Knowing how to get approval to sell toys on Amazon is very important. This is because like many other products on Amazon, there are several restrictions on selling toys.
This is not only per Amazon requirements but also in regards to statutory stipulations anchored in Federal law.
For instance, toys sold on Amazon must comply with the following safety standards outlined under Federal law;
- The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA)
- ASTM F963-16/-17
As such, sellers have a duty to comply with all the requirements outlined by Amazon for them to be able to sell toys on the E-commerce platform. And while it is obvious why products in other categories like that of food and beverages, electronics, and topicals are restricted, it may not be very obvious in the case of toys.
So what is the logic behind restriction of toys?
Why is the sale of toys on Amazon restricted?
It is important to understand that majority of the restrictions on Amazon are made with the primary goal of giving customers the best products and shopping experience. The same applies for toys.
However, one key factor that differentiates the restrictions on toys is that most of them are not there for a large art of the year. Rather, the strictest restrictions on the sale of toys are implemented in the last quarter of the year.
This is because the last quarter coincides with the holidays. Therefore, the demand for gifts usually rises, consequently resulting in a corresponding rise in the demand of toys. This high demand in turn attracts a lot of sellers.
This sudden surge in the number of sellers increases the risk of;
- Low quality products being sold on the platform
- The introduction of toys that may not be very safe for children’s use.
- Counterfeited products
- Products that are not fully compliant with statutory requirements
Because there is very high profit incentive, sellers may not be keen on fulfilling all necessary requirements to ensure customers get the best products possible. Hence, these restrictions help to ensure that sellers do not contravene quality standards.
Requirements for Selling Toys During Q4
Therefore, to get approval to sell toys on Amazon, you as a seller have to meet the following requirements;
- You must have fulfilled your first order as a seller before September. Whether or not the product falls under the category of toys is not mandatory.
- You must have fulfilled over 25 orders by virtue of processing and shipping them successfully between August and October that same year.
- Your rate of cancelling pre-fulfilled orders must not have exceeded 1.75% between September and October of the year.
- The rate of your late shipments should not have exceeded 4% between September and October.
- Your defective order rate in the month of that October must be under 1%.
More Selling Guides to Ungating Toys
How can you increase your chances of being approved to sell toys?
- Ensure you optimize customer experience by attaining an almost perfect score when it comes to order fulfillment. Late shipments may negatively affect your likelihood to be approved to sell toys.
- Make sure to list a product in other categories outside the one for “toys and games” before October. This is because approval to sell toys in the last quarter requires you to have made sales by September of the same year.
- Do your best to ensure that only products which are available to be shipped to customer locations are the ones listed on your product page. That way, you can avoid cancellation of orders before fulfillment as this also undermines your credibility.
- Issue out communication on your availability to receive and fulfill orders in good time. If you will be occupied or unable to procure and deliver products in a timely manner, update your central seller status to reflect that. You can also include information on when customers can expect shipments to resume.
- Monitor your performance statistics closely as well as customer feedback. Customer feedback will give you a perspective on the quality of your services. Performance metrics will in turn provide you with a measurable way of assessing how well or not you are serving your clients so you can know what to improve.
- Always go through the orders made in your account and make sure that all the information entered is correct. That way, you will avoid error-based contingencies that may lead to late shipments. Do this from the “Manage orders” section.
Conclusion
As you can see, you really need to understand the toy category, as well the brands that market toys. Also, there are laws and regulations to follow in addition to Amazon’s own specific criteria.
