With Prime Day behind us and Q4 fast approaching, now is the ideal time to start prioritizing the security of your products. With the surge in order volume and reviews you likely just experienced, your items are perfectly positioned to shine as superstars in the next few months (if they aren't already!). However, this is precisely what hijackers are after.
These bad actors have no interest in putting in the hard work that you have just done; their sole priority is to exploit your success. They seize control of your branded Amazon listing, manipulating your product details and prices without your consent. In some cases, they even go as far as selling a cheap counterfeit version of your item.
While Amazon has set procedures in place to help prevent this from happening, it’s also your responsibility to help keep hijackers at bay. Keep reading to learn how to prevent Amazon listing hijacking.
The fourth quarter, also known as Q4, is a critical period for sales on Amazon. So, it’s of utmost importance to stay vigilant and protect your listings against hijackers looking to pounce. Here's why:
1) Amazon is busier than ever. The fourth quarter brings a surge of both buyers and sellers to the platform. However, this does allow hijackers to more easily blend in.
2) The competition gets fierce. With the increase in sellers vying for sales, a few may turn to unethical methods such as hijacking listings.
3) There’s more counterfeit products. Counterfeiters take advantage of the increased demand during this busy season to infiltrate the market and deceive unsuspecting buyers.
When your listing falls victim to hijacking, the consequences can be hugely detrimental to your business. Not only will you experience a decline in sales, but your brand reputation will also suffer. Additionally, there is a high risk of account suspension, loss of the Buy Box, negative reviews, and even account closure.
By doing the following, you can begin to safeguard your products from Amazon hijackers.
You must have an active registered trademark or a pending application in order to enroll. While this process can take time, it’s certainly worth the effort as trademarking your products makes reporting (and removing) counterfeiters much easier.
Crafting a product listing can be an overwhelming task. With numerous areas to consider, many sellers often rush the process just to get it published quickly. However, neglecting certain fields or providing only a handful of basic images won't do you any favors. These weak points are exactly what hijackers target.
To combat this, it's crucial that you complete every field, even if it isn't mandatory. You should also focus on your branding. Make sure to include your logo on the item and its packaging. Clear, distinct branding is easily recognizable by customers and harder for hijackers to replicate.
In order to deter hijackers even more effectively, consider bundling complementary products together. By bundling, you make it much more difficult for hijackers to copy your listings as they would need to get their hands on every single product included in the bundle.
This strategy isn’t feasible (or necessary) for all of your products, but if you have a best-seller that you’re worried about or has been hijacked in the past, you may want to give it a try. You can simply create a separate listing that features a new bundle that includes your superstar product.
Establishing your own eCommerce website is yet another way to help stop hijackers from taking over your business. In today's market, consumers conduct thorough research before making a purchase. Having a website separate from Amazon provides them with a way to verify the authenticity of your business and recognize any discrepancies between what you’re selling on Amazon and your own store.
And thanks to the abundance of website builders, contractors, and cutting-edge AI-tools available, creating your own website isn't the monumental task that it once was.
In order to truly protect your products from hijackers, you need to monitor your listings around the clock and look for sudden changes that signal someone else’s presence. We all need sleep, however, which is why many sellers entrust this task to third-party software like FeedbackFive by eComEngine.
FeedbackFive, an industry-leading feedback and review request solution, now comes with a variety of product alerts, including possible hijacker detection warnings and listing content changes. Visit the alert center to select and schedule your desired notifications.
From there, the tool will instantly alert you whenever the number of sellers on your listing has changed (increased or decreased) or if modifications have been made to your listing content (title, main image, brand name, and flagged as “adult” by Amazon).
You’ll receive valuable information about the new offer on your listing and easily be able to see what product details have been changed. Better yet, you’ll also be given recommended actions so you can continue to investigate the issue and potentially report it to Amazon faster than ever.
Listing hijacking is a real threat, and every Amazon seller should know how to defend themselves against it.
By following the steps above, you can help protect your listings from hijackers and ensure that you have a successful Q4. And remember, if you need help looking after your Amazon account, Seller Candy has the services for you!