It’s been a very eventful Q2 thus far, and we have plenty of Amazon seller news to share with our readers. How will the latest developments affect your third-quarter results?
1. Certified Refurbished Launched on Amazon DE
The Amazon Certified Refurbished program became available to EU customers in October 2016, as mentioned in the 9th edition of our Digest. It has now officially been launched in Germany as well, allowing local merchants to sell like-new products. Qualifying products must not have cosmetic defects visible from 30cm away.
Once accepted, the products are reprocessed, inspected, repaired, tested, certified to function as new, repackaged, repriced and sold with a 1-year warranty. To qualify for Certified Refurbished on Amazon.de, all participating German sellers must match Amazon’s return policy, refurbishing guidelines and warranty.
2. Low-Malt Beer Cheaper to Sell on Amazon JP
Amazon.jp recently decreased its sales commission rate for low-malt beer from 10% to 6.5%. To take advantage of the lower rate, sellers must classify their qualifying products as ‘Happy Liquor’, a sub-category of ‘Food & Beverage / Liquor / Beer’.
3. Doujin Magazine Banned on Amazon JP
The self-published Doujin Magazine has been banned on Amazon.jp due to the fact that it comes without JAN or ISBN. Merchants selling this item are asked to delete their product pages and cancel their listings for this and associated items.
4. USPS Shipping Transaction Fees Waived by Amazon US
If you use the Buy Shipping tool on Amazon.com to buy USPS shipping labels, you’re now exempt from shipping transaction fees. For those without a linked Stamps account, these transaction fees amounted to $0.07 per label. More information is available on the Buy Shipping Services and Print Labels help page.
5. Amazon Business Launched on Amazon UK
Amazon Business was recently launched on Amazon.co.uk. Registering as a Business Seller means you’d be able to:
- display quantity discounts and offers, boosting B2B sales;
- activate the VAT Calculation Service for automatic VAT invoicing and VAT-exclusive price display;
- bear the ‘‘Business Seller’’ badge for extra visibility;
- take advantage of a new fee structure: the more units a customer buys, the lower the referral fee.
6. European FBA Fee Update
FBA monthly storage fees will rise across all European Marketplaces on June 1, 2017. Fulfillment fees levied on Non-Media Standard-Size and Oversize units will also rise on this day. Those for Media items will match them on August 1.
Returns Processing Fees will start to apply to customers on October 23, 2017, but only for products in the Clothing and Shoes categories. Also, they will only apply to orders being returned due to an error on Amazon’s end.
The rates will be the same for items sold both locally and via EFN. The changes don’t apply to FBA Prep Services, disposal and removal of FBA products, and Multi-Channel Fulfilment.
7. Features and Fees for Media Items
Amazon DE, FR, IT and ES will introduce new fees and features for sellers of Media items over the next few months. In a recent email to European sellers, Amazon promised more flexibility and higher visibility but offered no further clarification.
8. Required Removals Policy Notice
Amazon recently sent an email to FBA sellers reminding them that canceling an order for the removal of unsellable inventory violates the current FBA Required Removals policy. Sellers must request the disposal or return of unsuitable and unfulfillable inventory within 30 days from the time they’re notified, even if there are no active listings for these items.
9. #NowItsSummer Campaign Launched in the UK
The recently launched #NowItsSummer Campaign is a personalized shopping service that offers Amazon UK customers specific products at discounted prices based on their location and local weather conditions. The #NowItsSummer store includes popular products from the last four summers, including sunscreen, sunglasses, flip-flops, TV shows, books, music and ‘wellies’ (rubber boots). Amazon hopes this weather-reactive campaign will help them understand the timing and value of summer purchases in the UK.
10. Manchester-by-the-Sea Residents Get Amazon Prime for Free
Every home in the town of Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass., should expect a gift box from Amazon this week. In it you’ll find a voucher code for a one-year Prime membership and three helpings of Wickedly Prime Popcorn. It’s a one-off freebie to celebrate the upcoming release of ‘Manchester by the Sea’ on Prime Video. Starring Casey Affleck, this Academy Award winning Amazon Studios production will be available to stream from May 5.
11. Prime Memberships Double in Two Years
A recent estimate by Consumer Intelligence Research Partners states that there were 80 million Prime members in the USA in March 2017, nearly twice as many as there were two years ago. That’s a 38% increase in the last year alone.
Statista takes the estimates one step further by claiming that, on average, customers seemed to spend as much in March 2017 as they did two years ago. This amounts to about $1,300 per year for Prime members, while a non-member spends $700.
Melanie takes an active interest in all things Amazon. She keeps an eye on the latest developments, and keeps Amazon sellers up to speed.