Legacy Amazon Australia Listings

When Amazon Australia launched in 2017, many third-party sellers hurried to create product listings without fully grasping Amazon’s rules. As a result, numerous listings were made with incorrect details – wrong product IDs, wrong brand names, etc (sellercentral.amazon.com.au). Fast forward to today, and those early mistakes are coming back to bite. Sellers (especially resellers) are now getting emails from Amazon about compliance problems or impending listing suspensions due to these legacy listing errors.

Why can’t you just fix it yourself? On Amazon, no individual seller “owns” a listing – Amazon does (oneegg.com.au). The person who first created the listing had some influence over its content, but once a brand owner steps in and enrolls in Brand Registry, their changes take priority over any reseller’s (oneegg.com.au). If you’re a reseller (not the brand owner), you probably can’t edit critical fields like the brand name or product ID. Brands are encouraged to take control: it’s very common for brands to enroll in Brand Registry for protection even if they don’t sell on Amazon themselves (reddit.com). That means the brand can correct information and even restrict who sells their products.

What Can Resellers Do?

• Contact the Brand: Reach out to the product’s manufacturer/brand owner about the issue. Explain that the Amazon listing is inaccurate or flagged. Encourage them to join Amazon Brand Registry (if they haven’t already) to claim and correct the listing. A brand-registered owner can update titles, images, and fix product identifiers, which resolves many compliance issues at the source. 
• Get authorisation: If Amazon is warning that you’re not authorised to sell the item (common for brand-gated products), ask the brand for a Letter of authorisation on their official letterhead. This letter should confirm you’re allowed to sell their product. Providing Amazon this proof can lift restrictions (reddit.com) and clear up trademark approval requirements.
• Leverage your sales history: As the seller of a product with vested interest in sales, you can make “suggestions” for changes in listings. You would need to show proof that part of the listing you want changed is indeed incorrect based on external listings published on the brand owner’s own websites. If you open a case and are able to convey this, you may get away without the need for authorisation. 
• Leverage Brand Registry Benefits: Remind the brand owner that even if they don’t want to actively sell on Amazon, they should still take control of their brand’s presence. By using Brand Registry, they can remove rogue listings and ensure any Amazon product pages with their name are accurate and compliant (reddit.comreddit.com). It protects their brand reputation and helps you as a reseller operate within Amazon’s rules. 
• Plan for Worst-Case: If the brand refuses to get involved or won’t authorise sales on Amazon, you may need to stop offering that product. Amazon favours brand-controlled listings with correct product identifiers and can suspend a listing that remains non-compliant. It’s better to address the root issue (with the brand’s help) than to risk your seller account health. In some cases, the brand might decide to gate their products, meaning only approved sellers can list them (oneegg.com.au). Working cooperatively with the brand is your best bet for a sustainable solution. 

If you are having trouble identifying the issue or getting access to Amazon Brand Registry, book me in here so that I can assist. There are no guarantees that Amazon will correct your listings but I have been working with Brands for many years and I have yet to come across a listing that has not been corrected through Brand Registry.

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