AF259 - Important Information for Amazon Sellers POLICY UPDATES

This week, I welcome back Lesley Hensell of Riverbend Consulting for her quarterly update on the latest news and changes for Amazon sellers. To kick things off, I ask Lesley what the hot button Amazon topic is right now, and she explains how the account health rating found on your Amazon dashboard is about to become much more important. Despite these ratings not making much sense, Amazon is about to start using them as guidance for suspending accounts, including ones that are in the yellow. Lesley says that if the color bar moves, you’re now going to need to pay attention and appeal, and I remind everyone how important it is to have your documentation in order and accessible just in case something like this happens (possibly, as Lesley suggests, by hiring a VA). This is going to start rolling out in August and September and will likely be followed by Amazon’s usual catalog cleanup in October, so it’s particularly important to clean up your account because you cannot afford to have a merchant-fulfilled shipping problem going into Q4.

Lesley also has a great tip for getting on top of your inventory by asking Amazon to provide you with a reverse feed that will give you a filled-in spreadsheet of all the information you need. And we finish the show with some details about the upcoming Surge Summit in Tampa Bay, sponsored by Riverbend, which will cover all kinds of topics for Amazon sellers, from PPC to how to maximize the value of your brand. Plus, there’ll also be a cruise of the bay and a throwback 80’s arcade for when you’ve had enough sessioning and want to have some fun!

You can chat with others about the latest changes in the ecommerce world by joining the Amazon Files and Mommy Income community. Join our Facebook group with today’s codeword RIVERBEND to learn more about bundling, ask questions, and participate in the conversation with other sellers. And if you’re ready to take your business to a whole new level, visit MommyIncome.com/Coach to schedule your one-on-one coaching call today.

This week on the Amazon Files:

• Account health ratings and suspensions
  
• Keeping a handle on your documentation
  
• Q4 Amazon deadlines
  
• How to get a reverse inventory feed
  
• The Surge Summit
  
  

“We really need to step out of that comfort zone, whether you have to come in hazmat gear, in a mask or not, you should really come and just listen and observe and speak to other people. Our business grows when we are networking with other people.”

- Kristin Ostrander

WATCH:

LISTEN:

Quotes:

“Super-important to start watching that colored bar at the top of policy compliance. And there are times that if you’re a small volume seller, it will only take one complaint to move you to yellow.”

“Any time that there’s high-volume sales events like Christmas, or Black Friday, or Prime Day, or textbook season, there tends to be more enforcement. And it’s just a part of the volume of the sales on Amazon. It’s not that they’re out to get people because of Prime Day, it’s just that there’s more sales, right?”

“You cannot afford to have a merchant-fulfilled shipping problem between now and Thanksgiving because they are less forgiving, and it’s harder to get them overturned. Then you can go back in January, and they’re like, sure, yeah, you can have that privilege back. But if you lose it right before Q4, they aren’t nearly as forgiving.”

“Think of it like having a backup of your hard drives, you need a backup of your listing. So if you’ve always created your listings one by one, and you don’t have this spreadsheet, you need to ask them for the reverse feeds.”

Related Content:

• Merchant Words Promotion
  
• Wholesale Bundle System
  
• Email questions
  
• Learn With Us
  
• Coaching
  
• The Amazon Files Hub
  
• Brand Mastery Summit
  
• The Surge Summit - Use discount code MOMMY for $50 off your ticket

Grow Your Amazon Business!

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of The Amazon Files, the show to help Amazon sellers along their business journey one step at a time with Amazon expert and your host, Kristin Ostrander. If you enjoyed this episode, head over to Apple Podcasts, subscribe to the show, and leave us your honest review. Don’t forget to share your favorite episodes with your friends on social media! Use the codeword RIVERBEND to join us on Facebook. Each week, Kristin hosts a live discussion on how to grow your Amazon business. Don’t forget to check out our website and subscribe to our mailing list for even more resources.