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I don’t know what else to do…
I got two unauthentic product complaints in a lapse of four months. On Jan 6th I received this letter from Amazon.
12 replies
Seller_CW0P5hgbsiqWX
[quote=“QIPU, post:1, topic:438577, full:true”]
Steps I have taken to resolve the complaint:
I closed all the DS Laboratories items pending further review to make sure the specifications are correct and conforming to Amazon’s policies.
You should have said you stopped selling the questionable products and deleted your listings.
Learned more about the DS Laboratories products to better inform customers’ about inauthentic concerns.
Learning more about a company will not resolve anything. Your product has to just be an exact match to the Amazon page description.
First customer was fully refunded and second is going to get a full refund after I receive the items back.
None of that wording is any good as a resolution.
Preventing inauthentic complaints:
I trained myself in learning how to respond to customers, and identify the cause of the concern and answer in detail.
Foolish. So you are telling Amazon that you are expecting more to come in the future, when Amazon is asking you to tell them why there will be No More Complaints in the future.
Example: “Formula is not the same color as I purchased before” I will explain the color is different because according DS Laboratories, formula color in each lot and color varies from dark brown to clear color.
Example: Formulation change concerns – Solution: I will explain the company reformulated the product in May 2018.
Very bad idea. That is like saying I will continue to sell products which do not match the Amazon Page Description.
Explain in detail how we are an authorized retailer to the customer ( Previous product purchased from an authorized distributor, at the present time goods are purchased directly from manufacturer with far out expiration dates)
You do not need to explain anything. Either you are selling the exact match to the Amazon page or you are not.
I will offer my customers to provide them with copies of the invoices so they can know I buy directly from manufacturer.
Dumb. Did Wat-Mart ever supply you with that type of documentation, NO. Amazon does not want its’ sellers to contact Amazon customers. NEW MEANS NEW, AND THAT IS THAT!
In addition, I have implemented and improved the following:
I will perform quality control when I receive the merchandise, stocking the product, and prior to shipping to customers.
No. You should be buying from a manufacturer who sells a quality product, so you do not have to check.
I will check periodically my listings on Amazon to ensure the information is accurate and up to date: product title, full description, pictures.
I will verify regularly the corrugated cardboard boxing materials that are used for shipping the product, are crush proofing to avoid complaints for damaged during in-transit products.
Foolish. If you buy 100 shipping boxes, all 100 boxes be the same, so there is nothing for you to check.
I will be proactive and responsive to customers concerned about product authenticity, and if they are not satisfied with the product, I will offer full refund.
Silly, when Amazon expects all of your products to be authentic. And you are telling Amazon that there will be more inauthentic complaints.
I am proud in being part of Amazon, and I commit to provide exceptional customer service. I hope you give me the opportunity to continue doing so. Thank you.
Poor wording. Telling Amazon you are going to continue to provide exceptional service if given the opportunity, when you did not do it in the past, is just not a good thing to say.
Phew!
Please help! What I am missing, What am I doing wrong? All comments are going to be considered. Thanks.
Seller_35fIKz4Y3ohhL
I think the bulk of it comes down to major policy changes. If you had purchased from an authorized distributor, then there should be no need to state that from then on you will only purchase from the manufacturer. If the customer was confused due to a different packaging design, that packaging design should have been in the photos on the listing. It’s a matter of making changes to the listing page, and to every other similar listing page that might have a related issue.
Amazon does not want to hear about your policies regarding this one item. They want a solution for the way you run business so this never happens again.
A few suggestions:
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You should have refunded both customers immediately, maybe even have given an additional concession for their troubles. Not having done so, even as you are appealing a complaint of inauthenticity shows Amazon that your account is not worth the value of a single sale to you.
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Don’t give a long list of things that you will do in the future that are common sense obvious. This makes it look like you weren’t taking pride in the business in the first place. You need to list one or two MAJOR changes, specifically stated, that you can prove you have done if ever asked in the future (for example, “From now on I will not list any item for which the product color does not match the Amazon listing photos perfectly.”)
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In terms of inspecting a product, have you shown to Amazon that you are qualified to do so? If you are qualified then list JUST your updates to your inspection procedure specifically and promise to follow them exactly. If you are not qualified to inspect items in your category, perhaps a different Amazon category is in order, or you should hire an independent quality control inspector.
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If the company reformulates the product from time to time, then a simple disclosure about slight variations in color on every product page from that company and every product page from every other company that has the same policy should be sufficient. Tell Amazon how long this will take you and promise to get it done by then.
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Essentially, it seems that you are far more concerned about proving this customer wrong than you are about preserving your ability to sell. I would hope you get one more chance to appeal. Stop trying to be right. Be wise and precise. More than two paragraphs is a bad idea.
Seller_G2stXrx2YSup3
Question. If you would make “little to no profit” buying it directly from the manufacturer, shouldn’t that be a dead giveaway that the “Authorized Distributor” is not selling a legitimate product? I’ve got probably 200 vendors, and there is not a single instance where my price from the manufacturer is more than a legitimate distributor. In fact, I’ve been able to eliminate possible vendors by looking for that exact problem. I mean, not saying it’s impossible to happen-but it seems to me very unlikely that an authorized distributor would have a lower price than the actual manufacturer–why? Because if so how would the “authorized distributor” make any money? The only exception I can think of would be if the distributor worked out a huge bulk deal with the manufacturer. While plausible, in my experience, this has yet to be the case with anyone I’ve dealt with.
Seller_4o4teUJFSgu5b
Thanks to everyone for the responses. Every answer will be taken in consideration for the next P.O.A.
Seller_i8zT3d12aXWex
I’m sure Amazon requested invoices from you which potentially could have made all of this go away, assuming you had them. And as others have mentioned this POA is a disaster, Seller Performance is going to take one look at this and send you back a canned message.
