Amazon Launches Custom Analytics: One Dashboard to Rule Them All
If you’ve ever spent half your day bouncing between Business Reports, Brand Analytics, and ad dashboards, Amazon’s new Custom Analytics tool might finally save your sanity.
The tool is now fully rolled out after months of testing and lets sellers pull more than 100 key metrics into one customizable dashboard. Think of it as your command center for account health, promotions, reviews, and ad performance.
What’s new:
- More metrics: Track everything from product ratings to repeat purchase rates without exporting a dozen spreadsheets.
- Smarter search: Drag, drop, and compare metrics across timeframes to spot trends faster.
- Better visuals: Use heat maps to catch seasonal shifts, funnel charts to see drop-offs, and column graphs to track profitability.
- Dashboards your way: Build your own or start with pre-built templates that focus on common seller goals.
Why it matters
This update brings together the kind of insights that used to live across five different tabs. For brands managing ads, SEO, and inventory, Custom Analytics turns guesswork into clarity and saves valuable time every week.
Seller takeaway
If you’re not already using Custom Analytics, log in and test a few templates that align with your business model. Focus on metrics tied to profit, not vanity, and build reports that help you make faster, smarter decisions.
Amazon’s New AI Tool Enhances Your Listings Automatically
Amazon has rolled out a new AI feature called Enhance My Listing, built to help sellers polish existing product pages faster and with less manual work.
The tool uses Amazon’s own data to suggest improvements for your titles, descriptions, and bullet points so your listings stay current with evolving shopper trends.
Here’s how to use it:
- Go to Manage All Inventory
- Click Edit Listing from the ellipsis menu
- On the Product Details tab, select Enhance My Listing
You’ll see AI-generated recommendations for missing details and content refreshes that you can review, customize, and publish directly.
How it works under the hood
When multiple sellers contribute data to the same ASIN, Amazon’s system automatically determines which product details to display based on credibility and performance—things like sales volume, return rates, and buyer feedback.
Enhance My Listing builds on this same model. It scans the live product detail page, pulls from Amazon’s structured catalog data, and blends it with generative AI to draft more compelling, accurate, and SEO-friendly content.
However, once your edits are submitted, Amazon still decides whether to display your contribution. For brand-registered ASINs, listings are weighted toward sellers with Brand Representative roles. For shared listings, Amazon may still prioritize other sellers’ data if it’s deemed more complete or trusted.
A word of caution
This tool is great for inspiration, but don’t take every suggestion at face value. Remember, your listings are written for people, not algorithms. AI can help tighten structure and highlight data trends, but the best listings still sound human and tell a story that connects with your customer.
Seller takeaway
Use Enhance My Listing to spark ideas and save time, but always layer in your brand’s tone and personality before hitting publish. That’s what turns good listings into strong sales drivers.
Amazon’s Holiday Playbook: Three Ad Strategies for Peak Season Wins
The holiday rush is already heating up. Shoppers are spreading purchases over a longer window, which means your advertising strategy needs to stay visible from early November through the final shipping cutoff.
Amazon’s latest playbook outlines three proven ways to boost holiday sales and stay top of mind.
- Plan early and phase your campaigns
Break your campaigns into clear stages for awareness, conversion, and retargeting. Use Sponsored TV to reach audiences before they start searching, and Sponsored Brands with lifestyle creative to stay visible as they compare products. - Lead with gifting
People shop emotionally during the holidays, so position your products as gifts instead of basic purchases. Add a “Gifts for Them” section to your Brand Store, refresh A+ Content with unboxing imagery, and include gift-intent keywords to capture seasonal search traffic. - Highlight value and deals
Bundle complementary items, feature multipacks, and promote them on a dedicated Deals page inside your Store. Use a Store Spotlight campaign and the “All Deals” widget to keep offers current as promotions go live and expire.
Seller takeaway
Start early. Creative updates and deal approvals take time, and competition will intensify the closer you get to December. Build your campaigns in phases, update your content to emphasize gifting and value, and make sure your Store and A+ visuals reflect the season.
The 2025 Holiday Ad Playbook: Winning Across Amazon, Walmart, Google, and Target
The holiday season is already in motion. Shoppers aren’t waiting for Black Friday anymore, and every marketplace is pushing earlier deals and bigger ad opportunities. Whether you sell on Amazon, Walmart, Google Shopping, or Target Roundel, the winning strategy is the same — plan early, personalize your message, and make your value clear.
- Start early and phase your campaigns
Holiday ad fatigue is real, and competition only gets tougher as December approaches.
- Amazon: Launch awareness campaigns now using Sponsored TV and Sponsored Brands to stay visible through the full season.
- Walmart: Build visibility with Sponsored Brands Video and Sponsored Products in early November to build momentum before Walmart Deals Week.
- Google Shopping: Upload feed updates early to avoid disapprovals, and use Performance Max campaigns to drive traffic across Search, YouTube, and Discover.
- Target Roundel: Secure your placements in advance. Roundel inventory sells out fast, and early booking gives you better reach during peak gifting weeks.
- Lead with gifting and lifestyle content
People shop emotionally during the holidays, not logically.
- Amazon: Add a “Gifts for Them” section to your Brand Store and use unboxing visuals in your A+ Content.
- Walmart: Build a “Gift Finder” collection on your Storefront and refresh your product tiles with seasonal imagery that highlights use cases or bundles.
- Google Shopping: Optimize titles and descriptions for gift-intent keywords like “for dad,” “for her,” and “under $50.”
- Target Roundel: Use high-quality creative that blends into editorial content and holiday guides, emphasizing experience over product specs.
- Focus on value and deal visibility
Even premium shoppers are more price-conscious this year.
- Amazon: Bundle products and create multipacks. Add a dedicated Deals page to your Store and use the “All Deals” widget to auto-update as offers go live.
- Walmart: Leverage Sponsored Video and Carousels to highlight bundles, and submit promotions early through the Deals Submission Portal.
- Google Shopping: Sync your sale pricing through Merchant Center promotions and schedule extensions to run during key sale windows.
- Target Roundel: Reinforce savings in creative, but pair it with lifestyle messaging that emphasizes gifting value, not discounting.
Seller takeaway
The platforms may differ, but the playbook is the same. Start early, keep your messaging gift-focused, and emphasize the value of your brand. Refresh your creative weekly, track performance by marketplace, and make your campaigns feel human. The brands that connect emotionally — not just financially — are the ones that win the season.
AI Shopping Agents Are Rewiring Retail
Retailers might soon lose their most valuable customer because it may no longer be human.
A new Boston Consulting Group (BCG) report warns that AI-powered shopping agents built into ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Perplexity are reshaping how people shop online. These systems now search, compare, and even complete purchases without shoppers ever visiting a brand’s website.
Adobe data shows how quickly this shift is happening. Traffic to retail sites from AI-driven browsers and chat services jumped 4,700% year over year in July 2025. Those visitors stayed 32% longer, viewed 10% more pages, and bounced 27% less than traditional shoppers. In other words, AI-led browsing is more intentional and closer to checkout.
The risk
As these assistants become the main entry point for shopping, retailers lose visibility and influence over their customers. BCG warns that brands could soon be “background utilities” in agent-controlled marketplaces.
What’s changing
- Perplexity now integrates PayPal for in-chat purchases.
- ChatGPT has launched Instant Checkout for Etsy sellers, with Shopify support on the way.
- Google AI Mode already compares prices and will soon add one-click checkout through Google Pay.
BCG’s roadmap for retailers
- Win with third-party agents. Make your product data structured, accurate, and machine-readable so AI systems can find and cite it. BCG calls this Generative Experience Optimization (GXO).
- Build your own agents. Create branded AI tools that reflect your brand’s tone, data, and customer insights.
- Get your foundation right. Invest in scalable AI infrastructure, new performance metrics, governance standards, and workforce training to move at AI speed.
Seller takeaway
The AI shopping era is already here. Retailers that adapt product data for machine consumption and build brand-owned conversational experiences will control how they’re represented. Those who wait risk being invisible in the next phase of digital commerce.
Why the Old Rules of Peak Season No Longer Work
If you’re only now gearing up for the holidays, you’re already behind.
The idea of “peak season” as a once-a-year event doesn’t really hold up anymore. Greg Dyer, Chief Commercial Officer at Randstad USA, says retailers should treat peak as a constant state of readiness that touches every part of the business, from manufacturing and logistics to marketing and sales.
What’s changed
The pandemic rewired shopping behavior. Retail demand that once followed predictable patterns now stretches across the entire year. Early inventory buys, tariff prep, and rolling promotions have blurred the lines between back-to-school, Black Friday, and Christmas.
The most resilient retailers aren’t waiting for peak—they’re planning year-round. They use real-time data to match staffing, fulfillment, and marketing efforts to shifting demand patterns.
The labor reality
Signs of strain are easy to spot. Rising absenteeism and excessive overtime usually mean the system is breaking. A flexible workforce helps smooth those spikes, but temporary hires still require onboarding and training before they become productive.
Younger workers are also changing expectations. Many want control over their schedules and work environments that feel tech-enabled. Automation continues to expand, but it’s not replacing people as fast as some predicted. As Dyer explains, “They’re mostly operating equipment and technology that’s no different than the computer you hold in your hand.”
The takeaway
The old retail rhythm of ramping up for the holidays and scaling down after doesn’t work anymore. Today’s peak season requires continuous forecasting, flexible staffing, and operational agility all year long. The retailers that plan for constant disruption instead of fixed timelines will be the ones ready for whatever comes next.
Target Cuts 1,800 Corporate Roles as It Tries to Regain Its Edge
Target is making its biggest shake-up in a decade. The retailer announced it will cut 1,800 corporate roles, equal to about 8% of its headquarters workforce, in an effort to simplify operations and reset after a tough year.
The cuts include 1,000 layoffs and 800 open roles that will not be filled. Store and supply chain positions are unaffected. All U.S. headquarters employees were told to work from home next week while the restructuring begins.
Chief Operating Officer and incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke said the move is meant to remove “layers and overlapping work” that have slowed down decision-making. “The complexity we’ve created over time has been holding us back,” he told staff in a company memo.
Target’s struggles have been building. After a surge during the pandemic, sales cooled as consumers pulled back on discretionary spending. The company also faced inventory missteps and brand backlash earlier this year, leading to declining store traffic and a 30% stock drop year-to-date, compared to the S&P 500’s 15% gain.
The strategy shift
The restructuring signals a leaner, more focused Target under Fiddelke’s leadership. Analysts expect the cuts to have little short-term impact on profits but believe they’ll make operations more agile and aligned with modern retail demands.
Fiddelke, who began his career at Target as an intern, says the focus now is on better merchandising, store experience, and smarter technology use. The company’s long-standing appeal — “Tar-zhay” chic at affordable prices — has faded in recent years as shoppers complain about empty shelves, longer lines, and less distinctive product assortments.
Seller takeaway
Target’s pivot is part of a larger trend across retail: tightening operations, leaning on technology, and rebuilding customer trust. For marketplace sellers and brands, it’s another sign that efficiency and clarity in product strategy now matter as much as creative merchandising ever did.
P&G Cuts Tariff Impact by Half and Outperforms Expectations
Procter & Gamble delivered better-than-expected results this quarter, showing that disciplined pricing, smart messaging, and operational agility can still win in a volatile economy.
The company reported 2% organic revenue growth, driven by strength in its grooming and beauty lines. Brands like Gillette and Secret helped offset softer performance in baby and family care. Chief Financial Officer Andre Schulten described the consumer environment as “not great, but stable,” noting that P&G’s focus on product quality continues to resonate even with price-sensitive shoppers.
One key highlight: P&G cut its expected tariff impact from $800 million to $400 million, citing changes in Canadian trade policy and improved cost management.
What sellers can learn from this
P&G’s playbook offers a roadmap for minimizing the impact of tariffs and global cost shifts — even for smaller brands:
- Diversify your supply chain. Spread production across multiple countries or regions to avoid being overly exposed to one market’s trade policies.
- Build pricing power through brand value. P&G wins by convincing customers that premium quality saves money in the long run. Small and mid-size sellers can do the same by positioning their products around performance, durability, or unique features.
- Use data to plan around volatility. Monitor raw material costs, shipping rates, and tariff developments through analytics tools like Amazon’s Custom Analytics or external dashboards. Build scenarios for how these changes affect margins before they hit your bottom line.
- Stay proactive on policy changes. P&G’s reduce exposure came from responding early to evolving trade conditions. Sellers should track policy updates and explore trade programs or partnerships that minimize import fees.
The bigger picture
P&G’s resilience shows that brands can protect profitability without racing to the bottom on price. Sellers who connect product quality with customer value, streamline costs, and anticipate market changes will be the ones who stay competitive when tariffs rise again.
Walmart Expands Marketplace with Stadium Goods Sneaker Partnership
Walmart is stepping deeper into the collectibles game with a new partnership that brings Stadium Goods — a leader in premium sneaker resale — onto its third-party marketplace.
The deal means shoppers can now find exclusive Nike, Jordan, On, and Ugg styles from Stadium Goods directly through Walmart Marketplace. The launch, timed ahead of the holidays, signals Walmart’s intent to compete in higher-end and collectible categories once dominated by platforms like StockX and GOAT.
“From iconic Air Jordans to legendary Air Force 1s, our customers now have direct access to some of the most coveted sneakers out there,” said Manish Joneja, SVP of Walmart Marketplace and Walmart Fulfillment Services. He added that authenticity and selection remain at the core of the partnership.
Why this matters
This move is another step in Walmart’s push to diversify its marketplace and attract new demographics. The retailer has already leaned into collectibles and fandom culture through partnerships with Shortboxed (comic books) and live shopping events for sports cards and gaming memorabilia.
By adding Stadium Goods, Walmart expands its foothold in resale and streetwear, categories that continue to grow faster than traditional retail. The company also builds credibility with younger consumers who value authenticity and limited editions — audiences Amazon and Target have struggled to win over.
What sellers can learn
- Niche partnerships work. Walmart is showing how tapping into subcultures like sneaker collecting can create new customer segments. Third-party sellers can look for similar opportunities in specialized categories such as outdoor gear, wellness products, or tech accessories.
- Authenticity sells. Stadium Goods built its brand on verified inventory and trust. Sellers that invest in product transparency and clear value propositions can differentiate themselves in crowded marketplaces.
- Timing is everything. Walmart’s rollout ahead of the holidays positions these sneakers as giftable collectibles. Smaller sellers can follow that same pattern — align launches or promotions with cultural moments or seasonal demand spikes.
Seller takeaway
Walmart’s Stadium Goods partnership reinforces how marketplaces are evolving from price-first to culture-first. Sellers who know their niche and communicate authenticity will find new room to grow, even on massive platforms.
Does Schema Markup Really Help With AI Visibility?
Short answer: not much — at least not yet.
As AI search grows, sellers and brands are trying to figure out how to make their content visible inside tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity. But unlike Google or Bing, none of these large language model platforms publish guidelines on optimization or ranking factors. That means much of what’s out there is guesswork.
One common theory is that Schema.org markup — structured data that helps search engines interpret a page — improves AI visibility. So far, there’s no proof.
Here’s what we actually know
Structured data is essential for traditional SEO. Google uses it to create rich snippets and identify page context for things like FAQs, reviews, and business details. That visibility can indirectly help your brand appear in AI-generated summaries since most AI agents pull information from top-ranked pages.
But LLMs themselves don’t have native indexes. They generate responses based on their training data and real-time information pulled from external sources like Google, Bing, Reddit, and YouTube. In other words, structured data might help search engines understand your page, but AI assistants rely more on content clarity and brand authority than code markup.
What actually moves the needle for sellers
If your goal is to show up in AI-driven recommendations, focus on the fundamentals that matter across all marketplaces and search systems:
- Create content that answers specific buyer questions. Think about how shoppers describe their problems, not just your product.
- Invest in brand visibility. Track branded search volume and make sure your name appears alongside competitors in “best of” articles and product roundups.
- Optimize product feeds for conversational search. AI queries sound more like full sentences than keywords, so make your listings descriptive enough to match those prompts.
- Build long-term authority. LLMs tend to surface trusted brands and expert content, not whoever added the most markup tags.
The bottom line
Structured data still helps organic SEO and may boost your visibility indirectly, but it’s a low priority for AI discovery. What really matters is clear, helpful, and context-rich content that both humans and machines can understand.
If your listings and brand story make sense to a person, you’re already ahead of what most AI agents are trying to replicate.
Walmart Unwraps “WhoKnewVille” and Its Biggest Black Friday Yet
Walmart is doubling down on holiday magic and deep discounts this year. The retailer just announced three major Walmart Deals Events — its largest Black Friday rollout to date — alongside the launch of a Dr. Seuss–inspired campaign called WhoKnewVille.
John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart U.S., said the goal is to “prove why Walmart owns Black Friday.” This year’s lineup includes up to 60% off top brands and thousands of deals under $20, making it one of the retailer’s most aggressive holiday pushes yet.
The event schedule:
- Event 1: November 14–16 (Walmart+ early access begins Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. ET)
- Event 2: November 25–30 (Online only Nov. 25–27; full access Nov. 28–30; early access Nov. 24 at 7 p.m. ET)
- Cyber Monday: December 1 (Online only; early access Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. ET)
Deals span toys, electronics, fashion, and beauty with major markdowns on brands like Apple, LEGO, Dyson, Levi’s, and La Roche Posay. Standout offers include a 98-inch TCL 4K QLED TV for $998, Dyson’s V12 Slim Vacuum for $399, and Calvin Klein Obsession Perfume for $31.50.
Convenience is the hook
Walmart continues to lean into speed and flexibility. Shoppers can use curbside pickup, express delivery in 30 minutes or less, or two-day shipping. These options are designed to keep pace with Amazon’s fulfillment experience while reinforcing Walmart’s “save money, live better” promise.
The marketing twist: WhoKnewVille
The retailer’s new campaign, WhoKnewVille, ties into its broader storytelling shift. The world of WhoKnewVille — a colorful, Seuss-style holiday town — will appear across social media, TV, and virtual experiences. The message: Walmart makes the holidays so easy, it feels like magic.
What sellers can learn
- Create a story around your sales. Walmart isn’t just discounting products; it’s packaging its promotion in a shareable, emotional narrative. Sellers can apply the same approach to their own brand storytelling during Q4.
- Leverage early access to build urgency. The Walmart+ head-start model drives loyalty and FOMO. Offering early access or exclusive bundles can do the same for smaller sellers.
- Meet shoppers where they are. Walmart’s omnichannel flexibility—delivery, pickup, and digital storytelling—mirrors how modern consumers shop. Sellers who sync marketing with convenience win the season.
Seller takeaway
Walmart’s 2025 Black Friday strategy blends heavy discounts with narrative-driven marketing. For sellers, the message is clear: price matters, but presentation and experience are what make it memorable.
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