So, you think you’ve done it?
You’ve checked all of your boxes. Your pay-per-click is thriving, no logistics issues and your best-selling rank is steadily improving. You’re taking trips with your family, drinking mojitos, and eating steak on an island.
You feel like you are on top of the world until you hear a ding in your back pocket.
It’s an email notification that reads, “Your account has been deactivated.” At that moment, the fun stops, and your world shifts.
This is a reality for thousands of sellers on the Amazon platform.
Millions of questions race through your head. How did this happen? Why did this happen? How do I resolve it?
It’s your duty as a business owner to understand all of the risks and common mistakes that can lead to your account being suspended.
Let’s jump into it.
REVIEW MANIPULATION
Regarding reviews, it’s no secret that this is a powerful social proof metric that improves conversion and increases sales.
Reviews give your brand recognition, presence, and trustability, but they are not easy to obtain.
You’re probably thinking, “I’ve put in the hard work. I’ve discovered and sourced my product, I’ve hired a designer to create my graphics, and inventory is sitting in an FBA warehouse right now waiting to be sold, but I’m at a disadvantage with no easy fix.”
Understandably, so many people pick the path of least resistance when obtaining reviews, but it is one of the easiest ways to lose it all.
Amazon classifies review manipulation as any attempt by a seller or manufacturer to gain unfair advantages by creating false, misleading, or inauthentic feedback about products or services. Additionally, if a seller is accused of obtaining reviews using incentives such as gift cards, discounts, and so on, it is considered a direct review manipulation.
If caught, Amazon has the right to remove your selling privileges and terminate your seller account.
Here is some advice: reviews will not make or break you, but they are nice to have. In all honesty, you only need a few reviews to increase your conversion rate.
Ask your friends or family to purchase your product and leave a review but make sure not to ask for a specific star rating or give out an incentive.
Making Claims That Get Flagged
When it comes to optimizing your listings, Amazon often has the reading level of a fifth grader. The algorithm doesn’t read your copy entirely, but it does scan the pages looking for prohibited words.
For example, if you sell “Ultra Lifelike Silicone Practice Fingers” for nail salons, Amazon may classify this as an adult product and flag your listing.
Silicone, Lifelike, and Fingers in the same sentence, although completely reasonable, may result in a long process of reinstatement.
Be aware of the words you string together and publish on your listings.
Trademark and Copyright Infringement
Trademark and copyright infringements are one of the most excellent tools Amazon offers to Brand Registered brands and an easy way for your listings to be suspended if you decide to replicate a product or brand too closely.
What is a Trademark Infringement? This is the unauthorized use of a trade or service mark that is likely to cause confusion, deception, or mistake about the source of the product.
In short, it’s a counterfeit product.
As eCommerce grows worldwide, we see more and more counterfeits creep into the ecosystem, and with the use of Brand Registry owners can easily report the infringing listing with the click of a button.
It’ll be reviewed by the Amazon team, and if approved, that listing will be removed and the selling account will be flagged.
What is Copyright Infringement? This is the unlawful use of someone else’s copyrighted work or images.
So, if you’re trying to get an idea of how your listing should look, it’s okay to gather a list of competitors and examine their detail pages; however, be sure that your copy and images are unique; otherwise, you may be facing an infringement claim which is never fun to deal with.
Poor Seller Performance
Sellers can be penalized for failing to meet Amazon’s performance targets such as Order Defect Rate, Pre-Fulfillment Cancel Rate, and Late Shipment Rate.
Having a low score in these areas not only puts you at risk of your account being suspended but can also have an impact on your best-selling rank, buy box eligibility, and more.
It’s best practice to pay close attention to your Voice of the Customer dashboard which gives you insight into complaints and positive experiences customers may have.
If neglected, your listings can go down when you least expect it.
Shady Competitor Tactics
This is self-explanatory but using shady tactics is against the Terms of Service and completely unethical.
Reporting a competitor for doing something they are not doing or purchasing a product and leaving a bad review just to hurt their listings is an easy way to suspend your account.
If Amazon disciplines you for something of this nature, it will be very difficult to recover.
GS1 Certified Barcodes
Every product on the Amazon marketplace has a unique code assigned to it, and barcodes from GS1 identify you as the brand owner of that product.
All products without the Amazon GTIN exemption have to have a GS1 barcode. The seller could be banned if non-GS1 registered UPCs are disabled.
To avoid being banned in the future, be aware that GS1 is the only legitimate place to buy a UPC code on Amazon.
Recovering From Suspension
If your account is suspended, it probably feels like the biggest obstacle you’ve come across, and it very well may be; however, it isn’t the end of the world.
The first thing you need to do is figure out what it is you did wrong.
Amazon requires you to put together a plan of action and steer clear of bombarding Amazon with many cases because this can harm your account reinstatement.
Your plan of action needs to be clean and straight to the point: identify the problem, offer the solution, and explain how it will never happen again.
It will be a long process to recover your account, but follow Amazon’s steps and get it back.
Conclusion
It’s easier to avoid an account suspension than recovering from one. Avoid bad practices and be cautious when writing your copy or using images.
Educate yourself about the potential risks and stay up to date with the newest policy changes because Amazon is an ever-changing ecosystem.
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