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April 25, 2025
Why Is Amazon Letting Customers Shop on Third-Party Websites?
In a move running counter to its long-term focus of keeping customers within its walled garden, Amazon is testing a program enabling browsers to purchase products from other brands’ websites that it doesn’t sell.
Amazon customers are either directed to the third-party website or can purchase the item without leaving the e-commerce giant’s mobile app.
In the first option, customers searching in the Amazon Shopping app will see relevant results from Amazon and third-party sellers, plus additional relevant products not sold on the platform in a separate section labeled “Shop brand sites directly.”
Heading to the section and tapping a “See More” link near the top of one of those items sends the shopper a notification that they’re leaving Amazon, and then they’re redirected to the brand’s website to explore other items and complete any purchases.
Amazon shoppers may also see a “Buy for Me” option that lets customers purchase items from third-party websites without leaving the e-commerce giant’s mobile app. Tapping on an item that supports the feature, shoppers will see all the product details directly within the Amazon app. Pressing the “Buy for Me” button brings up an Amazon checkout page, where payment information is verified.
Using agentic AI capabilities, Amazon makes the purchase by securely providing the customer’s encrypted name, address, and payment details to complete the checkout process on the brand’s website.
Shipping, delivery, returns, exchanges, and customer service are managed directly by the third-party brand. Customers are able to track their orders on the Amazon app during the delivery phase.
Third-party companies can opt out of the program, but Amazon is so far not charging a fee related to a third-party sale. Amazon said on a microsite for brands interested in joining the program, “Right now, this is an experiment, and we’re trying to help customers find more products, and once they find the right product, we’re trying to help them make more seamless purchases.”
Both the buy-direct and “Buy for Me” options are being tested with a “subset” of users in the U.S. Amazon is also testing it with a limited number of brands as it seeks feedback.
Several LinkedIn commenters saw Amazon sacrificing sales as well as merchant fees for now to gain access to data. Jason Goldberg, chief commerce strategy officer at Publicis, noted in a LinkedIn comment, “The bigger share of a customer wallet they see, the better they can target ads. They also squeeze out other digital wallets. Get early signals and new products sales velocity, etc.”
Kiri Masters, an e-commerce expert, wrote in Forbes, “Every data point that Amazon collects on what a user’s interests, preferences, and behaviors are enables more sophisticated targeting options for advertisers and also informs Amazon’s own merchandising decisions.”
Discussion Questions
Will Amazon find enough benefits from enabling browsers to search on the Amazon app to purchase items from third-party websites?
Should brands participate in the program, even if a commission is eventually charged?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Jeff Sward
Founding Partner, Merchandising Metrics
Shep Hyken
Chief Amazement Officer, Shepard Presentations, LLC
David Biernbaum
Founder & President, David Biernbaum & Associates LLC
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Three main reasons. First, Amazon wants and needs to remain the destination of choice for searching for and finding products online. That position is more under threat now than it has been for a while – especially as AI chat starts being linked to ecommerce and more marketplaces gain ground – so this is a defensive move. Second, while Amazon doesn’t monetize this function now, there is nothing to stop it from trying to do so in the future once it has gained ground. Third, it provides data and insight into the brands people want and what they’re buying; Amazon can use that.
The goal seems clear enough: much like (with the interest in) Tik Tok they want i-n-f-o-r-m-a-t-i-o-n (“You are Number 6…I AM NOT A NUMBER, I AM A FREE
MANSHOPPER!”); the real question, I think, is how many people will be like The Prisoner: get wise to them, and avoid it.Keeping user trust is one of the challenges Amazon might face when directing customers to third-party websites, especially if those sites have different standards for customer service or product quality.
Additionally, securing and protecting user data across multiple platforms may be resource-intensive and complex. Furthermore, integrating a seamless payment process that works across multiple third-party websites may present substantial technical and logistical challenges.
A brand could gain increased visibility and reach by joining Amazon’s program, gaining access to a large customer base that might not have been accessible otherwise.
It is possible that exposure to this type of advertising will result in higher sales volumes and brand recognition, even if a commission is charged. As well as aligning their products with Amazon’s trusted reputation, they may be able to enhance consumer confidence in their products.
Amazon wants to be a destination regardless of the customer buying from its website or a third-party’s site. This is brilliant thinking for the reasons listed in the article. The benefits are good for eveyone:
Amazon continues to look for and find ways to keep up and reinvent itself as needed.
Shep says it all perfectly.
“Amazon wants to be a destination regardless of the customer buying from its website or a third-party’s site. This is brilliant thinking for the reasons listed in the article. The benefits are good for eveyone…
“Amazon continues to look for and find ways to keep up and reinvent itself as needed”.
“Letting customers…???” Isn’t this just full blown data mining…??? Let’s find our blind spots. Let’s figure out what we don’t know. Let’s be able to prioritize demand for every product on the planet. This is not an altruistic benefit. It’s a discovery process.