Dropshipping refers to a business model where a supplier anonymously sends products to the buyer’s address on behalf of his store owner. It assumes that customers have ordered the products from the dropshipper’s shop. Often, they don’t even realize that they placed an order at a dropshipping site. It’s not the same for Amazon (2020). Dropshippers will not be allowed to sell products from Amazon.
Dropshippers should not be afraid to dropship on Amazon. We’ll be discussing why dropshipping on Amazon might not work in 2021. Don’t fret! Dropshipping is possible with these alternatives.
What is Amazon FBA? Why is Dropshipping not real?
Let’s start with the FBA. This is important because many new entrepreneurs view it as Amazon’s dropshipping model.
FBA is not dropshipping in simple terms because of the significant difference between stock possession and FBA. Dropshipping is a way to sell merchandise without actually owning it. You can only use Amazon’s FBA program to purchase merchandise and store it at Amazon’s warehouse. Amazon will take care of all returns and shipments.
Can I import Amazon products and resell them as a dropshipper?
Dropshipping is officially allowed by Amazon. You can read more about it in their dropshipping policies.
Are you willing to take the risk and have Amazon products shipped directly to your store? Below are some useful suggestions. To avoid being banned from your Amazon affiliate account, it’s recommended that you carefully read and follow these recommendations. Amazon may still block your account at any given time.
How to prevent your Amazon Dropshipping account being banned
Amazon has increased its compliance efforts significantly over the past few months. Dropshipping accounts can be lost sooner than you think if you don’t follow the rules you knew before. We’ve heard and seen the top reasons that Amazon affiliates are often in trouble, and sometimes even banned from the program.
Links in Email
Amazon prohibits affiliate links being used in “offline promotions or in any other offline way.” This is surprising for many users. There are many notable influencers who include Amazon links within their email newsletters. However, section 4 of Amazon’s Operating Agreement, entitled “Promotional Limitations”, prohibits this.
Links in eBooks and PDF documents
Professional marketers know that if someone has just finished reading your book and enjoyed it, it is the right time to convince them to buy the next one. If the book is part of a series, this is even better. Promoting it can attract attention. You could lose your Amazon Associates program if you include affiliate links within your PDFs or eBooks.
Mentioning Prices (or availability)
It seems normal to include prices on your product pages when you promote Amazon products. You must however, update prices dynamically through the Amazon API. You will be in violation of the Operating Agreement. Amazon doesn’t like inaccurate or out-of date claims about its products. To avoid sharing outdated information and prices, they require that the information be updated no more than 24 hours. This is mentioned in section 2 of Amazon’s Policies page.
Using Their Star Reviews & Ratings
Dropshipping is not easy. One of the things that you can’t do easily is to use their star ratings and reviews. You are not the only one who loves this product. Take a look at all of the star ratings and reviews that Amazon has posted. It may be tempting just to duplicate these incredible testimonials and star ratings in order to compare products. However, publishing in a way that doesn’t automatically update could lead to your being removed from Amazon Associates.
No Affiliate Disclaimer
Dropshipping on Amazon can feel awkward if you don’t have one. It might seem like such a thing would scare away people or make your site look cluttered. But it’s against Amazon’s Operating Agreement and the law!
Amazon is a proponent of transparency and all affiliates must adhere to the law.
A disclaimer must be included on your site explaining that you are an affiliate and will earn a small commission for any products sold. This could be a big turnoff if you think like a buyer.
Affiliate Link Cloaking or Link Cloaking/Hiding
Amazon is very conscious of the user experience. Because Amazon’s reputation is dependent on how visitors are referred to the site by affiliates, they don’t want them to misdirect their audience. Amazon encourages users to be sure they know which links they are clicking and where they are directed. Amazon prohibits link shortening that does not clearly indicate that users are being sent to Amazon.
If you don’t want to be kicked out quickly, then shorten your link. We don’t think you would want to do this.
Use Your Affiliate Link to Purchase
It would be quite a sweet deal to shop all your Amazon shopping online using your affiliate link, and also earn an affiliate commission. This practice is prohibited by Amazon. Rule #29 of Participation requirements states:
Special Links will not allow you to purchase Product(s), for your personal use, or commercial use.
Link to Sexually Explicit or Violent Websites
Amazon prohibits affiliate links to sites that promote or contain sexually explicit material. All affiliates must refrain from using their links to such sites.
Infringe Amazon’s Trademark Policy
If they feel you are violating their trademark rights, Amazon can quickly shut down your account. Amazon can quickly shut down your site if they believe you are violating their trademark rights. You should know that Amazon has a lot of trademarks. Not all of them have to do with Amazon’s name. You can however use a trademarked name for your product title, description, or link.
Placing Ads on Search Engines
It is forbidden to place product ads on Google Product Search and Bing Shopping to drive traffic through your affiliate links to Amazon Sites. You can also use traffic sources to drive traffic to your Amazon Sites instead.
If you need to maintain your affiliate program, don’t run adverts on search engines. You will be kicked out quickly.
No Sales In 90 Days
Failure to sell at least one product within 90 days is considered a violation. It seems that no one would sign up for an affiliate program without the intention of making sales. If this happens, your affiliate program will be terminated.
Are there other options available for dropshippers who realize that Amazon is not the best option?
Dropshippers, or those who have been following our updates, should be aware that dropshipping has one major advantage: customers can only order the product from the supplier after they place an order. Dropshipping Amazon products doesn’t allow you to do this. Either they ban you or you leave the platform.
Amazon cannot build the common dropshipping model. We can offer alternatives, however: AliExpress dropshipping or eBay dropshipping .
Although AliExpress and eBay have their own policies, dropshippers can maximize their marketing potentials and experience dropshipping at its best. These platforms allow you to only pay when a customer places an order.
AliExpress and eBay allow you to import products from both platforms onto your website, synchronize stock and place orders for your clients automatically. This allows you to expand and scale your business.
