel selling, particularly for fitment data, inventory synchronization, and order management.
By carefully evaluating these factors and strategically choosing your sales channels, you can optimize your online presence and unlock the full potential of the online auto parts market.
