Google, Facebook, and Amazon all want to “help” merchants by creating systems that make the merchants a supplier to the platform. In exchange for access to the potential customers on the platform the platform will deliver sales at a lower cost. But the tradeoff is that in all cases the platform maintains the relationship with the customer. The platform is not your friend. They will use you as long as it works for their business, until the tide shifts and then you will be replaced in one way or another.
The hard thing is that someone will step in and fulfill the platform’s needs. That’s the case in any business that doesn’t have a huge initial investment to get into. Some schmuck will always cut grass at a cut rate because all it takes to get into the business is a lawnmower and a vehicle. Some schmuck will always list their products on Amazon at a rate that barely makes any money at all because they have nothing to lose, only things to gain.
The kind of short term thinking displayed by these schmucks will eventually lead to their demise. It may take 1 year or 10 years, but it will happen. Don’t be a schmuck, there are other ways to get traffic. SEO, Paid search ads, Facebook marketing, influencer marketing, display ads, and direct mail are all examples that you can use to start a relationship with a new customer and maintain a relationship with an existing customer. It’s harder and more expensive in the short term, but in the long run you are building relationships. Relationships will pay off.