If you’ve been selling on Amazon for a while, you’ve probably experienced the problem of ASIN piggybacking. These copycat listings not only compete with your own, but can also be detrimental to your brand as negative reviews come flooding in. It’s important to keep tabs on the latest Amazon leech scams and know the best methods for dealing with them.
What Are Amazon Leech Scams?
Over the past few holiday seasons in particular, many buyers on Amazon have purchased products that never came. And many sellers have been fighting against piggybackers who are selling their products for far below their set listing prices.
What generally happens is that an Amazon leech, otherwise known as a hijacker or a piggybacker, copies a seller’s product listing but sells the product or a counterfeit version of it at extremely low prices to secure the top slot in the buy box. Many of these leeches are based in China or other countries, but claim to be selling from the U.S.
Oftentimes, the leech doesn’t have the product at all, but takes advantage of Amazon’s two week pay period before the customers ask for a refund three or four weeks later, when their order still hasn’t arrived. Amazon fulfills the refund while the leech pockets the profits and racks up negative reviews — which might wind up coming to you, the owner of the product.
Negative reviews can be detrimental to your store and your brand’s integrity, which can further affect sales and make it much harder for you to secure the buy box and other perks like the #1 Best Seller Badge. Even large, well-established brands have withdrawn their products from Amazon because of the damage they felt was being accrued from Amazon leech scams. If you want you Amazon store to be successful, you have to learn the proper ways to defend your listings.
Defend Against An Amazon Piggyback Listing
The best way to defend your seller account is to remain vigilant. Make sure that your products always have the lowest price slot, represented by a green check mark on your inventory page. If not, it could mean that a hijacker or piggybacker is selling your product (or not selling it) for below your set price and possibly scamming your customers. Your next steps should include:
- Going to the lowest seller’s listing to see if they are in fact selling your product when they shouldn’t be.
- Sending the seller a cease & desist letter.
- Waiting 24-48 hours for their response.
- If no response comes, report directly to Amazon. In your letter, you will want to include the seller’s name, a link to their storefront and an explanation that you believe the seller is engaging in fraudulent activity, specifically copyright infringement.
- Amazon Seller Performance will eventually take down the fake Amazon store.
If you are concerned that a product is counterfeit, you can buy a version from the seller and submit them to Amazon along with your complaint to prove it’s a fake. You will then receive a refund and the piggybacker’s store will be taken down.
Keep your eyes on your products, listen to any customer complaints that may have been caused by an Amazon leech scam, and repeat this process whenever you come across a piggybacker.
Another Option: Amazon Fraud Alert Software
Instead of keeping your eyes glued to the computer monitor to watch for Amazon leech scams, a more convenient option is to sign up for Amazon fraud alert software, such as AMZAlert. Our Amazon hijacker and ASIN piggybacking alerts will let you know via email or text whenever your listings are in danger.
On top of sending you an Amazon fraud alert anytime a leech is threatening your listing, AMZAlert also has a Rapid Restoration option that will send the seller a cease & desist letter automatically. You simply select the ASINs you would like to defend and our templates fill themselves in with the appropriate information. These features can help you build up a powerful firewall to defend yourself — and your customers — from scams.
Get More Info With No Commitment
Want to learn more about what AMZAlert can do for your store? Schedule a free 30-minute screen share live demo with one of our experts, commitment-free. Then, if you decide an AMZAlert package is right for you, you can receive 50% off when you use the coupon code “AMZ50OFF” at purchase. If you want to get serious about fighting ASIN piggybacking and Amazon leech scams, schedule your free demo to get started.
