From October 1, 2024, a new regulation will come into force on Amazon, which is important for many sellers: A processing fee will be introduced for products that have high return rates. This fee applies to all categories, with the exception of clothing, glasses, shoes, and handbags.
Why is Amazon introducing this fee?
Amazon has taken this action to meet the increased operating costs associated with returning goods while reducing waste. Returns are a significant challenge for many sellers, and the new fee is intended to help reduce the number of returns and therefore also minimize environmental impact.
Who is affected?
The processing fee is only charged for products whose return rate is above a certain threshold. This threshold varies from category to category. To find out whether your products are affected, Amazon has set up a special dashboard in Seller Central.
Where can you find the dashboard?
The dashboard for checking return rates can be found in Amazon Seller Central. Proceed as follows:
- Navigate to Manage inventory
- Select the tab Dispatched by Amazon inventory
- Click on Returns when shipped by Amazon
Here you can view your return rates and check whether they exceed the specified threshold.
Budgeting for Sponsored Product Campaigns
Budgeting in the advertising console is equally new and just as exciting. Using the dashboard, we can not only see whether campaigns are using their budgets efficiently, but also whether they have been used up early on. In addition, budget rules with predetermined metrics can be used to control performance for desired periods of time and target values such as RCAS, ACOS, CTR or CR. Especially on busy days, their use is a good tool for cost and efficiency management.
To round this off, there is another tab in which all orientations are shown in a bundle. This makes it easy to see where sales are being achieved across campaigns. In addition, cost-driving trends are identified at an early stage and can be adapted to the selected strategies.
What does that mean for you as a seller?
If your products exceed the thresholds, you have until October 2024 to make the necessary adjustments. This could include, for example, revising your product listings, improving product descriptions, or even rethinking your product range. Through targeted optimizations, you may be able to lower the return rate and thus avoid the fee.
