Frustrated with falling profits? Let’s explore why sales are down on Amazon and how you can turn things around fast.
It happens to the best of us. You’ve been hustling, optimizing your listings, and pushing ads, but suddenly—bam—your Amazon sales start to drop.
Now, you’re staring at the numbers wondering, “Why are my Amazon sales down?” It’s frustrating when you’re doing the work, yet the sales aren’t showing up.
The truth is, there are several common reasons why your Amazon sales might be diving. From suppressed listings to stockouts, algorithm changes, and negative reviews, understanding the problem is the first step to fixing it.
Let’s explore how our Amazon agency troubleshoots sales slumps and gets your sales back on track.
Table of Contents
Why Sales Are Down on Amazon: Listing Yanking And Suppression
Do you have any yanked or suppressed listings?
Sudden drops in Amazon sales are often tied to yanked or suppressed listings, which make your products unsearchable and unsellable. Here’s a quick breakdown and how to fix them.
Yanked Listings
A yanked listing is completely removed from Amazon due to serious policy violations. This type of removal means your product isn’t just invisible—it’s no longer sellable until you take corrective actions.
Causes
- Policy violations like selling restricted items or counterfeit goods.
- Non-compliant UPC codes.
- Account suspensions or legal claims, such as intellectual property infringement.
Signs to Watch For
- The listing disappears entirely from search results.
- You receive a “Detail Page Removed” notice in Amazon Seller Central.
Solutions
- Identify the cause in the “Performance Notifications” section of Seller Central.
- Resolve issues, such as updating product compliance or correcting listing information.
- Submit a detailed plan of action through the appeals process.
Key Takeaways:
- If a listing is removed, use the “Determine why a listing is not displaying” widget in the Help section to identify the issue.
- After identifying the problem, create a case with Seller Support to resolve it and reinstate your listing.
Suppressed Listings
Suppressed listings are hidden from Amazon’s search results due to incomplete or non-compliant information but remain technically active. While less severe than yanked listings, suppressed listings can still lead to a sharp sales drop.
Causes
- Missing essential information like images, product titles, or PPU (Price Per Unit).
- Non-compliant images, such as those without a white background or with “bleeding edges.”
Signs to Watch For
- The product appears in inventory but is marked as “Inactive.”
- Alerts in Seller Central’s “Fix Your Products” page.
Solutions
- Use the “Fix Your Products” tool in Seller Central to identify missing or incorrect details.
- Update necessary fields like images, descriptions, and bullet points.
- Adhere to Amazon’s style guidelines to ensure compliance.
How to Fix Suppressed Listings:
- Go to “Manage Inventory,” click “Suppressed,” and resolve issues like missing images or details.
- File a ticket in Help if the issue isn’t resolved within 24 hours.
Proactive Measures to Avoid Issues
- Regularly audit your listings for compliance and completeness.
- Stay updated on Amazon’s guidelines for product details, images, and UPC codes.
- Monitor account health metrics and resolve flagged issues promptly.
- Enroll in Amazon Brand Registry to safeguard your listings against policy violations or hijacking attempts.
Why Sales Are Down on Amazon: Category and BSR Issues
Change in Product Category
Low sales on Amazon are often tied to miscategorized products or declining Best Seller Rank (BSR). These factors directly impact visibility, customer trust, and ultimately, revenue. Here’s how they can affect your sales and how to fix them:
Your product’s category determines its visibility in search results and its competition within Amazon’s algorithm.
Common Problems
- A miscategorized or uncategorized product may not appear in relevant searches, limiting exposure.
- Different categories attract unique buyer behaviors and pricing norms, which misaligned listings fail to meet.
Solutions
- Compare your product’s category with competitors to identify miscategorization.
- Use tools like Seller Central’s Help Center or Brand Registry Support to submit a category change request.
- Tailor your title, keywords, and attributes to align with the corrected category.
Best Seller Rank (BSR) Issues
BSR reflects your product’s sales performance within its category. A higher (worse) BSR reduces visibility and sales potential.
Common Causes
A product’s BSR on Amazon increases when it experiences stockouts, suppressed listings, or faces stiff competition from newer or stronger rivals. A change in category can also cause a decrease in BSR.
Solutions
- Regularly track changes in your dashboard.
- Improve images, titles, descriptions, and reviews to increase sales velocity.
- Competitive pricing or time-limited discounts can help regain traction.
Proactive Tips to Avoid Issues
- Audit categories and BSR regularly to ensure alignment.
- Study top competitors for insights on trends and strategies.
- Use promotions and targeted ads to boost visibility and improve your BSR.
Why Sales Are Down on Amazon: PPC Campaign Adjustments
Did your PPC campaigns stop?
A sudden drop in sales might be tied to issues in your PPC campaigns. When ads stop running, slow down, or face significant changes, your product visibility and sales can plummet.
- Enhance visuals on lower-performing listings while safeguarding top-seller success.
- Provide actionable insights to demonstrate value and drive client trust.
Common Causes
- If your ads are turned off or restricted, your traffic—and sales—can drop dramatically.
- Reducing bids too much to lower ACoS can lead to a sharp decline in impressions and conversions.
- Poorly planned changes in keywords, targeting, or budgets can negatively impact performance.
Fix It
- Regularly review campaign settings, bids, and spend. Use Amazon’s bulk operations to track changes and revert mistakes.
- If bids or budgets were reduced, adjust them to previous levels. Keep weekly backups to quickly undo errors.
- Use auto and manual campaigns to test performance and refine targeting strategies.
- Analyze ad metrics and sales trends daily to ensure changes are yielding positive outcomes.
Why Sales Are Down on Amazon: Brand Registry Revoked
Is your brand registry active?
Brand registry provides significant sales advantages through exclusive access to tools like A+ content, sponsored brands, and performance analytics, enabling brands to effectively protect their intellectual property and optimize their product listings for higher visibility and conversion rates.
A revoked Brand Registry status can severely affect your sales. Here’s how:
Competitor Ads Take Over
Without Brand Registry, your brand name redirects to generic search results, allowing competitors’ ads to steal your traffic and sales.
Broken Links and Customer Confusion
Broken links and misdirected pages frustrate customers, harming their shopping experience and potentially driving them away.
Compromised Brand Store Navigation
Your Brand Store may still exist, but broken connections between your listings and store can damage your brand’s identity and customer trust.
Slow Amazon Support Response
Appealing a revoked Brand Registry can take weeks, leaving you without a quick solution and further impacting sales.
Lack of Legal Support
Amazon’s recent blacklisting of attorneys has left many sellers without proper representation during the appeal process, making it harder to resolve issues.
Some Causes of Revocation
- Using restricted or trademarked terms in your listings.
- If branding isn’t permanently affixed to the product or packaging, like easily removable stickers.
- Misleading or inconsistent branding can lead to removal.
Steps to Reinstate
- Remove Infringing Keywords and submit an appeal.
- Provide Proof of Permanent Branding with clear photos.
- Submit a Detailed Appeal to Amazon, including updated listings or packaging images.
- Monitor Amazon’s Response and follow up if necessary.
Read about my journey dealing with a revoked Brand Registry and the action plan I used to restore it.
Why Sales Are Down: Stockouts
Does your product have enough stocks?
Stockouts are one of the fastest ways to watch your Amazon sales decline. When your inventory runs out, your product becomes unavailable, causing a drop in visibility and rankings. Here’s why it matters:
Impact of Stockouts
- Amazon SEO rankings drop. Going out of stock can cost you up to two to three times your ACoS over the next two weeks just to regain some of your previous ranking.
- Lower Sales and Visibility. If you’re not in stock, customers can’t buy your product, leading to lost sales opportunities and reduced organic visibility.
- Competition takes over. Competitors can easily take your place in search results, capturing traffic and sales that would have gone to your product.
Prevention Tips
- Maintain a buffer stock to avoid running out, especially during peak seasons.
- Leverage tools to better predict demand and prevent stockouts.
- Stay on top of stock levels and adjust orders based on trends and sales velocity.
Why Sales Are Down: Stranded Inventory
Do you have any stranded inventories?
Stranded inventory directly impacts your sales and profitability. When products are marked as stranded, they become unavailable for purchase, leading to missed opportunities and higher costs.
Impact of Stranded Inventory
- Products cannot be purchased, reducing revenue.
- Amazon charges storage fees even for unsellable inventory.
- Stranded items don’t appear in search results, hurting product discoverability.
- High levels of stranded inventory can negatively affect performance metrics.
How to Identify and Fix Stranded Inventory
- Go to “Inventory” > “Amazon FBA Inventory” > “Stranded Inventory.”
- Hover over the “Stranded Reason” to understand the issue.
- Use the dropdown menu to resolve the problem, such as reactivating listings or removing items.
Why Sales Are Down on Amazon: Seasonality Factors
How can sellers prepare for seasonal sales fluctuations to maintain consistent revenue?
Seasonality can significantly impact sales, especially for products tied to specific times of the year or holidays. Understanding and preparing for these fluctuations is crucial to maintaining steady sales.
How Seasonality Affects Sales
- Seasonal items, like mosquito repellents or holiday gifts, experience peaks during certain times and dips during off-seasons.
- Sales tend to drop on non-shopping holidays like July 4th or Labor Day, while shopping days like Black Friday or Cyber Monday drive spikes.
Strategies to Manage Seasonality
- Leverage regional keywords. Use tools like Helium 10 to identify high-performing keywords for regions with year-round demand.
- Optimize listings. Update product images, descriptions, and packaging to emphasize seasonal relevance.
- A/B test for engagement. Test visuals and messaging with platforms like PikFu to find what resonates most with customers.
- Plan inventory. Adjust stock levels to align with seasonal demand, ensuring you don’t overstock or run out.
- Some items see 80% of sales during peak seasons, with only 20% spread across the rest of the year, making trend analysis essential.
- No product maintains consistent sales; year-over-year search and sales trends can help predict seasonal fluctuations.
Why Losing the Buy Box Leads to Sales Slumps on Amazon
What factors influence Amazon Buy Box?
When you lose the Buy Box, your product becomes less visible to buyers, as Amazon prioritizes Buy Box winners. This means fewer customers see your offer, leading to a significant sales dip.
Amazon’s Buy Box algorithm takes into account various factors like pricing, fulfillment method (FBA vs. FBM), competition, and external pricing consistency. A price mismatch or poor fulfillment can cost you the Buy Box, even if your product is competitively priced elsewhere.
How to Prevent or Recover from Losing the Buy Box
- Avoid drastic price changes and monitor competitor pricing closely. Use Amazon’s pricing rules to keep your prices in line with market expectations.
- Ensure you are fulfilling through FBA, as Amazon favors this for faster delivery and better customer service.
- Keep track of your account health and make sure your fulfillment and service standards meet Amazon’s expectations to retain the Buy Box.
Check out the image below to use as a guide for winning the Buy Box.
Why Sales Are Down: Negative Reviews
How can one negative review affect your Amazon sales?
Negative product reviews can significantly impact sales on Amazon, even if they only represent a small percentage of feedback. Here’s how a bad review can affect your business and what you can do about it:
- A single negative review can significantly reduce your conversion rate, especially if your product previously had a high rating, decreasing trust and sales.
- Negative feedback can cause anxiety, especially for new sellers, but focusing on growth strategies and driving positive reviews through marketing will have a more lasting impact than dwelling on one negative comment.
Steps to Manage Negative Reviews
- Engage with the customer, understand their issue, and take action to correct it.
- Use better product images and optimized descriptions to reinforce the positive aspects of your product.
- Offering discounts or using competitive pricing can help mitigate the effects of negative feedback, driving more sales and encouraging positive reviews.
Get Sales Back on Track—Partner with Experts
If your Amazon sales are plummeting, identifying and addressing the root cause quickly is essential. From fixing listing suppressions and resolving stockouts to optimizing PPC campaigns, actionable solutions exist to recover and grow.
However, navigating these challenges alone can be overwhelming. That’s where My Amazon Guy comes in.
Our Amazon experts not only helps boost sales but also troubleshoots critical issues that impact your performance. Let us handle the complexities while you focus on scaling your business.
Contact our full service Amazon agencytoday to ensure your listings are optimized, sales are growing, and your brand stays competitive on Amazon.
