Streamline Your Listings with the New ‘Complete Your Drafts’ Features
Summary: Amazon has updated the “Complete Your Drafts” dashboard, providing sellers with a more efficient way to manage and publish draft listings. The new features include a unified view, allowing sellers to manage drafts from all methods in one place, unlimited storage for drafts, and cross-browser compatibility, making drafts accessible and editable from any browser. These improvements aim to enhance listing workflow and give sellers more flexibility and control over their product drafts.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Unified Dashboard: Use the new interface to efficiently manage all draft listings in one place, no matter how they were created.
- Unlimited Storage: Take advantage of unlimited draft storage for bulk product management or future listings.
- Cross-Browser Access: Ensure you can continue working on your drafts across different browsers for greater flexibility.
This update is particularly useful for sellers who frequently create multiple drafts and need a seamless way to manage and complete listings at their convenience.
Gain Visibility into Your Reserved Payments with the New Deferred Transactions Report
Summary: Amazon has introduced a new Deferred Transactions report to help sellers better track reserved payments under the Payments based on delivery date policy. This update provides greater transparency into which orders are deferred and why, allowing sellers to view the specific orders awaiting payment release. Starting November 1, delivery date reserve amounts will appear as Deferred transactions in the Payments dashboard, replacing the previous account-level reserve field for new transactions.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Track Reserved Funds: Sellers can now view detailed information about deferred payments, including the deferral reason and estimated release date for each order.
- Download Reports: Easily generate a report of your deferred transactions by selecting “Deferred Transaction” under the Payments reports repository for deeper insights.
- Monitor Released Transactions: Once deferred payments are released, they will be moved to the “Released” status and included in your payouts.
This feature enhances your ability to manage cash flow by giving you real-time visibility into funds held due to delivery or pending buyer payments. Sellers relying on Amazon Business should also note that invoiced orders will be deferred while awaiting buyer payment.
Summary: Amazon has introduced new email notifications for better visibility into FBA shipments using full truckload, less than truckload, or intermodal shipping modes. These notifications will alert sellers to changes or delays, such as adjustments to pickup date and time, shipping mode, or carrier details. Sellers using the Partnered Carrier Program will receive these notifications to help prepare for inventory disruptions. Email preferences can be managed in Seller Central under Notification Preferences.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Track Shipment Changes: Stay informed about pickup plan updates and shipment delays, ensuring proactive inventory management.
- Manage Notifications: Customize your email preferences to receive updates on delivery disruptions or changes to your FBA shipment plans.
- Prepare for Adjustments: Notifications will include shipment details, making it easier to adjust inventory and logistics planning as needed.
This feature helps sellers maintain smooth operations by providing timely alerts on FBA shipment statuses, enabling better planning and decision-making for inventory management.
UPS Prepaid Return Labels Now Available for Large and Heavy Seller-Fulfilled Items
Summary: Starting November 4, 2024, Amazon will automate seller-fulfilled returns for large and heavy items by providing UPS prepaid return labels for eligible domestic returns. This update is designed to reduce A-to-z Guarantee claims and streamline the returns process. Large and heavy items are defined as packages that exceed 90 lb or meet certain dimensional thresholds. Sellers can still deduct return shipping costs when the customer is at fault.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Automated Returns: Large and heavy item returns will now be automated, providing customers with a prepaid UPS return label for easy tracking.
- Customer Fault Deductions: Sellers can still deduct return shipping costs if the customer is responsible for the return.
- Handling Oversized Packages: For items that exceed 150 lb or other size limits, sellers must manually provide prepaid return labels within 48 hours.
This change simplifies the returns process for large and heavy items, improving the overall customer experience while reducing seller workload for managing returns.
Ensure Proper Labeling for Ships in Product Packaging to Avoid Delays
Summary: Amazon has updated its guidelines for labeling items in the Ships in Product Packaging program, which allows sellers to ship products in their own packaging without additional Amazon materials. Sellers must use correct labels to avoid delays in processing inventory. For single items, both a scannable box label and item label must be placed on the box, while case packs need a box label on the outermost packaging and an item label on each product. Sets must be labeled as “Sold as a set” to be scanned correctly.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Use Correct Labels: Ensure both scannable box and item labels are applied to all items to be processed under the program.
- Case Pack Labeling: Case packs require labels on the outer box and individual items for correct processing.
- Sold as a Set: Products sold as a set must have a distinct label to avoid being separated.
Following these guidelines will help streamline inventory processing and enhance the customer experience by reducing packaging waste and ensuring timely shipments.
Walmart Introduces Extended Return Window for Holiday Shoppers
Summary: Walmart has automatically enrolled sellers in an Extended Holiday Return Window to boost customer confidence during the festive season. Purchases made between October 1, 2024, and December 31, 2024, both in-store and online, can be returned until January 31, 2025. This extended return policy is designed to align with industry standards, offering peace of mind for shoppers while requiring no action from sellers.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Automatic Enrollment: Sellers are automatically included in the extended return window; no manual updates are necessary.
- Boost Buyer Confidence: The extended return policy increases customer trust during the holiday shopping period.
This update encourages smoother transactions and enhances customer satisfaction, creating a more positive holiday shopping experience on Walmart.
Amazon’s AI Tool Now Creates Audio Ads for Enhanced Brand Campaigns
Summary: At Amazon unBoxed 2024, Amazon unveiled new generative AI tools for creating audio ads in addition to images and videos. These tools are part of Amazon Ads’ self-service suite, enabling brands to build campaigns for platforms like Alexa and Amazon Music. A new AI creative studio was also introduced to streamline ad creation across multiple Amazon-owned platforms. This tool helps brands increase efficiency while using AI-generated assets for full-funnel marketing opportunities.
Actionable Takeaways:
- AI Ad Creation: Use Amazon’s tools to automate ad creation across platforms, including audio ads.
- Ad Efficiency: Leverage AI to quickly build cross-platform campaigns.
This new feature empowers brands to enhance reach with automated, tailored ads.
Custom audiences for Sponsored Ads
At unBoxed, Amazon made it possible to create custom audiences for Sponsored Ads. Simultaneously, Amazon made AMC available to all advertisers, regardless of whether they spend on DSP. That means anyone can now use AMC to create custom audiences for Sponsored Ads. Right now, directly targeting your custom audience is a feature only available specifically for Sponsored Display ads.
This can further enhance our targeting through the customer journey.
Actionable Takeaways:
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- Reach out to the account executive to get access to AMC
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- Create new audiences based on customer data and use them in SP campaigns
Amazon Pitches AI-Powered Tools to Enhance Merchant Ad Campaigns
At its unBoxed event, Amazon introduced new generative AI tools, allowing merchants to create dynamic, seasonal ad imagery with ease. These tools help advertisers experiment and optimize campaigns by generating content based on user prompts, such as placing a product in various settings. While Amazon’s advertising business continues to grow, there are concerns about complexity and uniformity as more merchants adopt these AI features.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Experiment Efficiently: Use AI tools to quickly create varied ad campaigns.
- Adapt Seasonally: Modify ads with seasonal elements using AI-generated content.
These tools promise flexibility, but their long-term impact remains uncertain.
Amazon Tests Seller Ratings in Search Results to Enhance Customer Trust
Summary: Amazon is quietly testing the display of seller ratings alongside product search results, showing numerical ratings for sellers who win the buy box. This new feature, aimed at promoting better customer service and combating poor actors, helps customers differentiate between sellers based on their performance. While seller feedback ratings have always existed, they were less visible, making this change a potential shift in how customers view both products and merchants during their shopping experience.
Actionable Takeaways:
- Focus on Seller Ratings: Maintain strong customer service to benefit from increased visibility.
- Win the Buy Box: Seller ratings appear only for the seller who wins the buy box, encouraging high ratings for better placement.
This update highlights the importance of customer satisfaction in boosting sales.
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