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• Can Amazon legally force a seller to lower their prices?

• New Amazon Seller Forum leaves sellers unsatisfied

• How to solve these 4 business cash flow issues

• How to avoid FBA surcharges

ECOMMERCE NEWS

Can Amazon legally force a seller to lower their prices?

Being on Amazon must have been a wild ride for this seller who expressed their annoyance in a letter sent to EcommerceBytes. They complained about having a barrage of emails saying that their listings had gone kaput due to pricing errors.

What doesn’t make sense is that the seller's new items will not be reactivated unless they are priced lower than used ones. They've also been asked to adjust prices even when they don’t offer the highest prices for that product. Frustrating, right?

🍒 Cherry on top

The part that triggered the letter sender the most was when they found out that their competition was none other than Amazon themselves. This raised questions like, why does the retail giant dictate their prices? Isn't this considered price fixing?

💼 Not an isolated case

Seems like this seller wasn’t the only one who experienced being forced to slash their prices. A commenter on the same post shared about having 21 vinyl records listings deactivated due to a potential pricing error. Despite providing proof that the items were valued at $99.95, Amazon required them to list them below $24.95.

The sender closed off by stressing that these situations shouldn't be ignored due to Amazon being a big company. Someone should face the beasts in this industry.

HOT TOPIC

New Amazon Seller Forum leaves sellers unsatisfied

Amazon recently updated its Seller Forum and one of the most significant changes was displaying the sellers' business names on the platform. This drew flak from the community who appreciated their anonymity in this space.

The disappointment continued as more people expressed on the forum that they found it "useless" due to a lack of answers or solutions, even after they had narrowed down the category and tag. Basically, the forum didn't serve its purpose of addressing sellers' questions and concerns.

It doesn’t stop there.

More agreed with OP that the "Search Seller Forums" feature isn’t serving its purpose. Google search does a much better job when looking for answers.

They concluded that these changes weren't designed with the seller's convenience in mind; instead, "it is more like they were designed explicitly for making them harder to use."

Have you tried out browsing the new forums? What was your experience like?

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CASH CORNER

How to solve these 4 business cash flow issues

Cash flow is the lifeblood of your business. It ensures your operational costs are managed, turning profits into opportunities for growth. EComEngine outlined four cash flow issues and how to solve them so they don't derail your success.

1️⃣ Underestimating startup and operational costs

Getting off the ground isn't easy and cheap. With operational costs for pricing, PPC campaigns and listing management tools, platform subscriptions, and other startup costs, it's easy to burn your cash flow like wildfire if not properly managed.

Solution: Take note of all operational costs and see which areas you can cut down. Look for cheaper alternatives, if possible.

2️⃣ Funding for product launches

Starting a business means preparing for product launches. It doesn’t have to be grand, it just has to be successful. Some business owners make the mistake of wanting to have a big launch to the point that it drains their savings.

Solution: But don't hit the gas too hard right away — start small and be prepared with enough resources for three orders, and scale up as sales show promise, so you don't run out of stock until profits roll around.

3️⃣ Your sales are seasonal

For sellers, the holiday season is a time for cheer and cash flow headaches. There's big money spent on inventory, labor & operations way before December rolls around, but it can take until then to make money.

Solution: With the proper cash flow planning, you'll have plenty of cause for cheer: avoid tying too much money on extensive inventory and cut expenses during slow seasons.

4️⃣ Invoices are due before you've been paid

With bills piling up, how do you keep the money flowing before your revenue rolls in?

Solution: Negotiate with suppliers and see if you can stretch out payment terms, diversify your sources of income, and finance orders for extra financial wiggle-room until revenue comes rolling in.

All businesses go through cash flow issues, but it’s best not to be fazed by them.

SELLER REFRESHER

How to avoid FBA surcharges

Selling on Amazon isn't always smooth sailing. You're bound to encounter difficult customers, inventory problems, and mistakes made by fulfillment centers. These are inevitable, but you must minimize their effects. SageSeller weighed in on this topic.

You could request FBA reimbursements if the warehouses or fulfillment centers made mistakes that led to the loss of inventory.

💸 Types of reimbursements:

• Lost or damaged inventory

• Return processing fee

• Weight handling fee

• Long-term storage fee

• Reverse logistics fee

📦 Fees on FBA surcharges are a very common, very easy way to lose money. Here's how to avoid them:

• Label and package your products properly before sending them to fulfillment centers.

• Have an updated and accurate inventory record.

• Communicate with Amazon customer service ASAP.

Never lose money over FBA reimbursements again by staying vigilant.