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My Amazon book sales are way down.
I have sold books via Amazon for nearly 15 years. Over most of that time, I have been pleased with the number of product I have sold. This year, compared to previous years, my sales are significantly down. I have not changed any of the ways I operate. My inventory remains about the same size and of the same diversity. Are other booksellers experiencing this same reduction in sales? My account health remains in good shape. I cannot figure this out? Any ideas out there?
22 replies
Seller_MyXY4Myx9zVcR
You have probably already done this, but try searching for one of your books as an Amazon customer.
What shows up first is any Amazon Kindle edition.
Then the paperback, if available, and after that the hardcover, if Amazon sells them.
Buried 5-8 screens later, if the buyer has not already purchased, and is quite persistent, are the books of Amazon 3rd party sellers, many of whom have been selling books here for10+ years.
Good luck selling any used books on Amazon now.
This scheme has been in place for several months, and you are not the only suffering bookseller.
Seller_nRFmxiQg4EGrw
I'm down significantly from my peak; a large part of this is due to decreased inventory (good booksales for sourcing still have not recovered from the pandemic).
But I think also that some of it is the changes Amazon has made to the pages; basically, if you don't have the Buy Box, you're almost invisible. Even as a (somewhat) knowledgeable seller, there are often listings where I have trouble finding the offers that I need to be competing against.
So no, not just you.
Seller_C2NiEkAU4xTGT
Do you have Featured Offer Eligibility? Many of us fellow booksellers have recently lost our eligibility on our entire accounts.
Seller_qTJiCxRI8PpIZ
Definitely not just you. My Amazon sales have been down for quite a while now. Amazon used to be our strongest selling venue. Now I only get a few sales a week, if that. As @Seller_nRFmxiQg4EGrwexplained, Amazon has made it increasingly hard for book buyers to find our items. It takes multiple screens to find a used or collectible edition. The kindle version comes up first then any seller that has buybox or is a high volume seller. Us smaller sellers get buried. If a buyer is looking for a signed or 1st edition copy, they are going to have to do a lot of digging because most likely these will get buried amongst the more common copies. I try to make it a point to really only sell obviously rare books on here anymore. But even that is getting harder by the day.
Seller_nRFmxiQg4EGrw
With books like this, I may go ahead and list them on Amazon, but actually expect better sales on other platforms. I think that most people who are actually looking for something special don't even bother with Amazon, since it's nearly impossible.
Seller_QIhLU85xVQvSl
Yes, my book sales are significantly down
Seller_lw7jo3IcnAlSm
Amazon has made it very easy for buyers to buy from them but much harder for buyers to reach us individual sellers. My sales are off 50 percent. This self-serving change benefits Amazon at the expense of us little guys who helped it get started decades ago. Amazon is deliberately depriving us of access by sellers. It's as if you have a store on the street but another seller comes along and builds a maze in front of your door.
Amazon is now our competitor, not our partner. After 15 years, I am actively exploring other sales venues: Abe Books, Alibris, Facebook, and my own website. If enough of us leave, Amazon's user fee income will drop. Maybe then they'll pay attention.
I'd like to find a lawyer who handles restraint of trade matters, because that's exactly what this is. If enough of us join forces, we can do something effective. How do we do that?
Seller_awYU0oH8skccg
I Sell One Book per Week if I'm Lucky...AZ has done Everything possible to STOP Book Sales for Most Sellers...I Suppose If you Sell at a Loss, They'll Give you a Few "Sprinkler" Sales...I'm about to Move On...
Seller_wU1vhFqwnoGLU
I have been selling books on Amazon since around 2008. My sales over the last few months have reduced by more than half - and I'm about done. Amazon seems be driving out booksellers.
Cultivate other venues, it's probably your only option.
Seller_JEZM0XKCFBgyp
I've been selling since 2009. I agree with all previous replies.
It's harder for buyers to see beyond the Featured Offers. They rarely do.
Another thing I've noticed is that 5 years ago I would come across books ranked up to 23 Million. Now I don't see any ranked over 10 Million. Why is that?
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