8 Signs Your Brand Is Out of Control on Amazon

In the U.S., Amazon is the most important ecommerce channel for brands to be fully optimized and operating on. As of last year, 2022, Amazon controlled over 37% of the U.S. retail ecommerce market share. Many brands need to be on Amazon to succeed, but aren’t completely in control of their brand representation on the platform. And without control, brands lose profitability for both their online business and brick and mortar channels.  Learn the 8 telling signs that your brand is out of control on Amazon.

1. Lots of Sellers

Having many sellers distributing your products on Amazon can be a big sign of loss of control on the platform. Whether all of your sellers are authorized by your brand or not, each of them has the same access to update your product listing, image stack, and feature description—giving them equal power over your brand.  In addition, every seller is competing for the same Buy Box, creating high incentives to differentiate their product offering by price, a dangerous game that often leads to price erosion and the Profitability Death Spiral.

2. Poor Content

Your product title, image stack, bullet points, product description, and A+ Content are all part of your Amazon content. In short, your Amazon content is the information your customers use to decide the quality of your brand and whether or not to buy. Not maintaining control of your top conversion tool (images & bullets) on Amazon is a recipe for poor brand representation, confused customers, and lost sales.

3. Poor Reviews

Another headache many brands face is a large amount of poor reviews. Unauthorized sellers who have poor customer service, create misleading product listings, and send damaged or counterfeit products cause poor reviews that don’t accurately reflect your brand or product. Without control of your Amazon business, poor reviews can plague your listings, hurt customer trust in your brand, and result in lost sales.

4. Buy Box Suppression

Amazon is committed to providing the lowest price to its customers. So, when a product is listed for less elsewhere on the web, Amazon can suppress your product listing from the Bux Box according to their Marketplace Fair Pricing Policy. But price isn’t the only factor that goes into possessing the Buy Box. Other influences include customer service, quality listings, and in-stock rates. Regardless of which factors you struggle with, not owning the Buy Box is a surefire way to squander sales.

5. Price Erosion

In order to win the Buy Box, rogue sellers are lowering the price of your product, stealing your sales, and diminishing your brand value. Then, to compete, the other sellers drop prices even more, creating a vicious race to the bottom and blocking everyone’s profits. Unfortunately, price erosion is easy to spot and hard to stop. It’s important to get the right help as soon as you can if you’re experiencing price erosion on Amazon.

6. Stock Outs

Amazon can’t sell product it doesn’t have, so the platform makes staying in stock critical for maintaining organic rank, customer experience, Best Seller Rank (BSR), and profitable sales. Unfortunately, Amazon may not place the same priority on your in-stock rate as you do. But, having true control of your Amazon business allows you to control inventory availability based on your forecasts.

7. Price Matching

Deep discounts on Amazon fuel price competition at retail locations. If your brand has lower prices online, you can keep retail partners happy by covering the cost of a price match. When consumers shop in-store but find a lower price online, the retailer sells your product at the lower price but charges you the difference between their listed price and the price-matched sale. So, when price matching becomes the norm, your brand ends up paying the bill.

8. Retail Partners Complain

Amazon is not in a vacuum—everything your brand does online affects your brick and mortar partners. Customers shopping in retail stores will check prices online before buying, and they will almost always choose the lower price. When Amazon wins on price, your retail partners can’t move product, and it hurts the retailer’s (and brand’s) profits. As a result, retail stores may move your products to a less ideal location or simply take them off the shelf altogether.    

Gain Brand Control on Amazon with Pattern

Do these signs sound familiar? You’re not alone.  At Pattern, we understand how to eliminate common issues brands face on ecommerce marketplaces and how to help you take control on Amazon and beyond. Our expert teams, combined with our proprietary technology and true insight into your data and how your products perform online. Get in touch with us here to learn how you can get in control on Amazon.