There’s no question that today, Amazon marketplace is
number one. Savvy retailers want to list their products on Amazon marketplace,
however, Amazon is not making this easy. Amazon is demanding high level of
quality from sellers as well as products they are selling. The screening process for sellers is unlike
anything we saw in the past.The screening process is even more vigorous for gated
categories, brands and proper documentation is required before being given the
privilege of selling on Amazon marketplace.
Seasoned
sellers might remember the old days when all you needed was a product with a
UPC, and you could list anything with virtually no effort. Remember the Retail
Arbitrage craze? The get rich quick scheme of buying low at your local Walmart
to resell high on Amazon later? Sorry, those days are over, Amazon now wants
hard facts on what, when and how you source your goods and a Walmart receipt is
not going to cut It. The reason behind these new restrictions is fairly clear,
it’s about protecting the Amazon brand. To your average consumer, the
third-party seller fulfilled order is no different than if Amazon filled the
order, so the third-party seller is being held to their same high standards. As
a seller, this can be very frustrating, but we are here to help with some
pointers on navigating this confusing maze of getting your merchandise posted
and sold on Amazon.
Before
we get too deep into the subject of gating you need to have a firm
understanding of the Amazon platform. Amazon as a selling platform can be quite
unforgiving of minor mistakes and site infractions, so you need to spend some
serious time reading and understanding their rules before you sell. After all,
this is Amazon’s marketplace and they can and will ban you if you don’t follow
their rules. If you are just starting in the world of e-commerce, we strongly
recommend starting selling on other platforms like eBay, Poshmark and Bonanza to
build up your business and your level of experience. There market places are
more forgiving and do not hold their sellers to the same standard.
Gating
So,
what exactly is Amazon looking for with gating of categories and brands? Amazon
wants to make sure that goods are genuine and requires most sellers to submit a
sample invoice. There are 5 points that Amazon looks for from a seller
submitted invoice.
1.The invoice must be
dated within the last 180 days.
2.Documents must be valid
and unexpired.
3.Documents must be clear
and legible, no information other than pricing can be hidden.
4.Documents must have your
name and address and must match your seller account.
5.All documents must
include issuers name and contact info. (phone, email, website, etc.)
Most
of this is fairly straightforward but what they don’t state is that invoices
need to be formatted to meet their specific standards. These invoices need to
include line listings for each item from the purchase. Further, if you are
attempting to gain brand approval, they are looking for 10 or more units of
that specific brand on that invoice. It can be any combination of SKU’s but
must contain at least 10 units of that brand.
Even
if you do meet all of these requirements, there is still no guarantee that
Amazon will approve your submission. These invoices are reviewed on a case by
case basis and something as simple as the time of submission of the invoice can
sometimes make a difference between an invoice being accepted or rejected, so
you need to be persistent and keep trying. There are a few other variables that
Amazon looks at when considering a request to un-gate a category including your
current seller metrics. If you’re already selling on Amazon in an ungated
category and maintaining healthy seller metrics, this will increase your
chances of approval. Another very simple thing you can and should do before
attempting to un-gate a category is to upgrade to a pro-account. This costs you
$39.99 per month and would eliminate your $.99 closing fee for individual
accounts. So if you’re doing 40 plus transactions per month already, it’s time
to go pro. We could easily spend days covering all the in’s and outs of the
Amazon marketplace, and we will dive deeper in future posts but for right now
here are just a few points to consider when trying to unlock the Amazon
gate.
At
Foxliquidation, we believe that our success relies on your success.
Remember
we are here to help our customers, if you need further assistance please
contact us at support@foxliquidation.com