How to prevent Amazon peers from framing you? Here are nine tips

Form 1: Change ASIN code

If a seller wants to change his ASIN code and does not want other sellers to find out or report it, it gives his peers a great opportunity to maliciously frame him. His peers may increase or decrease the number of products, or provide gifts that other sellers do not have, so that his customers will receive gifts that other sellers' customers do not have. Customers who do not receive gifts will be unhappy and write "does not match the product description" or even "counterfeit product" in their reviews.

Changing the weight of the product is also one of the strategies. Some sellers do not want their competitors to profit from the product, so they reduce the weight of the product to one-third, which greatly reduces the shipping weight.

Countermeasures:

Complain about ASIN code changes. When Amazon sends you a list of ASIN code changes, read it carefully to see if you agree with it. If you disagree, raise an objection. Click the link in the email sent by Amazon to check whether the details of the change are reasonable. Take your product description seriously and try to avoid making changes.

Changes in product weight are also a serious problem. If you use FBA, the increase in shipping weight will lead to higher costs, which will greatly reduce your profits.

Notice:

It is not enough to object to the ASIN change. If the change will have a negative impact on you, you need to follow up on the process to see if the changes are approved. If the changes take effect, the products you sell will not be consistent with the descriptions, which is a problem.

Form 2: Change the image

This is very insidious, because Amazon will not notify other sellers when the product images are changed, which provides an opportunity for bad sellers, and the consequences are very serious.

First, manufacturers will constantly change product packaging, so there may be many different packaging on the shelf, but these products all have the same UPC code and the products inside the packaging are also the same. In this case, the best way is to add a description and picture of the product packaging, and strictly follow Amazon's process to complete this step, because Amazon needs relevant evidence

Secondly, because different models of a product have the same UPC code, no matter who created the product listing first, other sellers can change the image on the listing and replace it with a different product model. Even if you can restore it through the Seller Central appeal, other sellers can still change it again. To avoid this, you should create listings with different product models, purchase your own UPC codes, or add other models of the product to your listings

Finally, another despicable behavior is to replace the product image with a completely different product. However, Amazon keeps a record of every listing change, and if the victim files a complaint, the perpetrator will be punished for violating the rules.

Countermeasures:

Customer reviews are a good way to discover this problem. If there are complaints such as "not as described", "not as advertised" or other similar complaints in the reviews, you should immediately check your listing and temporarily close it until you are sure that your product description is exactly the same as the product you are selling. Check your listing to see if there are other packaging pictures. Examine your listing from the customer's perspective, rather than relying solely on the UPC code.

Notice:

The best way to prevent this conspiracy is to check your negative feedback and reviews and respond immediately, temporarily close your listing, find out the cause of the problem, and if the product image has been drastically changed and it is obviously malicious, do not hesitate to file a violation complaint with Amazon.

Form 3: Change product category

A competitor may pull your product into its own product category, but in fact your product does not belong to that category, and your account may be suspended. However, Amazon’s existing “Other Categories” service will help victimized sellers defeat this conspiracy

Another way to do this is to create a new listing in an existing category to sell your product, so there will be multiple different listings for the same product, but this is not in compliance with Amazon’s rules. Amazon will merge the various ASINs into one, so that everyone can be satisfied.

Countermeasures:

File a complaint, be patient, and show Amazon your suspicion if someone deliberately changes your product images

Notice:

You can’t always win. The process involves all the appeals. If the service staff is experienced, you may get the result you want.

Form 4: Negative feedback or malicious slander in buyer information

Competitors may deliberately buy your products and leave negative feedback, accusing you of selling fake or defective products. They complain to Amazon and attack you fiercely. In fact, Amazon doesn’t care what they say, but their words will trigger Amazon’s automatic processing system, and you will get a warning or your account will be directly frozen by Amazon.

Countermeasures:

Pay attention to your product reviews and negative feedback, check your reports regularly, respond to negative reviews in a timely manner and take appropriate measures

Notice:

Sometimes unscrupulous sellers will buy the product themselves and then maliciously give bad reviews, which makes it easy to expose their scheme and prevent them from framing you again. However, some sellers will let their friends and family do this for them. In this case, it is very difficult to find the mastermind behind the scenes.

Form 5: Violation of rules

Your competitor complained that you violated Amazon's rules, resulting in Amazon sending a vague notification that a customer complained about you, but you did not find any negative reviews or complaints about the product. In this case, this complaint without any evidence is often the only evidence that your competitor made a malicious complaint. Even if you did not do these things, Amazon often stands on the other side because malicious sellers provide so-called evidence. Malicious follow-selling, product infringement, fixed prices, etc., any one of which may cause your account to be frozen, or even never unblocked.

Countermeasures:

If you suspect someone is maliciously framing you, try to find out who is behind it. Usually, they have purchased your products. The best way is to keep the invoice. In addition, order from suppliers who provide formal receipts, which can reduce the chance of being victimized.

For copyright infringement issues, try to handle them properly. If it is a legitimate complaint, the rights owner will at least respond to you and tell you what to do next. Once they get a satisfactory result, you can regain the right to sell.

Notice:

Amazon workers may not think as much as you do, and what is obvious to you may not be so obvious to them, so try not to argue and just explain how you were framed.

Form 6: Goods not received/damaged during transportation/delayed delivery

This may be done intentionally by the buyer in order to get the product for free, or it may be done maliciously by the seller in order to frame a competitor who uses MF (Merchant Delivery). If you use MF, you may easily have your account frozen due to performance issues. Many sellers use USPS, and the chance of being framed is higher.

If your product is lost during transportation, the chances of getting it back are slim and it is difficult to find out where it was lost. If a customer says they did not receive the product, do not ask them to go to the local courier point to look for it, as this is likely to result in a bad review from the customer. The best thing to do is to refund them immediately. If you are sure the other party is a scammer, do not send them any more products in the future.

If you are a MF seller, the loss or damage of products during transportation will have a great impact on your performance indicators. There are only two ways to improve this situation. First, choose a better courier partner. Second, purchase business insurance. Once the product is damaged during transportation, you can get corresponding compensation. However, this is a considerable expense for most sellers, and it will only work within a small probability range.

Countermeasures:

The best solution to this problem is to use FBA. Admittedly, the cost of FBA is higher than that of MF, but in the long run, the seller will not lose profits, and sometimes even gain more profits. In addition, using FBA can save time and energy, and provide opportunities for sellers to handle other matters. In addition, by releasing permissions and allowing Amazon to automatically handle returns/refunds, the business process is streamlined, and customers receive convenient services, which effectively reduces the number of dissatisfied customers, thereby reducing the number of potential negative reviews and improving performance indicators.

Notice:

Every customer inquiry counts against you because any reason that leads to a customer contacting you will cause the order to be considered a "defective order" and the more difficult it is for a customer to return or exchange an item, the higher the chances of you getting sued for the same order. A-to-Z claims, returns, customer emails, and refunds can all be used against you by malicious competitors.

Pattern 7: Multiple returns/negative feedback in one day

Amazon does not allow multiple returns, inquiries, or negative feedback for the same product in one day. Once this happens, the seller’s listing will be restricted at best, and the account will be restricted at worst. A malicious seller can buy several products from you at the same time, and then return them all a day later for reasons such as "defective", "counterfeit", "not as described", etc. Amazon will not treat it as three products from the same order, but as three returns of the same product in one day.

Countermeasures:

There is no better way than to strictly control the data. If you control the negative feedback within 3%, the ODR (order defect rate) within 1%, and the return rate within 1%, this trick will not have much impact on you.

Notice:

Amazon will not take immediate action against you for negative feedback. ODR data is based on sales indicators within 90 days. If you can remove the negative feedback within a week of it happening, there will be no impact. When your account is not frozen, it is the best time to remove negative feedback. For this, you can use Amazon's automatic processing system to serve you.

Form 8: False return reason

Generally speaking, this is not a single tactic, but a series of suppressions - multiple returns, negative feedback, and violations of regulations. Malicious sellers may ask for returns with various false reasons such as "not as described" or "defective" and then proceed to the next step. If it is just a dishonest buyer, they will not suppress you with negative feedback or multiple returns. Therefore, if you are attacked by such a chain of tactics, you may be attacked by a malicious seller.

Countermeasures:

In the action plan, explain to Amazon the cause of the problem, indicating that the customer is lying or your peers are maliciously framing you. In addition, it is also helpful to check the return report regularly.

Notice:

If you are being blackmailed and extorted by a customer, tell Amazon. In addition, buyers have a time limit for free returns, and once this time limit is reached, they are no longer eligible for free returns. The fact is that Amazon knows that some bad buyers abuse their policies, and they will not let them get away with it forever. If you can prove that the buyer is evasive in order to get free returns, Amazon will pay attention to the buyer's account

Form 9: Buying out inventory

Malicious competitors may buy up your inventory in large quantities or even buy out your inventory, and then return a large number or all of it around the return deadline, claiming that the product is inferior. In this way, you may get into trouble for returning too many products or violating the rules, and your inventory may not be used again for a month or more.

During the period when your inventory is sold out, malicious sellers are likely to use your listing to resell the product, or sell it on other platforms such as eBay. Products that are not sold within a month will be returned to you due to various quality issues. In this way, they make a profit from the products sold and get back the principal from the products returned to you.

Countermeasures:

Pay attention to large orders of products. If the buyer comes to you for various reasons after 30 days, explain the situation to Amazon. If they apply for a return within 30 days, agree to their request immediately, but don't give up. Tell Amazon that you suspect that bad peers have framed you. If necessary, provide invoices to prove that the products you sold are brand new. Tell Amazon that you are concerned that they treat each returned product of the same product as a separate return case, and ask them to investigate whether the buyer is a third-party seller or someone closely related to a third-party seller.

Notice:

These issues involve sensitive terms such as "large volume returns", "counterfeit products", "defective products", etc., which can easily lead to immediate account freeze, account review, or Amazon automatically generates emails asking you to write an action plan for these issues

Amazon likes proactive sellers. If you show them your suspicions, they won’t tell you what they found, but once it is proven that what you say is true, malicious sellers will be warned and punished for manipulating the platform.