Website Closers® presents a business that has done exceptionally well marketing affordable hearing aids through Amazon, shipping multiple orders daily using Fulfillment by Amazon, and building up a strong customer base for their high-quality, FDA-registered hearing aids. More importantly for this brand, their hearing aids, sold direct to consumers, are very affordably priced, considerably below what a customer would spend purchasing from an audiologist.
Over the past 5 years, this brand has used Amazon as a thriving platform for what has become 7 model SKUs, with 2020 becoming one of their most profitable years to date. These fully trademarked and branded products, with an average order value of $232 on Amazon, enable this company to provide hearing aids at a fraction of the cost of traditional prescription hearing aids, while guaranteeing a fast delivery through FBA. The current owner has already identified several new accessory products that could be added, including hearing aid dehumidifiers, ear drops, and earwax removal kits.
This has become a very successful business model, with 33% of gross revenue now coming from repeat customers, and with profits increasing by 34% year over year. The company currently sells six different models of non-prescription hearing aids as well as hearing aid batteries and standard hearing aid accessories. The total number of SKUs, for both hearing aids and accessories, is 120+. In addition to Amazon, sales are also conducted on their own Shopify website and on Walmart.
Sales were so strong in 2020 that their average inventory level was at four months’ worth of sales. Larger orders can provide buyers with a volume-based discount on the price. To grow this business, there are several excellent options available to a buyer. The company now benefits from its affiliate marketing program, which could be expanded considerably. The company could aim for an international expansion through Amazon, by adding listings to that eCommerce giant’s foreign platforms.
With an aging Baby Boomer popular in the U.S., the market for affordable hearing aids is now worth $6.7 billion and is projected to grow to $11.02 billion in 2028. This industry performs just as well on a global basis. The company’s customer loyalty is reflected in its growing email database, which now exceeds a 31,000+ subscribers. This could be effectively leveraged to scale quickly through an aggressive new email marketing campaign, which would surely be even more effective if the company began selling new SKUs that the brand could quickly upsell to the existing customer base.
This company was launched five years ago to sell different models of hearing aids, while eliminating the middleman so their own proprietary items could be sold directly to consumers. They have cultivated a long-standing relationship with their supplier, who provides this company with discount bulk pricing. Those savings can be passed on to the consumer.
Amazon has proven to be the ideal platform for these SKUs. Sales have been steadily increasing, boosted by glowing reviews from satisfied customers. In fact, the brand consistently maintains a high number of 5 Star reviews on Amazon. Their demographics are strong, with the typical customer being men between the age of 55-60 with a household income above $55,000+. Sales are strong year-round and tend to peak in the spring and again around the holidays.
The company now ships an average of 11 packages a day, efficiently delivered by Fulfillment By Amazon, with new orders placed every few months. Their inventory is maintained in the Amazon and Walmart warehouses.
To effectively build their customer base, the company has focused its marketing on PPC ads on Amazon, which have helped deliver the message that their premium, medical-grade hearing aids are ideal products for their ever-expanding customer base. Those PPC ads helped build awareness of their brand to people who are not actively looking.
Their email database is used to send out three weekly emails that include educational content and promotions of the week. The brand estimates that up to $80,000+ in revenue has been generated by people clicking links in the emails.
Social media marketing has played a crucial role in their success as well. They regularly post on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest, where they get 11,300+ monthly views. This has helped drive organic traffic to their website, which now enjoys more than 8,000+ monthly visits. Those posts are used to educate viewers, promote their products and special deals, and to entertain people as well.
The same approach applies to their educational and informative blog, a key aspect of their SEO program. The company estimates that the blog helps bring 500 new visitors to the site each month.
Since hearing aids are in high demand but can often be quite expensive, this brand has successfully marketed itself with high quality products that are available at a considerably more affordable price. Their reviews and repeat customer rate attest to how well the company has connected with its customer base so far. There’s no doubt this business could expand rapidly. Increased PPC marketing would play a key role in targeting the right demographics in the U.S. and globally, particularly if the company does expand its SKUs and begin marketing new ancillary products.
As an efficiently automated business, this company does not require a heavy workload. The current owner spends 20 hours per week operating this business, focusing on handling customer service requests. Two full-time employees, a customer service manager and an inventory processing and shipping representative, handle daily operations, while a contractor is available to assist with the management and marketing of the website, email marketing, management of the affiliate marketing program, and management of PPC ads.
Beyond having a basic knowledge of how to run a business on Amazon, no special skills are needed to run this thriving online business.
A buyer benefits from operating within a highly lucrative field. The global market for effective hearing aid products is massive and growing rapidly, and The World Health organization estimates there are 466 million people worldwide living with some form of hearing loss that requires the need for a hearing aid device. These devices are not even limited to seniors. Hearing defects in children are also common and can be addressed through these devices.
With their strong recurring revenues and amazing growth potential, a buyer has the luxury of taking plenty of time to strategically plan just how quickly this eCommerce platform should boost profitability.
