Apply to sell - Selling application for brand
I am a long time book and media seller here on Amazon.
When listing with the add a product page I used to occasionally encounter products that I was unauthorized to sell and had to apply to sell.
Sometimes merely clicking on the apply to sell would lead to page where I was immediately approved and very occasionally more was required and very occasionally there were brands for which I did not get selling rights
Jumping to this week I have been seeing apply to sell come up on LOTS of books that I am trying to list and with publishers that I have never previously had issue with. Lets say its gone from 1 in a 100 to 1 in 10.
This leads me to question number 1.
Is this something that has just started happening to lots of people. Or has something happened to my account to trigger it? My account shows as fully healthy.
Now to question 2
When you need to get approved you are taken to the selling application for brand page that has one piece that is so confusing. Copied from the page
Selling application for Brand
You are requesting approval to sell --- branded brand items.
Submit documents
At least 1 purchase invoice for products from a manufacturer or distributor
Document must meet the following requirements:
Dated on or before Jan 21, 2024 (within 180 days)
Am I right that the document has to be before Jan 21 2024 but not earlier than 180 days prior to that date? So approximately after August 1 2023?
Apply to sell - Selling application for brand
I am a long time book and media seller here on Amazon.
When listing with the add a product page I used to occasionally encounter products that I was unauthorized to sell and had to apply to sell.
Sometimes merely clicking on the apply to sell would lead to page where I was immediately approved and very occasionally more was required and very occasionally there were brands for which I did not get selling rights
Jumping to this week I have been seeing apply to sell come up on LOTS of books that I am trying to list and with publishers that I have never previously had issue with. Lets say its gone from 1 in a 100 to 1 in 10.
This leads me to question number 1.
Is this something that has just started happening to lots of people. Or has something happened to my account to trigger it? My account shows as fully healthy.
Now to question 2
When you need to get approved you are taken to the selling application for brand page that has one piece that is so confusing. Copied from the page
Selling application for Brand
You are requesting approval to sell --- branded brand items.
Submit documents
At least 1 purchase invoice for products from a manufacturer or distributor
Document must meet the following requirements:
Dated on or before Jan 21, 2024 (within 180 days)
Am I right that the document has to be before Jan 21 2024 but not earlier than 180 days prior to that date? So approximately after August 1 2023?
10 replies
Seller_kNAboD6kRgVt7
You are not alone. And no, you did nothing to trigger it (in my opinion). Personally, I believe Amazon wants us third party sellers of books (especially used) to be gone from the site. This nonsense of submitting doucuments is popping up for lots of us. You can find multiple threads here in the forums about it. Some sellers think it is the publishers making Amazon do this, but many sellers are finding it doesn't even matter what publisher you choose, this pops up. The bots are winning, Amazon won't even consider this is any kind of glitch.
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
You really need to start spending a LOT more time on the Forum.
As @Seller_kNAboD6kRgVt7 notes "You are not alone" meaning there are DOZENS of post (if not hundreds) by sellers of everything from books to electronics and beyond that have been suspended or threatened with suspension.
Amazon has changed drastically the past couple years.
The INFORM Act and other legal changes by Congress has resulted in lots of new requirements.
Here are the requirements for the new, improved Amazon.
DO YOU have an LOA from the brand allowing you to sell on here?
DID YOU source from AUTHORIZED wholesale sources that your rep at the brand says are OK.
NOTE the verification from the brand that the source is legitimate and authorized, NOT one of those touted on TikTok and YouTube as having "thousands of brands and products".
If you have watched any YouTube or TikTok videos FORGET everything you saw there.
LOTS of old time sellers that started here when it was only one step removed from eBay (at best) are being rudely awakened by the new requirements.
Seller_oDXVaydIpi3Hi
It's Amazon. The platform is falling apart. the more they hire people overseas and the more they use AI the worse its getting.
Seller_YBfUTeoG971hG
Lots of threads on this, as others have pointed out. The sheer insanity of asking for a recent "Invoice for at least 10 copies" of an out-of-print book published in 1826 or 1905 or 1961 is one of the hallmarks of Amazon 2024. I notice that the mods are strangely silent on this issue.
Cooper_Amazon
Good Evening @Seller_QJfASaMFC4ITe,
I wanted to stop by and see if I could help answer your questions. To answer question #1:
This leads me to question number 1.
Is this something that has just started happening to lots of people. Or has something happened to my account to trigger it? My account shows as fully healthy.
The books category is very popular. I am not sure what types of books you are trying to list, but textbooks sellers have seen an increase in requests for approval to sell certain books based on what I have seen around the forums.
I recommend continuing to monitor the 'Products That Require Approval' and 'Overview of Categories' help pages for any updates to approvals to sell certain products, brands, categories, and sub-categories.
While Amazon's catalog grows, we continuously make new determinations on which products should be restricted, which is based on a number of factors. Amazon does this to ensure authenticity and customer satisfaction.
To answer question #2:
When you need to get approved you are taken to the selling application for brand page that has one piece that is so confusing. Copied from the page
Selling application for Brand
You are requesting approval to sell --- branded brand items.
Submit documents
At least 1 purchase invoice for products from a manufacturer or distributor
Document must meet the following requirements:
Dated on or before Jan 21, 2024 (within 180 days)
Am I right that the document has to be before Jan 21 2024 but not earlier than 180 days prior to that date? So approximately after August 1 2023?
I spoke with a few colleagues and we believe the information requested is backward looking (within 180 days) meaning going back in time it should be before that Jan 21 date (For example: Jan 22 would be before Jan 21 when backtracking if you needed to submit documents today July 22th).
Hopefully that helps clarify things a little. Apologize for the confusing verbiage. Please let us know if we can further assist you or you may always contact Selling Partner Support with inquiries at anytime. Have a wonderful rest of the week.
Sincerely, Cooper_Amazon
Seller_5OOJbllwLahOh
I have had many more items lately with the apply to sell, many of them I had previously sold before, The best is the classical CD titles they come up as related to Dolce and Gabbna, and I cannot list, The BS is just continous, The application process is complete Bull, Its designed for your failure period, they know your not getting the proper invoices, Media sellers sell mostly from the secondary market, Enjoy the control over your listings, and go withe flow, 14 years in and everyday I ask myself why do I get my blood pressure up,
