Weekly Buzz 8/28/25: Amazon Kills Variations? | Walmart Ties Marketplace to Stores | New YouTube Channel Giveaway!

Weekly Buzz 8/28/25: Amazon Kills Variations? | Walmart Ties Marketplace to Stores | New YouTube Channel Giveaway! Speaker 1: On this week's episode of The Weekly Buzz, we have updates to listing Armageddon and Walmart is now tying its online offerings to their retail stores and our brand new YouTube channel has just launched. This and more on this week's episode of The Weekly Buzz. Speaker 2: How cool is that? Pretty cool, I think. Hello, everybody, and welcome to another episode of the Serious Sellers Podcast by Helium 10. This is the show that is our Helium 10 weekly buzz, where we give you a rundown of all the goings on in the Amazon, TikTok shop, and e-commerce world. We let you know what new features that Helium 10 has, as well as give you a training tip of the week that'll give you serious strategies for serious sellers of any level in the e-commerce world. Today's host is actually going to be Carrie Miller. So, Carrie, take it away and let us know what's buzzing. Speaker 1: Okay, so first up, we actually have an update to Amazon's irrelevant or redundant variation theme removal. I know a lot of people were really upset about this when we announced it, I think it was last week, but Amazon actually sent out a little bit of a message in Seller Central to clarify some things about the variation cleanup because, you know, obviously people who have variations don't want their size, color variations to be completely deleted out of the catalog. So this is what Amazon actually said. They said, on August 20th, 2025, we announced that irrelevant or redundant variation themes would be removed from our listing experiences. These variation themes are marked as depreciated, do not use in our new product templates. We also published a list of variation themes and product types affected by this change. This change was only intended to impact variation themes that were not needed. We've revised the list to only remove variation themes that had no sales in the past 12 months Additionally, we won't remove any versions of critical variation themes like size, color, and style for applicable product types. Your existing variation families will continue to operate normally with no disruption to sales. If you want to update them, you can do so at any time. Child ASINs will stay active even if you choose to update the variation themes. Basically, if you want to see a list of those variation themes that are going to be depreciated, you can actually go to this message in Seller Central and it will show you. You can basically download an entire spreadsheet that's going to show you all of the variation themes that they are removing now. Thankfully, they're not removing the most important ones like size and color and all those variations that you need, but if you do have kind of an obscure one, you might want to check it and make sure that everything's okay. Also, they have an FAQ listed there as well if you need to check the FAQ for more information. So up next is we have a brand new YouTube channel for the Weekly Buzz and the Serious Sellers Podcast. And we're not going to be uploading these weekly buzzes in the podcast to our regular Helium 10 channel anymore. And so we want to make sure that you're able to find all of this great information. So the way that you're going to find it, I'm going to share my screen. You're going to go to YouTube and you're going to search Helium 10 Serious Sellers Podcast. And what we want you to do is we want you to hit subscribe. And then what you're gonna do is you're gonna go into the channel and if you like or actually like and comment on one of the videos that we already have posted, you're gonna be entered to win a one-on-one call with either Bradley, myself, or Shivali. It's gonna be your choice. So don't miss out on that easy win and make sure to follow us on that channel to make sure that you don't miss out on the latest news, okay? So make sure you subscribe to that YouTube channel so you don't miss out on any of the new podcasts and weekly buzz. Alright, so let's go ahead and get into the next article which is Amazon resumes Google shopping ads but not in the U.S. We actually talked about this a while back that Amazon is not doing Google ads anymore and so we were kind of questioning what was going on with this. I'm just going to show this article. Basically, Amazon restarted spending on Google shopping ads across its international domains exactly one month after abruptly pausing them, which is a move that now looks like a deliberate marketing test. So here are some of the details. And we actually have it in this article. It says, all international domains are once again running shopping ads. The US market remains excluded, raising questions about competitive strategy and channel mix. And the month-long pause lines up with theories that Amazon was stress testing reliance on Google traffic. So Amazon is one of Google's largest advertisers and its absence reshaped the auction. So when Amazon actually went dark, and this is from a study from Optimizer that they found, they found that the clicks rose for other retailers, but the ROAS actually dropped. And this suggests that Amazon's presence helps keep traffic more efficient, even for competitors. And Amazon's selective return highlights its ability to flex its advertising muscle while experimenting with acquisition costs. For rivals, the US gap could be a rare window to grab market share before Amazon inevitably flips the switch back on. So I'm curious to know what all you think. Why do you think that they're kind of testing this? Do you think that they think they're good enough without Google? I'm really interested to know how this will turn out or when they'll turn it back on the US ads. But for now, they've only turned back on the international ads. Okay, so next up, I'm going to pass it over to Shivali for our new feature alert, which is an update on Blackbox. Speaker 3: All right, it's time for a new feature alert. If you've ever opened up Blackbox Product Finder, you know that it's one of the most powerful product research tools out there on the market. But let's be honest, its advanced mode has over 20 different filters. And if you are a brand new or non-technical seller, then that can feel a little overwhelming, which is why we've completely re-imagined the simple mode inside of Blackbox. Let me show you what's new. Instead of this advanced section where you have access to a handful of different filters, what you can do is toggle over to simple. And in doing so, now it's going to walk you through step-by-step through a question flow. You just answer these five easy questions, things like your preferred category, which are the three areas you're familiar with. You can also opt to get a surprise category if you'd like. What price range are you most comfortable selling at? Is it less than 20 bucks, 20 to 35, 35 to 50, over 50? What sort of competition are you comfortable with? Some people have a A higher risk tolerance than others, and that is why these answers are really up to you. Should your product fit into a shoebox? Do you want something bigger, smaller? Be mindful that something that's smaller is probably going to require a little bit less capital investment to start, whereas something bigger, think a couch, a refrigerator, they're bigger items, they're probably a little bit more expensive, is going to require more capital upfront as well. And then for your monthly revenue, if you could make X amount in monthly sales, that would make you smile. Hopefully you can see this above my head right here. And then Blackbox is going to do the heavy lifting for you by automatically translating your answers into smart conditions. I'm just going to select a few right off the bat so you guys can check out what I mean. I'm just selecting a few here to show you an example. I'm going to click search. And as you can see, that automatically translated to the more advanced filters. The tool went in, found the associated filters and did it for you. And so now you can go through and just focus on getting the data. The whole point of this is for Blackbox to do the heavy lifting for you and to automatically translate your answers into those smart search conditions I mentioned. Plus, we've added category-based pricing suggestions with a green checkmark to let new sellers know when they're choosing a suitable price point. Yes, you can switch between simple and advanced mode without losing your data, but the barrier to entry for new sellers just got that much lower and more simplified, so you literally do not have an excuse to get started, if the shoe fits. It also means you'll start learning how to think like an advanced user without the frustration. Give it a try, and with that, I'll pass it back to Carrie. Speaker 1: Thank you so much for that update, Shivali. Okay, so next up we have some announcements from Walmart because they just had their Let's Grow conference in San Diego this last week and that's where they annually announce all of their major updates to the Walmart marketplace. So we have some exciting updates. I'm gonna share this article. This article is called Walmart Ties Marketplace to Stores and Debuts AI Seller Tools. So basically it kind of highlights all of the main announcements that they had and so we'll take a look at this. It says they're looking to boost seller exposure. Walmart announced new in-store initiatives and AI-powered tools for its marketplace. The company announced Tuesday at its Marketplace Seller Summit its new supercenter in Cyprus, Texas features in-store QR codes that let customers access extended online assortments. The retailer is bringing the extended marketplace aisle into stores with a few items on display that allow shoppers to then purchase through the Walmart app. Walmart also announced expanded next day delivery coverage via Walmart fulfillment services in top cities like LA, New York, Chicago, Houston, and Atlanta. And Walmart also debuted AI power listing tools that are intended to help sellers reduce time to market and improve conversion rates. Additionally, the company is reducing its seller referral fee to 0% for qualifying toys ahead of the peak season. So if you sell toys, you should be selling on Walmart because that's one of their biggest categories. And now they're not even gonna be charging you any referral fees. So that's pretty incredible. And just going to the online, a lot of people want to get into Walmart stores. So this is a really cool opportunity for online sellers to kind of showcase their products in stores. And to see how people react and if they're buying through kind of these QR codes. And I'm imagining if this works really well at their Texas store that they're going to expand it nationwide and we'll see how that goes. But going along with this, I'm going to go into the next article. Walmart actually rolled out faster deliveries for third-party sellers. So it says the retail giant announced Tuesday, August 26th, that its fulfillment services, which provides storage and shipping services for its third-party marketplace vendors, will now begin offering next-day delivery in those cities that I mentioned before, New York, LA, Chicago, Houston, and Atlanta. Walmart's aim is to deliver the speed that customers expect and the service will cover some of the website's most popular items with Walmart planning to continue to expand the next-day deliveries to additional areas. So that's pretty exciting. Especially because if you're selling on other platforms and also Walmart, maybe now people will start buying on Walmart because of that next day delivery. This could be a huge game changer for Walmart sales in general, especially for those items where people really want them faster. Very, very exciting updates from the Let's Grow Conference, and I'm sure Walmart will continue to be updating their platforms, but these are some really good updates, I think. Okay, so let's go ahead and get to the next announcement here, and that is an announcement in Seller Central, and it's about meltable inventory. Starting on September 22nd, 2025, Amazon is going to be removing the previous meltable inventory restrictions announcement that they had in March, and they do this every year. This ensures that the meltable inventory doesn't just melt all over the place. So you can actually start sending those back in and they're going to resume filling customer orders for these products October 13th. Multiple inventory refers to all heat sensitive products that melt during prolonged exposure to temperatures of 155 degrees Fahrenheit. And this includes, but is not limited to chocolates, gummies, and select jelly and wax based products. So if you sell those types of products, then again, starting September 22nd, you're going to be able to Start sending those things back in so that they can start being sold on October 13th. And next up we have some enrollment changes for FBA liquidations and donation programs. So this is actually another announcement in Seller Central. It says the FBA liquidation program, which allows you to potentially receive recovery for eligible inventory, will become the default option for your unsold inventory. If you haven't configured your automated fulfillable settings and automated unfulfillable settings, you'll automatically be enrolled in the liquidation program. You can still opt out of the liquidation program at any time. The FBA donations program, which allows your eligible products to be donated instead of recycled, will become mandatory. As of September 30th, 2025, you won't be able to opt out. If you've previously opted out, you'll be re-enrolled. There are no changes to the fees for either program. These programs support Amazon's commitment to sustainability by extending product life cycles And reducing waste. Through liquidation, products find new users through secondary markets, while donations ensure useful items reach charitable organizations instead of being discarded. While no action from you is required, Amazon recommends that you review these changes and adjust your inventory management strategy. Check that out if you're curious about any more information. There is, you know, more details that you can click on to get more information in that announcement. And next up we have a training tip of the week from Bradley Sutton and it is about Helium 10 custom rules for ads. So you're definitely going to want to check in with this one because this can save you a lot of money and a lot of time. Speaker 2: How to set custom rules for your advertising that could save you up to 95% of the time it takes to manage Amazon advertising. This is important. It should be self-explanatory how this can make you money. How many of us, if we didn't use an agency, if we weren't using software, were toiling with Amazon Seller Central search term reports to manage our PPC and then we had to run pivot tables and VLOOKUPs and download multiple weeks of data And then we have to find all the data points that we want. Hey, where was my, which search terms did I have more than 25 clicks, but no sales? Oh, let me find those one by one. Once I found them, now I got to go find where that campaign is in Seller Central and pause that target or negative match that target. Maybe I had another rule where I'm like, you know what? If I have something that was between 100 and 120% ACoS, I need to bring that down to 70% ACoS. Well, first of all, I would have to make a whole bunch of formulas in Excel files to even find where is in that range of a cost. And then I would have to make another formula that said, all right, what do I have to bring my bid down in order to bring my a cost down to 80%? And then again, once I make all those calculations, again, I got to go one by one, find where in the world that target is, in which campaign, in which ad group, and edit it one by one. This takes time. Like if you've got one product, sure, you know, maybe you've got five campaigns, you can probably manage that like, you know, 30 minutes a week. But what if you have hundreds of campaigns, scores of products? You can see that takes forever. Well, that's why Helium 10 ads has rules-based Add campaigns. It means that you set your own rules, not Helium 10. Helium 10 has AI. We could do it for you, but no, all of us have our own little way of how we want to run advertising. I want to optimize based on my ROAS. I want to optimize based on ACOS, and if it's at this level, I want to schedule when I have a high bid and a low bid, etc. Whatever your personal rules are that you're manually doing, let Helium 10 do the heavy lifting for you. We're one of the only all-in-one tools that have full rules-based management for your advertising. Let me show you how it works really quick. For example, here's one of my campaigns and I've got tons of rules here that are just based on ACoS, right? I add all of my campaigns to this and I'm like, hey, you know what? If ACoS is between 50 and 60, do the calculations so that the bid gets down to 40. If it's between 40 and 50, make it go down to 30. And I have it on the flip side. If it's between 3 and 5 percent, you know what? Raise it up to 7 percent. You know, raise it a bit. I have other ones where it says, you know what? If I get more than 25 clicks but zero orders in 60 days for a target, pause the target. I have so many rules here that I set up that was basically kind of like set it and forget it. In addition to that, I also have like day parting schedules. I noticed that my ads were like back in the day, they were like crazy high at certain times of the day like 10 p.m. to midnight. So you'll see here I set another rule that says, you know what, for each day of the week, for the period of 10 to 11 p.m. since that just for whatever reason like works terribly for me, take my bids down by 75% so I'm not losing so much. And look here, I just did that recently. You could see here how my A cost was 172% before at 10 p.m. Well, watch what happens. This is just looking back at 60 days. Look what's going to happen if I look back at like my last, let's just say last couple of weeks here from 10 to 11 p.m. Now look at that. 10 to 11 p.m. my A cost is actually down to zero almost. It's like not spending at all. So look at how much money I saved. $170 of wasted spend I was spending in the previous 60 days and now that has come to a complete halt because I set up this rule that said lower my bids at this very unprofitable time. Once all of those rules are put in place every week, I set mine every week. You could set yours to every day. Helium 10 is giving me suggestions of what I need to do with my bids in order to put into practice those rules I had. So like for example, here's a keyword coffin shelf where my cost per click was 29 cents. I had said, hey, if it's between 30 and 40 percent, Do what it takes to get that down to 20% ACOS, and sure enough, Helium 10 is telling me, hey, lower that bid down by three cents. There's 58 of these suggestions that came just today, and I just have to click this button once if I want to implement it. This is something that would have taken me hours to do with those pivot tables and spreadsheets. I can manage my PPC up to 100 campaigns in about five minutes a week without even automation. I can turn on automation in zero time, but me personally, I like to keep control. Again, rules-based advertising, Helium 10 is the only place you are going to get that when you're talking about all-in-one suite of tools for Amazon sellers. This is absolutely a way that can make you money because it's gonna find stuff that maybe you couldn't with Excel files and save you some money. But more importantly, arguably, it's gonna save you time. Like I said, it saves me out. least I would say five to ten hours of week of work across my 250 campaigns that I'm managing because it only take me like five minutes per account so like maybe 15 minutes for all three of my accounts and I'm finished every week optimizing my ads campaign so if you're interested Helium 10 ads you get it free with a diamond plan so make sure you to add a And you start utilizing ads now. Speaker 1: Thank you so much Bradley for that seller strategy of the week. Okay, next up we have an article within Seller Central or announcement actually within Seller Central that says protect your account from deactivation with account health assurance. And I think this is actually pretty helpful for a lot of people because if there's any kind of violation, they usually will deactivate your account and it's really difficult to get back up online. And so with this, I think it might make it a little bit easier for you to resolve issues and they'll kind of take a more proactive approach, at least according to this announcement. It says on here, it says, we understand how important it is to get your selling account back online when policy violations arise. If you consistently achieve a high account health rating, our account health assurance program enables you to continue selling while you resolve account health issues with the help of our team. Here's how it works. If you have a professional selling account and you maintain an account health rating of 250 or higher for at least six months with no more than 10 days below the threshold and have a valid emergency contact number on file, you'll be automatically enrolled in account health assurance at no additional cost. When you encounter an issue that would otherwise result in account deactivation, an account health specialist will reach out to you to explain what the issue is and how to address it. As long as you respond to us within 72 hours, and us is Amazon, and you work with Amazon to resolve the account issues, your selling account won't be deactivated. Note, if you commit serious policy violations such as fraud or deceptive, illegal, or harmful activities, we may still take your immediate action, including account deactivation. So this is really good news, very helpful for sellers who maybe have some sort of violation they didn't know about. That way they don't get completely deactivated and they can still sell while they figure out the problem they have and they'll have access to their account to be able to solve the issue. So I think this is a really good update. And next up we have an article from Amazon about optimized targeting for sponsored display conversion campaigns. This actually is gonna show you what actually just launched, which is basically when you select your optimization strategy for conversions, sponsored display will enable cost-effective dynamically optimized targeting to help you reach audiences who are more likely to engage with your ads. By selecting bids with recommendations provided by Amazon, advertisers can now select for optimized targeting To automatically reach audiences likely to be interested in your ads, minimizing the guesswork and effort to manually select different targeting types. For added flexibility and control, advertisers will also have the ability to select either manual targeting or add manual targeting in addition to optimized targeting. For manual targeting, advertisers will now have options to select remarketing, exact products targeting based on views or purchases or contextual targeting. And this actually, they go further down to say where it's available. It's going to be available in North America, in the United States, Canada and Mexico, South America and Brazil. It'll also be in Europe, in the UK, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Poland, the Netherlands, Sweden. The Middle East will be in the United Arab Emirates. Asia Pacific, it'll be Australia, India, Japan, and Singapore. So kind of thinking this might be a little bit kind of like how TikTok ads have this kind of algorithm where they find the audiences where they will most likely convert. It's kind of like an AI thing. So if you haven't checked it out, check this out and start utilizing these amazing tools that Amazon is giving to all of us. So that is all that we have for this week's episode of The Weekly Buzz and we hope that you'll tune in again next week and remember, you're gonna go to the Serious Sellers Podcast YouTube channel and that's where it's gonna be so go ahead and tune into that channel next week for our weekly buzz so you can see what's buzzing. Bye everyone.