Month: April 2021

Categories
News

Amazon’s New FBA Re-Stock Limits Explained

Photo by Nadine Shaabana on Unsplash

In July 2020, Amazon announced ASIN-level quantity limits for products stored in their fulfilment network. Amazon made this change to ensure that they could receive and store products for all sellers who use FBA. During the pandemic limits were even more restricted but now Amazon are replacing ASIN-level FBA quantity limits with FBA restock limits.

Restock limits are set per stock type based on your past and projected sales, so you can spread these limits across your ASINs. This gives you more flexibility because you’re not limited to quantity for a single product, but it still makes sense to only send inventory to FBA that will be sold in the near future – both because it limits your FBA replenishment limits for ASINs that sell faster and because you may incur long-term inventory fees.

Amazon Storage Types

Amazon Storage limits are applicable for four storage main types:

  • Standard-size
  • Oversize
  • Clothing
  • Footwear

Adjustments to the limits for the storage of dangerous goods (flammable goods and aerosols) are treated separately from other types of storage.

FBA Storage Limits

Storage limits are calculated using several factors including:

  • Your sales volume (including your sales’ seasonality periods)
  • Your historical IPI scores
  • Available fulfilment centre capacity

Sellers with consistently higher IPI scores will receive higher storage limits, adjusted for sales volume and available capacity. When setting limits for an upcoming quarter, Amazon considers both your recent sales volume and seasonal volume from the last year.

You can see which storage types your products are categorized as and how much cubic feet they occupy using the FBA Inventory Age page and the Inventory Age report. Utilisation includes your current inventory at Amazon and all incoming shipments, including your shipments in Working, In Transit and Receiving status.

What’s the difference between FBA restock limits and storage limits?

It is important to note that both FBA storage limits and FBA replenishment limits may apply to your account. Storage limits are based on volume, measured in cubic feet, and determine the capacity of the fill center you can use. Replenishment limits are based on units and determine how much inventory you can send to replenishment centers. Replenishment limits apply regardless of your IPI score.

For some products, your limiting factor may be storage limits, especially if you have one of more ASINs which are relatively bulky. For smaller products where storage limits aren’t an issue restock limits may be more important.

Don’t forget that you can see your current stock levels inside of Zonmaster on your product’s details page. Also, when we release our new monitoring and alerts feature in May, 2021, you’ll be able to get warnings about low stock levels.

Start your Zonmaster Free Trial today!

Categories
Updates Instruction

New, Improved Zonmaster Order Manager

We’ve uploaded a new video to our YouTube Channel that details the functions and features of our new Order Manager page.

You can see the video here:

For those of you who prefer to read we’ll try to summarize things here.

Accessing the Order Manager

To get to the order manager select Orders from the Orders menu at the top.

The order manager provides all your details for both Amazon and Merchant (FBA and MFN) fulfilled orders.

Search and Filter

You can search and filter on a variety of aspects:

  • Date Range
  • ASIN
  • SKU
  • Buyer Email
  • Shipment details like city, state, postal code or tracking number.

For date ranges you can search on a predefined set of ranges, or enter in exact dates.As we’ll see later, you can also set date ranges by click on our charts.

On top of the searching, you can also filter your data.You can filter by

  • Fulfilment Channel
  • Orders that used promotions
  • Orders that generated seller feedback
  • Limit by marketplace here, or by chart clicking.
  • Order status – from unshipped to delivered, or returned or refunded
  • Whether the buyer is a repeat buyer
  • If the order or buyer has been marked as Do Not Solicit
  • Whether the order has been sent emails, not been sent emails or is has an email waiting to go out.
  • Whether an order has or has not had a review requested via Amazon’s review request feature.

Whew that’s a lot of filters!

But there’s more!

You can also filter orders by clicking on the charts at the top of the page. These charts show your entire history that we have inside Zonmaster. If you want to see orders for a specific channel, you can click that channel in the Sales By Channel pie chart. You can also limit by month by clicking on the month is the sales bar charts. These two can be combined as well, or also combined with any filters you might have set in the filter section.

You can set any of these things, then click filter to update the table below.

Order Data

The order details we show here are

  • The marketplace
  • How the order was fulfilled
  • The purchase date
  • Some order info such as order id, how many items were purchases and what asins and skus were purchased. You can click on the Order ID to go to the order details page on Zonmaster, or, you can click on the little amazon  logo to be taken to the order details page on Amazon. We show more info on our page I think
  • Order status icon. You can hover over this to get a little more info, or see the full info on the order page.
  • Basic location info of the shipment, like city and region or state or province, depending on country.
  • Quick summary of how many emails this order has been sent, if there is seller feedback from this order and whether a review request has been issued.

Select and Act on Orders

We also have a bunch of actions you can do on an order or orders if you select them. You select orders by clicking on the select box in the first column.If you select and order and go to the top of the select column you’ll see a dropdown. (you can also click on the box there to select or deselect all orders showing)

Send On Demand Email

You can see the first item after the selected order count is ‘Send Email’. Zonmaster finally gives you the ability to manually send an email template to an order.

If you choose the ‘Send Email’ option that dropdown a popup will appear.

Here you can choose what email template to send out. If you need to create a new template or want to edit an existing one you can click on the link in the green note at the bottom. If you choose a template from the dropdown the preview area will appear and you can see how to email will look to your buyer when they receive it.You’ll see that this is a good reason to give your email templates good names!

It’s important to note that the email WON’T go out if

  • the order or buyer is marked as DNS
  • the order has already received the email template before.

If you’re happy with it you can click continue to review, and then click send now to have the emails queued to be sent as soon as possible.

Other Actions

From the drop down you can also set orders as Do Not Solicit for Order. That means that no more emails will go out for the selected orders. If you choose Do Not Solicit for Buyer  – previously called Blacklist on Zonmaster – that means that no more emails will go to that buyer, for this order or any future orders they may buy from you.If you select these you’ll see the status updated on the order row. It can of course be easily removed.

Custom DNS Upload Tool

If you have existing list of orders you want marked as DNS you can use our Custom DNS Upload tool which can be found under the Orders menu.You can paste in up to 1000 Amazon order ids, select the action you want – either DNS on the Order or DNS on the Buyer – and whether you are setting or removing the flags. Click submit and that’s it!

We hope you like the enhancements we’ve made to the Order Manager!

Zonmaster helps Amazon sellers monitor, manage, and automate emails, product reviews, orders, and feedback. Build professional email templates with gifs, emojis, buttons, and attachments. A/B test subject lines and view open rate analytics. Send or exclude emails based on triggers such as refunds, shipment, delivery, feedback, and repeat buyers. Track and manage all product reviews. Instant notifications whenever a review is posted.

Start your free trial today!

Categories
Instruction

7 Tips For Better Listing Descriptions

Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

You’ve done all the work – found the product, done the packaging, had it shipped to Amazon, got it listed, run some ads – and now people are actually coming to your product page on Amazon.

But what do they find? We’ve covered elsewhere ways to improve your overall listing quality, but in this article let’s dive into basic copywriting skills to make that product description the best it can be.

Reign in the Tech Speak

Yes, people want to know that your socks are the best at keeping them warm. No, people do not want to know the thickness of the thread used in making those socks.

Learn to distil down the technical details into what people want to know versus what facts and figures you have available.

Specs and Sizes

No, this does not contradict point #1! ?

Amazon gives you space to list 5 features of your products. Use ONE of those slots to explain the technical aspects of your product (if necessary).

Do not look at these tech specs as selling points, but purely informational and a great way to back up any claims you may make elsewhere in your listing.

Write to the Audience

We here at Zonmaster believe in the concept of creating a ‘customer sketch’ and using that to inform your marketing. So, pick who you want to buy your product and write your copy to that person!

Know what they want. Look at how your competition addresses the audience too. And look at reviews! Customers will tell you exactly what was good and bad about a product and often it will be a description of what they wish they’d known before buying.

Find Your USP

Your USP is your Unique Selling Proposition. Find a way to set your product apart from the competition. That can be key benefits or unique features.

Steve Jobs famously believed in selling experiences rather than products. That approach was Apple’s USP.

Keyword, Keyword, Keyword

Check our other article about finding keywords, but here let’s just say that it is vital that you weave the keywords that people are searching for into your descriptions.

We can’t say it enough: keyword research can make or break your Amazon selling experience.

Be Yourself, Be Honest

90% of customers have a pretty good BS meter. They know – and have probably heard before – any outlandish claims that you might make about your product. They won’t fall for it and forever they will lump you into the BS Artist category.

Treat people like you would want to be treated (why this one simple concept is so difficult for people to follow is beyond us!)

No product is infallible. Your customers will appreciate your honesty if you point out some things that your product WON’T do for them!

Call To Action

Without being overly spammy, urge your buyers to actually BUY! If your product is limited, tell them it’s limited. Tell them to buy 2 if it really will be out of stock for a month or so. Also, consider bundles. They motivate people.

At the end of your features list, make sure the customer knows that now is when they are supposed to buy.

If you are selling on Amazon you really should be using Zonmaster – the Leading AutoResponder Tool for Amazon Sellers. It’s much more than an autoresponder tool – it’s a customer contact system, a review, product and order manager as well. It even can track your true profits.

Sign up today for your free trial! Subscriptions start at just $6.99 a month.

Categories
Instruction

6 Ways To Find New Amazon Trends

Photo by Dami Adebayo on Unsplash

A special kind of joy is evoked when you win the Buy Box on a hot trending product on Amazon. It’s what all Amazon Sellers wish for. But how to spot a trend or a hot product?

Below we’re going to give you 6 good ways to get the jump on what’s hot.

Study Amazon’s Own ‘Best Seller’ Listings

Visit any Amazon website and click on ‘All’ in the top left. A drop will show you a bunch of categories PLUS, right at the top, will be ‘Best Sellers’.

Updated hourly, the Best Seller listings are a heirarchical list of what’s hot in all categories. You can even drill down a few levels to find a specific niche.

For example, you can start with ‘Clothing & Accessories’ and drill down in ‘Men’s Fashion’.

Amazon shows you the Top 100 items in any category.

Bonus Tip: This is also a great way to research when you want to break into a new region or marketplace.

Follow “New Releases” and “Movers & Shakers”

Just below ‘Best Sellers’ in the Trending section of the menu will be ‘New Releases’ and ‘Movers & Shakers’. Despite its name, ‘New Releases’ doesn’t just show you what is new on Amazon, it uses Amazon’s own A10 algorithm to identify which new and upcoming releases are also best-selling items.

‘Mover & Shakers’ will show you products that have had a recent significant upswing in sales.

Both sections can give you great insight into what is catching fire (hopefully not literally, as I am fairly sure that’s a violation of Amazon ToS!) in all categories.

Changes in Your Own Inventory

Sometimes we discount our own experiences in favor of thinking that other people have it figured out. But, this is not the case. You are sitting on top of one of the best indicators: what’s happening with your own sales and inventory on Amazon!

Understanding what is working and what isn’t on products that are already in your store can help you to decide what courses of action to take including building around the things you are having success with and improving on the things that you aren’t.

Inside of Zonmaster we are building out more and more financial tools to help you get a better view on what’s going on with your data. You can enter in your Cost of Goods (COGs) and landed costs and get a clear picture of your true profit. All of this can be done inside our ‘Profit Center’.

Monitor Your Niche’s Publications (and Websites)

Sellers of electronic products have access to dozens of great gadget and technology websites that discuss and review the most popular products throughout the year. Toy and game sellers can use various wish lists and message boards to find out what the hottest and rarest toys of the season are.

No matter what market you’re in, there are sure to be some great resources to add to your reading lists or watch lists. Facebook groups or Twitter lists can provide you with links to relevant articles in your field. Even sites like YouTube’s trending page can give you insights into products and Amazon market trends that influencers are talking about. Make it a habit to tap into the resources the internet has to offer so you can stay on top of niche trends.

Research Keywords

Looking at Amazon search trends can often provide valuable insight into what’s working for top sellers. Every now and then, it’s a good idea to simply search for the top keywords in your company’s field and see what comes up. Are the products that appear in the ads as top performers working well? What products are showing up organically on the first pages of search results?

Take notes on some competitors in your area and come back a few days later to look for changes in search rankings, sales rankings and reviews. This due diligence can help you determine which keywords are worth your advertising investment and what other trends you may be able to leverage to improve your profitability.

Monitor Reviews (on your products and others)

Take the time to delve into the review sections on the topics of interest. Products that generate lots of sales are also likely to generate lots of reviews. These reviews can tell you why the product in question is becoming popular. Is it a new innovation in the field? Is it something the buyer’s child has been asking for after seeing it on Tik Tok? Are there other products that have the same feature as this product that are also doing well on Amazon?

Negative reviews can also be helpful. Maybe you can see a recurring trend. Are buyers confused by the description of the product? Is there a way this product could be improved? Whether you’re planning to buy a private label product to compete with it, or you’re just brainstorming for your own product line, it’s very helpful to understand product strengths and weaknesses based on reviews.

Don’t forget that Zonmaster offers you a suite of tools to monitor your orders and products. And also (of course!) great tools to help you get reviews and feedback. And we support all Amazon marketplaces around the world. Start your free trial today!

Categories
Instruction

The Power Of Labels

We’ve uploaded a new tutorial on YouTube that gives a quick overview of our new ‘Labeling’ feature that is available inside the Products area.

With Labels you can assign meaningful categories to your products so that you can quickly see how they are performing against each other.

We have pre-seeded your products with Labels based on the categories that Amazon thinks apply to each of your products. You can chose to remove these, or add additional labels of your own. (You can also re-scan the Amazon category labels if you feel you’ve made a mistake!).

As always, we look forward to your help in keeping Zonmaster the best Auto Responder tool for Amazon Sellers but more and more you will see us branching out into other post-sales, financial and listing management areas too! 2021 will be a big year for Zonmaster.

Of course, all features are available at all subscription levels, including the $6.99/month start level! Start your free trial today

Categories
Instruction

5 Ways To Improve Your Listings

Photo by Ian Taylor on Unsplash

As an Amazon Seller – and if you want to be successful at it – you should be constantly focusing on listing quality. Here we’re going to quickly give you 5 key areas that you should be looking at.

We may have said some of these before, but listing quality is the number one factor in what affects your sales and your reviews (because failed expectations are the main reason listings get bad reviews).

1. Always Think Of The Algorithm

Amazon’s latest algorithm update – know as A10 – seems to put the most weight on:

  • Page Impressions
  • Conversions
  • CTR
  • Internal Sales

Having content that has the right keywords drives a lot of this so….

2. Look at Your Backend Attributes

(oh there’s a great joke in that title somewhere!)

Amazon’s backend attributes area lets you enter keywords that strongly affect ranking and discoverability. Backend attributes and Amazon’s focus on filling in “important product information” with the dashboard go hand in hand. It is a good idea to frequently revisit this in the Seller Central listings manager, especially for products you feel aren’t performing as well as they could.

3. Talk Yourself Up

Focus on the features that your customers love and need and brag about them! Don’t overstate (see the comment above about managing expectations) but don’t let the customer click away without knowing what your product does the best.

4. Look The Part

Amazon lets you add photos and video to listings – do it, and make them the best possible images and videos you can to highlight your products features and uses. Answer questions with your images.

Also, the best visual assets will let potential customers easily imagine this product in their own lives. Because of that, show a pic or video of your product in use! Not just boring soft-box product eye candy.

5. Tell A Story – The Readability Factor

We’ve all seen it – product listings that are like someone put a long list of keywords in a blender with some ‘ands’ and ‘ifs’ and then dumped it out on the page.

Amazon’s A10 Algo does detect readability. Write your listing like it’s a blog post or a story or a conversation with a potential customer. Point #3 above said to talk about your good points – but don’t over do it. Be friendly, not a used-car salesman.

Your listing is a perfect chance to present your brand and brand personality. Don’t throw that away.

When you have made the sale, don’t forget your after-sales responsibilities. There’s no better choice that Zonmaster as a way of communicating with your customers and monitoring your reviews and feedback. Start your free trial today and see for yourself!

Categories
Updates

Changes to the Zonmaster Product Page

The New Products Listing Page in Zonmaster

We have quite an exhaustive (and exhausting!) list of updates to Zonmaster in our 2021 Roadmap. We’ve seen some changes already, but the latest is part 1 of our improvements to the Products listing.

What’s Changed

Simplified Line Listing

We have removed some of the more confusing columns to focus on the essentials.

Orders Chart

With the extra space we have added an inline orders graph that shows you the number of orders broken down by day for the past 30 days. We also show you the total number of orders in the past 30 days and the total number of units ordered. You can sort on these too!

Labels

Initially we are generating labels for your products based on the Amazon categories that your product is sold in.

Coming soon will be customized label adding and editing.

Label Filtering

Apart from the pretty colors, there’s not much point to adding labels if you can’t filter on them. On the products page is a ‘tag cloud’ showing your Top Labels (up to 25). This area is clickable and clicking on the label will filter the page to only show those products with the appropriate label.

Clickable Graph

You can now click on the Sales Chart at the top of the page to go to the product in question.

Financial Data [Coming Soon]

We will be adding sales figures to the line listing soon, so you can see the income related to each product. This will be part of our new financial features upgrade that will be coming in Q2 2021.

Also included in the Financials upgrade will be more comprehensive Cost of Goods (COGs) features that will also be shown on the products line.

We are always looking to improve Zonmaster and give you the best after-sales product out there for Amazon Sellers. We add all these features and they all come included in your subscription, regardless of which subscription plan you are on!

Start your Free Trial today and join the over 17,000 Amazon Sellers who have signed up for our services.