Is your product listing VISIBLE on Amazon? Is it LIVE on the marketplace storefront? Are your customers able to navigate to your product page? If your answer is NO to any of these, we have another question for you.
When did you last scrutinize your Amazon product listings?
Amazon product listing is not a set-it-and-forget-it task. Instead, you have to update and maintain it consistently.
Moreover, you need to ensure that your product listing meets Amazon’s rigorous guidelines. Because, if not, Amazon will suppress your listing. And for sellers, a suppressed listing equals a lost opportunity.
So, what exactly is Amazon suppressed listing? How to discover if you have suppressed listings? And how to fix & reactivate it?
We shall discuss all these, plus how Amazon virtual assistants help prevent listing suppression and where outsourcing fares in this equation.
What is A Suppressed Amazon Listing?
In case a listing has attributes that do not comply with Amazon’s guidelines, it will not be visible to the buyers.
We call such a listing Suppressed.
Think of a suppressed listing as a deactivated entity, not a deleted one. If you follow the correct procedure, you can restore the page and your target buyers will be able to see it on the Amazon search results.
How to Ascertain if You Have Suppressed Listings on Amazon?
Amazon does not NOTIFY its sellers whenever it suppresses listings. As a result, suppressed product(s) listings often go unnoticed.
This brings forward the need for sellers to check their product listings quite often.
Here’s the process to check if you have suppressed product listings.
| Seller Account → Inventory Tab → Manage Inventory → Suppressed Tab [You’ll see the “Suppressed” tab only if you have suppressed listings to fix and reactivate] → Fix Your Products → Attribute [Option to filter listings by specific issue/cause of suppression] |
Following the above process, you’ll be able to determine if the eCommerce giant has deactivated any of your listings. Also, you’ll get the reasons for listing suppression.
What Are The Common Reasons For Suppressed Amazon Listings?
Each specific case of Amazon listing suppression is unique. However, in our experience, here are the PRIME reasons why the marketplace suppresses a listing:
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- Listing Without Product Titles.
- Listings Without Detailed Product Descriptions.
- Listings Containing Information About Other Products (cross-promotion).
- Listing Containing Brand Information [Or Related To The Business].
- Listing That Request Positive Feedback/Review/Ratings.
- Listings With Product Titles Longer Than 200 Characters.
- In Some Cases, Listing With Product Titles Longer Than 80 Characters (dependent on product category).
- Listings With Product Titles Containing Overtly Promotional Language (like “best,” “cheapest,” world-class,” “top-rated”).
Images
- Listing Without Primary Product Image.
- Primary Image With No White Background & Product Clearly Visible.
Other
- Listing Without A Brand Name.
- Listing With No Defined Product Category.
Listing Without Key Information, like:
- Product identifier.
- Variation attribute (size, color, flavor, etc.).
- Duplicate/Copied Product Listings.
- Adding Products In a Restricted Category.
- Customers Filing Safety Concerns Related To The Product.
- Price Gouging.
Amazon Believes You’re Selling:
- Expired Products.
- Fake/Counterfeit Products.
- Used Items As New.
How To Fix & Reactivate Amazon Suppressed Listing?
Contrary to widely-held belief, listing suppression on Amazon is not as terrible as it may seem.
No seller wants their listing to suddenly vanish off Amazon’s digital shelves. But, if you do discover listing suppressions, do not panic!
It is easy to rectify issues that have resulted in listing suppression.
Here’s a quick and simple process to fix Amazon suppressed listing:
Step #1: Go to your seller central account, click on the inventory tab, and select the “manage inventory” option.
Step #2: Review if any of your listings are suppressed. In this step, you will find a separate ‘Suppressed’ tab. If no ‘Suppressed’ tab is there, all your Amazon listings are operating right.
Step #3: Click on the ‘Suppressed’ button and select the listing you want to fix and reactivate.
Step #4: Go through all suppressed listings and edit those that require more & detailed information. For images, navigate to the ‘Manage Images’ option and fix listings without product photos.
Note: Each product listing has a summary page that lists all suppression and quality issues.
Step #5: Ensure you resolve all the issues and click ‘Save and Finish.’
| Note: Suppression alerts usually disappear from the ‘Manage Inventory’ tab within a few minutes of error fixing. However, sometimes warnings remain on the “Listing Quality and Suppressed Listings Report” for up to 48 hours. |
How To Fix Amazon Suppressed Listings In Bulk?
Since most eStores conduct bulk listing uploads, it is possible that most of those pages were treated similarly. Therefore, if one of them has been suspended, the other may face the same fate.
To fix & reactivate suppressed listing in bulk, follow these steps:
| Note: You have to select the report format as Excel. |
- Go to seller central, select the Inventory tab, and click Inventory reports.
- Move to the drop-down menu, click ‘Select Report Type,’ and select the Listing quality and suppressed listing report tab.
- Now, select Excel as a report format.
- Select the ‘Request Report’ option to get your report downloaded.
- Press on the ‘Download’ button to get your Listing quality and suppressed listing report complete.
- Open your report, go to the ‘Enhancement Opportunities’ tab and update the Corrected Values.
- Now, select the Data definition tab and check Accepted values.
- Write ‘Suppressed’ in the filter column to check suppressed listings only.
- Click the “Save” button to update the report with changes.
- Go back to the Inventory tab and then Add inventory via upload.
- Now select ‘Upload your Inventory tab’ and scroll down to the second option- #2 Upload file”.
- Select the file type: Listing Quality & Suppressed Listing File.
- Press on the Choose file button and search your saved report.
- Lastly, Click on the ‘Upload’ button. The process may take up to 24 hours to update this report.
How Can Amazon Virtual Assistants Help Prevent Suppressed Listings on Amazon?
With extensive experience, skillset, and knowledge, Amazon virtual assistants execute many tasks that prevent listing suppression and ensure smooth operations, like:
- Taking preventive measures preliminary to the launch stage.
- Adhering to Amazon’s strict category-specific standards/guidelines.
- Staying up-to-date on the regulatory policies and ensuring compliance in your product listings.
- Setting up quality assurance measures amidst inventory planning, order fulfillment, and customer complaint resolution.
- Conducting periodic checks on listing to avoid getting flagged by Amazon.
An experienced Amazon virtual assistant scrutinizes all of your product listings with the latest guidelines and policies mandated by the giant marketplace. Moreover, they proactively track and enforce new guideline changes to ensure sellers do not face suspensions on their listings.
Prevent Your Amazon Listing From Suppression: Hire Amazon Virtual Assistants
Selling on “Amazon” is not easy.
Amazon sellers have to wear many hats to ensure seamless operations. Other than routine work, they have to monitor, maintain & upkeep product listings continuously. They also have to evaluate competitors’ actions & strategies to implement best growth practices.
Unfortunately, amidst all the work, the chances of listing errors get high, which may lead to suppression.
For sellers looking to effectively create, maintain, and monitor their product listing, we recommend outsourcing this task to Amazon virtual assistants. Doing so will get you many advantages in addition to the better outcomes you seek.
- Quick solutions
- Expert assistance
- Minimal distraction from core activities
Conclusion
Hiring virtual assistants to fix Amazon suppressed listings is the best bet. They help eliminate maintenance stress and allow sellers to focus on creating products and businesses that ensure sustainability and growth.
Connect With Us:
We are hopeful that this guide helped you clearly understand how you can fix and reactivate Amazon suppressed listing and how hiring virtual assistants can prevent listing suppression.
If you have any doubts or are looking to hire virtual assistants for the marketplace, connect with us at info@data4amazon.com.