How To Open a Case in Amazon + Tips for Getting More Sales

AmazonMay 4, 2021

Alex Stoykov

CEO/Founder

Introduction

Uh-oh – you’ve run into an issue you can’t fix, and now you need to open a case in Amazon.

If you’ve had to open an Amazon case in the past, you likely know that it can take time for it to be resolved.

In this article, we’ll walk you through not only how to open a case in Amazon but also how to communicate with support to get results.

Plus, we’ll give you some tips to avoid having to open future cases.

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How To Open An Amazon Case

On the surface, Amazon makes it easy to open a case. In just a few simple steps that we’ve laid out below, you can initiate contact in a matter of minutes.

To start the process:

1. Sign in to your Seller Central account.
2. Then open the below link:
Click here
3. Go ahead and type the issue you’re having in the box labeled “Describe your issue.”
4. When you’re finished, select “Continue.”
5. Select either email or phone support, depending on your preferred method of communication.
6. Complete the questions asked and then click “Send.”

That’s it on your end. Now, you wait for Amazon to respond.

Amazon doesn’t always make getting in contact and resolving issues the easiest. You’ll need to be persistent.

You will need to understand how to communicate with Amazon’s support; that way, when they do respond, you’ll be able to take advantage of their time.

How To Communicate With Amazon Support To Get Results

Amazon’s seller support team aren’t generally experienced sellers. They can struggle to understand complex concepts, but you can do a few things to make it easier on both of you.

Come prepared

Know your details and write them down so you can quickly refer to them when Amazon support emails or calls.

You may think you’ll remember everything, but if it takes a week to respond, that probably won’t be the case.

If you start to get frustrated, you’ll likely remember even less. To be sure you don’t leave out anything they need to know to solve your issue, jot down your notes as soon as you submit your case.

If you are having multiple unrelated issues, you may benefit by submitting individual tickets for each problem.

Solving one issue at a time will prevent confusion and is more likely to get resolved.

Start with email

You may think that getting a call would be the faster method to resolving your case, but that isn’t necessarily true.

The person on the other end of the phone may have to pass it to another department, and then you are counting on them to note what they’ve told you.

If you’ve dealt with support before, you probably know that documentation tends to be lacking. This means you are repeating your problem over and over with no proof of what the previous representative told you.

Using email, at the very least, creates proof of your issue and of what has already been done or suggested to resolve it previously.

Proof is especially important if you are dealing with any sort of account suspension or freeze.

Be courteous

It should go without saying, but always be kind to the Amazon support representative.

People like to help people who are friendly, and getting upset and impatient isn’t helping anyone.

You won’t communicate as clearly, and they won’t be as motivated to help if you are huffing and puffing at them.

We understand that it can become incredibly aggravating when you’re speaking to the fourth support person and still trying to explain your issue, but it isn’t their fault the first three representatives weren’t able to help.

Try to take a deep breath and keep this in mind.

Know and use the right phrases

There are two things to keep in mind when choosing your words with Amazon support.

1. People are more motivated to be on your side when they feel acknowledged.
2. Amazon ingrains certain company goals into their support employees.

If you find a support person who is extra helpful, you need to thank them for their time and effort. Maybe even mention you’d be happy to provide them an excellent review for all of their effort.

When you support their goals, they are more likely to support yours.

As for the second part, Amazon puts customer experience above everything, and the company trains its support staff to do the same.

When you frame your problem around how the customers are having their Amazon shopping experience impacted, the support staff are trained to make it a bigger priority.

Don’t make it about you as the seller; make it about the customers.

Don’t give up

One thing is for sure; if you give up, your issue will never be resolved.

If the first support person cannot help you, move on to the next. If they try to close the case without a resolution you are satisfied with, open a new case.

Sometimes a base-level support representative will not be able to help you no matter how well you explain yourself. At this point, you want to ask for the case to be escalated to a supervisor.

Not all cases will be easily taken care of, but for the sake of your business, don’t give up.

What To Do If You Don’t Get A Timely Response From Amazon Support

Sadly, Amazon doesn’t always respond, and even if they do respond, it can sometimes take days to weeks.

Sitting and waiting isn’t doing yourself any favors. Here are some ideas you can try while you wait.

Ask the Amazon seller forums

Amazon knows that they can’t answer every seller inquiry in a timely manner, so they have set up Seller Forums to allow Amazon sellers to help each other out in a pinch.

Chances are, if you are running into an issue, another seller (or lots of other sellers) has also encountered the problem.

Those sellers may be able to provide you a helpful solution before Amazon support responds.

In some cases, other sellers have better options to handle your issue than Amazon support will offer. It never hurts to at least post on the forums and see what you can learn.

Check other seller forums/groups

If you’ve tried Amazon seller forums and not found a solution, move on to off-Amazon forums or groups.

There are tons of forum threads and Facebook groups dedicated to selling on Amazon. Many of those threads and groups are monitored by expert sellers who could point you in the right direction.

Before you post a new question, though, use the search feature to browse through previous posts to make sure your question hasn’t already been answered.

People generally like to help, but they don’t want to repeat themselves, and they are more receptive to sellers who have tried to find the answer on their own.

Resubmit your issue

If you’ve reached out to other sellers and still are no closer to having your issue resolved, it’s time to reach back out.

There is a possibility that your inquiry was accidentally removed or that it was escalated for some reason, and you were never informed. With the number of cases Amazon receives, any number of things could happen.

Don’t feel like you are being a bother by reaching back out after a few days. This is your business, and it’s your responsibility to keep it up and running.

Plus, the odds that your new inquire(s) will be seen by the same Amazon support person is slim.

Try to use the chat option

Some sellers have had better luck getting their cases resolved more quickly through the chat feature than through the email or phone options for whatever reason. Maybe Amazon is trying to prioritize the channel.

The chatbot will probably tell you that it can only submit a ticket for your issue at the time, though, so still don’t expect immediate results.

As we stated above, start with email, and then if you haven’t received a response, try submitting through chat next.

You might be surprised and find that the chatbot can actually suggest a helpful fix. You never know unless you try!

Enlist a professional

The issues that arise on Amazon are sometimes avoidable and sometimes not. But when you’re new, you don’t always know the difference.

There are often workarounds that only an expert will know about, but expert sellers aren’t giving away their secrets to their competitors.

If you’ve tried every other option and you still don’t have a response or a solution, it may be time to enlist an Amazon professional to help.

How To Avoid Opening An Amazon Case In The Future

In an ideal world, you wouldn’t have to open an Amazon case. Let’s look at a few of the things you can do as you move forward that will cut down on the number of cases you have to open in the future.

Triple-check the details before submitting

Whether you’re adding a listing, setting up a coupon, or building out your A+ content, you need to triple-check the details before submitting.

Once you submit certain things – like deals and coupons – on Amazon, it is locked in. And other things are locked for at least a period of time while Amazon reviews them.

Any issues you encounter after submitting, you’ll likely need to open a case for. You can avoid this by taking the time to review what you have.

Don’t ever rush through the setup process on Amazon.

Don’t guess when it comes to policy

When it comes to rules, Amazon doesn’t mess around. It is expected that you understand the terms, conditions, and guidelines before you start selling on the marketplace.

Failure to learn the rules doesn’t excuse you from following them.

Amazon will suspend your account if you are not abiding by their guidelines, so you should never guess when it comes to Amazon policies.

If you aren’t sure about a rule, look it up to verify. You don’t want to be sitting on a suspended account because you didn’t take a few minutes to double-check the policy.

Amazon isn’t going to expedite your case because you made a mistake, so you’ll just be losing out on sales while you wait.

Protect your reputation

Amazon doesn’t look favorably on accounts that fall below specific account metrics. To avoid running into an issue, you need to stay on top of your account health.

Your account health is comprised of your:

Valid Tracking Rate
Late Shipping Rate
Order Defect Rate
Cancellation Rate
On-Time Delivery Rate
Buyer Feedback

Amazon will deactivate your account if any of these metrics fall below their standards and don’t improve quickly.

You may be able to get your account reinstated, but it isn’t easy. Your better choice is to track your metrics and protect your reputation with Amazon and with your customers.

Make friends with established sellers

We mentioned asking questions in seller forums and groups in that last section, but only participating when you need help isn’t the best answer.

Smart sellers know that it pays to make friends with other sellers long before they ever need them.

Learning from and, in turn, teaching other sellers will help you in the long run.

As the old saying goes, two heads are better than one. When you find sellers that are ahead of you and appear like they are willing to communicate with other sellers, go ahead and reach out.

Introduce yourself and strike up a conversation without asking them to teach you anything.

Prioritize account security

Like all other accounts, Amazon seller accounts get hacked from time to time.
Getting back control of your Amazon account can be a real hassle. The best thing you can do is make your account security a priority and make it as difficult as possible for hackers to take over.

A few of the things you can do to protect your account are:

Set a strong password
Limit access to your seller account
Two-Step Authentication
Use an Authenticator App

If you have multiple people that help you manage your Amazon business, you need to make sure they are just as diligent about their account security as you are.

Partner With Amazon Experts To Avoid Common Headaches

Are you ready to avoid the unnecessary headaches that come with handling your Amazon business on your own?

It is probably time to partner with an expert who can help level out the learning curve for you.

We understand how to set up your listings without running into issues. When we take care of the behind-the-scenes details, you get the support of a team that understands Amazon… instead of dealing with the obstacles on your own and hoping for the best.

If you’d like to learn more about how we can help your Amazon business, browse our Amazon services.