Used Books Seller Approval
Hi I m fairly new to all of this selling on amazon, but i have setup an account etc to sell used books on this platform. Here is where my problems now start i have several titles that i cannot list due to having to have brand seller approval. I need to send prove of purchase from a distributor, but this is impossible due to me only having one copy and it being used.
As i said i am new to this and did not expect to have these issues to sell on here!!!
Can someone from amazon help me with this?? any advice appreciated.
Used Books Seller Approval
Hi I m fairly new to all of this selling on amazon, but i have setup an account etc to sell used books on this platform. Here is where my problems now start i have several titles that i cannot list due to having to have brand seller approval. I need to send prove of purchase from a distributor, but this is impossible due to me only having one copy and it being used.
As i said i am new to this and did not expect to have these issues to sell on here!!!
Can someone from amazon help me with this?? any advice appreciated.
122 replies
Seller_ZVAz3d5lZuGid
As a fellow second-hand bookseller (and there are several of us on here !), this is a problem that we are all experiencing. Amazon are requiring approval for many books now (when they say brand they actually mean publisher), some brands in particular, and then expect you to have invoices for 10 copies, which is ridiculous, as you say, you only have one of each. The only way round it is to try and sell elsewhere - you could try ebay - they don't have the same restrictions. Sadly, bookselling on here has become more difficult and there is so much competition from overseas sellers/dropshippers who list nearly every book in the catalogue, but don't actually have any in stock. As a new seller, be aware of the many pitfalls of selling on here - don't want to be a doom-monger, but not the easiest of platforms, with so many policies and metrics to keep to.
Seller_RAXEWLxQ2dbmN
Speaking as another bookseller who has been here for twenty years, I agree with the other comments about the decline in the platform.
Apart from the over the top demands for 'current invoices' for numerous titles, the catalogue itself is overrun with bogus duplicate ASINs created by malicious third parties. Competition is also fierce, with megasellers willing to list at what for most of us are financially suicidal prices. The search function (especially advanced search) is completely hopeless. Fees on books over £5 have increased dramatically in the last few years, as have postage prices. Without big postal discounts it is impossible to compete at the cheaper/popular end of the market.
It is only because I already have a lot of books listed that I soldier on. I have been donating hundreds of good books to charity in recent months as they are no longer worth the effort of selling on Amazon. Unlike megasellers, I don't sell hundreds or thousands of books per day for a few pence profit on each sale and I am trying not to be a busy fool.
Twenty years ago there was relatively little competition (no megasellers or dodgy dropshippers), the catalogue was more stable, postage costs were a lot lower, Amazon rules and restrictions were far less draconian and the search engine actually worked (sort of). Selling books and media on Amazon is now much harder work for less reward.
Seller_AlYpsVHv0gj21
I entirely agree with Jilly , Number 6 and other booksellers on this thread. I have sold books in a very small way on Amazon for many years but it is becoming more and more difficult.
Amazon seem to be completely uninterested in our problems. Over the last year or so numerous "mods" have appeared on this forum promising to look into the various complaints we have made ( including the one you have made about needing "approval") - unfortunately no positive result ever seems to be achieved.
@Spencer_Amazon
@Julia_Amazon
Seller_f9qmYtHo6NHQv
Have had a similar issue. I reactivated my seller account that I had used previously several years ago and am faced with this ‘approval’ nonsense. I have 2 books I wish to list by the same author and both require ‘approval’ from the publisher. It’s OK for me to sell the books in a two or three book bundle but in both occasions I don’t have the second or third book. I have book A and book B but not book C, I have A but not book B or book C , or other combinations. It’s so frustrating that I can’t sell them individually or bundle the ones I have without ‘approval’.
Seller_f9qmYtHo6NHQv
Experiencing this as well and it seems to be regular issue highlighted by people on this forum. I just wish Amazon would get their act together and sort this out.
Seller_RAXEWLxQ2dbmN
I think it's because the megas all use similar auto-pricing software to undercut each other.
If a title is not rare and not in great demand, prices will quickly plummet to the lowest the megas can go without actually losing money (which usually means around the £3.50 mark with free postage). Even then, I daresay they do lose money in absolute terms on big heavy books that require more than just stuffing into a polybag.
The options for smaller sellers are to list at a higher but sensible price and wait it out or...sell elsewhere and/or give the books away.
I have spent most of today checking books listed 10+ years that haven't sold. They include titles that I have sold for £50 in the past but now have multiple offers below £3.50 including postage.
I'm not prepared to wait it out any longer as storage space is finite... so off to charity (or landfill...) they go. :-(
Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW
Hi Number_6,
The difficulty is that one cannot rely on the grading of many of the bulk sellers - I have bought a 'Very Good' book before now and found the covers torn, felt pen marking and many other faults...
When the value of a book is so reliant on its condition, a £3.50 copy may only be worth £3.50, but a £50 copy of the same book may be worth exactly that as the condition becomes the main aspect of the rarity
Buying from the Big sellers can be a roulette where you cannot be sure whether the book you buy is going to be worth £3.50 or £50
Customers who are disappointed often, stop buying as they cannot distinguish between the apparently vast number of sellers (many of whom may be connected)
Rant over
Brian
Seller_RAXEWLxQ2dbmN
I think one of (the many) problem with Amazon is that far too many buyers have been put off buying used books (and other items) full stop. They have been caught out too often by misleading grading and non-descript condition descriptions of the megas and dropshippers.
Add to that the terrible state of the catalogue and the promotion of kindles and audible versions and it's not surprising the used book market on Amazon is in rapid decline
Seller_eX5PU1b0GGPXn
Put January 2027 in your diaries overseas will be looking into a lot of things troubling sellers
I don't sell the same things across all places / sites
The book Brian 2 suggested is partially correct . It is more complex than I realised
I do hope we can get First sale Doctrine recognised
Regards
Seller_vijjPUI46bUSN
@Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW
I totally agree with you on this, no care or attention to detail due to the volume they are selling. Were as us independent smaller sellers have more care for our businesses and deliver better standards.
I do also have to wonder if these mega sellers have to abide by the same seller metrics as us smaller sellers do. I’ve noticed on a lot of their feedback ratings are below 90% so makes you wonder
Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW
Hi LIAMTORetail,
Yes. I've commented in the past that a company with 2 million feedbacks and a 90% rating means there are 200,000 DISSATISFIED customers...
And I notice that a reseller W... is down to 67% in the past year...
Is the 90% rule still being applied at all?
All Best
Brian
Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW
Hi Britishnerd1,
It is complex - when the low-priced copies go, the Bulk Sellers (who often clear books for free) can bump prices up to ridiculous and unrealistic levels... and then buyers stop buying, and perhaps stop collecting (or switch to something else)
All Best
Brian
PS And if someone buys these ridiculously overpriced copies, who is eve going to buy their books without creating massive resentment
Seller_eX5PU1b0GGPXn
Yes I had noticed a lot of dissatisfied customers as well
Also ridiculously priced books especially children's books from the 60's
I am also fed up with sellers pretending to be based here check out their feed back !
There are investigations into pricing happening overseas right now and something bigger in 2027
Regards
Seller_vijjPUI46bUSN
@Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW@Seller_eX5PU1b0GGPXn@Seller_ZVAz3d5lZuGid@Seller_FQHkqHJI5SqTh
I'm not sure if any of you guys are having this same issue but I've been looking over my stock this morning and re-pricing it. I've noticed a lot of books that were profitable at the time have dropped massively in price due to the big sellers now selling the same copy for £3-4. I think what happens is one of the big sellers list a copy at £3-£4 and then other sellers try compete with that price and it keeps the price permanently low and makes that book no longer profitable. It's happening on the majority of listings now.
So not only have we got the issue of books requiring approval but it seems this is now becoming a big issue too. Completely ruining the book selling market
@brian2 touched on this a couple of weeks ago with a theory about the big sellers trying to get rid of us smaller sellers. It wouldn't suprise me at all.
Seller_eX5PU1b0GGPXn
Yes and No
I have some spoken word that was suddenly called out for over pricing that come under books Luckily it meant only a small reduction
But I still have a few VHS listed at a reasonable price
Suddenly a number of listings have gone through the roof with NEW items £300 plus to my £12.99 still sealed tape even stranger when the buy box feedback is so low
I only sell the harder to find I have closed a few till I make a decision on what is best
Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW
Hi Britishnerd1,
These £300+ listings - are they all being offered by the same company? Condition NEW?
All Best
Brian
