What People Buy from Amazon

Amazon.Com are best known for selling books, but the last thing I bought was a glow in the dark hammer. This is not the most unusual item.

Amazon sell an amazing range of items and people buy some odd things. I am an Amazon Associate, so I get a cut of the money from sales referred from my web site. This does not bring in much revenue (much less than Google Ads do), but I do get a very interesting list of what people buy.

From 2007 to January 11, 2012, my Amazon report lists 2492 items (35 items were returned). The average item cost $US46. Orders are mostly for single items, but someone did buy 38 Rewind Gear Retractor Heavy-Duty Retractable Key Chains Reels, after I suggested they could be used to secure flash drives holding military secrets.

Of the items, about half were from Amazon itself and the rest from third parties Amazon lists in its catalog. As well as the expected books like "How to Design and Teach a Hybrid Course" there is "Knitting Lingerie Style" (not I topic I cover in my blog). Many more Kindle eBooks are sold than paper books, but many of the eBooks are 99 cent DIY efforts of questionable quality (including some by me).

Books make up only a small proportion of Amazon sales. The most expensive item listed is a $US2,000 46-Inch LCD HDTV (these are now down to about $US600). Some items are small and hard to find elsewhere, such as a replacement Camera Lens Cap or or a Projector Bulb (Amazon lists 18,000 projector bulbs). But some items would seem easier to get elsewhere, such as six gallons of Sealing Liquid for a Waterless Urinal or 360 Golf Balls.

Popular Amazon items are AM/FM Radio Headsets, On-Board Diagnostics Electronic Scanners for car engines, Self Watering Plant Pots, Robot Vacuum Cleaners, " Crocs" style plastic clogs, battery packs for portable tools and books about Shipping Containers. But that perhaps says more about what I like to write about in my Blog, than what the average Amazon customer is interested in. ;-)