Today's tip · Inventory
Five days to the inbound cutoff. Pick favorites.
If you chose Amazon-optimized shipment splits for Black Friday stock (most sellers do), Amazon wants it to arrive by October 28. Arrive. Not leave the factory, not sit at the port. This weekend is for triage.
Here is the uncomfortable part. You probably can't get everything in. So don't try. A half-stocked catalog spread evenly across forty SKUs is worse than twelve SKUs that never go out of stock in the week that matters most.
Rank by what already sells, then by what it earns. The winners get the trucks, the cash and your attention. The rest can wait for January, when nobody is fighting you for dock space.
Sellers who enrolled in AWD in Q4 2025, as reported by Amazon.
The weekend plan
- 01Rank
Sort SKUs by recent units, then margin. Circle the top fifth.
- 02Reserve
Short on space? Bid in Capacity Manager instead of rationing every SKU.
- 03Replenish
On AWD with auto-replenishment? You pay off-peak storage through Oct 31. Push stock forward now.
- 04Reroute
Whatever misses the cutoff: fulfill it yourself, and promise delivery dates you can keep.
Section 02
The Q4 calendar
Every date Amazon has put in writing, plus the two you already know. October is zoomed in because that's where the trouble is.
Peak fulfillment fees run Oct 15 to Jan 14. Plus $0.32 per unit on average, with the 3.5% surcharge on top.
- AWD arrival deadline for Black Friday Week
- Holiday peak fulfillment fees begin
- Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday deal submissions close
- FBA arrival deadline, minimal shipment splits
- FBA arrival deadline, Amazon-optimized splits (most sellers)
- Last day of off-peak storage for AWD with auto-replenishment
- Black Friday
- Cyber Monday
- Last day to sign up for the free 12-month Amazon Quick Plus subscription
- Holiday peak fulfillment fees end
Sources: Seller Central News, Holiday 2026, About Amazon, Seller Assistant
Section 03
By the numbers
Four figures worth knowing this week. Each one is Amazon's own, linked to where they said it.
customers used Alexa for Shopping in the past year
Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recapmore spent per order by customers who shop that way
Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recapaverage per-unit peak fulfillment increase, Oct 15 to Jan 14
Seller Central News, Holiday 2026fuel and logistics surcharge, stacked on top of peak fees
Seller Central News, Holiday 2026Section 04
The playbook
6 moves for this week, then a few quick ones for the train.
Listings
Your listing now has a very well-read reader. Write for it.
In May, Amazon folded Rufus into Alexa for Shopping, which now sits in the main search bar and answers questions like a store clerk who has read every listing. At Accelerate, Amazon put it plainly: the shift rewards sellers who clearly explain what a product does over those who game search terms.
So stop stuffing. Open your best seller and read the first two bullets out loud. If they sound like a keyword report, rewrite them as plain claims a shopper could check: size, material, who it's for, the problem it solves.
Do this: Rewrite two bullets on one ASIN today. Keep every claim consistent with what your reviews already say.
Sources: About Amazon, Alexa for Shopping, Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap
- Search bar Shoppers now ask Alexa for Shopping questions right here. Your listing is the answer key.
- Title What it is, who it's for, one standout trait. Not a keyword pile.
- Images Show scale, use and what's in the box. Answer the question before it's typed.
- Bullets Checkable claims: size, material, compatibility, care.
- A+ content The FAQ you're tired of answering in Buyer Messages.
Illustration, not a real listing.
Advertising
Let the robot prune. You set the fence.
Amazon's new auto-optimization adds search terms that perform, pauses the ones that don't, and keeps every bid under a maximum you set. Amazon says new campaigns using it reached a first sale 40% faster in early results.
Do this: Turn it on for one new campaign, set a max bid you'd defend to your accountant, and check the change log on Monday.
Source: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap
Diagram based on Amazon's description of auto-optimization.
Source: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap
Reviews
Finally, a polite way to ask for reviews at scale
Review Requests, a new Amazon Ads format, opens in US beta in late October. It shows verified recent buyers a one-click rating prompt while they shop. It's only for products with fewer than 1,000 ratings and reviews, and campaigns pause on their own once you cross that line.
Do this: Make a shortlist of newer ASINs that deserve more reviews than they have. Those go first. Never offer anything in exchange for a review; that rule hasn't moved.
Source: Amazon Ads, Review Requests
Amazon internal data, US closed beta, June 3 to 21, 2026. Before the test = 1x.
Source: Amazon Ads, Review Requests
Pricing
Know what a deal costs before you fall in love with the discount
Deal submissions for Black Friday Week closed on October 20. If you got in, good. Now do the math you skipped in July. Best Deals, Lightning Deals and Prime Exclusive Price Discounts carry the same fees as Prime Day, and peak fulfillment rates have been on your invoices since October 15.
Do this: Run each hero SKU through the Revenue Calculator at peak rates. Write the lowest price you'll accept on a sticky note. Stick it to the monitor.
Amazon Business
Somebody has to buy 400 water bottles for the office party
Business customers are a different animal. Amazon's numbers from Accelerate: orders nearly two and a half times larger than consumers, three times the conversion rate, and returns at less than half the frequency. The new Amazon Business Deals let you set volume pricing that only business buyers see.
Do this: If your product belongs in an office, a classroom or a clinic, set up one Business Deal on your best fit ASIN before December gifting season starts.
Source: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap
Consumer baseline = 1x. Returns shown as 'less than half' because that's how Amazon put it.
Source: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap
Account Health
The appeal process just grew a spine
Listing Protection reaches every Account Health Assurance seller in the US by the end of this year, worldwide in 2027. When a listing gets flagged, it usually stays live while you fix it or argue. AHA sellers also get Seller Challenge: three reviews of listing-level decisions every 180 days.
Do this: Check the banner on your Account Health dashboard to see if you're enrolled. Save your challenges for decisions that are clearly wrong, not ones you could just fix.
Sources: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap, Seller Central News, Seller Challenge
In most cases, your listing stays active until we issue a decision, and your business keeps running while we review.
Quick hits
07FBA
Define "like new" before January defines it for you
You can now tell Amazon how to grade your FBA returns: packaging, accessories, authenticity markers, and the price to resell at by condition. Rules can cover one ASIN, the whole catalog, or a CSV. Write them for your most-returned products now. The post-holiday returns pile is coming whether you're ready or not.
08Brand Registry
Fifteen minutes of paranoia, well spent
Search your brand name and your top three keywords. Look for listings using your photos, sellers you don't recognize on your ASINs, and knockoffs with suspiciously familiar titles. Report what you find through Brand Registry today. Holiday traffic draws opportunists, and they don't take weekends off.
09Operations
Hire the free assistant. Give it a tiny job first.
Seller Assistant can now run workflows on its own, with guardrails and an audit trail, even when you're logged out. Every primary account holder can sign up for a free 12-month Amazon Quick Plus subscription through December 31, 2026, plus two coworkers. Start with an alert, something like "tell me when a top-10 ASIN drops below four stars." Let it earn the keys.
Source: About Amazon, Seller Assistant
Section 05
The wire
What changed lately, straight from Amazon. We read the announcement so you can read the summary.
- Fees
Holiday peak fulfillment fees are live
October 15 to January 14 for FBA, Remote Fulfillment, MCF and Buy with Prime. Same average increase as last year, $0.32 per unit, with the 3.5% surcharge on top.
via Seller Central News, Holiday 2026 - Seller Central
Run eBay, Shopify, TikTok and Walmart from Seller Central
Connect other storefronts, edit a listing once and push it everywhere, fulfill every channel's orders from one screen. Rolling out gradually to US sellers at no extra cost.
via Seller Central News, Multichannel tools - FBA
Set your own grading rules for FBA returns
Tell Amazon what counts as sellable as new, by category, ASIN, catalog or CSV, including used-price percentages by condition.
via Seller Central News, Customized grading - Ads
unBoxed 2026: one console to rule them all
Amazon Ads Agent merges the ads console and DSP. Full-Funnel Campaigns let AI handle the channel mix; Amazon says beta testers saw 67% higher long-term ROAS. DVA+ puts display, video and audio in one campaign.
via Amazon Ads, unBoxed 2026 - Reviews
Review Requests ads, US beta in late October
Paid invites to verified recent buyers, for products under 1,000 ratings and reviews. Managed in Amazon Ads Agent.
via Amazon Ads, Review Requests - Account Health
Listing Protection for Account Health Assurance sellers
Flagged listings stay live in most cases while you resolve or dispute. All US AHA sellers by year-end, worldwide in 2027.
via Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap - AI tools
Seller Assistant learns to work unsupervised (with permission)
Always-on workflows with seller-set guardrails, plus a plugin that brings Seller Central data into Amazon Quick and, in beta, Anthropic's Claude.
via About Amazon, Seller Assistant
Section 06
Straight answers
The questions sellers are typing into search bars and chatbots this week, answered in under a minute each. Every answer is grounded in Amazon's own announcement, linked below it.
When is the FBA inventory deadline for Black Friday 2026?
Amazon asks for FBA inventory to arrive by October 28, 2026 if you use Amazon-optimized shipment splits, and by October 21 if you chose minimal shipment splits. AWD inventory for Black Friday Week had to arrive by October 14. Arrive means at Amazon, not shipped from your factory or waiting at the port.
When do Amazon's 2026 holiday peak fulfillment fees apply?
From October 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027, for FBA, Remote Fulfillment, Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime. Amazon puts the average increase at $0.32 per unit, the same as last year, and the 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge still applies on top.
How much does a Black Friday deal cost on Amazon?
For Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday, Best Deals, Lightning Deals and Prime Exclusive Price Discounts carry the same fees as Prime Day: $100 upfront per promotion plus 1.5% of promotional sales, with the variable part capped at $5,000. Submissions for 2026 closed on October 20.
Is Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD) worth it for Q4?
Amazon reports that sellers who enrolled in AWD in Q4 2025 saw shipped units rise by 13% or more and out-of-stock days fall by 30% or more. If you use AWD with auto-replenishment, storage stays at off-peak rates through October 31, 2026, so moving stock forward now costs less.
How should I write Amazon listings for Alexa for Shopping?
Write for a shopper asking questions, not for a keyword index. Alexa for Shopping, which absorbed Rufus, answers questions right in Amazon's search bar, and Amazon says the shift rewards sellers who clearly explain what a product does. Use plain, checkable claims: size, material, who it's for and the problem it solves.
Source: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap
What are Amazon Review Requests ads?
Review Requests is an Amazon Ads format that shows verified recent buyers a one-click prompt to rate a product they bought. It opens in US beta in late October 2026, only for products with fewer than 1,000 ratings and reviews, and campaigns pause automatically once a product crosses that line.
Source: Amazon Ads, Review Requests
Does a flagged listing stay live under Amazon's Listing Protection?
In most cases, yes. With Listing Protection, a flagged listing usually stays active while Amazon reviews it and you fix or dispute the issue. It is for Account Health Assurance sellers, reaching all of them in the US by the end of 2026 and worldwide in 2027. AHA sellers also get Seller Challenge.
Source: Amazon, Accelerate 2026 recap