Do you ever find yourself thinking, “buyers just want free return shipping, there’s nothing wrong with my products?”

Or, “ I source all new items from good suppliers, there’s no way there’s anything not new in my inventory?”

How about, “The buyer didn’t read the listing, they ordered the wrong item. It’s the buyer misunderstanding how to use or order the product?”

OK, so a few ideas here.

#1 I understand the “blame the buyer” knee jerk reaction

Because, in any seller’s mind, they are always on top of their operations 100%.

This presents problems because taking that view right away reduces your chances of seeing potential operational problems. You’re making an assumption.

When I hear that there were no complaints, no problems on the account, just problem buyers I usually go and have a look in Seller Central myself. I find valid complaints and real problems not being addressed that resulted in multiple similar reports, in almost all cases. Don’t tell yourself stories until you’ve dug deeply into the account yourself.

In my experience, few sellers are on top of things to the degree that Amazon wants. Ultimately, what Amazon wants Amazon gets. You may think in terms of industry standards of acceptable defective item percentages per batch, but Amazon thinks in terms of the nature or quality of the complaints against you. They reserve the right to take you down over a small handful, or even a couple, complaints if the severity of your problems scares them enough.

#2 How well do you actually know your suppliers?

I’ve had clients tell me that there was no doubt in their mind that they had legit product, then found out later that their suppliers were associated with accounts blocked for bad product. The supplier sold both the same items. Have you completed due diligence? Do you know where suppliers get their items? If they won’t tell you, have you inspected the inventory to make sure everything is as it should be?

#3 Do you rue buyers complaining about you to Amazon over a mistake they made, or a misunderstanding they had over a product?

Some buyers use an item but say it doesn’t work, even if they may have used it incorrectly. Others fail to read a full product description and order an item that does not fit their device. These things do happen, every day, but it’s the seller reply that matters most here.

Instead of finger pointing, try editing a listing title or content to make sure any buyer will understand what the product does and does not do. Compare to other similar listings and see if there’s product detail page clarity there that your listing does not have. If you try everything and the same problems keep cropping up, evaluate the value of continuing to sell it. If your risk is upped just by having it on your account, make sure you end the listing. It’s not worth losing the entire account to try to save one or two problematic ASINs.