You finally got the listing live on AWS Marketplace.
The product is approved. The description looks solid. You have a few screenshots, a pricing model, and a “Request Private Offer” button.
Now the expectation creeps in: enterprise buyers will find you, AWS sellers will pull you into deals, and revenue will follow.
But most Marketplace listings never turn into enterprise pipeline. Not because the product is weak, but because “listed” is not a go to market strategy.
A listing is an asset. Enterprise deals require a motion.
This blog explains the gap between having a Marketplace presence and actually closing enterprise deals through AWS Marketplace, plus what to do in the first 30 to 90 days to turn your listing into revenue.
The hard truth: AWS Marketplace is not a demand engine by default
AWS Marketplace can absolutely accelerate enterprise deal cycles, simplify procurement, and unlock co sell. But it is not a passive inbound channel for most B2B categories.
Enterprise buyers rarely browse Marketplace the way consumers browse app stores. In most enterprise transactions, Marketplace is used as:
- A procurement rail to buy what they already decided to buy
- A vehicle to align the purchase to an AWS budget
- A mechanism to move faster through security and vendor onboarding
- A way to structure commercial terms via private offers
- A co sell tool when AWS is actively engaged in the account
That means a listing alone does not create buyer intent. It enables conversion once intent exists.
So if your plan is “publish and wait,” you are waiting for a buyer who already wants you and also chooses to buy via Marketplace without your help. That is a narrow path.
Why enterprise deals do not start on Marketplace
Most enterprise deals start in one of these places:
- A business problem, owned by a line of business leader
- A security or compliance requirement, owned by risk and security
- An architecture initiative, owned by cloud and platform teams
- A transformation program, owned by IT leadership
- A vendor consolidation or renewal cycle, owned by procurement
Marketplace becomes relevant only when the buyer reaches the “how do we buy this” phase.
If you are not present earlier in the cycle, your listing becomes a late stage checkbox, not a pipeline source.
The five reasons “listed” does not convert to enterprise deals
1) You have no Marketplace led conversion path
A listing is not a sales motion. Enterprise conversion needs:
- A clear use case narrative tied to outcomes
- Proof that reduces risk (security posture, references, case studies)
- A commercial path (private offer readiness, discount logic, terms)
- A procurement story (why Marketplace speeds approval)
- A follow up motion (how quickly you respond, how you qualify)
Without these, enterprise buyers stall even if they are interested.
2) Your listing is optimized for approval, not for enterprise decision makers
Many listings read like product brochures. Enterprise buyers and platform teams want:
- What problem this solves, for whom, and in what environment
- How it integrates into AWS architecture
- What the implementation looks like
- What success metrics are realistic
- What security and data boundaries look like
If the listing does not answer these questions, the buyer goes back to Google, or back to their incumbent vendor.
3) Your internal team is not trained to sell Marketplace
This is the most common hidden failure.
Your sales team keeps selling the way they always sold, and Marketplace becomes an afterthought. Or it becomes “something ops handles when procurement asks.”
Enterprise deals do not move faster on Marketplace unless the sales team uses Marketplace early and intentionally:
- Positioning Marketplace as the preferred procurement path
- Aligning to the buyer’s AWS budget and renewal timing
- Pre framing the private offer process
- Engaging AWS sellers with the right collateral and story
If Marketplace is introduced late, it becomes a delay, not an accelerator.
4) You are not co selling with AWS in a structured way
Many companies expect AWS sellers to “bring deals” once the listing is live.
In reality, AWS sellers engage when three things are true:
- The deal is real (validated account, timeline, buyer, budget)
- The listing and offer structure support procurement via AWS
- You make it easy for them (clear value, clear ask, clear next step)
If you do not have a repeatable co sell package, you are invisible in practice even if you are listed.
5) Your commercial model is not enterprise ready
Enterprise Marketplace deals often require:
- Private offers with custom pricing and terms
- Annual or multi year structures
- Usage based pricing clarity and guardrails
- Services attach (implementation, migration, support)
- Clear renewal and expansion mechanics
If your Marketplace offer is rigid or confusing, enterprise buyers will revert to direct contracting or postpone.
The Marketplace revenue equation
Think of AWS Marketplace as a conversion layer, not a lead source.
Enterprise revenue through Marketplace generally requires:
- Demand creation outside Marketplace
- Deal qualification and value articulation
- AWS alignment and co sell enablement
- Procurement acceleration via Marketplace
- Commercial execution via private offers
- Expansion and renewals managed through Marketplace
If you only do step 4, you are skipping the hard parts that actually create enterprise deals.
A simple diagnostic: what “listed” usually means inside a company
If any of these sound familiar, your listing is not yet a revenue engine:
- Marketing owns the listing and sales barely references it
- No one can explain when to use private offers vs public pricing
- AWS seller outreach is sporadic and not tied to accounts
- Leads from Marketplace are slow to respond to or not routed properly
- The listing is treated like a launch event, not a continuous GTM channel
The fix is not “more Marketplace content.” The fix is a Marketplace led motion.
What to do instead: the first 30 to 90 days after listing
Here is the practical execution plan that turns a listing into enterprise readiness.
Days 1 to 30: Make the listing enterprise consumable
Goal: remove friction for technical evaluators and procurement teams.
Actions:
- Rewrite the listing around one primary enterprise use case and outcomes
- Add a clear “who this is for” and “when this is a fit” section
- Include an AWS architecture narrative (even if lightweight)
- Make security posture explicit (data handling, access controls, compliance posture)
- Create a short buyer oriented FAQ: procurement, implementation, support, timelines
- Ensure lead routing and response SLAs are defined internally
Outputs you want by end of day 30:
- Enterprise grade listing narrative
- A consistent response process for Marketplace leads
- A basic Marketplace sales play that your SDRs and AEs can follow
Days 31 to 60: Enable sales and build the private offer muscle
Goal: make Marketplace a repeatable close path, not a one off scramble.
Actions:
- Train sales on when to introduce Marketplace in the sales cycle
- Define pricing guardrails and discount logic for private offers
- Create a standard private offer package template (what information you gather and send)
- Build a services attach model if you deliver implementation or onboarding
- Establish an internal Marketplace deal desk process (fast approvals)
Outputs you want by end of day 60:
- A sales team that can confidently lead with Marketplace
- A private offer process that runs quickly and predictably
- A commercial story that maps to buyer procurement needs
Days 61 to 90: Activate AWS co sell like a system
Goal: become easy for AWS sellers to work with.
Actions:
- Build an AWS seller one pager for your top two use cases
- Define the “AWS seller ask” clearly (introductions, account mapping, workshops)
- Identify 20 to 50 target accounts where AWS Marketplace procurement is likely
- Align your outbound motion to those accounts and bring AWS in early
- Track co sell progress with simple operating metrics
Outputs you want by end of day 90:
- Account based co sell activation
- A repeatable AWS seller engagement kit
- A measurable pipeline influenced by Marketplace readiness
The metrics that reveal whether your listing is a real channel
Do not judge success only by “views” or “clicks.”
Track these instead:
- Lead response time for Marketplace inquiries
- Number of qualified Marketplace sourced or influenced opportunities
- Number of deals where Marketplace was introduced before procurement stage
- Private offers created per month
- Private offer conversion rate
- Average cycle time reduction when Marketplace is used
- AWS seller engagements tied to named accounts
If these are not moving, you are not running Marketplace GTM yet. You are simply listed.
The takeaway
A listing is the beginning, not the outcome.
Enterprise deals happen when Marketplace is treated as a full motion that combines:
- Narrative that matches enterprise evaluation
- Sales enablement and internal ownership
- Private offer execution and deal desk speed
- AWS seller alignment tied to accounts
- Procurement acceleration as a strategy, not a feature
If you want enterprise deals through AWS Marketplace, do not ask “Are we listed?”
Ask: “Do we have a Marketplace led GTM motion that consistently creates and closes pipeline?”
That is the difference between presence and revenue.
