Monthly Archives: October 2017

Marketplaces Are Horrible, So Why Do We Sell On Them?

Readers' Questions,

Every day marketplace sellers deal with returns abuse, unfair metrics, rude buyers and declining sales. Why do they put up with it?

Have a question for us? Send it to questions@webretailer.com. Readers’ Questions are in partnership with Emanaged and Online Seller Consulting.

Question

We have been selling smartphones, tablets and accessories on our website, eBay and Amazon for almost 3 years now. Our sales were very good last year but now they have almost halved. We are also opening our first outlet store in about a week’s time.

Let’s begin with eBay, where some buyers abuse loopholes in the money back guarantee to return damaged items which were delivered in full working order.

Now we come to Amazon which is an even bigger problem. We have four main issues:

  1. Other sellers on our listings keep changing the product details, meaning that the listing no longer matches our product. We only find out when buyers complain.
  2. Buyers are allowed to open A-Z claims up to 90 days after purchasing an item, but can also do it after 6 months and get a full refund!
  3. Amazon penalizes small sellers for a few invalid returns, negative feedback and A-Z claims when there are hundreds of other orders without any problem.
  4. Unlike eBay, buyers do not bother to leave feedback. The only time they will leave feedback is when they are angry.

What can we do to tackle the issues mentioned above and increase our sales on eBay and Amazon?

– Salma G., Surrey

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Amazon Inside Out: HQ2, Teens, Taxes, Bogus IP Claims and Australia

Amazon Inside Out

Chris McCabe casts a critical eye over Amazon stories that have been making headlines, from HQ2 to the much anticipated launch in Australia

This post is by Chris McCabe, a former Investigation Specialist for Amazon’s Seller Performance team and founder of ecommerceChris.com. ecommerceChris shows Amazon sellers how to keep their accounts healthy, or, if the worst should happen, how to get their account back from a suspension.

Amazon has whipped officials across America into a frenzy as it invited invitations from cities wishing to be the home of Amazon’s new second HQ. How much will local officials hurt themselves to make long-shot bids?

The MTC has extended the deadline of their sales tax amnesty until November 1st, and the number of sellers being suspended for making bogus IP complaints is on the rise. What do both of these developments mean for sellers?

Meanwhile, over in Australia, the anticipation for Amazon’s new marketplace is building, as more than 500 Australian businesses have now signed up to sell on the marketplace when it launches next year.

And, will we be seeing an increase of teenagers shopping on Amazon, as they launch their new Amazon Teens service?

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Five Things You Didn’t Know Could Get Your Amazon Account Suspended

Uncovered,

From account hacking to not complying with federal regulations, here’s five causes of suspension sellers are often unaware of

This article is by Travis Stockman, a 2018 Juris Doctor Candidate at Hofstra Law, and future associate of Rosenbaum Famularo, P.C.

Amazon sellers are often familiar with the more common reasons for having their account suspended. These include intellectual property infringement, authenticity complaints and safety issues.

Being educated on these three causes, along with Amazon’s other common grounds for suspension, can help a seller to maintain a healthier seller account. It also means that if the worst does happen, you’re more likely to understand why you’ve been suspended.

However, despite the many measures that Amazon sellers can implement to protect their account, there are several scenarios sellers may be unaware of that can result in their Amazon seller account being suspended.

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Who’s Minding Amazon’s Store? Or Their Studio?

Opinion

Amazon is famously proud of its Leadership Principles, but does the ongoing Studios scandal suggest they’re rather selective about when they apply them?

This post is by Chris McCabe, a former Investigation Specialist for Amazon’s Seller Performance team and founder of ecommerceChris.com. ecommerceChris shows Amazon sellers how to keep their accounts healthy, or, if the worst should happen, how to get their account back from a suspension.

Recent news coverage and investigation of Harvey Weinstein’s alleged behavior has led to Amazon Studios and Roy Price, the studio’s head until he resigned three days ago. Two Weinstein Co. productions were in development with Amazon as recently as this week, and actress Rose McGowan publicly cited past complaints to Amazon Studios in regards to Weinstein.

As widely reported this week, Roy Price’s sexual harassment was originally reported by TV producer Isa Hackett in 2015 after an incident in San Diego. Amazon informed her of an investigation but did not inform her of the results. She did not receive an update, nor an apology, and as mentioned in the Bloomberg piece by Lucas Shaw and Spencer Soper, “Amazon hasn’t explained why it acted against Price now when Hackett first filed a complaint in 2015.”

The Wall Street Journal added: “Former Amazon employees said the only reprimand to Mr. Price was that he was told not to drink at company events anymore.” Amazon has not yet commented publicly on what other actions were taken in the aftermath of this event. Amazon has not presented any follow-up information on how management or executive behavior of this nature is evaluated, or monitored.

Much like Amazon’s recently canceled show, Z: The Beginning of Everything, it’s time to head back to the beginning, and review things from the top for potential improvements to Amazon’s management structure. I’ll take a look at one slice of how Amazon works internally, and see what lessons we can learn.

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How Should I Promote My Products To Drive More Sales on Amazon and eBay?

Readers' Questions, ,

Matthew Ferguson evaluates Kelvin’s eBay and Amazon listings, to help him increase his conversion rate and keep his watch business ticking on

Have a question for us? Send it to questions@webretailer.com. Readers’ Questions are in partnership with Emanaged and Online Seller Consulting.

Question

I’m a wholesaler based in Hong Kong. I sell watches, straps, accessories and parts on both eBay and Amazon. I have over 1,000 SKUs but my sales are very poor and it’s got to the point where I want to give up!

I’ve tried many different ways to promote my products, and my store, by using markdown discounts and sponsored ads, but the performance is still not good! Are there any other ways I can promote my store or my products to drive more sales?

– Kelvin K., Hong Kong

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