Digital marketing on Amazon has its share of troubles, especially for sellers using the platform. Apart from the stress of pooling customers and creating awareness about your Amazon page, sellers sometimes get their accounts suspended. If you have had this issue of account suspension once before, you will understand when I say it is a saddening experience.
However, if Amazon suspends your seller account, the first step to solving the issue is to remain calm. If you follow the instructions in this blog, you will find your Amazon reinstatement easy and start selling again. Also, this blog will explain why Amazon can suspend accounts, so you can use the information to prevent further disruptions in your Amazon business.
Amazon will not suspend your account unless they suspect a breach of the selling terms and conditions. Often, Amazon suspends accounts due to violations of any of its seller guidelines. When Amazon suspends an account, they send an ‘account deactivation email’ explaining the reason for taking the action.
Sometimes even innocent accounts get suspended if Amazon catches wind of a breach. Knowing they may be wrong for suspending your seller account, Amazon allows sellers to reinstate their accounts through the Amazon suspension appeal.
Before we move into explaining how the suspension appeal works, let’s look at the common reasons why Amazon can suspend your account.
Amazon is among the world’s best digital marketers, and they hold their standards very high. To be a successful seller on Amazon and prevent account suspension, you must adhere to the Terms of Service and Seller Code of Conduct. Let us look at some actions that breach the Terms of Service and result in consequences ranging from account suspension to permanent banning of accounts.
• Selling Unauthentic Items: Illegal, dangerous, or counterfeit items are highly prohibited. Amazon prohibits the sale of illegal, dangerous, and counterfeit products. Selling such products will lead to account suspension or permanent termination. You can visit Amazon’s ‘restricted items’ page to find out the goods that are a red flag on Amazon.
• Hiding a Product’s Actual Quality: Amazon will suspend your seller account if you sell a product with a lower quality than what your product page displays.
• Running Two or More Seller Accounts: You can only manage a single account unless you have a legitimate business that needs to open a second account and all your accounts are in good standing. Amazon will deactivate your account if you attempt to create multiple accounts without meeting these conditions.
• Buying Fake Reviews: Buying fake reviews on social media websites can lead to account deactivation. Amazon wants sellers to keep things real and avoid deceiving the public by purchasing positive product reviews.
• Customer Reviews: Your account can be suspended if there are comments about ‘wrong items sent’ or ‘missing items’ as feedback from your customers.
Amazon has a metric for weighing your performance on its platform. If your performance goes against their set standards, your account can be suspended, and you will need an Amazon suspension appeal to reinstate it. When you log in to your account, you can check your seller performance by clicking the Performance>Account Health tabs. You have excellent seller performance when:
• The Late Shipment Rate is below 4%.
• The Order defect rate is below 1%, and
• The Pre-fulfillment cancellation rate is below 2.5%.
A breach in any of these without proper redress can warrant an account suspension.
When Amazon suspends a seller account, it will face numerous restrictions and will not be able to sell until they lift the ban. Simply put, you will have no selling privileges if your account gets suspended. Also, your customers will not be able to view your product pages and listings during the suspension period.
After an account suspension, the seller will receive an email stating the cause of the ban and requesting a Plan of Action. Amazon will communicate what the Plan of Action must entail to the suspended seller account. However, you may be required to present additional documents for proof and to substantiate your appeal. You should add your Plan of Action to your Amazon suspension appeal.
Additionally, if you had funds in your account when Amazon suspended it, you can not access the funds until they reinstate the account. After rectifying the cause of the ban, Amazon will send an Account Reinstatement Email which also contains the availability of your funds. Amazon’s mail will include the phrase: “If you have any funds in your account, they are now available.“
When Amazon suspends your account, it is better to act quickly so that you can resume your enterprise as soon as possible. However, you must remain calm, look for the cause of the suspension, and derive a professional Plan of Action before submitting an appeal.
Suspension on Amazon can last forever. When an account is deactivated and the user fails to send an appeal or generate a Plan of Action, the account can remain deactivated. Usually, you get an email from Amazon just before they suspend your account. In the mail, you will see every activity on your account that violates Amazon’s policies. When this arrives, you need to submit a plan of action to show that you are aware of the situation and willing to rectify it.
The Amazon Plan of Action (POA) contains all the measures you are willing to take to restore your account in line with Amazon’s seller policies.
Therefore, the time your account stays suspended depends on your swiftness in handling the situation. So if you can spot the cause of the suspension quickly and send an Amazon suspension appeal, or if you follow the guidelines below, you can reinstate your seller’s account in a day!
As mentioned earlier, Amazon has high standards, and this means that every activity, including account reinstatement, must be done formally, following Amazon’s policies.
Suspension appeals vary in level, and one type of suspension appeal may not work for you, depending on the level of your offense. To submit the first-level request, go to the Performance tab, click Account Health, and further click on Reactivate your account. Then follow the prompt instructions and submit your request.
This procedure works for almost all account suspensions, but if it doesn’t work, you can proceed to resolution-seller@amazon.com. This level of suspension appeal will require high-resolution images and additional documents.
Lastly, the last level of Amazon suspension appeal involves filing appeals at jeff@amazon.com. [Do not send an appeal to this email before trying other levels of suspension appeal].
When appealing Amazon suspensions, you must start by acknowledging your fault. This will create a sense of professionalism and awareness that you are willing to address the cause of the suspension. Also, avoid bluffing, go straight to the point, and ensure all the facts you include in the appeal are factual. To make sure you have a tight understanding of how to present an Amazon suspension appeal, here is an easy guide:
• Address the Seller Performance Team and acknowledge your fault. Start with a salutation directed at the Seller Performance team, such as “Dear Seller Performance Team,” and proceed to show your understanding of the root cause of the suspension. To get on the good side of customer support, you can chip in with a statement that it’s been a privilege to work with Amazon and you appreciate the privilege.
• The next thing to do is state the details of the issue. Remember to be factual and always acknowledge that the problem originated on your end. You can also attach supporting documents to your Amazon suspension appeal to prove your awareness of the issue. For instance, if your account was suspended due to errors in a transaction, you must reveal all necessary documentation, such as order numbers, the date and time of the transaction, and the specific policy that the transaction violated.
• Next, you must present Amazon with some steps you will take to resolve the issue. This stage requires you to present your Amazon Plan of Action. Here, you must suggest actions that you will take to prevent the issue from ever happening again. This stage is the most crucial step in the reinstatement process, so it must be detailed and adhered to once Amazon restores your account. If you need assistance in creating a plan of action, visit Mari-Marketing.
• Conclude your appeal with a reassurance of your commitment to Amazon’s Terms of Service, Seller Code of Conduct, and every other policy going forward. Do not forget to request feedback from Amazon. You can ask to know if there are any additional things you need to include in your plan of action for your account to be restored or things you must do to prevent future suspensions.
• When you complete these steps, wait for a response from the Seller Performance team or whatever mail you filed your appeal to. Amazon will notify you via an ‘Account Reinstatement Email’ if they approve your appeal or if there are other things you must do.
You have a limited number of appeals, and Amazon will terminate your account permanently once you reach the limit. You can consult an expert to assist with your Amazon reinstatement process to avoid reaching the limit before you restore your account. We also offer free consultations for all you need to know about restoring your account and getting back to work.
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