Amazon’s “New” Badge Will Appear on New Products
This article discusses Amazon’s New badge, a feature that will be displayed on new products that have recently been added to the platform. The badge is intended to help shoppers discover and purchase recently launched products, and to give businesses an opportunity to showcase their latest offerings.
Amazon has come a long way from being an online book shop to becoming one of the biggest eCommerce actors in the world. Being the best in this industry also means being very big. Nevertheless, even robust Amazon has made it possible even for people with minimal technical knowledge to be able to shop for products on its platform.
Excellent search functionality, high-quality images, ratings, and reviews are just some of the perks that make shopping on Amazon convenient and straightforward. But Amazon doesn’t want to stop there. In its latest efforts to make shopping even more accessible for online consumers, Amazon has added a “New” badge. The
“new” badge will appear on new products. At this point, we still don’t know what criteria Amazon will apply to the “new” badges. This is an excellent opportunity for sellers to make their products more visible, especially in saturated markets.
A “New” Badge Is Convenient For Shoppers
Amazon decided to start experimenting with a “new” badge to help the shoppers determine what item to buy. This is just one in line of many Amazon efforts to label products uniquely and helpfully. A “new” badge is not alone out there. Amazon has been testing other badges and labels. For instance, we have seen some products being labeled as “Best Sellers.” There are others labeled as “Amazon’s Choice.”
And, while “Best Sellers” and “Amazon’s Choice” labels are based on various factors such as pricing and customer reviews, it remains unclear what the factors for the newest addition to the Amazon’s “badge” family will be. It appears that Amazon is not testing this badge continuously. The “new” badge appears on some products, then after some time, it disappears. The same has been noticed when using different browsers. While the badge can be seen in one, it completely disappears in others.
Amazon’s Email Statement
Amazon didn’t spend too much time commenting on the latest developments in its headquarters. According to Amazon’s spokesperson, the “new” badge program is ongoing and its currently in the testing phase. Apparently, Amazon carefully chooses the testing grounds for its “new” badge. Currently, there are undergoing tests in specific markets and only for specific customers.
In an email statement, Amazon’s spokesperson pointed out that all of this is done because Amazon wants to provide the ultimate shopping experience to all customers. “We are always experimenting with providing a better shopping experience for customers,” the spokesperson said.
Amazon’s Badge Policy Attracts Attention
Amazon’s badge policy creates quite a buzz every time Amazon announces and starts testing a new badge or label. Several lawmakers don’t take Amazon’s badge policy lightly, and even call it opaque. It is not the first time Amazon has attracted the attention of government officials.
Not long ago, Sen. Bob Menendez and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, two prominent Democrats in the US Senate, wrote a letter to Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s CEO. Senators demanded from Amazon to clarify its Choice Program. Respected Senators were not happy with how Amazon’s recommendation engine works. More specifically, how and why it keeps on endorsing products of poor and low quality.
This letter is rooted in facts. Please note that Amazon is on top of the e-commerce ladder in the US. It accounts for nearly 50% of all online sales in the US. Amazon allows third-party sellers to use its platform to sell products. At the moment, the third-party market is rapidly growing. This creates amazing opportunities for sellers. Unfortunately, some sellers trade with unsafe and counterfeit products. There have been numerous complaints about this.
Furthermore, it indicates that Amazon no longer implements adequate quality control measures to the point that it lists items that failed to meet safety compliance standards. As a result, Amazon is increasingly being held accountable for faulty products.
What’s In It For Sellers?
If a “new” badge goes live, it would mean a lot for Amazon sellers. Getting the attention of modern consumers is very hard, especially with the ever-shrinking attention span. Don’t forget the early adopters and their mindset. They want to test new products and be the first to have them.
There are also reviewers, YouTubers, influencers, all on the hunt for new products which translates into new content on their blogs, profiles, and channels. A “New” Amazon badge could trigger clicks on so many fronts. This is why sellers can’t wait for the testing phase to be over.
The safety compliance standards and quality control measures still raise concerns, though. Third-party sellers can use the opportunity created by the “new” badge to sell counterfeit and unsafe products, potentially costing Amazon millions. We will have to wait and see how Amazon tackles this problem.
The first move was to enforce Amazon product liability insurance for pro merchants increasingly. The ruling in the Oberdorf vs. Amazon case may have forced Amazon’s hand, but the result is what matters – a more secure platform and safe products.
What’s In It For Consumers?
A “new” badge potentially means a lot for Amazon’s customers. Please note that we are not talking about Amazon Community Badges here. These are badges that will show up in product listings. The idea is to help customers easily find the products they are searching for.
The “new” badge will also make Amazon browsing so much easier. With just one glimpse, shoppers will be able to see the newest additions to the Amazon family.
For now, we will have to wait until Amazon is done testing the “new” badge. Meanwhile, we hope that Amazon will clarify the factors for a “new” badge and how long it will stay next to products recently introduced to shoppers.
