Recently, Amazon has stepped up its control over Listing renovations. Many sellers have received warning emails from the platform, complaining that “Amazon has started to crack down again!”

The content of the email directly named some sellers or their agents who tried to tamper with ASIN, and were identified as "refurbished listings", which directly touched the platform's red line.

What does it mean when I receive a warning?

According to the email, Amazon emphasized that refurbished listings are illegal and violate the "Seller Code of Conduct".

If the seller fails to change his/her behavior after repeated warnings, his/her account may be at risk of being suspended.

Once an account is accused of "accurate information violation", the impact on the account health score is usually "medium" or even "high", which is no joke.

What is a refurbished listing?

Simply put, a refurbished listing means that the seller uses some operating techniques to "change the face" of the old ASIN into a brand new listing, but the essence of the product remains unchanged, and it can even retain its original ranking and weight.

What’s even more attractive is that after the refurbishment, the negative reviews can be removed! For poorly performing products, this is undoubtedly a way to “revive” them.

Common renovation routines include:

Inventory removal + restocking: The seller removes the inventory of the old listing, forwards it to other warehouses or third-party logistics, and then restocks it to the Amazon warehouse. By creating a new ASIN, the old listing is transformed into a new product.

Selling yourself:

The seller uses the new SKU to copy the old listing, then transfers the inventory of the old listing to the new SKU, and finally deletes the old SKU, so that the new SKU becomes a "refurbished listing."

What’s the temptation of refurbishing listings?

Get new product traffic support: Is the old listing not selling well? Renovate it and enjoy the benefits of new products again.

Get rid of negative reviews: Too many negative reviews? Clear them after renovation.

Restore out-of-stock weight: Is the product removed from the shelves due to out-of-stock? After refurbishment, it can regain exposure and ranking.

Avoiding penalties for violations: Is your listing restricted or penalized? Renovation can "bypass" these problems.

Amazon has a zero-tolerance policy towards refurbished listings and considers it a serious violation.

Every year, there are sellers whose stores are closed due to refurbished listings.

Not to mention, Amazon’s algorithms and monitoring systems are constantly upgrading, and any seemingly "smart" operations cannot escape the platform’s eyes.

How big is the risk?

Warning about abnormal operation: If you frequently submit requests for renovation through cases, it may be identified as an operation that circumvents the rules.

Modifying ASIN attributes: Intensively modifying ASIN or merging requests in a short period of time can easily trigger Amazon’s violation detection.

Consequences: Listings will be deleted, sales privileges will be suspended, funds will be frozen, and in serious cases, the account may even be closed directly!

How to avoid renovation violations?

Don’t change ASIN randomly: one ASIN corresponds to one product. Don’t try to force mismatched products to be bound to the old ASIN.

Optimize the listing: Make small adjustments, such as correcting typos and updating inventory information, but do not make major changes.

Reasonable use of keywords: naturally integrate popular search terms, and don’t pile up keywords.

Keep up with policies: Amazon's rules change frequently, and learning new policies in a timely manner is the key to avoiding pitfalls.

Don’t risk the health of your store!

9 steps to promote Amazon off-site