Breaking news! A large number of Amazon links were misjudged

Yesterday, a large number of links were suddenly misjudged as plants or seeds. The affected products covered many categories such as clothing, toys, beauty products, auto parts, 3C, etc. Sellers need to deal with it before July 1, otherwise the links will be deleted. However, it happened to be the weekend and Amazon customer service was not online, which made people very anxious. Overseas accounts were also affected. Help posts flooded the US-Asia forum. Sellers reported that the number of misjudged links is still increasing, and they will definitely spend a sleepless night.

This is not the only problem before the big sale. Due to the continuous overstocking of multiple FBA warehouses and slow stocking, the progress of preparing goods for the Member Day is far below expectations. Some sellers pointed out that many Member Day goods will be signed for after the holiday, and there are signs of out-of-stock on Member Day and overstock after the big sale. These sellers may miss the big sale.

Amazon Prime Day is scheduled for July 16-17. Walmart, TikTok, Target, Best Buy and other platforms have also recently announced mid-year promotions, and the promotion times are all before Amazon. It is obvious that they are trying to harvest a wave of purchasing demand first, which may affect the performance of Amazon Prime Day.

Multiple links were misclassified as plants

Yesterday morning, something went wrong on Amazon again. Many sellers received notifications of violations of the restricted goods policy. A large number of links were judged to be living plants or seeds. Sellers must take remedial measures before July 1, otherwise their product information will be deleted, and the circle is in chaos.

The scope of this misjudgment was so large that it flooded the US site backend forum. Sellers expressed disbelief and asked if Amazon's robots had gone crazy. "I received 28 notifications today saying that the shoes we sell violate Amazon's terms because they are considered plants or seeds?" "Many of my ASINs were marked as non-compliant. I waited for nearly an hour while Account Health helped me figure out how to appeal, but then many more products were added to the list. It was really frustrating."

Overseas sellers complained that this was a crazy night, and many people will not be able to sleep tonight. In China, Amazon sellers have also been attacked indiscriminately. Many sellers reported encountering the same situation on Zhiwubuyu and sought solutions:

- "I have 40 performance reviewers coming to my side at once. They are dying when I send pictures or text."

- "The entire store was basically wiped out, and the case phone number couldn't be reached."

- "I have dozens of ASINs and received products from different categories."

- "I received two links that are no longer for sale. They are links that have not been touched for a long time."

- " My products have nothing to do with seeds. They are all made of plastic . Several ASINs received performance notifications early in the morning . "

- " I am in the auto parts category. Both the front-end and back-end categories are auto parts, which has nothing to do with seeds. I also received performance rewards saying it was a seed product . "

As of yesterday afternoon, the number of sellers and product links receiving performance notifications continued to increase.

Why did this happen? Amazon said in a related notice: " It has been determined that this product is a live plant or seed product listed outside of the SEEDS_AND_PLANTS or PLANT_SEED categories. Please update the product_type attribute to the SEEDS_AND_PLANTS or PLANT_SEED value as a relisting path. If you are unable to make the necessary changes, please contact Selling Partner Support to help you change the ASIN category and apply for relisting. "

According to feedback from the industry, multiple categories such as clothing, toys, beauty products, auto parts, 3C, maternal and child products, sporting goods, and furniture have been misjudged, including new and old products. The products that have been notified of the risk of removal are basically under the correct category, and do not mention words related to plants and seeds, and there is no talk of correction.

So what steps do sellers need to take?

Amazon said that sellers need to check the policy information under the problematic products on the " Account Health " page to understand any other relevant measures or information needed to make the products compliant. If the seller believes that these products are allowed to be sold on Amazon, they can submit a dispute by following the steps below : Go to " Account Health " in Seller Central and click " Appeal " next to the violation .

Some sellers have hastily considered deleting the ASIN directly, or changing the category as required by the platform. However, Chinese sellers cannot sell plants, plant products, propagation materials, and seeds. Even if American sellers sell plants and seeds, they must comply with federal laws, such as obtaining all required licenses and permits, and many state laws have shipping label requirements for the delivery of live plants. If you directly follow Amazon's prompts to modify to the so-called correct category, the link may be completely dead.

If it is a common misjudgment, the seller can patiently wait for the platform to resolve it. However, the incident happened on the weekend, Amazon customer service was not online, and other relevant personnel could hardly respond in time to provide solutions or correct the system. The notice clearly stated that the seller had to deal with it before July 1, otherwise the link would be deleted. This was the main reason for the seller's anxiety. Some sellers submitted complaints, but the platform has not responded yet.

Sellers can only send emails to inquire. Due to the large number of visits, the case page could not be opened for a while. One seller said that after opening a case, the customer service asked him to file a complaint directly, and explain his situation when filing a complaint, such as what the product actually is, whether it was mistakenly captured as a plant and seed-related product, and requesting restoration or removal of violations. During the complaint process, follow the prompts on the page and provide the corresponding information if necessary.

Another seller opened a performance case and the call was finally picked up after half an hour. He speculated that the line was busy because there were too many consultants. He shared his communication results:

"Case said this problem is common. We just need to clearly state what type of product it is when submitting the complaint, and that it is not a living plant, and then attach information such as product copywriting. Then we can open another English email case, add the seven pictures of the problematic ASIN, A+, copywriting, and other evidence that can prove that it is not a living plant to the attachments, and then explain what problem we encountered , that the product is not a living plant , and that we hope the link can be restored to normal , and submit it to the case together. "

Even so, the seller was still worried about the deadline for appeal, so he further asked, "If the product is removed by the deadline, can it be restored?" Case replied that it can be restored as long as the appeal is completed. At this stage, the seller can do what he can first and then wait for the system to return to normal.

Some sellers suggest that if you are sure that there is no keyword "living plants or seeds" on your page , do not modify the product page information, stop selling or delete the ASIN. Submit a complaint page stating that the product has nothing to do with "living plants or seeds", then post a screenshot of the corresponding detail page, and submit it for review.

It should be noted that as soon as the misjudgment occurred, many service providers widely announced that they could solve it. How did they solve it? The actual situation is that a large number of links were scanned and determined to be a system problem, which will most likely be restored later. If the service provider accepts the order at this time, even if a large number of links are automatically restored later, it can be said to be their own credit and they can still collect a fee. Not long ago, Amazon took the initiative to unblock accounts that were restricted due to variant violations. This is a living example. Sellers should not rush to avoid being cut off.

There was a wave of troublesome operations before Member Day, which is very Amazon, but this year's pre-sale problems are not limited to system errors. Due to continuous warehouse explosions and slow warehouse entry, many sellers found that the pace of goods entering warehouses and listings was far slower than expected, and there were signs of out-of-stock on Member Day and inventory pressure after the big sale.

FBA continues to be overstocked and warehousing is slow, sellers may miss out on big promotions

Recently, many sellers are anxious about the difficulty of booking goods for warehousing and the slowness of listing. One seller sighed: "Logistics plans can never keep up with changes. I originally thought that the goods would be shipped by sea at the end of May and should arrive in June. As a result, the warehouse was overwhelmed, the contract was cancelled, and the contract was postponed, which directly disrupted the original plan."

Before the big sale begins, some sellers will rush to rank in their categories to prepare for the Prime Day, which requires sufficient stock support, but the current situation is that many sellers are on the verge of running out of stock. "I don't know if it's because of the Prime Day approaching, the logistics are slow, and Amazon warehouses are slow to put products on the shelves, and basically everything is almost out of stock," said a seller.

The difficulty in making reservations at Amazon warehouses has given rise to a sense of crisis. Some sellers have a hunch that the goods prepared for Member Day will be signed for one after another after Member Day, resulting in a shortage of goods on Member Day and a backlog of goods after Member Day. This situation has already begun. Many sellers have similar judgments: " I feel the same way. Member Day is over and the goods have arrived. " " Many of my appointments are scheduled for the 7th. Even if some are delivered in early June, it will take a long time to be put on the shelves. "

At present, sellers generally report that it is difficult to make appointments at warehouses and that listings are slow:

- "AVP1 warehouse, sent in half a month ago and still no information received."

- "Has the CLT2 warehouse been out of stock recently? It took more than half a month for a new product to be signed for, and two cases have been opened but it has not been reserved for shelf."

- "HAJ1 is taking so long to be put on the shelves. This warehouse should really estimate the time from delivery to shelf by 10 days."

- "The goods we sent to other warehouses have also been waiting for a long time to be put on the shelves."

Sellers complained that Amazon's processing efficiency could not keep up with the approaching big sales. "I have several orders that have not been put on the shelves yet, and I can't arrange for a warehouse. GYR3 has been waiting for almost a week and has not been put on the shelves. The last leg is still UPS, and it shows that it has been delivered. There is another GYR3 that was sent later, but it was assigned to GYR2 and started to be put on the shelves soon. I guess GYR3's warehouse is full."

According to the feedback from logistics providers, in terms of pallet appointments, LGB8 is out of stock, unloading is slow , and appointments are postponed or skipped, which affects the delivery time; LAS1 is unloading slowly ; XLX7 is out of stock, unloading is slow, and appointments are postponed or skipped; RDU2 and ABE8 are out of stock, appointments are difficult, and appointments are postponed or skipped; SWF2, RMN3, and RFD2 are out of stock, appointments are delayed, and appointments are postponed or skipped; XLX3 does not release appointments, and goods in transit need to be transferred for delivery; SBD2, ONT9, LGB6, and LGB4 have postponed appointments. In terms of floor appointments, ONT9 and XLX7 have a high rejection rate, and it is recommended to ship by pallet.

In addition to the out-of-stock crisis, low inventory fee bills are also piling up.

One seller was distressed: "When will Amazon warehouses return to normal? A lot of products are charging low inventory level fees. Amazon only accepts a certain amount of inventory and then stops, and the remaining inventory will not be moved for another month. Obviously, most of the shipments are shipped by USIP ships, but the transportation time of many goods is stuck at 40 to 60 days."

Due to the delay of the last leg of ocean shipping, some sellers' on-sale inventory does not meet the minimum inventory requirements and are charged low-level inventory fees. Affected by this, sellers can prepare inventory in advance appropriately. After all, the overall storage costs required for preparing inventory in advance are more cost-effective than being out of stock or being charged low inventory fees.

In order to spread the risk, some sellers began to ship in batches, for example, spreading a month's worth of goods to weekly shipments. "Out of stock is mainly a problem of back-end stocking. The risk of putting all the orders on one ticket is too great. We have encountered this problem repeatedly before, either the goods were delayed or sometimes encountered inspections. Since the change to weekly shipments, the out of stock situation has improved." said a seller.

Regarding the unsuccessful stocking process for this big sale, the seller said that they have learned a lesson and since trucks are always not available for reservation, the goods that arrive before Black Friday this year must be delivered by several batches of last-minute express delivery.

As the first shot in the second half of the year, the Prime Day promotion is crucial, and most sellers will participate. The sales situation at that time is still unknown, but what is certain is that Amazon can no longer enjoy the traffic of the mid-year promotion alone, and other e-commerce platforms have come to share this cake.

TikTok and other platforms launched promotions in advance to grab traffic

The 10th Amazon Prime Day will be held globally from July 16 to 17 , with different dates in some locations. The Prime Day sale will be held in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, UAE, the United States and the United Kingdom. India's Prime Day will be held later this summer .

Prime Day is still two weeks away , but many Americans have already started planning their spending. A survey of more than 1,000 Americans by RetailMeNot found that 81% of consumers plan to shop on Amazon Prime Day, with an average total expected spending of $521 — $300 on Amazon and $221 at other retailers. These two figures are up $150 and $100 from last year, respectively.

Before the Amazon promotion began , Walmart, TikTok, Target, Best Buy and other platforms rushed to hold promotional activities, which may affect the effectiveness of Amazon's promotion.

1. Walmart

Walmart has officially announced that it will hold its largest promotion ever, "Walmart Deals," a week before Prime Day. The promotion will run from 17:00 on July 8 to 23:59 on July 11, for four days. Consumers can enjoy thousands of discounts on popular categories such as electronics, home furnishings, toys, travel, and more, including must-have items for the back-to-school season. Walmart+ members can enjoy the discount five hours in advance at noon on July 8, Eastern Time.

Walmart also defined this promotion as a back-to-school season promotion. July and August are the back-to-school season in the United States. Most people will search for related products in July and complete their shopping in August . Walmart said that it has always been the favorite shopping destination for consumers during the back-to-school season and can meet their expectations of saving money .

Among Walmart consumers surveyed , 57% said that their spending in Walmart stores this back-to-school season exceeded that of last year , 60% said that their spending on the Walmart online app this back-to-school season exceeded that of last year , and 61% said that they chose to buy back-to-school supplies at Walmart because of their good quality and low price .

2. TikTok

TikTok Shop’s US summer sale just ended, and it announced the US mid-year sale ( Deals For You Days ). The sale warm-up period is from July 1st to 8th, the sale officially starts on July 9th, and ends on July 11th, for a total of 3 days.

TikTok introduced that July is the golden consumption node for consumers in the United States. The upcoming mid-year promotion is as powerful as the year-end Black Friday promotion and is one of the two most important events of the platform throughout the year. Last year on Black Friday, the GMV of the top 100 products on TikTok Shop exploded 10 times compared to before the event. This year's mid-year promotion marketing incentive policy will be upgraded on the basis of last year's Black Friday, helping merchants to achieve a greater explosion in GMV.

The platform predicts three hot commodity categories: the first is sports theme, with opportunities in sports and outdoor clothing, swimwear, fitness equipment, camping and hiking equipment, water sports equipment, ball sports equipment, sports and outdoor toys, etc .; the second is summer travel , with opportunities in dresses, jumpsuits, suitcases, backpacks, fashion accessories, personal care equipment, photography and videography, drinkware, auto parts, etc .; the third is summer home , with opportunities in home textiles, household appliances, kitchen appliances, furniture decoration, furniture storage, garden supplies, construction supplies, cat and dog furniture , etc. Sellers can refer to this.

3. Target

Target has announced that it will hold "Target Circle Week," a week-long promotion from July 7 to 13 that will feature discounts on summer and back-to-school essentials.

Members who join the Target Circle program for free can enjoy early discounts on back-to-school essentials, including 30% off on selected backpacks and children's school uniforms during Target Circle week, which is Target's biggest promotion this season . In addition, Target Circle members can enjoy up to 50% off selected toys, up to 40% off kitchen supplies, and up to 30 % off family clothing, bedding and bath products , with large promotions.

4. Best Buy

Best Buy said in an email that its July Black Friday sales will return from July 15 to 17, with deals on TVs, laptops, gaming consoles and more .

Summer is traditionally a slow season for retail , but Amazon Prime Day ushered in a new shopping season and spurred a swarm of imitators and alternatives.

With major retailers such as Walmart and Target launching their own Prime Day promotions in recent years, it has become a promotional event similar to Black Friday and Cyber ​​Monday. At the same time, Prime Day shopping festival also unofficially marks the beginning of the back-to-school shopping season, and for some cost-conscious consumers, it even means the beginning of the holiday shopping season.

This July, overseas shoppers have plenty of choices, with more than 100 retailers typically holding competing sales events during the same time period as Prime Day. While it’s unlikely to beat Amazon on Prime Day, the overall scale of the event is large enough to drive a lot of online traffic and sales driven by consumers looking for deals who don’t necessarily visit Amazon exclusively, which is an opportunity for other retailers.