With millions of sellers and a rapidly growing third-party marketplace, Amazon continues to expand and improve the Brand Registry. When it comes to building and protecting your brand on Amazon, there’s no better way than enrolling and managing your business through this program. Having been around for several years now, the Brand Registry is great for allowing registered brand owners to ensure their intellectual property is protected and accurately represented on Earth's biggest marketplace. But last year, it really became a portal to unlock marketing tools across Seller Central, Vendor Central, and the Amazon Ads platform. To get the most out of the Amazon Brand Registry, you must know how to access and utilise the expansive features it offers. This blog will discuss the benefits of the Brand Registry in 2022, and help you have your best year yet.
What is the Brand Registry on Amazon?
The Brand Registry is Amazon’s internal program to give brand owners the tools to protect their brand, including trademarks and other intellectual property. Ultimately, the Brand Registry provides a better onsite experience for customers by ensuring an accurate and authentic shopping experience. Launched in 2017, the Brand Registry has gone through a number of developments and expansions. Gradually, Amazon has added a wide range of selling benefits that span across Amazon's tools.
For vendors and sellers (who are also manufacturers or brand owners), the registration process can be a bit daunting, depending on your location in the world. There are several hurdles and verification steps, but it’s well worth it to unlock the tools.
How do I access the Brand Registry on Amazon?
The Brand Registry is different from Seller Central or Vendor Central, but you will need an account and need to meet a specific set of criteria to sign up for the Brand Registry. Here’s what you need to know:
Registering a trademark
To be eligible for Amazon Brand Registry, your brand must have an active registered trademark in each country where you wish to join. You must have a registered trademark with a valid government office.
In the US, the trademark process can take a year or more. But fear not, once you have applied, been assigned a number, and are in pending status, you may apply and be approved for the Brand Registry. Once your case is reviewed by the Brand Registry team, you will be approved and you will unlock all of the tools it offers.
In other countries, the trademark process may be much quicker. The UK trademark application is quicker and is usually reviewed within a month. Keep in mind that if you are selling in Europe as well as the UK, you will need to register trademarks in the UK and an EU country. Post-Brexit, the process is a little more complicated.
You may also choose to use the IP Accelerator program offered by Amazon. This program allows you to apply for a trademark and join the Brand Registry all facilitated by Amazon.
Opening or linking your Brand Registry and seller accounts
You must have a Vendor Central account OR a Professional Seller account in Seller Central before you can sign up for the Brand Registry. This is because the Brand Registry is only for brand owners or manufacturers. If you signed up to Seller Central as an Individual Seller, you will need to upgrade to access the Brand Registry tools. A Professional selling account is $39.99 in the US and £25 monthly in the UK. If you are an FBA seller, you will also incur other per-item fees on top of this.
Brand Registry applications must be submitted by the brand owner. When you create a Brand Registry account, you MUST use the same name and info as your registered trademark. Do not register with a different name or something similar. We also recommend you use the same email address and info as your Seller Central or Vendor Central account. This will ensure the accounts are linked and you receive access to the Brand Registry benefits.
For example, if your trademark is "Original Cool Striped Shirts", use this exact phrasing for the Brand Registry. Do not register using "Original Striped Shirts", "Cool Shirt Co.", "Original Cool T-Shirts", or anything else.
Once you are registered, you can check the status of your account by logging into the Brand Registry and viewing the case log. You may have to verify your identity, provide additional documentation, or have a quick video call with an Amazon representative. Recently, Amazon has required more steps to ensure valid companies are registering and properly represented. Build this time into your process, as it can take several weeks depending on the category and individual circumstances (for instance, if someone else has already registered your brand, if your trademark is not in process, etc).
After your brand is registered, you can assign users roles, based on expected levels of access. There are currently three roles that can be assigned to user accounts associated with your brand:
- Rights Owner: An individual who is the trademark owner or their employee, and authorised to report violations. Users with this role have access to the Report a Violation tool and listing benefits.
- Registered Agent: A third party who is authorised by the Rights Owner to report violations using Brand Registry tools.
- Administrator: An individual who has permission to assign roles to user accounts.
Be sure to work with any agencies or service providers if you plan to have them work on your catalogue. In order to access tools, each user will need Registered Agent privileges.
Brand Registry benefits
Once you are registered and up and running, you will have access to several tools that basic sellers do not. These tools are free, and available in Vendor Central and/or Seller Central when your account is set up. If you have a problem with access to these benefits, it’s best to file a case with the Brand Registry team, rather than the Seller Central team, as they will often refer you there in the end. Here are some of the best benefits of the Brand Registry that you will want to take advantage of right away.
A+ Content
What is Amazon A+ Content? A+ Content is one of the best ways to showcase your brand on Amazon product detail pages. A+ Content, previously referred to as Enhanced Brand Content, allows you to create rich, interactive content on your product pages by using customised modules, such as charts and lifestyle images.
Access to this feature can be found under the Advertising tab in Seller Central if you are a part of the Brand Registry. When sellers use this feature, it will override your product description. When vendors use it, both A+ Content and the product description will appear on the detail page.
(Example A+ Content on Amazon.co.uk, created by eCommerce Nurse.)
For A+ Content to have the maximum benefit, you will want to be sure it is well-designed, accurate, and error-free. This can require professional photography, design, and additional resources. At eCommerce Nurse, we specialise in creating A+ Content to increase your conversion, answer customer questions, and help you stand out from the competition.
Amazon Brand Stores
One of the best benefits the Brand Registry unlocks is Amazon Brand Stores under the Amazon Advertising platform. What is an Amazon Brand Store? A Store is a page (or pages) for your brand. Think of it as a website within Amazon. It is a centralised place to showcase your products, brand story, and drive awareness for your entire range. You can also use them to drive traffic to your brand with integrated Sponsored Brands advertising. On a product detail page, when you click on a Brand Registered brand’s name, it will lead directly to their store. This is a great way to get customer eyes on your products, instead of the competition.
(Example Brand Stores for Honeywell Home.)
If you have a large range, you can create multiple pages, like category pages of a website. Drive traffic with a page specifically for deals, seasonally refresh your store, or show customers your Subscribe & Save options. The sky's the limit. You can also use video and other modules custom to your brand. Best of all, like A+ Content, Brand Stores are free for Brand Registry users. Make sure you take advantage of this tool. At eCommerce Nurse, we build customised Brand Stores to show off a brand’s personality. We love making them on-brand to match your off-Amazon website or social media look and feel.
Sponsored Brands in Amazon Advertising
Many features of the Brand Registry live under the Amazon Advertising platform. Only once you've launched a Brand Store can you take advantage of this type of PPC advertising in the ads platform. These ads can drive customers to your Brand Store, and allow you to cross-sell your products. According to Amazon, Sponsored Brands campaigns linked to a Brand Store see an average 28% ROAS increase (Amazon data WW, 2019). In 2021, Amazon also unveiled new Sponsored Brands features. These include Sponsored Brands Videos, campaigns with custom images, and new metrics to allow you to measure the number of first-time customers or total first-time sales your brand acquired on Amazon in the past 12 months. eCommerce Nurse provides an integrated strategy, ensuring your ASINs and brand are retail-ready, thus allowing you to maximise your ROaS.
(Example Sponsored Brands campaign with custom images, created by eCommerce Nurse.)
Learn more about Sponsored Brands on the Amazon Advertising page. eCommerce Nurse can support your advertising needs with an integrated approach, creating effective advertising campaigns, such as Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Products, and DSP.
Amazon Posts
Relatively new to the suite of Brand Registry features, Amazon Posts launched in 2020. This is a social media-like feed within Amazon where Brand Registry brands can create posts. If you’re already using Instagram or Facebook, it’s easy to repurpose content on Amazon and use this feature to drive sales. The Amazon Posts feature is currently only available to US sellers or vendors.
Amazon Live
Amazon Live launched in 2020 and can help brands gain visibility in the crowded Amazon market. Similar in style to QVC, Amazon Live allows sellers to stream live videos to customers. The options are endless, allowing you to do product demonstrations, answer questions, showcase your range, or talk about your items.
Once it has aired (live), your video will stay on your product detail page, and in the Amazon archives, making it a great way to add more content and make your brand stand out with robust features.
Amazon Vine
One of the biggest challenges when launching a product on Amazon is getting momentum. Reviews, especially positive ones, can really help push your product up the sales ranking. Amazon Vine is a program available to Brand Registry sellers. It is a way to get legitimate reviews and it is free to enrol your products. Amazon Vine invites the most trusted reviewers on Amazon to post opinions about new products to help their fellow customers make informed purchase decisions. Participating sellers can enrol and provide up to 30 free units of their products for reviews. Participating in Vine helps build awareness of your product, boosts the sales of your slow and new products, and helps customers make informed decisions about any new products you offer. After the end of the Early Reviewer Program in 2021, this option is basically the only way to get legit reviews.
In order for the items you enrol to be eligible, they should meet the following criteria:
- Be brand registered in Amazon Brand Registry.
- Have fewer than 30 reviews on the product detail page.
- Have a buyable FBA offer in 'New' condition.
- Not be an adult product.
- Have already launched at the time of enrolment.
- Have available inventory.
- Have an image and a description.
If you need help enrolling products or deciding which Amazon programs to use, contact eCommerce Nurse to discuss brand strategy.
The Brand Dashboard
When you are registered as a brand owner, Amazon allows you access to some increased information and analytics, which you can use to tailor your strategy and increase sales. This section includes Brand Health, which can help you avoid out of stocks, increase selection, and stay price competitive. The Brand Dashboard will also make recommendations on traffic and conversion, help you with a product optimiser, and provide a concise view of your customer reviews.
Manage Your Experiments
Manage Your Experiments lets you run A/B tests (also known as split tests) on your listings and content. Experiments let you compare two versions of content against each other so you can see which performs better. At the end of an experiment, you can review which version performed the best and then take actions across your brand and ASINs based on your learnings. By running experiments, you can learn how to build better content that appeals to your customers and helps to drive more sales. Currently, you can run titles and images experiments, but this will likely continue to expand.
Customer Engagement
Launched in 2021, this dashboard allows you to create marketing emails and send them to your followers. This feature integrates with Amazon Posts, as you can target your brand's followers. For the best experience, Amazon recommends utilising this tool once you have more than 1,000 followers. Manage Your Customer Engagement tool helps your brand build better relationships with Amazon customers and helps increase the visibility of your new products, such as when a new product launches. Currently, you can support new product announcements, but Amazon plans to add additional templates in the future. The Manage Your Customer Engagement is available to registered brands that have an Amazon Stores page with followers. (In case it's not clear by this point, many features require Brand Registry and a Brand Store).
Brand Protection
The original reason for the Brand Registry was to help customers avoid counterfeit products and have a good experience on Amazon. One of the main benefits of registering your brand is that you can more easily take control of your product’s detail pages, especially if there are multiple distributors and you want to ensure a cohesive, accurate experience.
Through the Brand Registry, you can access a dedicated team of Amazon agents. The self-reporting tool allows you to report violations, infringements, inaccurate information, and more accurately and efficiently respond to issues, such as if a customer is returning a product for being “not as described.” To do this, it helps to have members of your team or agency assigned to roles so they can quickly jump on any issues.
Another program you can utilise through the Brand Registry to more cohesively protect your brand is the Amazon Transparency program. Transparency is a product serialisation service that helps identify individual units and proactively prevent counterfeits from reaching customers. If you have issues with unauthorised distributors, Transparency allows Amazon to scan your products to ensure that only authentic units are shipped to customers. This program is ideal if your brand has experienced many IP issues in the past.
Need more help with the Brand Registry?
As a full-service agency of ex-Amazonians and Amazon experts, eCommerce Nurse marketing specialists have helped build many brands to success on Amazon across the globe. Explore our services, and determine the level of support you need, then contact us today!
