Timothy Sanders - Private Label Masters - Course Review

If you're here, you probably have some questions. And you've probably searched high and low for the best Amazon FBA course.

With so many people interested in Amazon Private Label these days, it's no surprise that Tim Sanders' course has caught your eye.

How does PLM stack up against other FBA programs?

What is the price of Private Label Mastery?

With Tim's help, I was able to optimize my FBA company and increase my profit by another 15%.

But I'm sure you would agree that a lot has changed in the last year or so. Is Private Label Masters 2021 still a relevant guide for Amazon FBA?

I'll show you Tim's course in detail, including the eight training modules' pros and cons. This review is also a summary, in-depth overview of Tim Sanders' PLM, so if you're considering investing in the program, you'll know what to expect.

So what exactly can you expect when you purchase the course and gain access to the Private Label Masters Portal?

Let's find out.

Length: 20 hours 

Content: Basics needed to start, scale your FBA Business in 2020.

Rating: 4.0/5

Price: $5000, offer $1500 discount if purchased on call.

Timothy Sanders, who is he?

Tim has been an Amazon FBA seller for over three years and has had a lot of success. If you're interested, there's a screenshot of his 2019 tax return below. Let's just claim that Tim Sanders' net worth has grown in recent years.

This guy is the genuine article. The methods he teaches will work for anyone with the right work ethic and a lot of time to spend studying product sales.

Tim did his homework before creating the course. He started putting together a full collection of training videos and PDFs after working on his own FBA company for about a year and seeing 7-sales.

Thousands of Amazon sellers have used his services to launch or develop their product lines and brands. Bezos' website, according to Digital Commerce 360 Research, accounts for a whopping 37 percent of all online retail revenues, effectively dominating the digital market.

Tim's unique thing is that he doesn't teach techniques that he doesn't use in his own FBA business.

We've seen all these gurus out there sharing their "knowledge" on how to create a successful business.

But really, the only things that make them money are the courses they sell.

Tim has two Groups on facebook: a VIP group for someone who has purchased the curriculum and a main group for those who like to learn more but haven't.

Tim has been publicly highlighting his performance and course on the Private Label Masters Facebook page and the Private Label Masters YouTube channel, where he has been uploading two videos a month for the past two years.

The Channel on YouTube has about 38k viewers, which is a decent amount, but these Amazon FBA guys seem to have a lot more.

What To Expect From This Course

Your prized Private Label Masters login will unlock a whole new world with enough content to get you started on Amazon. However, it also has something to offer more advanced Amazon sellers. It includes information on how to scale your business once you've already established your first products.

This course will teach you how to:

• Develop the skills and resources required to pick items that reliably sell.
• Acquire the knowledge and most effective methods for locating quality producers.
• Learn the framework of pay-per-click promotions as well as advanced PPC strategies that can help you generate more sales and boost your organic rankings.
• Increase your company's profitability by reducing the percentage of disappearing ad spend and putting more money into your profit terms.

Private Label Master Outline

Module 1: Introduction

This Module begins with Tim thanking you for the opportunity you have given him to teach you. He also explains that PLM:

• Is not a get-rich-quick scheme
• Is designed to take students through each lesson in sequence
• Allows you to be profitable after six months of disciplined effort
• Requires a certain mindset that includes a strong work ethic and self-awareness

The process of a successful business

Sanders also goes over five critical components of the business:

• Mindset-Tim talks about how a clearly defined purpose helps you overcome the odds
• Licensing-Er summarizes different licensing structures and why he chose an LLC
• Taxes-Sanders emphasizes the need for a business CPA and how to get an EIN
• Liability Insurance-He discourages new sellers from selling " high liability products."
• Amazon Fees (Tim discusses the costs of selling goods on Amazon).

He explains why he sells on Amazon after discussing the requisite mindset (and unfortunately, I think most of us can probably relate). After a long day at work, he was tired from not working hard and not making enough time for his family.

Tim's first Module provides many of the essential elements of building a successful business.

While he is technically correct when he said you could sell without a business license, I disagree with him when he says it is okay to wait.

An LLC business license is necessary because it separates your liability from your business liability and gives you multiple tax options.

Mindset, but no money

Like many other course developers, Tim tends to explain more about mindset and not enough about the money needed to be a successful Amazon seller.

I won't say he talks about it "too much" because entrepreneurs need constant mindset reminders until everything finally clicks.

But while possessing perseverance, patience and accomplishment are essential to succeed, it's also essential to have the financial resources necessary to avoid going under if your product flops (several of mine have, even after passing my due diligence with flying colours).

But because I've already established many other-albeit smaller-passive income streams, I've been able to weather storms that result from dud products I've brought to market.

Tim seems not to talk much about the money side because it's not a very entrepreneurially romantic thing to do. But I think if he did, his course would be more popular because it would turn out to be more truthful than most if not all other FBA courses.

I wish he had covered how to get business credit to get your private label business off on the right foot, as well as the best ways to build business credit, so sellers don't put themselves at risk.

Would-be sellers would know that selling on Amazon is not a get-rich-quick plan, but a business model that takes the average seller many years to get started if he spoke a little more about money.

You'll need money to start an Amazon company. Then you can begin the actual process of starting a company. And this is where Tim's course kicks off.

Video Time: 25 mins

Module 2: Product Development

This Module is Tim's longest, clocking in at just under 3 hours.

And it's understandable, because while research isn't the most exciting part of the job (I think we'd all rather get to the making sales part), it is the most important move if you ever want to get to the fun things.

Tim demonstrates his suggested business framework with a baseball analogy in the second video.

You are the coach as an entrepreneur, and your goods are the game.

Home Runs or Singles:

Key question: if you were a coach, would you rather have one player hitting home runs or many players hitting singles?

Would you rather have just one product with Ty Cobb 1911 batting average (.419) as a conversion rate or have the 1995 Cleveland Indians lineup, with six different products converting over .300?

If you're a little lost, don't worry, it will make sense soon.

He looks to get the point across; that is, the requirement for increasing profitability is a business's stability having many different products. These products make a few sales each day, not of one product that makes a hundred sales in the same amount of time.

Other topics covered in this Module:

• Products to stay away from-He gives specific genres.
• Trademarks and patents-Including whether the product you're interested in has one
• Research tools-And yes, among them are Jungle Scout and the 999 Trick.
• Simple product changes to increase value in the eyes of your prospect
• Hacks to find low-competition niches.

After three total runs detailing his product discovery-process, his products are: Kid's Teepee, Sensory Blanket, and Message Center Bulletin Board-Tim gives a 40,000-foot look at the FBA business, explaining that the goal is not just to sell one or two items well but to build a brand (aka a group of related products that all sell at consistent prices).

He ends the Module with a quick reminder to be patient with yourself because the product search process takes time to learn, as does mastering Trademarkia.com to determine which products have patents.

 Video Time: 2 hrs, 54 mins

Module 3: Product Procurement

The third Module delves into three (3) separate aspects of product sourcing:

• Alibaba.com
• Interaction with suppliers
• Negotiation tips

Module Outline:

Part 1: Alibaba.com Overview.

Tim gives a quick run-through of Alibaba, showing its different filters and which ones he recommends based on his experience. He goes the expensive route.

Part 2: Building good relationships with suppliers.

• How to build a relationship from 10,000 miles away
• Quickly engaging multiple suppliers very efficiently
• Know the cultural differences (Chinese culture is not strictly business).
• What to do when you find the one (a high-quality supplier, that is)

Part 3: Professionally negotiate MOQ with manufacturers

• Know the information needed to start the business discussion
• What questions to ask that separate the excellent from the mediocre
• Use the flexibility of minimum order quantity to your advantage

A few skills Tim teaches in these eight videos are:

• Multitask when communicating with suppliers.
• Being professionally informal while making introductions
• Using Chinese leverage to negotiate a price
• Organizing multiple inspections of the samples to ensure that they are of the highest quality

One of the key reasons a supplier has an advantage is that they can cover their process costs and ensure that setting up their equipment and organizing their labor is as cost-effective as possible. Tim shows how to get your first order at a lower MOQ using a clever yet common technique.

The biggest things I took away from Tim's training were his techniques for informally engaging Chinese suppliers to begin the supplier selection process.

He gives a short lecture on the topic and shows how he does it with a dummy item.

He showed me that informal chatting could be a great way to build the foundation for a strong business relationship in the future.

 Total video time: 51 mins

Module 4: Dispatch

Tim discusses why Amazon Private Label FBA sellers need a shipping carrier, how to get shipping quotes from different vendors, how to get shipping labels, and how to place your first order with your vendor in this module.

Tim's teaching methods include the following:

• Know your options (ocean and air, when to use them, etc.).
• Using the suppliers he has vetted himself (Freightos and Flexport).
• Why you should never ship your products directly to Amazon
• Here's how to easily send your shipping labels to your supplier

Using a freight forwarding/inspection service is one of the strategies Tim emphasizes in Module Four (often, both services are performed by the same company).

Tim mentions that investing in these programs is a smart idea because it addresses two issues.

• The problem of unknowingly shipping defective items.
• The problem of spending a lot of money on Amazon's long-term storage fees

End the Module with a brief discussion of the importance of specific written product details; Tim shows how to avoid the grief of buying substandard products at your own expense.

Video Time: 54 mins

Module 5: Optimization of Listings and Branding

Module 5 is jam-packed with Tim telling you to "do it right the first time" in a number of ways.

In the ten videos in this Module, Tim quickly covers branding design strategies and optimizes your product listings, including a particular guest post.

In this lesson, you'll learn:

• Considerations to make when creating a brand name.
• Some ways to simplify your product's labelling process.
• Making the most of your keywords (Tim gives three tips).
• A walkthrough of the data-driven tool (no estimates) that Tim trusts
• How to create lists of starter words using Amazon's auto-populate feature.

The cherry on top of this Module is the hour-long training that Stacey, Tim's copywriter, gives, explaining six copywriting concepts that you can incorporate into your list optimization process.

Stacey's talking points are:

• Know your product
• Knowing your market
• Write a boss-level title
• Get your bullets right by mapping them out
• Engage your audience with a resonant product description
• Editing More Than Just Spelling and Grammar (Stacey intros a Third Component)

 Video Time: 2 hrs

Module 6: Product Launch Time!

While this is the shortest section of the training, it does not disappoint.

Tim shows two different ways to launch your products after explaining why launching your item into the abyss of Amazon is an absolute necessity.

Part 1: Using Amazon's "ZonJump" launch service (explained by the CEO of ZJ himself).

Tim somehow orchestrated Zonjump's CEO Leo production of a 5-minute introduction to the service that Leo pioneered.

Leo explains the platform and gives an overview of the entire startup process, from pre-launch priorities to Zonjump FBA's experienced professionals.

Part 2: Tim's in-depth training on using the Zuckerberg platform to introduce new products (FB).

The first half of the video shows you two unique methods for retrieving an Amazon domain storefront URL.

He called them:

• The Storefront URL Method
• The two-step URL method

Building the Facebook ad itself is Tim's next step.

Tim is no Adobe Photoshop guru, so he shows how to make responsive ads using Microsoft Paint.

Additional hacks Tim reveals in the sixth segment:

• Changing the image format to increase the reach of your FB ad.
• Customizing ad copy to match your ad's results
• Tracking the results of your targeted keywords with a tool in Helium 10.

One of the things Tim gets right in this Module is setting the right expectations. Product launches are not just one-day celebrations but a multi-month drama that builds excitement in the months and weeks leading up to the launch.

While I'm thankful Tim provides a 12-week launch plan, I think on our instant gratification day, he might have done well to have provided a 90-day plan with tasks that need to be completed each day until launch day arrives. For a reason, that business builder would then focus more on the business than just thinking it can be done once a week in a few hours.

 Video Time: 48 mins

Module 7: Sponsored Products (Amazon PPC).

The content of this Module reflects Tim's modesty as he transferred power to his assistant Aaron Eaton, a PPC campaign specialist.

Aaron produced a series of eight videos (plus a bonus):

• Keyword Selection (Aaron's mini-lesson on the essence of keywords, from description to application).
• ACoS & Bidding Pricing (After explaining both terms, Aaron paints a picture of PPC campaigns' overall goal).
• The automatic campaign (walkthrough of construction with bid price advice).
• From broad to exact match, manual campaigns (Pyramid of PPC).
• The keyword report (This data is the report card of your pay per click efforts) #vitalinformation
• PPC pyramid (keyword filtering-cycle explained-depth).
• Moving keywords up the pyramid (Part 2 of the previous video).
• Weekly tasks (maintaining high converting PPC efforts).
• The ultimate campaign (this gets you a super low ACoS) 

Aaron's talk's brilliance is found in his step-by-step explanations, where he goes into detail with the formal language of PPC to be clear, but with enough definitions to be clearly understood by the seller just starting on Amazon.

In his lesson, Aaron defines the following:

• Search Term
• Keyword
• Broad match campaign
• Phrase match campaign
• Exact Match campaign

The order of his mini-lessons also needs to be highlighted. Aaron goes through each phase in the order it would be set up when running an actual PPC campaign, giving us a literal framework to follow.

This Module was by far my favorite of the entire course, as I appreciated both the campaign design tips and the training videos' excellent structure.

Another thing Tim did well in the creation of PLM was hiring Aaron and making him illustrate PPC campaigns. It demonstrates the knowledge and quality practice that can be introduced to an organization when a specialist is hired and the owner gives them the authority to fine-tune the method.

Video Time: 1 hr, 25 mins

Module 8: Maintain, then scale your business.

In this Module, Tim gives lots of advice on growing your brands and points out different steps to optimize and outsource.

In this lesson:

• The importance of product reviews
• Generating additional revenue with Amazon promotions.
• 3 Aspects of your business you need to keep a close eye on to keep revenue coming in
• How to deal with the 'running out-of-stock" situation
• Further list optimization through split testing
• Get the most out of your lightning deals
• Ejecting hijackers (expert level and novice level).
• The rewards of brand registration
• Where to discover high profile VA's
• Tips for speeding up your refunds.

This Module builds on topics covered in modules 1-7. Most of Tim's content is dedicated to providing suggestions to make many of your company's processes more efficient and profitable.

Tim's tips for running out of stock were probably the most valuable video in this segment for me (4th video in the Module.) Tim discusses the evidence as well as his reasoning. He demonstrates how to remain in stock for longer periods of time and lists plausible reasons why sellers can do so. His point is based on the fact that the longer you are out of stock, the lower your keyword rankings get.

Tim's knowledge on hijackers was another useful feature of his module for me. It's the most comprehensive training I've seen, with examples and a simple description of the stolen buy box scenario. In my lead generation market, I never had to worry about losing a buy package.

Video Time: 1 hr, 1 min

Tim Sanders' Private Label Masters Benefits and Drawbacks.

Further legitimization of his education comes in his social media activity, namely the Facebook groups and YouTube channel mentioned at the beginning of the review (22.4 k subscribers on YouTube as of October 2019).

Both his regular posts and a large number of members/subscribers support the value of his training.

Tim's course is an excellent guide for those wanting to start at Amazon in 2021 because he has kept it up to date with frequent revisions.

Tim's use of a Chrome extension that replaced the 2017 popular TRACK 999 Cart Hack, but now doesn't work in some cases, is an example of the changes. (i.e., if the seller has more than 999 items or has set a quantity limit). The software accurately tracks inventory levels by interacting with Amazon's code. It is very accurate on stock levels below 999 and provides reliable stock levels above a thousand.

Advantages

• Tim was selling on Amazon in 2020.
• He is active in his course's Facebook support group
• Holistic Content
• Up to date for 2020 (all things considered).

Disadvantages

• Limited product supplier, sourcing location.

Conclusion

Because Tim has continually updated the course, my recommendation for his training remains vital.If I were starting my Amazon company in 2021, I'd like the most up-to-date details about how to make money.

Some advice:

Only read this if you want to choose Amazon FBA as a business model you are strongly considering to build your wealth.

First, the capital needed to invest: Take the time to save up at least $10,000.

After investing in the course, product samples and inventory, labelling and shipping, product launch services/pay-per-click advertising, and Amazon marketing services, the first 10k is pretty much exhausted, and you will need the rest to stay afloat.

Second, product security: test multiple products.

Step 1: Launch Multiple Products

Step 2: Keep the winners and dig the losers. 

Don't pick a product you love just because you love it! Do your homework and make sure a version or neighbour of your product has been selling all year. To get started on Amazon, you need a good selling product, assuming you can't afford to lose it.

The way to ensure that your product is a winner is to test multiple products that are relatively similar simultaneously (simultaneously). I have used this method with almost every product in each of my brands and, although it was not cheap, it required more money and workforce. It was practical.

After meeting with a mentor who had already achieved 9-success on the Amazon platform, I decided to use this tool. Since it's almost impossible to predict which version of your product will appeal to customers, you'll need to experiment with a few different versions.

You only know if a product will sell when it sells.

Third, business mindset:

Is Amazon FBA hard?

It's like any business.

With all the information in the world is debatable, it remains useless if you have not done the internal work of developing three characteristics:

1. the discipline (I will work if I don't feel like it).

2. the perseverance (I lack confidence at the moment, but I will do it anyway)

3. the focus (I see many business models seeming easier / seem to work better, but I chose this one, so I will proceed)

Although Amazon does a lot of the work for you, from advertising to payment processing to moving the product to the buyer, it takes a lot of work to build and optimize a product list. It takes time, continued effort, and a mindset that says, "I'm going to continue to believe in this business model even though I haven't seen results yet."

I highly encourage you not to take this course lightly because it is not only entertaining and enjoyable but also educational.

Finally, before you sign up, double-check that you can do a CENT of business.

MJ Demarco's "The Millionaire Fastlane," which explores the five characteristics of a great business model, is one of the best business books I've ever read.

The acronym CENTS:

• Command (How much power do you have over the model?).
• Eligibility (Can anyone apply, or does it need a particular skill set?)
• Demand (Does the good or service you're selling have a constant demand?)
• Time (Is the business's profitability determined by the number of hours you work?)
• Scale (Is the product sales process easy to replicate (add additional products))?

The bottom line is don't jump until you have done your due diligence; look at all of the above considerations before making your decision. I suggest you write down your options, make a logical choice, and then stop looking for other options and stay committed to your selection.

Is It a Worthwhile Course?

The Private Label Masters course seems to be worthwhile in several respects.

When it comes down to it, I believe most people should ask themselves if they want to run an Amazon FBA company at all.

Make sure you've calculated "the expense" of getting involved, because the old adage "you'll never know before you try" doesn't apply here.

Overall, Tim has created and maintains a high-quality, hands-on course on Amazon's FBA business module that walks you through the majority of what it takes to get started as a private label master at Bezos' creation. (Also, bear in mind that Amazon is incredibly complex, and no single course can cover everything.)

 And for the price of entry, depending on your intentions and business character, the rewards may be worth the investment.