Amazon account suspension

Getting an ASIN, or worse, an Amazon account suspension feels a lot like falling into a black hole of confusion. It can be incredibly frustrating, especially since Amazon is often very vague about why an account or listing gets suspended.

Often, when an account or ASIN gets suspended, a seller has to sift through their listings and scramble to find the cause of the suspension. It’s not ideal and a big mess. The best way to avoid this is to make sure an account or ASIN doesn’t get suspended in the first place. 

The following are the most common factors that lead to account and ASIN suspension and how to avoid them.

Unapproved Language

Certain phrases and keywords can result in an ASIN being suspended. Enough offenses and Amazon will suspend the account.

• COVID-19: A lot of sellers have tried to cash in on COVID-19, but all ASINs with any mention of the coronavirus must be pre-approved by Amazon.
• BOASTFUL LANGUAGE: A majority of sellers want customers to think their product is the best, but that doesn’t mean they can claim it’s the best. Such claims (like top-rated, best-in-class, best-selling, or the like) must be substantiated by a note in the text with a study, publication, or other evidence, and year. Additionally, sellers should avoid using boastful marketing language (i.e. most amazing) in their content.
• CBD: Any products containing cannabidiol (CBD) are prohibited, along with any products containing hemp seeds that can be germinated. Regular hemp oil is acceptable as long as it isn’t “full-spectrum” or “rich” and doesn’t contain CBD. Usually, listings with the terms CBD, cannabis, or hemp seed are quickly suppressed by Amazon.
• Pesticides: Amazon is very strict when it comes to pesticides, even banning words sellers usually wouldn’t associate with pesticides such as antimicrobial, antifungal, antibacterial, and anti-mold.
• FDA Approval: Sellers need to provide documentation of being FDA-approved.
• Trademarks: There are some words many Amazon sellers don’t realize are trademarked, including the names of colleges and universities, sports teams, Velcro, Xerox, and BlueTooth. Of course, the seller can use these terms as long as they’ve been approved by the original owner or if their product actually uses the same brand as the term.

Not sure if a listing violates any of these keywords? Our Amazon consultants can help you keep your account safe!

Copyright Infringement

Watch out for copyrighted material. If a seller uses copyrighted material, such as text or images, they can be reported and suspended for copyright infringement. A seller should either use all-original content or should obtain approval from the rights owner. 

Inaccurate Product Information

Amazon requires listings to provide the exact details and specifications of the product. If the measurements, color, material, or functionality of the product are mislabeled, the listing will quickly garner poor reviews, and if too many customers say the product wasn’t as listed, Amazon will suspend the listing.

Restricted Products

Amazon can suspend a seller’s ASIN or account without notice if they’re caught selling prohibited items.

Amazon Restricted Products

Not selling prohibited items sounds like a no-brainer, but there’s more to it than that. Amazon’s Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) program won’t ship certain products that would be eligible otherwise.

FBA Prohibited Products

Poor Seller Performance

Amazon cares A LOT about its customers. If too many customers are dissatisfied with the seller, Amazon can suspend—or even terminate their agreement—with the seller.

To maintain a good seller performance, a seller needs to be wary of their:

• Order defect rate: the percentage of negative feedback sellers receive on customer orders
• Pre-fulfillment cancel rate: the ratio of seller-fulfilled orders sellers cancel before shipment 
• Late shipment rate: the ratio of seller-fulfilled orders that are not shipped on time

Play By the Rules & Stay Safe from ASIN and Amazon Account Suspension

Amazon can be unclear about why they suspended an account, but these tips cover most of the reasons.