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What is the Amazon Buy Box (And How to Win It)

amazon buy app

The Amazon Buy Box is the box on the right side of a product page that has easy, one-click buy options for customers. 

It makes it easier for searchers to buy products and for sellers to sell them. Amazon uses a specific algorithm to ensure that only vetted and authentic sellers with reasonable pricing receive a Buy Box. 

Winning a Buy Box is no easy feat, but don’t be discouraged. We’ve got plenty of Amazon marketing tips (and software tools) to help you get on track to win an Amazon Buy Box.

Let’s get started! 

What is the Amazon Buy Box?

An Amazon Buy Box appears on the right side of the product listing and has the pricing and shipping, product, and seller information. It also includes the “Add to Cart” and “Buy Now” buttons to make the purchasing process as easy as possible. 

This feature was formerly known as Amazon Merchant Status. 

Amazon Buy Box Algorithm

Think of Amazon as a search engine: the best (and most optimized) products rank highest on Amazon’s search engine result page. 

But, Amazon won’t give any seller the Buy Box. They’re a business too: they want customers to return to their business when they need a product. 

Therefore, Amazon uses its complex A10 algorithm to determine who should receive a Buy Box and who shouldn’t. It’s often given to products with the most positive reviews, has reasonable pricing, and ships out quickly and reliably. 

Why is the Amazon Buy Box Important?

The Buy Box makes it quicker and easier for online shoppers to purchase. You can add that product to your cart and choose your preferred shipping method with the Buy Box. Or, instead of waiting, you can click the “Buy Now” button in the Buy Box and immediately be taken to checkout to make your purchase. 

Faster purchases mean happier customers, happier sellers, and a happier Amazon.

Amazon Buy Box Eligibility

To be eligible for an Amazon Buy Box, sellers must meet all the performance-based requirements set by Amazon. There are no fees – the only expectation is that you maintain your eligibility. 

Your overall customer service and client experience heavily influence your eligibility. You must have high sales numbers, great customer service, solid customer engagement, and a seller rating of 90% or above. 

How do you ensure you’re eligible for the Buy Box? Let’s see. 

Make a Professional Seller Account

You’ll need to upgrade your account from Individual to Professional Seller. The Professional Seller account offers extra perks including the ability to set your shipping rates, add multiple users to the account, and run promotions. 

You must be selling at least 40 products a month once you’ve upgraded your account. 

Confirm Your Eligibility Status 

Make sure you’re even eligible to win the Buy Box. 

Here’s how to check: 

  • Go to the Inventory tab of your account.
  • Pick “Manage Inventory.”
  • Click on “Preferences.” 
  • In the column, you can pick “Buy Box Eligible.”
  • Then, save your changes at the bottom of the page. 

Always Have Product Availability 

Always try to keep your inventory full and avoid backorders as much as possible. Amazon favors fulfillable items since customers will be able to make quick purchases and get exactly what they need.

How Does a Seller Win the Amazon Buy Box?

There’s no complete guarantee to win the Buy Box, but here are all the things every seller should work on to improve their chances. 

1. Choose the Right Fulfillment Method

A fulfillment method is a process by which a consumer gets their product. It starts when the consumer makes a purchase or an order and ends when they receive their items. You can use FBA, Fulfillment by Amazon, or FBM, Fulfillment by Merchant. 

Fulfillment by Amazon

Also known as FBA, Fulfillment by Amazon is where Amazon helps out their seller by providing storage, packaging, and shipping assistance. Sellers can store their products in an Amazon fulfillment center until that product is sold. The product is packaged and shipped by Amazon employees. 

FBA provides: 

  • Amazon’s 24/7 customer service management takes care of any inquiries, returns, and refunds for the seller. This is all free except for the Return Processing Fee that applies to specific product categories. 
  • Having the Amazon name associated with their products. It helps build their reputation and gain new customers’ trust. 
  • The seller can ship their products out fast through Amazon on multiple channels, not just Amazon’s. 

Fulfillment by Merchant

FBM, or Fulfillment by Merchant, is where the seller manages and ships all their products independently with a third party. If you choose this method, you can still take advantage of the one-day or two-day shipping that Fulfillment by Amazon offers.

You can also set your own shipping rates and pricing for your listings. This is great when you want to ship out larger items to customers. 

2. Optimal Pricing

The algorithm pays close attention to the pricing of your products. Always take into account your Landing Price, which is the price of your product after tax, shipping, and handling.

You could lose eligibility if the algorithm finds your pricing to be unreasonable. For example, one of your products is priced fairly low, but your shipping is expensive. You’ll be less likely to win a Buy Box and even see a decrease in sales. 

3. Shipping & Delivery

Ship out your products in the best condition and on time. The sooner your customer gets their product without any scratches or dings, the better. 

  • Late Shipment Rate: This is the percentage rate of shipments that were sent out late. Try to keep this number as low as possible.  
  • Valid Tracking Rate: This is the percentage of packages shipped with all their tracking information. Always send your products with all their tracking information, so customers know when to expect their package. 
  • On-Time Delivery: This is the percentage number of the shipments sent out to the customer on time. The higher this number is, the better.

4. Availability & Inventory

As a seller, you’ll need to maximize both availability and inventory. 

  • Availability: Keeping your products stocked at all times is super important. If your consumers have to wait a long time for a product, it can affect your eligibility. Amazon wants to see that you are a reliable seller that can maintain good customer service. 
  • Inventory Depth: Make sure that your inventory is always full or consistent. The consistency will make you look better at Amazon compared to having major fluctuations in your stock from time to time. 

Ensuring you have enough products to meet your demands is very important. You cannot expect to have good metrics if you constantly run out of products and have to restock them. You are less likely to secure a Buy Box.

Consistency is critical in sales—keeping your inventory stocked, maintaining consistent sales, and having a stable inventory history.  

5. Optimize Your Product Listings with Amazon SEO

Amazon SEO helps you improve your Amazon listing discoverability to your target audience. Following Amazon SEO best practices for keywords, descriptions, photos, and customer experience will help improve Amazon listing quality and boost rankings, traffic, and sales.

Plus, this traffic is organic: you’re not paying for every view or click of an ad. Once you get your listings to rank, you can exponentially grow your traffic without the expense of paid marketing. 

Amazon uses their unique A10 algorithm, an upgrade from their previous A9 algorithm,  to find optimized product listings and rank them higher. Both algorithms intend to improve product sales, but differ in how they make that happen. 

6. Resolve Order Issues

Managing order issues in a timely manner…

  • Cancellation and Refund Rate: This is the number of orders canceled before they were shipped out by the seller and the number of orders being refunded. If the rate is higher than 2.5% you could risk winning a Buy Box. 
  • Order Defect Rate: This number combines the Negative Feedback Rate, the A-to-Z, the Guarantee Claim Rate, and the Service Chargeback Rate. Amazon will total up these three metrics to determine which orders are defective. Amazon requires that your ODR rate is below 1%, and they will penalize any seller whose rate is higher than that. 

7. Get Feedback

Feedback is one of the best ways for a seller to track their performance. These are reviews and comments left by your customers for a product. Amazon loves seeing customers interacting with sellers and loves it even more when the feedback is positive. 

  • Feedback Score: This score is accumulated over 30 days, 90 days, and 365 days. Your score can be seen in Amazon Seller Central. 
  • Feedback Count: The number of customers that you have given you feedback on your service or product. Yes, the higher the number, the better. 

Amazon Buy Box FAQs

Why am I not winning the Amazon Buy Box?

There could be a few reasons why you’re not winning the buy box. 

1. You’re New To Amazon

If you’ve recently become a seller, you can’t expect to win a Buy Box immediately. It will take some time to gain consumers and the right metrics to get the algorithm’s notice. 

Another thing to note is that there is a 30-day testing period. Amazon uses this testing period to see whether or not you are a reliable seller and meet all the criteria needed.

2. You Aren’t Selling Enough Products 

You’re less likely to win a Buy Box if your product isn’t selling enough. Remember, when you have a Professional Seller account, you must sell at least 40 items monthly. On top of that, sales volumes for specific products must be met to be eligible for a Buy Box. 

3. You Seller Rating Has Dropped 

Seller rating changes can happen. Your seller rating needs to be 90% or higher, so if you drop below that, your chances of winning that Buy Box are slim to none. 

If you want to raise your seller rating, review your ratings and see if you can identify any product-related issues. 

Use Sellesta.ai to get a review analysis of your sales and get insight into what your customers like and what your customers are struggling with. You can also optimize your product listing, conduct competitor analysis, and conduct keyword research – all from one platform. 

Do Amazon products always win the Buy Box?

For the most part, Amazon products win a majority of the Buy Boxes, but with great product listings and products, third-party sellers can win a Buy Box too.

Does the lowest price always win the Buy Box?

Having the lowest price does not always win you the Buy Box. In fact, it puts you at risk of not making enough profit from your sales. And, low-priced products can be seen as not being the best quality. 

What is the Amazon Buy Box rotation?

The Amazon Buy Box rotation is when Amazon rotates their Buy Box among eligible sellers who are performing well and competitive pricing. 

2% Rotation Rule 

There’s a myth that sellers who have pricing within 2% of the pricing of the current Amazon Buy Box winner will win the next rotation. This is not true, and no evidence can support this. 

Amazon relies solely on its algorithm to find sellers that best align with its criteria. While a rotation exists, the fact that it goes to a seller 2% away in pricing is not confirmed.

Low Pricing

Lowering your pricing is a risky way to try and win a Bux Box. It may place you closer to your goal for a short time, but if you cannot maintain your sales, it could put you even further from winning a Buy Box in the future. 

Win the Amazon Buy Box with Sellesta.ai

To win the Buy Box, Amazon wants to see that you are consistent with your sales and customers.

Using Amazon seller tools like Sellesta.ai can help expedite this process. The AI-powered content generator will optimize and complete your product listings in just a few clicks. Get insight as to what customers really feel about your product and see how you compare to competitors. 

Start the process of winning an Amazon Buy Box with the help of Sellesta.ai today!

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