You may not like the algorithm, but Amazon’s Perfect Order Percentage is a quantitative metric of your selling abilities, sort of like a continually-updated report card. RepricerExpress shows you how you can add some pep to your POP.
The Proof is in the POP
Amazon values perfection, having built its reputation on a foundation of fulfilled promises. In turn, they really, really like sellers who are motivated to strive towards a Perfect Order status, and use seven criteria in which to measure your performance.
- A-to-Z Guarantee Claims
- Buyer-initiated messages
- Cancellations
- Chargebacks
- Late shipments
- Negative feedback
- Refunds
If you fulfil an order without a single wrinkle, then that’s considered a Perfect Order. But if one of the above criterion was used, then it’s no longer a Perfect Order. Further, Amazon calculates your Perfect Order Percentage by dividing your total orders by the number of Perfect Orders in the last 90 days. It’s highly unlikely that you’ll have a 100% score, but Amazon wants you to use 95% as your baseline.
Common Problems Leading to a Non-Perfect Perfect Order Percentage
Depending on the kind of inventory you keep, you’ll run into some Perfect Order problems more than others. If you sell clothing or shoes, for example, two things that aren’t universally sized, then buyers tend to return those items much more frequently (on account of it not fitting just so) than they would a Kindle or garden rake.
But there are other consumer complaints that tend to be common across the board, like receiving a package late, trying to buy something that’s mispriced or out of stock, or being given incorrect shipping information. These kinds of Perfect Order problems tend to be the result of a disorganised merchant, and they’re so easy to nip in the bud.
What WON’T Lead To a Perfect Order Problem?
It’s not all crab-apples and raw lemons. Amazon knows that sometimes there are situations where an issue has nothing to do with affecting a positive user experience, and they list these four actions as not counting against you:
- Cancelled orders requested by the buyer using the order-cancellation option on Amazon.co.uk.
- Pending orders cancelled by the buyer on Amazon.co.uk.
- Buyer-initiated messages that don’t require a response, such as a “Thank You” note.
- Buyer-initiated messages that are not related to an order.
What You Need to Do (Or Keep Doing)
If your POP is below 95%, your choices are pretty clear-cut: improve your performance! Go over your product descriptions and ensure they’re as accurate and thorough as possible, only list what you have in stock, research precisely how long an item will take to ship and then buffer that time slightly so the package always arrives promptly, and address concerns and comments so your buyer feedback is as gushingly good as possible.
It’s also a good idea to go over your Seller Central page with a fine-toothed comb every three days or so. This’ll give you the chance to address in real-time any negative events that can adversely affect your POP, or identify positive changes to keep building off of. As tempting as it may be to think that a POP calculated on the last 90 days offers a nice cushion, a history of low POP scores can also take that much longer to amend. Your best tactic is to stay on top of things and address each sub-95% POP as though it’s the deal-breaker.
