Glossary · 19 terms

Seller-Tool Glossary

The vocabulary that actually changes a buying decision, defined plainly. If a spec sheet uses it, it is explained here.

Product Research

ASIN: Amazon Standard Identification Number — the unique ID for a catalog product.
Private Label: Selling a manufacturer product under your own brand.

Price Tracking

BSR: Best Sellers Rank — a relative sales-velocity rank within a category.
Sales Rank: Another name for BSR; its history reveals demand and seasonality.

Arbitrage

Retail Arbitrage: Buying clearance/retail stock in-store to resell on Amazon.
Online Arbitrage: Sourcing resale inventory from other online retailers.

PPC & Ads

ACOS: Advertising Cost of Sales — ad spend divided by ad-attributed sales.
TACOS: Total ACOS — ad spend against total (organic + ad) revenue.

Inventory & Repricing

Buy Box: The default "Add to Cart" winner on a shared listing.
MSKU: Merchant SKU — your own identifier for an inventory item.

Profit & Accounting

FBA Reimbursement: Money Amazon owes for lost or damaged FBA inventory.

Sourcing & Wholesale

Sourcing: Finding and buying inventory to resell profitably.
Wholesale: Buying branded stock in bulk from authorized suppliers.
Replenishable: A product you can reliably re-source and restock.

Brand & Trademark

IP Complaint: A rights-owner claim that can suppress or remove a listing.

Getting Started

FBA: Fulfillment by Amazon — Amazon stores, picks, packs, and ships your orders.
FBM: Fulfillment by Merchant — the seller ships orders directly.
Gated Category: A category or brand requiring approval before you can list.
Ungating: Getting approved to sell in a restricted category or brand.