The Amazon Analytics Insider November 2023
TL;DR
The "Customer Questions & Answers" feature on PDP’s is now much less accessible than it used to be. The series of Q&As are now hidden within the "Have a question" search bar, and are only revealed when customers type a word into the search bar.
Amazon delayed its plans to launch marketplaces in Chile, Colombia, Nigeria, and South Africa in early 2023, with only South Africa expected to launch in early 2024.
Amazon and Meta have made a series of commitments to the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to help ensure fair competition on their retail platforms.
Sellers have reported a bug with Amazon’s “Buy Shipping” tool that forces them to pay $2-$7 more for Ground and Priority Shipping rather than Ground Advantage shipping
Amazon sellers are struggling with missing inventory and unit miscounts at fulfillment centers, but Seller Support is not recognizing the inventory ledger report as a valid document, making it difficult for sellers to resolve the issue.
Amazon Removes Q&A Section of PDPs
Source: 1
The "Customer Questions & Answers" feature on Product detail pages is still available, however it is now much less accessible than it used to be. The series of Q&As are now hidden within the "Have a question" search bar, and are only revealed when customers type a word into the search bar.
The Q&A feature can be a good source of information because it can provide answers to questions that may not be in product reviews. If sellers have any vital information stored here, we hope that they create a separate FAQ section, or move it to other areas of their listing soon.
Amazon Delays Expansion to Select Marketplaces
Source: 1
Amazon had plans to launch marketplaces in Chile, Colombia, Nigeria, and South Africa in early 2023; but they have since delayed those plans. The company has already started recruiting sellers for the South African marketplace, which is now expected to launch in early 2024.
Expansion into the other countries seems to be on hold, with no specific information about when or if they will launch. Amazon's decision to pause its expansion plans is most likely due to factors, such as the cost of launching new markets and growing competition from local e-commerce companies.
Amazon and Meta Commit to Fair Competition & Data Practices (UK)
Source: 1
After being Investigated by the Competition and Markets Authority, or the CMA, in the UK, Amazon and Meta have made a series of commitments to help ensure fair competition on their retail platforms.
Amazon's first commitment is to not use the data of competing sellers to gain an unfair advantage over other sellers. An example of this would be to ensure that Amazon doesn't look at apple's phone charger sales to determine how many amazon basics phone chargers to keep in stock.
Their second commitment is to guarantee that all product offers will be treated equally when deciding which will be featured in the ‘Buy Box’. The third commitment they made is to allow 3P Sellers to negotiate their own rates directly with Prime delivery service providers.
Meta's first commitment is to Provide an opt-out option for advertising customers to prevent their data from being used improve Facebook Marketplace. This is because Meta took data from user interactions with 3rd party Facebook ads to shape what products users were shown on their marketplace feeds.
Their second commitment is to limit the use of ad data in product development, specifically when it comes to developing products that may compete with other companies that pay to advertise on the platform.
Forced UPS Ground + USPS Priority via Amazon Buy Shipping
Source: 1
Within the past week, sellers reported an error with Amazon's Buy Shipping tool. This has been forcing them to upgrade to Ground and Priority shipping for small and light items, rather than a more affordable option, such as Ground Advantage.
This results in a price increase of $2-$7 per shipment. Sellers can still buy shipping from external sites, however this will make their orders ineligible for protection against (INR), or Item not received claims. If you're experiencing this as a seller, it may be a good time to check and see if Amazon updated your ship times to a lesser time.
Fulfillment Center Miscounts & Missing Inventory
This week, sellers have been struggling with missing inbound units and unit miscounts at fulfillment centers. These situations are especially upsetting because when sellers try to reconcile these miscounts with the inventory ledger report, they're told by Seller support that that's not recognized as a valid document and therefore they cannot help their case.
Subscribe below to get insights delivered directly to your inbox.
One email, every two weeks.
