Helium 10 Buzz 10/31/24: FBA Export Expansion | Walmart Black Friday Deals | TikTok x Venmo

We’re back with another episode of the Weekly Buzz with Helium 10’s Senior Brand Evangelist, Shivali Patel. Every week, we cover the latest breaking news in the Amazon, Walmart, and E-commerce space, talk about Helium 10’s newest features, and provide a training tip for the week for serious sellers of any level.

Walmart Black Friday Deals Events Dial Up the Thrill of the Deal
https://corporate.walmart.com/news/2024/10/28/walmart-black-friday-deals-events-dial-up-the-thrill-of-the-deal

TikTok Shop pushes livestreams to drive holiday shopping
https://www.retailbrew.com/stories/2024/10/29/tiktok-shop-pushes-livestreams-to-drive-holiday-shopping

TikTok Shop Partners With Venmo Ahead of Black Friday and Cyber Monday
https://wwd.com/business-news/business-features/tiktok-shop-venmo-partnership-black-friday-cyber-monday-1236704924/

Amazon announces the launch of Rufus, a new generative AI-powered conversational shopping assistant, in beta across Europe
https://www.aboutamazon.eu/news/retail/amazon-announces-the-launch-of-rufus-a-new-generative-ai-powered-conversational-shopping-assistant-in-beta-across-europe

Amazon’s latest actions against fake review brokers: Amazon and Google file parallel lawsuits against a fake review website
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/policy-news-views/amazons-latest-actions-against-fake-review-brokers

Lastly, we explore keyword search volume research strategies using Cerebro, providing valuable insights to enhance your Amazon selling strategy, particularly for the crucial Q4 planning.

In this episode of the Weekly Buzz by Helium 10, Shivali talks about:

• 00:51 – Valid Tracking Rate Update
• 02:44 – Brand Tailored Promotions
• 04:40 – FBA Export Expansion
• 05:28 – Product Videos Go Global
• 06:14 – Walmart’s Multi-Event
• 07:55 – TikTok Livestreams
• 09:55 – TikTok x Venmo
• 11:14 – Rufus AI Beta EU
• 12:37 – Fake Reviews
• 13:43 – Amazon Marketing Cloud Strategy
• 14:00 – Training Tip: Find Search Volume Number Of Refined Key Phrases

Transcript

Shivali Patel:

The ability to potentially capture your abandoned carts on Amazon, Walmart’s Black Friday multi-event deal experience and Venmo now accepted on TikTok. This and more on this week’s episode of the Weekly Buzz.

Bradley Sutton:

How cool is that? Pretty cool, I think. Hello everybody, and welcome to another episode of the Serious Sellers Podcast by Helium 10. I’m your host, Bradley Sutton, and this is the show. That is our Helium 10 Weekly Buzz, where we give you a rundown of all the new stories that are going on in the Amazon, Walmart and e-commerce world. We highlight the latest new feature alerts from Helium 10, and we review a training tip of the week that’ll give you serious strategies for serious sellers of any level in the e-commerce world. Today, our host is going to be Shivali Patel, and so, Shivali, take it away and let us know what’s buzzing.

Shivali Patel:

First up, we have a few news pieces directly from Seller Central News. To start, there’s an important update to Amazon’s valid tracking rate guidelines that are coming up on January 15th 2025. And it’s crucial to stay ahead of these changes to keep your account healthy. So here’s what’s changing and why it matters for you. Amazon’s order performance policy requires that you maintain a VTR above 95% for seller fulfilled listings. This ensures that customers receive fast, accurate tracking information, which helps boost buyer confidence and can lead to higher satisfaction and repeat purchases. Here’s a quick breakdown of the new requirements to higher satisfaction and repeat purchases. Here’s a quick breakdown of the new requirements. Number one tracking requirements by region and value. For sellers shipping to the US from China, Canada, America, Samoa or the US minor outlying islands. Orders under $5 require at least one carrier scan, while orders over $5 need two scans One when it arrives at the carrier’s facility and another at delivery or attempted delivery. If you’re shipping from India or the UK, orders under $15 also need one scan, while orders over $15 require two. There are some exemptions to this and you can check out Seller Central News to figure out exactly what those are. Now, why does this matter for you as a seller. Well, maintaining a high VTR is essential because it impacts your order performance metrics and falling below 95% can affect your account health, visibility and, ultimately, the customer’s trust. So if you sell on Amazon, make sure that you are set up with valid tracking for eligible shipments to avoid any sort of negative impact on your account. For sellers fulfilling internationally, these changes mean double-checking your carriers and tracking procedures to stay compliant. This new VTR policy ensures a smoother experience for both you and your buyers, so take advantage of these changes to provide the most reliable delivery experience possible.

Shivali Patel:

Then Amazon rolled out powerful new updates for brand-tailored promotions, allowing you to customize promotions for specific audiences and boost engagement. Now I am super excited about this. With these new tools, you can offer discounts ranging from 10% to 50% for your audiences, and this can help you connect with your customers, who are likely to be interested in your brand and products, helping you drive up that loyalty and increase sales of course, things that we want. Brief rundown of what’s what for brand-tailored promotions Well, first of all, when setting up a promotion, you’ll now be able to segment your goals based on audience type. For example, new customer acquisition or customer retention, re-engagement and cross-sale to engage with audiences tailored to your objectives.

Shivali Patel:

You can also create promotions for specific ASINs or product sets, allowing you to re-engage with customers who have viewed or abandoned their cart after interacting with your products, as well as one-time and lapsed customers. As it says right here. You can also create promotions for specific ASIN-level promotions, and this can help you re-engage with customers who have viewed or abandoned their cart after interacting with your products, as well as one-time and lapsed customers. As it says right here. New audience segments like in-market customer and complimentary product remarketing also let you reach people who have yet to discover your brand, broadening your reach to potential buyers. These promotions will appear across key areas, including product detail pages, brand stores and Amazon search results. I would be curious to hear if any of you have tried this out or seen an uplift in sales, but let me know down below and, if not, what better time than gearing up for Q4, with Black Friday on November 29th, followed by Cyber Monday on December 2nd? And for full details, check out the brand tailored promotions guide.

Shivali Patel:

For now, let’s switch into the third news from Seller Central News. Amazon also just announced a major expansion in their FBA export program, opening up access to 136 new destinations. You guys. This means millions more international customers can now order FBA products listed on amazon.com and have them delivered directly to their locations. If you are already a seller enrolled in FBA export, make sure to double check your shipping restriction settings to see how your account has been impacted. In the case that you’ve previously restricted certain countries, then those new destinations will also be restricted by default. So if you’re searching for reaching these new areas, you’re going to want to update your settings accordingly.

Shivali Patel:

Something else going on since September, amazon’s been allowing product videos on detail pages to automatically display across multiple Amazon stores globally. Customers worldwide can make more informed purchase decisions, leading to higher conversions and fewer returns. To get your videos visible on global listings, simply upload them through the upload video tool and, once uploaded, they will automatically be shared across eligible stores. You can also check where your video is displayed in the upload and manage video section of your video library. Alternatively, if you would like to exclude a video from one or more stores, then just do the following You’ll be able to click that trash icon next to the video and have it deleted. You guys leverage this because a lot of third-party e-comm studies consistently report significant boosts for video-driven conversion rates.

Shivali Patel:

Okay, let’s switch over to some Walmart news. This year, Walmart’s bringing back its multi-event deal experience, starting on November 11th and running all the way through Cyber Monday. Imagine huge discounts on your favorite brands like Apple, Samsung, Dyson, Lego and so much more. Plus, there’s usually surprise drops right in the middle of these events for even more ways to save. They’ve gone ahead and released a short list of some deals that you can anticipate, but here’s what you need to know. The very first event kicks off online on November 11th at 12 PM EST, exclusively for paid Walmart plus members, 5 pm EST for everybody else. The second event is November 25th, with the final blowout for Cyber Monday being on December 1st. To any Walmart Plus members that are listening in, you get exclusive early access three hours before everybody else does. Plus, Walmart’s AI powered shopping assistant is back and better than ever before, making it super easy for consumers to find the best gifts for everyone on their list, assisting them with personalized suggestions, faster customer support right at their fingertips. And just so you guys can understand the importance of this, I mean you are really going to tap into all of this driven up traffic and conversions, so long as your listings are set up for success to capture the revenue that’s likely being generated. So make sure that Walmart is able to really tie your listing to the most relevant seed keywords and phrases and if you’re not on the platform, consider expanding to that platform for next year to capitalize, because it might be too late, or rather, it is too late to jump on the wagon for this year. Either way, mark your calendars and get ready.

Shivali Patel:

We do also have some TikTok news. Of course, this wouldn’t be weekly buzz without all the news coverage for your favorite e-com platforms, and so, from Retail Brew, what we’re currently looking at is this holiday season. TikTok is betting big on live shopping to fuel their Black Friday and Cyber Monday revenue, and they’re pulling out all the stops, you guys. They are launching super live streams where celebs will take these stage names are under wraps for now to connect with viewers live and in real time. So here’s why you should get in on it.

Shivali Patel:

Live shopping is already huge in China where TikTok. Here’s why you should get in on it. Live shopping is already huge in China, where TikTok’s parent company, byte dance, has seen massive success. Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok if I can find it here, there it is has earned over $200 billion through influencer-hosted live sales last year, and now TikTok wants to make that magic happen in the US. Understandably so. Live sales last year and now TikTok wants to make that magic happen in the US Understandably so. Now is your chance to be a part of that early wave. And one brand that’s already finding success like that is Canvas Beauty, where CEO Stormy Steele used TikTok shop live sessions to reach her audience authentically and she became the first US creator to hit $1 million in live sales on TikTok. So I think that really demonstrates the power of connecting with customers in real time. To make it easier for brands and creators to jump into live shopping, TikTok’s even opened up production studios in LA and New York City and they’re encouraging two-hour live sessions to maximize reach and engagement, with an eye on building a very dedicated ecosystem of creators, brands and agencies to educate reach and engagement, with an eye on building a very dedicated ecosystem of creators, brands and agencies to educate viewers and drive excitement. I mean, think about it right. What if you could emulate this sort of success with your brand by tapping into live shopping while there are extra eyes on TikTok this holiday season and, trust me, I’ve seen some crazy creators not do a whole lot, but sell a lot. So tap in and if you do, definitely let me know in the comment section what your strategy is or how it’s going.

Shivali Patel:

And actually this is not the only news that’s specific to TikTok. In fact, Fairchild Media just reported that we actually now have a partnership between Venmo and TikTok. This is bringing exclusive savings to US customers for Black Friday and for Cyber Monday from November 30th to December 2nd. From November 30th to December 2nd, first time, TikTok shop buyers can get 25% off purchases off $45 or more, saving up to $20 just by selecting Venmo at their checkout. So, selecting Venmo as their payment, you get some savings. And you can read up a little bit more right here if you would like, just pause and read. I think this partnership is a massive win for TikTok shop and Venmo, which really share the vision of community focused commerce For consumers. It’s a win because, in my opinion, Venmo is easy to navigate once you have an account, and for you, the sellers, this is a golden opportunity. With this added incentive, more shoppers are likely to explore TikTok shop, meaning it’s a great time for you again, as I reiterated time and time again inside of this video to optimize your listings. Feature those trending products and consider live shopping to capture attention. With Venmo as that payment option, you can draw buyers in who are looking for convenience and holiday deals Back to Amazon.

Shivali Patel:

We have a couple more new segments left and this is something you should be in the know for. We’ve talked about Rufus before on the Weekly Buzz. I mean. They launched beta for select UK customers a while back, and if you don’t know what Rufus is just yet, well, a quick rundown is it’s the assistant designed to enhance the customer shopping experience. You can essentially input in a query and it’ll pull from Amazon’s vast product catalog and insights from multiple sources to answer questions, compare products and make tailored recommendations for the customer in question. This tool allows customers to ask detailed questions like what should I consider when buying running shoes or is this product durable? Helping them find and choose products that truly meet their needs. Now Rufus is in beta, as you can see here, for Germany, France, Italy and Spain, and it’s expanding its generative AI capabilities to support buyers in making faster, more confident decisions. In the US, UK, and India. Rufus has already answered tens of millions of customer questions, so Amazon’s excited to introduce this to even more customers globally.

Shivali Patel:

For sellers. This only drives home just how crucial this time is to ensure that algorithms, for example for AI, can really tie back any sort of terminology that is relevant to your product back to your listings. Okay, last but not least, an update to Amazon’s chessboard. Amazon is making moves to uphold its zero tolerance policy on fake reviews, aiming to protect customers and honest sellers from deceitful practices that damage trust in online reviews. Amazon recently filed a joint lawsuit with Google targeting bigboostup.com, which is a site selling fake product and business reviews to bad actors. To sum it up, in 2023 alone, amazon proactively blocked over 250 million fake reviews and pursued legal action against more than 150 bad actors. Fake review brokers, which operate globally, incentivize fake reviews in exchange for payment or refunds, and Amazon has been tackling this issue through robust machine learning tools, dedicated investigator teams and legal action, showcasing their commitment to preserving genuine, reliable reviews.

Shivali Patel:

Just make sure that you guys are compliant and earning those reviews fair and square. Last thing you want to do is get shut down this holiday season while everything’s peaking. So that is it for this week’s news. Soon we’ll be releasing some of our first capabilities of Amazon’s marketing cloud, otherwise known as AMC into Atomic. Many might not know what AMC can help sellers with. So for a proper rundown, check out this video linked at h10.me/amc. Again, that’s h10.me/amc to learn about it directly from Destaney and Bradley. And of course, this wouldn’t be the weekly buzz if I didn’t provide you with the training tip of the week.

Shivali Patel:

This week let’s talk about how you can discover the total search volume number for your refined set of key phrases inside of Cerebro. What better way to learn it than run through an example? So, as I said, inside of Cerebro, when you filter for keywords, after you’ve gone ahead and you’ve added in some ASINs I’ve gone ahead and added in four for coffin shelves and clicked get keywords, you’re going to see a handful of filtered keywords returned to you. I have 4,705 at this moment. And let’s say you’re wondering what the total search volume of keywords that includes the word coffin is. What you would do is go to phrases containing type in coffin or whatever it is for your niche and click apply filters. So that took me down from 4,000 plus filtered keywords to 693.

Shivali Patel:

Now if I want to see how my search volume has been affected, you’ll find that right here where it says Amazon search volume. And now what I’m seeing is the total search volume for your filtered keywords over the past 30 days, as well as the average search volume for your filtered keywords over the past 30 days. Now, if I wanted to, let’s say, not so much look at what the filtered keywords that include coffin is, but instead you want to know, maybe, where all the keywords your competitors are in the top 10 for, but you aren’t, then what is the total reach of that? What you could do is put in your organic rank position somewhere between positions 10 and 306 up here, as you can see, hopefully you can. Up here, as you can see, hopefully you can.

Shivali Patel:

And then you are going to add in some advanced rank filters down here where I say I want to see a minimum of one of my competitors ranking somewhere between positions one and 10. And voila, when you click apply filters, what you’re going to be taking a look at essentially is going to be 37 filtered keywords only and the search combined search volume, where now you have at least one of your competitors beating you. It’s going to be about a combined search volume of 13,768, whereas the average search volume is 372. So that is just a really, really neat way, in my opinion, to find those keywords that at least one of your competitors are beating you but you are ranking somewhere in the top four, and then you can kind of optimize your strategy accordingly or even just in general to keep a pulse on how that search volume is changing based off the filtered keywords that you are looking at. So with that, I wish you the best of luck in Q4. And I hope that you really leverage these tips and this news segments for this week.