What Is an Amazon Consultant?
An Amazon consultant is a specialist who supports sellers and vendors with strategic and operational work on Amazon. Unlike an agency that typically assigns a team to your account, a consultant gives you a single point of contact with deep expertise.
That sounds like a small difference, but it has major implications for how the engagement works. A consultant works more closely with you, knows your business in detail, and can react faster. In return, they lack the manpower that a full Amazon agency team provides. Which model fits better depends on your situation.
This post covers what an Amazon consultant actually does, when you need one, what it costs, and how to find the right fit.
Amazon Consultant vs. Amazon Agency: What's the Difference?
The terms are often used interchangeably, but they describe different models.
An Amazon consultant is typically a single person or a small specialist team. You work directly with the expert, not with an account manager who acts as a middleman. The consultant develops strategies, gives recommendations, and guides implementation. The actual execution is partly or entirely your responsibility.
An Amazon agency, on the other hand, handles both strategy and execution. You get a team of PPC managers, SEO specialists, designers, and account managers. The agency implements, you set the direction and review results.
The key difference is in the level of execution. A consultant tells you what to do. An agency does it for you. Both have advantages and disadvantages, and the best solution depends on how much internal capacity you bring to the table.
What an Amazon Consultant Actually Does
The scope of an Amazon marketplace consultant is broad, but most engagements center around these core areas.
Strategy development: Where do you stand, where do you want to go, and what are the biggest levers? A good consultant analyzes your account, identifies growth opportunities, and builds a concrete roadmap. Not as a generic template, but tailored to your catalog and market.
Account audit: Many sellers do not know where the biggest problems in their account are. A consultant runs a systematic audit covering listing quality, keyword coverage, PPC efficiency, margin structure, and competitive positioning. The audit provides the foundation for everything that follows.
PPC and advertising strategy: Not daily campaign management, but the overarching strategy. Which campaign structure fits your catalog? How should you allocate budget between Sponsored Products, Brands, and Display? When does Amazon DSP make sense?
SEO and listing optimization: Keyword strategy, listing architecture, A+ Content planning. A dedicated Amazon SEO consultant goes deeper here, but even a generalist consultant should cover the fundamentals.
Internationalization: Expanding to new marketplaces is complex. A consultant helps with market selection, localization strategy, and operational setup.
Sparring and coaching: Sometimes you do not need someone to execute. You need an experienced sparring partner who challenges your ideas and uncovers blind spots. This is one of the most valuable functions a good consultant provides.
When You Need an Amazon Consultant
Not every seller needs a consultant. But there are clear situations where outside expertise makes the difference.
You are stuck. Revenue has plateaued despite your efforts, and you cannot identify why. A fresh outside perspective often spots problems you miss because you are too close to the business.
You are planning a major move. New markets, new product lines, switching from Seller to Vendor Central or vice versa. These decisions have long-term consequences, and a consultant with experience in exactly that transition can prevent expensive mistakes.
You have a strong internal team, but Amazon-specific expertise is missing. Your e-commerce team is competent, but Amazon works differently than Shopify or other marketplaces. A consultant brings the specialized knowledge without requiring a full-time hire.
You want to hire an agency and need guidance. Which agency fits? What are fair agency costs? An independent consultant can help with the selection process and make sure you do not end up with the wrong provider.
How to Choose the Right Amazon Consultant
The consulting market is unregulated. Anyone can call themselves an Amazon consultant. These criteria help separate quality from noise.
Proven track record: Not website testimonials, but concrete case studies with measurable results. Ask for reference clients in your category or at your scale. A good consultant can demonstrate what they have achieved.
Specialization vs. generalism: Some consultants are generalists, others specialize in PPC, SEO, or operations. Consider what you need. For a broad strategic engagement, a generalist is better. For a specific problem, you need a specialist.
Communication and chemistry: You will work closely with this person. If communication does not click in the initial conversation, it will not improve during the project. Pay attention to whether the consultant listens, asks the right questions, and understands your business.
Transparency about limits: A good consultant tells you what they cannot do. If someone claims expertise in everything, they are probably excellent at nothing. Honesty about their own capabilities is a quality signal.
Structured approach: What does the consulting process look like? Is there an audit framework? Clear deliverables? Defined milestones? If the consultant cannot describe a structured methodology, the professional foundation is missing.
What Amazon Consulting Costs
The price range is wide and depends heavily on scope.
Hourly rate: Between $150 and $350 per hour for qualified Amazon consultants. Anything below $100 suggests limited experience. Anything above $400 is only justified in highly specialized niches.
Project basis: An account audit typically costs $2,500 to $6,000. Strategy development runs $3,500 to $10,000. Launch support for new products or markets ranges from $5,000 to $15,000, depending on complexity.
Ongoing retainer: Monthly retainers for continuous strategic guidance run $2,000 to $6,000 per month. That is less than a full service agency, but comes with less operational execution.
Do not compare costs only against agency pricing. Compare against the value of the decisions a consultant influences. A wrong internationalization strategy can cost you six figures. A consultant who prevents that has earned their fee in a single hour.
Consultant, Agency, or Both?
The question is not either or. In many cases, the combination works best.
A consultant for strategy, an agency for execution. The consultant develops the plan and monitors quality. The agency runs PPC, SEO, and design operationally. You retain strategic control without dealing with the day-to-day.
Alternatively, an agency that offers both: personal consulting from a senior expert plus a team that executes. This is the model that works best for most sellers above $300,000 in monthly revenue, because it combines the advantages of both worlds. Strategic depth and operational firepower.
What matters is that you do not end up at either extreme. A consultant without execution means you implement everything yourself, and that costs time. An agency without strategic sparring means you trust the agency to make the right decisions on your behalf. The answer usually lies somewhere in the middle.
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