Vendor Central Inventory: Amazon Collect Changes

July 13th, 2021

Amazon allows businesses to sell on their platform two different ways. You can either sell through Seller Central or Vendor Central.

Vendor Central is an invite-only platform on Amazon. This selling option allows you to sell your inventory directly to Amazon (i.e. you are their supplier).

Typically, Amazon recruits manufacturers and authorized distributors who are selling desirable products, such as products that have a high sell-through rate or great customer ratings, for Vendor Central. There have been situations where successful marketplace sellers are invited to become official vendors. This is more likely to occur if you are the sole source for a product that is already selling well.

Amazon Vendor Central Guide

Everything you need to know about selling on Vendor Central in one place. Read more about what Vendor Central is, how to join and how to make the most out of this selling opportunity.

View The Guide


Amazon Collect New Metric

Amazon has been working diligently to decrease the negative impacts on their supply chain. In order to maintain optimal inventory levels and better serve customers, Amazon recently added a new metric to track FTL (Full Truckload) and LTL (Less than Truckload) pickups. Pickups are also known as Amazon Collect.


How Amazon Collect Works

Collect vendors are those sellers who work with Amazon to have their Vendor Central inventory picked up at their warehouse or distribution center, and taken to Amazon fulfillment centers via Amazon’s own carrier service.

The process begins with Amazon sending the seller a confirmation pickup date and time for FTL shipments, and a confirmation pickup date for LTL shipments. This happens at least 24 hours in advance.

IMPORTANT: If you cannot accommodate the date and time given, you can reschedule your pickup by notifying Amazon. Open a case before 5pm PST the day prior to the originally scheduled pickup to schedule a new time and to avoid chargeback fees.


Pick Up Chargeback Fees

If your freight is not ready when the carrier arrives, or if you are unable to load the carrier in the allotted time frame (60 minutes), you will incur a chargeback fee.

Each missed pickup will cost:

  • $500 for TL shipments
  • $200 for LTL shipments

Tips to Prevent Chargebacks

Selling on Amazon can be a lucrative business opportunity, however, unnecessary and avoidable chargebacks can eat away at your bottom line if you do not have your warehouse operations under control. Here are a few tips to help prevent these Vendor Central inventory chargebacks:

  • Always confirm the pickup date/time to ensure that you can accommodate what is scheduled. If you cannot, be sure to reschedule before 5pm PST the day prior to the originally scheduled pickup.
  • Make sure your facility operation hours are up-to-date. This will help to ensure that shipments are not scheduled for pickup outside of your scheduled hours. Go to Settings > Warehouse Settings to check and update this information.
  • Ensure that your freight is ready to go. Drivers are given a specific timeframe for loading your inventory. All inventory that has been scheduled for pickup must be loaded within 60 minutes of the scheduled arrival time.


Vendor Central Inventory and Consulting Services

Our team of Amazon experts can help you stand out from the crowd by optimizing your sales channel. We have broken down our service solutions to four main areas:

Maintenance

  • Inventory Planning: Minimize your out-of-stock rates by having a process in place for inventory forecasting to ensure your Vendor Central inventory is stocked in a timely manner.
  • Monitoring: Keep an eye on your sales and the competition with regular audits.
  • Chargebacks: Avoid unwanted chargeback fees by learning what Amazon’s guidelines are and having policies in place.

Content Optimization

  • Copywriting: Sell more products with content that is descriptive, answers your customers questions, and is supported with ranking keywords to make sure that your customers can find you easily when they search on Amazon.
  • Product Photography: Having professional photography and graphics can show consumers what the product is and can do, answer any questions they may have, and instill confidence about their purchase decision.
  • Advertising and Marketing: Through the use of a properly optimized PPC campaign and driving more traffic with deals and coupons, you can gain valuable traffic to your listings to help boost your sales.

Management

  • Reviews and Ratings: Always put your customer first! Respond in a timely manner to customer feedback to meet Amazon’s seller metrics as well as to show customers that you value their business.
  • Case Management: Have assistance in resolving cases with Amazon and setting up processes to avoid additional situations in the future.
  • Hybrid Strategy: Maximize your exposure by properly selling on both channels: Seller Central and Vendor Central.

Additional Services

  • Brand Registry: Register and protect your brand from sellers who can tarnish your reputation.
  • A+ Content and Brand Store: Share more about your brand and products with eye-catching pictures, helpful videos, and informative description fields to help turn the consumer from a browser to a buyer.
  • Shipping: Get the assistance that you need to manage the shipment process. No inventory in stock, means no sales -This is something we do not want you to worry about.

Vendor Central gives sellers many benefits and a few challenges. If you’d like more information about how our services can help your business, please take a minute to fill out our contact form.

We’ll get started with a quick 30-minute consultation to answer any questions you may have and
to learn more about your company and needs.

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