Amazon Case Study

[mitzuoka]

30 day old Amazon Account was suspended this past Monday. Funds to be released in 90 days. Account was selling sport jerseys with official tags. Roughly 12 items were sold with the first disbursement going throughout without a problem. Amount was $6xx.xx that reached the bank account fine. Seller upgraded to Seller Pro Merchant account to avoid heavy fees. Over the next two weeks, new sales reached $7xx.xx and 5 days prior to disbursement, it was suspended. Out of 25 transactions, 3 posted positive feedback, all with 5 stars. Two refunds were issued roughly the same day the order was placed due to non-inventory. Buyers were notified immediately. Bank account info is new and never used before. Account was accessed via VPN. All personal information was also different, including name, address, contact phone number, etc. No SSN was entered.

Possible reason for suspension?

Only possible cause I can think of is going over the 28 day/ $750 seller limit.

[rsot]

What was the e-mail you received when suspended?

[mitzuoka]

________________________

Hello from Amazon.

We are writing to let you know we have removed your selling privileges, canceled your listings, and placed a temporary hold on any funds in your seller account. Any new selling accounts you open will be closed.

We took this action because your seller account failed our seller account review process.

Per the terms of the selling agreement you entered into with Amazon Services, we reserve the right to limit or remove selling privileges as we deem appropriate.

We encourage you to take appropriate steps to resolve any pending orders. Note that any amounts paid as a result of A-to-z Guarantee claims and chargebacks may be deducted from your seller account.

After 90 days, the hold will be removed and any remaining funds will be available per your settlement schedule. In addition, balance and settlement information will be available in the Payments section of your seller account. If you have questions about these funds, please write to payments-funds@amazon.com.

While we appreciate your interest in selling on Amazon.com, the removal of your selling privileges is a permanent action.

_______________________


Any help is appreciated.

[GrannyT]

Of course VPN wouldn't enter into it would it?

[mitzuoka]

Originally Posted by GrannyT

Of course VPN wouldn't enter into it would it?

I wouldn't know. This is my first stealth account which I though I followed relatively well. As far as Amazon Stealth goes, VPN is one of the suggested methods.

[GrannyT]

Originally Posted by mitzuoka

I wouldn't know. This is my first stealth account which I though I followed relatively well. As far as Amazon Stealth goes, VPN is one of the suggested methods.

Hmmmm - not from me it isn't!!!

[mitzuoka]

Have you had any accounts suspended that would make you believe it was VPN related?

[MichaelW]

Two refunds were issued roughly the same day the order was placed due to non-inventory. Buyers were notified immediately.

I think this is the problem.

[mitzuoka]

Originally Posted by MichaelW

I think this is the problem.

These refunds were issued roughly 8 days prior to the suspension coming in. The time difference, I believe, would make it less likely of a reason. Again, this is y first account so I am very open to the suggestions and experiences of those who are better versed.

[MichaelW]

Did you check your seller account metric to see what problem is

[mitzuoka]

Originally Posted by MichaelW

Did you check your seller account metric to see what problem is

The only thing that might be of concern is teh refund rate which stands at 6.9% over 90 days for 30 orders.

[stugots]

they LOVE to close accounts close to pay dates huh

[mitzuoka]

I guess so haha. Any clue on the reason why?

[abrendon320]

VPN might be the issue.

[mitzuoka]

Could you explain why they might have an issue with VPN?

[kris3841]

Definitely has nothing to due with the Velocity limit, the email would have been different and your account would have been in 'review' not suspension.

[cardfelon]

You have several things going wrong for you. Just one of things is reason to get your account suspended.

1. Using a VPN to access your account. This is not advised for Amazon.

2. Issuing 2 refunds for non-inventory. Amazon does not like it when accounts cancel orders before they are shipped. Only list what you have!

3. Velocity limit. You sold way too much in the first thirty days. I know you said this was your first account so you were unaware. From now on keep it under $750 and try to spread that across the month. Don't just sell $750 of stuff in like 2 days.

[Axcend]

yeah, VPN is definitely a reason.

Here's a question, I thought that clothing wasn't open to new sellers anymore?

[mitzuoka]

Originally Posted by cardfelon

You have several things going wrong for you. Just one of things is reason to get your account suspended.

1. Using a VPN to access your account. This is not advised for Amazon.

2. Issuing 2 refunds for non-inventory. Amazon does not like it when accounts cancel orders before they are shipped. Only list what you have!

3. Velocity limit. You sold way too much in the first thirty days. I know you said this was your first account so you were unaware. From now on keep it under $750 and try to spread that across the month. Don't just sell $750 of stuff in like 2 days.

Thanks a lot for your help. Here are some possible solutions Im thinking about as I try to create a new account:

1. Using dial-up connection. I know that the IP address would change everytime and because I am using dial up, there is no issue with MAC addresses as it does not exist when using a dial up connection. I plan on creating multiple accounts by creating a virtual machine for each account I want to create. Each account would connect via dial up. What do you think about this?

2. You are 100% right about only selling what I have. I was selling on eBay too so I lost track of inventory. You're right and it won't happen again.

3. I am going to try to stay around $500 for the first month. Do I get an email that my account is under review or does Amazon notify me only when something has gone wrong in the review?

As I said before, your guys' help is greatly appreciated. I am very new to all of this but I am open to suggestions and ideas from those who have been in this for much longer than I have. Thanks again to everyone lending a helping hand.

[mitzuoka]

Also, for how many months should I stay under the $750 limit? I tried searching for this but I couldn't find a definite answer.

[mitzuoka]

any recommendations on what I outlined?

[rsot]

Have you first considered picking up the Am az on ghost guide?