Selecting the best ASIN for improved sales
Multiple ASINs for a UPC
When listing products on Amazon’s Sellers Central it is important to select the correct ASIN for the product. The easiest way to list products on Amazon is to use their listing loader template and provide a UPC code as the product ID. When product feeds are defined using this method Amazon will use its system to attempt to select the best ASIN for the UPC. This is matching by UPC. The second option is to match by ASIN. If you know the correct ASIN for a product the product feed will have a much higher success rate.
When Match by UPC is used Amazon will attempt to find the correct ASIN for the product. Here are some of the problems with match by UPC:
- UPC or EAN-13 are used to identify a product but do not qualify the package configuration. Products that are offered with multiple package configurations are not clearly identified. Amazon should offer to match by GTIN-14 this would enable product matching that includes the package configuration (products sold by the each vs. by the 6 pack or 12 pack).
- Amazon’s data is only as good as the previous merchants that have provided the product content. Some items have incorrect UPCs as well as incorrect or missing manufacturers item numbers.
- Amazon will use the department provided in the list loader product feed to look for the ASIN. It will not look for the product in other departments.
- It is common to have as many as fifteen different ASINs for a UPC.
- The ASIN assigned for Amazon.com can be different than the ASINs assigned in Amazon’s other marketplaces. Each country maintains its own catalog of products.
Selecting the correct ASIN
Selecting the correct ASIN takes time or requires a large database of product content. Multiple product attributes should be considered before selecting an ASIN. To start use the UPC and if available include the Manufacturers item number. Additional product attributes that should be considered are, the product title, package configuration, brand name and price. Using these attributes will increase the probability that you have the correct ASIN but there is more…
Selecting an ASIN to get the best product match is significant but it is likely that there will be a few ASINs that would be a good product attribute match. Selecting the ASIN that has the best sales is a secondary goal. Knowing the sales rank of an ASIN, its department, number of parent child options and how the product has been ranked by customer reviews is almost as important as getting the correct product!
Here is a condensed listing of ASINs for an Antibacterial SoftSoap. All fifteen items are listed using UPC code 074182262549. Note that this listing was generated on July 8th 2014. Some of the ASINs may be discontinued over time.
| ASIN | Amazon Department | Amazon Sales Ranking | Product Title | Buy It Now Price | Comments |
| B00BFCL78G | Beauty | 44,800 | Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap, with Moisturizers, 7.5 Oz. Pump (Pack of 6) | $16.99 | 4.5 Stars, 4 reviews |
| B00CA5FUJ4 | 906,060 | SoftSoap Antibacterial Hand Soap, Crisp Clean, 7.5 Ounce | $6.25 | No inventory, not offered. | |
| B00CX3NY32 | Health and Personal Care | 799,270 | 7.5OZ Antibact Softsoap | $4.99 | No Reviews |
| B00C66ZQW8 | Home and Kitchen | 2,018,180 | SOFTSOAP ANTIBACTERIAL BKC 7.5OZ CRISP CLEAN 12 | $2.52 | No reviews |
| B00DUFL2JK | Beauty | 835,177 | Softsoap Antibacterial Hand Soap Crisp Clean, 2-Pack | $11.92 | No reviews |
| B00ED3PP96 | Health and Personal Care | 264,218 | SoftSoap Antibacterial Hand Soap, Crisp Clean, 7.5 Ounce | $5.87 | 2 Stars, 1 review |
| B00GVU72YK | 0 | Softsoap Liquid Hand Soap | $4.99 | No inventory, not offered. | |
| B00IUWJFME | Beauty | 1,205,885 | Softsoap Antibacterial Hand Soap with Moisturizers, Crisp Clean, 7.5 fl. oz. (3 Pack) | $14.95 | 1 star, 1 review |
| B00IU36DVY | Beauty | 0 | Antibacterial Hand Soap Crisp Clean Orange 7.5 oz Pump Bottle 5 CT | $31.75 | No Reviews |
| B00KOBVFVS | 0 | Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap With Moisturizers Crisp Clean 7.5OZ (Pack of 9) | $42.95 | No inventory, not offered. | |
| B00KOBVIAG | 0 | Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap With Moisturizers Crisp Clean 7.5OZ (Pack of 18) | $0.00 | No Inventory not offered. | |
| B00KO8CKX8 | Grocery and Gourmet Foods | 0 | Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap With Moisturizers Crisp Clean 7.5 OZ (Pack of 24) | $81.79 | No Reviews |
| B00L494RY6 | 0 | Softsoap Antibacterial Hand Soap | $0.00 | No inventory, not offered. | |
| B004E3C610 | Beauty | 739,613 | Colgate Palmolive, IPD Products – Soft Soap Antibacterial Bottle Soap, 7.5 oz. – Sold as 1 EA | $6.36 | No Reviews |
| B004ISLKDG | Industrial and Scientific | 72,476 | Softsoap 26017 7.5 Fluid oz Antibacterial Soap Pump With Light Moisturizers | $3.46 | No reviews |
Here is a link to download a Excel spreadsheet version of the listing. Sample Listing of ASINs for UPC lookup.
Conclusion
Using the UPC match method will work for a limited number of SKUs. As the merchant SKU count goes up the laws of probability will start generating bad matches. Incorrect ASINs can impact a sellers rating due to customer returns. Listing a item sold by the each using an ASIN defined as a twelve pack will get consumers upset! As the merchant becomes more sophisticated in their product matching the need for a good ASIN matching process become a necessity. Proper ASIN matching will not only reduce return request but will help drive additional sales by associating the merchants products with ASINs that are the top selling products that have the best customer reviews.
Inspire Technologies provides an ASIN look-up service. Our system will select the best ASIN for your products based on over ten ASIN attributes.
Joe Hainey