Amazon Seller News

Starting now and lasting until 01/31/2025, Amazon will automatically reimburse the $0.60 coupon redemption fee for eligible coupons applied to newly launched Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) products.

This special offer applies to FBA listings for products made available for purchase for the first time on or after 11/02/2024. Sellers can expect the reimbursement to be credited to their Seller Central accounts no later than 02/28/2025.

Coupons are a valuable tool for driving initial sales, enhancing product visibility, and improving conversion rates for new listings. Additionally, new products do not need an established sales history to qualify for coupon campaigns.

For more information on setting up a coupon and checking eligibility, refer to the Create a coupon guide.

The Seller Export and Delivery program now allows sellers to ship Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) inventory from Germany and the UK to Amazon fulfillment centers in the United States using Amazon-partnered carriers.

This program is designed to streamline international shipping while offering competitive delivery rates and effortless logistics management to help sellers grow their global business through FBA.

Key benefits include:

• Discounted delivery rates negotiated by Amazon, with payments conveniently handled through Seller Central.
• Door-to-door service managed by an Amazon-partnered carrier.
• Integrated order management and tracking directly within Seller Central.
• Customs clearance support at both the origin and destination provided by the partnered carrier.

To learn more and sign up for this program, visit Sell Globally and register for the US store.

As the holiday season approaches, Amazon has launched its first Consumer Search Trends & Insights Report, providing sellers with valuable data to understand customer behavior and demand. Powered by the Product Opportunity Explorer, this report highlights top search terms and trends to help sellers optimize their strategies for the busy shopping season.

Key features of the report include:

• Trending search terms by category, with examples such as a 651% surge in searches for "ugly Christmas sweaters" over the past 90 days.
• Historical data from Q4 2023 to assist with benchmarking and planning, such as an 897% increase in searches for "black bows for gift wrapping" last year during the same period.
• Insights into high-growth markets, enabling sellers to identify new product opportunities based on rising customer demand.

The report is updated monthly, making it a valuable resource for holiday planning and long-term product strategy. Bookmark the Consumer Search Trends Report to stay ahead of trends throughout the season and beyond.

For more details, explore the Product Opportunity Explorer in Seller Central or visit the Product Opportunity Explorer guide.

Amazon has introduced a new term loan option through a partnership with Uncapped, tailored for high-revenue sellers to address substantial business needs.

This financing solution, available to eligible sellers on Amazon.com, provides loans of up to $5 million with repayment terms of up to 18 months. The application process is quick and convenient, with decisions made within 1-2 business days.

Uncapped, a global financial technology company, specializes in supporting e-commerce businesses by offering strategic funding solutions to fuel growth.

Visit the Amazon Lending page to check your eligibility for a term loan with Uncapped.

A new feature now allows sellers in the seller-fulfilled network to update product dimensions and weight for Amazon prepaid return labels. This enhancement aims to reduce unexpected carrier fee adjustments caused by inaccurate product dimensions on return shipments.

If you used Amazon's Buy Shipping services to purchase the original shipping label, the system will automatically apply those dimensions to the return label.

To make updates to your product dimensions, navigate to the "SKU attributes" section within your return settings in Seller Central.

Visit Prepaid Returns for Seller-Fulfilled Orders for more details.

Amazon is updating its Valid Tracking Rate (VTR) requirements within the Order Performance program to ensure accurate and timely deliveries. Starting January 15, 2025, sellers fulfilling their own orders must maintain a VTR above 95% by providing valid tracking information on all applicable shipments.

Key changes to the VTR guidelines include new tracking requirements based on package value and region for orders shipped to the U.S.:

• Shipments to the U.S. from China, Canada, American Samoa, or U.S. Minor Outlying Islands: Packages valued under $5 USD require at least one valid carrier scan, while those at or above $5 USD require two scans (one for arrival at the carrier facility and one for delivery or delivery attempt).
• Shipments to the U.S. from India or the UK: Packages under $15 USD require at least one carrier scan. For packages valued at $15 USD or more, two scans are required—one upon arrival at the carrier facility and one upon delivery or attempted delivery.

Exemptions from VTR tracking requirements include:

• Digital products
• Domestic packages using specific freight carriers (see Valid Tracking Rate help page)
• Domestic packages valued under $10 USD sent via USPS Standard or First-Class Mail envelopes
• Packages under $15 USD sent from the UK or India to the U.S. with untracked Amazon-integrated shipping
• Shipments to the U.S. from regions not specified in the updated VTR requirements

For further guidance on maintaining a healthy VTR and understanding exemptions, view the detailed VTR documentation on Amazon Seller Central’s help pages.

Amazon has introduced several initiatives aimed at reducing packaging waste and promoting recyclability, benefiting both customers and the environment. Here are the latest efforts to enhance sustainable packaging practices:

• Ships in Product Packaging Program: Amazon now certifies select products to ship in their original manufacturer’s packaging without additional outer packaging from Amazon. This program, which uses seller feedback, machine learning, and product testing to identify qualifying items, certified nearly four million products in 2024 alone.
• Expanded Use of Paper-Based Packaging: When extra packaging is necessary, Amazon now prioritizes paper-based materials, which are often recyclable through standard home recycling. As of October 2024, Amazon has fully eliminated plastic air pillows in packages prepared at its global fulfillment centers.
• Minimizing Packaging Materials: For items that need added protection during shipping, Amazon employs data-driven models to determine the most efficient packaging type, reducing the need for excessive cardboard, filler, and plastic. This approach is already widely implemented across North America and Europe and is being extended to India, Australia, and Japan.

These initiatives are part of Amazon's ongoing commitment to sustainable packaging solutions.

As of September, videos uploaded to Amazon product pages can now be displayed across shared global listings, reaching customers in multiple Amazon stores automatically. This feature helps increase customer engagement, drive sales, and potentially reduce returns by offering more visual product information.

To add videos to your global listings, use the Upload Video tool and follow the usual upload process. When available, your video content will automatically appear on relevant shared listings in multiple stores. You can review where your video is displayed by visiting the Upload and Manage Videos page, which shows a list of stores above the video’s title.

If you prefer to remove a video from one or more specific stores, follow these steps:

1. Go to Upload and Manage Videos.
2. Click the trash icon next to the video.
3. Choose either "Delete from other stores, excluding the current one" or "Delete from all stores, including the current one."

As of October 11, 2024, Amazon has officially discontinued its Subscription Box and Club program. This decision does not impact the separate Subscribe & Save program, which continues to operate as usual.

Sellers in the Subscription Box program were informed of the change on October 10, 2024, with customer notifications following on October 11. While new subscriptions are no longer available, existing subscribers will still receive their scheduled deliveries, and Amazon will provide order support until the program's full deprecation on December 31, 2024. Subscribers can continue receiving shipments until the end of December unless they choose to cancel, skip, or if sellers opt to end their subscription listings before this date.

Amazon Seller Central now offers an easier way to analyze performance metrics by ASIN. Based on seller feedback, you can filter business report data directly by ASIN, entering up to 100 ASINs in the search bar for a streamlined search and analysis experience.

Previously, finding specific ASIN data required downloading reports and filtering offline. With this new feature, sellers can now save time and manage ASIN performance data more efficiently within Seller Central.

To use this feature, follow these steps:

1. Go to your Sales Dashboard.
2. Select “Reports,” then “Business Reports.”
3. Choose any report under the "By ASIN" category on the left panel.
4. Use the ASIN Search toolbar at the top to locate your ASINs.