Amazon Renewed: A New Way of Selling Your Refurbished Items

Being one of the largest world’s eCommerce marketplaces in the world, Amazon provides a variety of goods for customers. And at some moment, you have probably noticed the term “Renewed” on the platform. 

But do you know what Renewed on Amazon means? It’s the marketplace’s program where clients can find refurbished items and pre-owned goods from top brands at lucrative prices.

This article will explain what Amazon Renewed means and how it works. We will also discuss the advantages of shopping at AMZ Renewed and why you should think about using it.

Keep reading to find out more!

What is a Refurbished Product?

If a product is tested to work just fine but has a cosmetic flaw, or if it doesn’t work at all and the customer wants to return it, then the seller tries to sell it again, that is what we call a refurbished item – a product does not work or has not been properly inspected and tested for defective parts.

Even though it can be easily fixed or the flaw isn’t a big deal to everyone, you still couldn’t resell it as something new as it is now an open box item – someone else had already used it slightly, so technically, it isn’t so new.

Normally, in the past, these products were very hard to resell as people wanted their things new and flashy – it’s expected for a new product to exceed the customer’s expectation. However, as time passed by, defects became a little normal, and manufacturers caught up to it by giving warranties to their customers and also giving them the option of giving back the products they bought for a replacement or refund as long as the receipt of the product is given.

To prepare these types of products, the manufacturer will put them through a comprehensive refurbishment process and tests to check for their functionality and quality. After a long process of ensuring that the products are as good as new, you’ll have a certified refurbished product at the end of the process. Examples of these are refurbished iPhones, home appliances, and the like. While these items won’t work as expected, replacing any defective items is not that bad.

That’s why products on AMZ Renewed are popular these days. It allows you to choose from various products for a lower price. Plus, they offer an AMZ Renewed guarantee to all its customers.

What is Amazon Renewed?

Amazon Renewed has a tagline: “Like New For Less, No Worries.” Of course, selling refurbished products at a bargain price as if they’re new has been eBay’s territory for a long time. But now, AMZ is venturing into new territory and selling its version of certified refurbished products.

Sometimes, a customer will then return a product with the box damaged or missing. In some cases, however, they just exchange it for an update. These are good ways to save money, and the platform knows its business well, which is why they want in on this trend.

Amazon ensures that they only select qualified suppliers who have maintained high-quality and performance bars to offer Certified Refurbished products, which are tested to work. The refurbishment process includes a full diagnostic test of the product, replacement of the defective parts, a thorough inspection and cleaning process, and of course, repackaging by the seller, which, as it looks like, isn’t a quick polish and re-box job.

The product is backed by a separate 1-year limited warranty by the Marketplace seller, the manufacturer, or a third-party refurbisher, or even in the case of products sold by AMZ by the vendor. Afterward, it is then shipped with all the needed accessories.

Selling Refurbished Products on Amazon Renewed

There are many ways to make money on the platform as it provides incredible potential, even if your goal is to just make some extra cash or even build an entire business from the ground up. For example, you can start a full-time private label company or randomly sell household goods around your house.

Selling refurbished items is a great means of making money as a lot of customers are looking for deals and are willing to buy even those that have been slightly used to save a huge deal of cash.

The Amazon Renewed program was launched in 2017 as an exclusive seller group requiring an application process. Back then, only those who met the outlined criteria could be allowed to participate in selling refurbished items, and only then will their products be able to be sold as “Certified Refurbished.”

A combination of both sales requirements and quality is the criteria to sell on AMZ Renewed, and becoming a part of this group gives you less competition since the members should first be approved before being able to join the group.

If you are looking for a place where there are refurbished products for sale, Amazon Renewed is the place to go. Meanwhile, you can sell your refurbished items on the platform using the Amazon Renewed program.

The advantage of this is you can earn some profit even from a product that has been returned. However, becoming an AMZ Renewed guarantee seller needs considerable commitment as it has to be a highly successful profit opportunity, and the products should be working the same as how new products should work as expected.

To be part of the program, these are the things you need to have to be an AMZ Renewed Seller:

1. You should be committed to acquiring the collection of refurbished products. You should have invoices totaling at least $50,000 in refurbished purchases 90 days before your application date. You have to show $2.5 million for wireless and $100,000 for non-wireless products if you sell Apple or Samsung products. You need to make a good investment as this isn’t a small-scale project but a business proposition.
2. You need an Order Defect Rate (ODR) of 0.8% or less for at least 700 orders in the past 90 days.
3. You need to submit at least eight images of the sample unit, including its packaging, to list refurbished factory items without the original manufacturer’s warranty.
4. You need to offer a refund within 90 days.

At the same time, here is a list of AMZ returned items for sale:

1. Electronics (stereo equipment, television sets, headphones, video game consoles, etc.)
2. Smartphones, tablets, laptops, and computers
3. Musical instruments
4. Watches
5. Automotive parts
6. Office equipment
7. Outdoors and sports equipment
8. Industrial and home tools
9. Home and kitchen appliances

What Are the Cons of Buying Refurbished Products?

One of the disadvantages of buying certified refurbished products on the platform is that your choices don’t usually include the latest models, as it takes time for the customers to return the products and the manufacturers to refurbish the products and make them for sale.

Some manufacturers also won’t promise that the refurbished products are in new cosmetic condition, though you can always expect your product to work as if it is new. The product’s warranty may also be a period that is shorter than for those new items, so you might have to pay for the additional cost of an extended warranty if you ever want this type of protection.

Why Should You Buy Refurbished Products?

The main benefit of buying an Amazon-certified refurbished product is that you will save money while buying a fully functional item. It is because sellers can’t list these products as new; they offer lower prices to attract customers. Another reason why you should buy Amazon refurbished products is that you can rest easy knowing that your product has undergone testing for defects.

Lastly, refurbishment from Amazon comes with warranties just like new products, so you don’t have to worry about not getting your money back if the item you have received doesn’t work as described.

On the other hand, if you plan to be an AMZ renewed seller, here are the advantages you can enjoy:

• You get to extend your brand

Becoming such a seller will help boost your brand recognition as you can now offer customers another option: purchasing refurbished equipment. As it is known in the marketing world, the more choices you give the customer, the more customers you’ll have.

• Avoid competition and join an exclusive program.

Not everyone can be a seller of certified refurbished items on Amazon. It is a privilege given only to those who have met Amazon’s quality criteria and can consistently sell new products. It gives a great opportunity for the very few to be accepted.

• You get to sell to a loyal customer base.

Global traffic on AMZ is between 2 to 3 billion visits a month, explaining why it’s known as the leading e-commerce platform. Customers are confident knowing that you have passed Amazon’s global selling requirements to sell refurbished items. It removes their worry about purchasing from you.

• You can use the Amazon platform.

As AMZ is known for its quality products, you can use its fulfillment capabilities and proven selling tools to sell your refurbished products worldwide. You can also improve product reviews, manage feedback, and automate high-volume emails by using Amazon’s third-party software.

Read our article on how to get reviews on Amazon legally.

You Can Get Help for Amazon Renewed from Amazon

Amazon’s account managers are working with sellers one-on-one to help them with the onboarding process, as the sellers for Amazon Renewed have been in high demand. Below are a few things that Amazon offers to the sellers of their new platform:

• Increase your profit back to Sound United and protect your brand.
• You can use spreadsheets, feed, and other programs to streamline the inventory loading process from the standard condition to the CR condition.
• To help you get your storefront launched, you can get initial startup support from AMZ’s onboarding team. It includes live, personalized rain, expedited storefront launch, and even inventory loading.
• You can run your Best Deals on Certified Refurbished products. You can run as many as you want through 2018, which is one of the benefits of having an account manager.
• You can sell your products to direct consumers and even protect the privacy that you want to offer for your products.

Some tips are provided below for selling refurbished items on Amazon renewed. Below are some tips that we recommend for you to be successful in the Amazon Renewed Seller platform:

• Give customers at least a 20 percent reduction in the cost of a new product.
• You should get started with at least 15 SKUs.
• You should use Amazon’s Sponsored Products advertising programs which help you create certified refurbished ASINs, which will appear on the first page of the search results of Amazon on its product detail pages.
  

Final Thoughts

So what does Renewed mean on Amazon? 

AMZ Renewed is a solution that discounts like-new items certified to look and perform like new. All items sold via this program come with a minimum 90-day guarantee, making it a fantastic option for budget-conscious buyers.

For Amazon merchants, the Amazon Renewed solution is a great way to move returned items at a discounted cost, so there is still a possibility to earn money out of such merchandise. 

And whether you’re selling brand new, renewed, or refurbished items on the platform, be sure to stick to the policies set forth by the online platform. 

Check out our other blog posts on selling on Amazon to gain a competitive edge over other sellers.