Whenever you want to purchase a product online, you immediately think of Amazon. It is the biggest and most accomplished retailer in western countries, and possibly the world. Amazon has established itself as the pioneering marketplace that earns the trust of its customers. Amazon has a Marketplace Web Service or MWS, which is an API key to let the registered users create apps for handling order data, reporting fulfillment, and managing inventory. This MWS API key is essential for you as a seller. That being said, you must follow its data protection policy to ensure your standing on Amazon’s marketplace. This means that sellers should add their personally identifiable information to comply with Amazon’s security standards.
Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Consumers value quality and authenticity. So, it is only logical that they want to deal with trusted sellers. From a technical perspective, there is a type of information that is vital in any purchase process. Personally identifiable information or PII as illustrated by Amazon, is the specific information that can be used to contact, locate, or identify an individual. Such information can be traced back to the seller for any liability issue. PII includes phone numbers, names, full mailing addresses, payment details, purchase histories. They can also include location data, digital fingerprints, and browser data.
Amazon’s Latest Policy
The newest Amazon privacy policy states that third-party applications or programs can store personally identifiable information as long as needed to fulfill relevant orders. According to the web developers and FBA specialists at infinitefba.com, a 30-day limit is imposed on the PII storage. However, there are some exceptions for information, such as required legal documents and tax records. In that case, they stay securely stored but not in an easily accessible way by any program or software.
Amazon Takes a Responsible Stand
The obvious reason behind such policies is the protection of the customer’s data. While PII data can be helpful to vendors in order to optimize their products and services and enhance their marketing profits, there is no dire need to preserve all kinds of information on customers. Breaches to privacy are not taken lightly by the law, especially nowadays. Customers are becoming warrier about what happens with their personal information these days. Provided that there is no protection for PII, Amazon will lose a lot of its credibility. Although when consumers purchase from third-party sellers on Amazon, they will still regard their purchases and orders from Amazon itself. With any nuisance by other sellers on the platform, the customers will ask Amazon to take action. So, Amazon’s decision to crack down the PII retention is a wise approach to being on the customer’s good side.
Useful Strategies to Deal With PII Changes
Since PII data played a vital role in facilitating sales profit and knowing customers, sellers may find it more challenging now that it’s practically not allowed like before. On the bright side, sellers can still adapt to such changes to maximize their benefits.
Reviews
Reviews help increase your customer’s trust in your products and services. After making sure you follow Amazon’s terms and conditions, politely ask for consumers’ reviews and feedback. The honest comments can help you improve your product quality and boost your services.
Lead Generation
Employ Amazon to your advantage to generate future leads to turn them into sales. You can get your products into the target market instead of just a sales channel.
Offer Incentives
You should ensure that you adopt an effective process of turning Amazon customers into direct buyers. For example, you can include offers in the packaging of your products. You want to add value to your specific customer base. If your customers want to buy espresso machines, they will certainly be interested in future offers on coffee grounds. Or a custom mug for their coffee that you throw in for free with every order.
Amazon’s services have dominated the world of online shopping for decades. The success of this retailer attributes to its capacity for an extensive selection of products, fast delivery, and low prices. It basically has what every consumer looks for. To maintain its brand name for all those years, Amazon developers always strive for the best customer experience. This includes the protection of their data through implementing the required policies. Amazon will only use certain parts of your data to display ads about products and services that interest you. However, it does not let sellers keep your contact information or any valuable data for a long time. With strict privacy protection policies, Amazon has taken its customer care to the next level. With our guide, you can learn more about such policies and what to do to maximize your profits.