The competitive landscape of selling on Amazon has its own set of challenges. More than half of Amazon sellers intend to expand their operations this year, but despite this optimistic trend, concerns arise about potential risks, such as supplier competition, listing hijackings, and account status changes.
To better protect your business, we strongly recommend registering your brand trademark with Amazon’s Brand Registry. In this blog post, we explore the nitty-gritty of Amazon Brand Registry, from its features, benefits, to registration procedures.
Understanding Amazon Brand Registry
Simply put, Amazon Brand Registry is an exclusive program designed to recognize and empower your brand on the platform. Amazon describes the program as a vehicle providing “powerful tools to help protect your trademarks, including proprietary text and image search and predictive automation.” It’s beneficial for brand owners but requires a clear understanding of its offerings and limitations.
Amazon Brand Registry provides you, the brand owner, with:
- Enhanced control over your product listings.
- Brand monitoring tools to keep track of your brand on Amazon.
- Dedicated support teams to rectify and escalate any issues regarding incorrect listing contributions, variations, and Intellectual Property (IP) infringement claims.
- Access to premium features like Amazon A+ Content, Amazon Stores, Sponsored Brands ads, Amazon Live, and the Amazon Vine Program.
However, it does not gate your brand or allow you to whitelist/blacklist sellers. Also, no one except you can submit infringement claims against other sellers.
Registering for Amazon Brand Registry
To apply for the Amazon Brand Registry, you need a registered trademark for your product, confirmed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in the US. Applying for a trademark involves thorough research, filing within a specific class, and hiring a licensed trademark attorney. It usually takes a year to receive a response from the USPTO.
However, with Amazon’s IP Accelerator service, you don’t need to wait a year for your brand to get approved. This service connects you with IP attorneys, and Amazon approves your brand for the Registry before your trademark application is accepted. The entire process takes about two weeks.
Harnessing the Benefits of Amazon Brand Registry
Once enrolled, a world of benefits becomes accessible right from your Amazon Seller Central dashboard.
1. Brand Protection: The registry offers an efficient system for safeguarding your products against violations, incorrect product details, blocked listings, or any technical issues. If you need additional protection against counterfeiters, Amazon’s Transparency and Project Zero programs are worth considering.
2. A+ Content Access: Access the “A+ Content Manager” to enhance your product listings with additional text, images, and infographics. A professional look can significantly boost your brand image.
3. Customer Engagement: Stand out from the crowd by creating custom storefronts that resemble a regular ecommerce website. Amazon offers straightforward, no-special-skills-required templates to help you build your store.
4. Sponsored Brand Ads: Use Sponsored Brands ads to drive discovery of your brand. These ads appear at the top of Amazon search results and help guide customers directly to your product page or storefront.
5. Amazon Live Creator: Engage directly with potential customers through interactive, livestream videos using Amazon Live. Share your brand story, demonstrate your product’s functionality, or live chat to answer customer queries.
6. Customer Insights: To effectively leverage all the benefits, understanding your customer base is crucial. Gain access to purchase behaviour data with Brand Analytics.
If you’re an Amazon seller yet to register your brand with Amazon Brand Registry, we recommend you do so. It’s a robust tool that not only gives you control over your brand but also offers a plethora of benefits to boost your business.
Feel free to share your experiences with Amazon Brand Registry in the comments below. Also, consider subscribing to our YouTube playlist for an in-depth look at Amazon Brand Registry & All Its Perks.
Summary (TL; DR): Amazon’s Brand Registry provides powerful tools to help protect your brand, control your listings, and expand your business on Amazon. The process to get registered requires a trademark and roughly two weeks for approval. Once approved, sellers gain access to a host of benefits, including enhanced content, customer engagement tools, sponsored ads, Amazon Live, and in-depth customer insights. Amazon’s Transparency and Project Zero programs offer additional protection against counterfeiters.
